RS1 Binding Issues

[35 in the bag]

On a different forum I wrote earlier this year...........

 

........I am hesitant to write this response, especially on this forum, because I don’t want to cast any negative light on the Radar Team Products. These guys are great…..taking on the risk of innovation and product development/delivery to the market……all to our (the skier’s) benefit. The RS1 boot system is a truly innovative concept which has many merits. Bearing in mind that product development is a process as it moves towards perfection for its intended purpose, and, having arrived at a system tweak which has helped the RS1’s usefulness and safety for me, I will share what I have done in the hope it will help others and maybe even aid the Radar Team in the development process.

 

About the RS1/RTP, it has been a process and taken modifications to get the set-up right for me.......

 

Wearing 10.5 shoes, I was directed to try the size 11 RS1 which I heat molded to my foot per the instructions. First set (6 weeks ago) it was just way too loose. My foot was moving all around in the boot and I did not feel I had proper control/contact with the ski.  I exchanged the 11 for a 10 which I did not heat mold to my foot.  Running both sets of laces quite loose, I found my big toe was being pushed into the front of the boot causing some pain and a bit of bruising under the nail. So I really cinched down the front laces and kept the top laces quit loose. The boot was performing great as far as ski control is concerned.....maybe lacking a little upper ankle lateral support from what I was used to w/ my Connelly Vision high wrap. Over the period of a week I took three normal type falls (32/35 off), all released, but two of them I felt a slight top of foot/ankle tweak. The sort of thing I had only felt a couple of times in three years of skiing the high wraps. Enough to scare me into thinking that this may not be the system for me  ......So.......

 

I was about to trash the experiment.  But upon studying the binding....and what I felt was happening, I decided to try something. 

 

READ THIS........... 

 

I took the lower set of laces out of their respective top set of "eyelets", effectively lowering how far up the instep it grabs my foot. This was a great improvement for me. It no longer "hung up" at that partially out release position and I am able to really tighten down the front laces to get good contact with the ski and prevent my foot from moving around under high load. I am running the top bungee laces quite loose. Tightening them only to the point that they do not unduly restrict the release process. In fact at this point I am not even hooking the upper laces around the top lace catches.

 

Several OTF's later, everything is working great. The releases are clean as a whistle. I now have no fear what-so-ever about the safety of the system as it is now set it up for myself. I am just to the point in my season where I am starting to work on my max pass (38off). So I haven't fully concluded whether lateral support is an issue yet. I have several ideas for improvement which I will implement if this becomes an issue for me.

 

I can tell you this……….  I have since switched back and forth between the high wrap and the modified RS1 several times, even during the same set. I will not be going back to the high wrap because the RS1, when compared back to back, has noticeably more control, and significant sensed increase of ski responsiveness, and places me in a more balanced, front knee forward skiing position consistent with maintaining more speed at the finish of the turn among lots of other benefits.

 

John Miller – Michigan

 

 

 

[35 in the bag]

NOW FOR TODAY'S ISSUE.......Over the course of several weeks...my skiing became very inconsistent. The ski was very squirrelly at times leaving me virtually unable to ski (not even running 32s when I usually stroke 35s). Began checking things and thinking about it.  Fin was good (unchanged) and stable in the block. Bindings were properly attached and un moved. Then I connected the fact that the ski was most unstable if I did not firmly tighten the front laces "before" I put my foot in the binding. Doing so put me back in the game. I concluded that if the front laces were not tight enough, the ski was moving around under my foot.After a few more sets, I was periodically breaking at the waist on the toe side...humm..........typical of a too much tip condition.......again fin was unchanged.....so what could it be?    I have to do something....I won't progress like this! Then I thought.....Maybe my foot is moving forward with in the binding!I layered about 10-12 layers of duct tape around the front of the toe on the outside of the liner then wrapped all that with electrical tape in an effort to hold it all in place……effectively moving my foot and the liner rearward within the shell. It worked great! The ski is back to “normal†for me.  I have concluded that as the liner is used, it compacts at the pressure points. And since there is almost no resistance placed on the lower shin/upper foot the way I am using the binding, a significant portion of the forward force of the front foot is being transmitted to the ski through the front of the foot and toes. This transfer of forward force is significantly different than in other binding system like high wraps which may do a better job of grabbing the whole foot and ankle and are probably more resilient (able to return to their previous shape). I haven’t skied in hard shells so no comment.This is just a heads up for those using RS1 bindings and who have seen their skiing become inconsistent after multiple sets on them.John MillerMichigan

[Deke]

John,

 I wonder if your foot is being pushed farther into the front of the boot due to the back of the binding.  I have noticed that the back of the boot is relatively stiff and combined with the forward lean, any straightening of the knees will lever your toes deeper into the boot.  Rubber bindings aren't as stiff in the back so they don't really give any resistance when your knees straighten.  Just a thought...

Deke