161: The Ski Boot Special (How to choose ski boots, custom insoles, boot fitting)

Today Iain and Emily review Men & Women’s Downhill, plus Kirsty Muir’s 4th place in the Ski Slopestyle. We have contributions from Chemmy Alcott and Ed Leigh. SHOW NOTESLindsey Vonn broke her leg in the Women’s Downhill (1:00)Graham Bell’s predictions in Episode 293 were spot on (4:00)BBC’s Chemmy Alcott analyses the Men’s Downhill (4:40)Iain has been enjoying the split screen feature from Discovery+ (7:15)Kirsty Muir finished 4th in the Women’s Ski Slopestyle Ed Leigh on the Women’s Snowboard Big Air (11:30)Listen to Ed Leigh in Episode 296Chemmy Alcott on the Opening Ceremony (18:30)Snoop Dogg at the curling If you enjoyed this episode and you want to help the podcast, don’t forget that if you use the code ‘SKIPODCAST’ when you book your ski hire at intersportrent.com you’ll save yourself some money. Simply take this link for your discount to be automatically applied.

9 Feb 22min

BBC’s Ed Leigh explains the terms used to describe freestyle tricks, as well as how the judges come up with their scores, in the third of our Winter Olympics special episodes.With Kirsty Muir competing in the final of the Women’s Ski Slopestyle tomorrow (Mon 09 Feb) and Mia Brookes taking part in the Women’s Snowboard Big Air qualifying today (Sun 08 Feb) and, hopefully, the final tomorrow, there’s no better time to get up to date with all the key terms.SHOW NOTESDirection of spin (1:30)Axis of Rotation (2:15)Number of rotations (3:00)Type of grab (5:00)The scoring system in slopestyle (8:45)PAVED = Progression, Amplitude, Variety, Execution, Difficulty (9:15) Listen to our previous Winter Olympic special episodes, including our downhill preview with Graham Bell and exclusive interview with Eddie ‘The Eagle’ Edwards. If you enjoyed this episode and want to help the podcast, don’t forget that if you use the code ‘SKIPODCAST’ when you book your ski hire at intersportrent.com you’ll save yourself some money. Simply take this link for your discount to be automatically applied.

8 Feb 14min

Host Iain Martin is joined by Eddie ‘The Eagle’ Edwards – who at the 1988 Calgary Games became famous across the world for having the courage and determination to take on the challenge of Olympic ski jumping.His story was made into a movie in 2015, starring Hugh Jackman and Taron Edgerton. Eddie tells us about flying to movie premieres in private jets, how he’s disappointed that Team GB seem to disown him and the parallels he sees in the determination to compete shown by Lindsey Vonn. SHOW NOTESListen to Iain’s previous interview with Eddie from 2019 (1:00) Eddie has watched the ‘Eddie The Eagle’ movie over 150 times (1:30) Taron Edgerton nailed Eddie’s mannerisms and voice (2:15) Hugh Jackman asking for a selfie with Eddie (3:30) Memories of the Opening Ceremony at Calgary in 1988 (5:30) Readly - the digital magazine and newspaper app – has launched a retro Winter Olympics Games series (8:00) Readly’s survey placed Eddie 3rd behind the Jamaican bobsleigh team Torville and Dean in 1984 in a list of most memorable winter Olympic moments (8:30) GB Snowsports CEO Vicky Gosling said ‘The Eddie the Eagle days are over’ (10:00) Can British athletes draw lessons from Eddie’s experience? (10:30) Eddie on Lindsey Vonn (13:00)If you enjoyed this episode and you want to help the podcast, don’t forget that if you use the code ‘SKIPODCAST’ when you book your ski hire at intersportrent.com you’ll save yourself some money.  Simply take this link for your discount to be automatically applied.

7 Feb 15min

We find out about Sauze d’Oulx and the Via Lattea ski area in Italy, as well as the resort of Pra Loup in the southern French Alps.We also get excited about the Olympics, hearing Eddie ‘The Eagle’ Edwards’ thoughts on Lindsey Vonn – and go ‘Down Under’ to look at Australia chances of bringing home a record medal haul. Plus we have your feedback and our regular snow reports from around the mountains.Iain was joined in the studio by James and Sinead  from SauzeOnline and by Mike ‘The Snow’ Richards.SHOW NOTES Mike was in Crans Montana for the World Cup racing (3:45) Lindsey Vonn crashed in the Downhill and ruptured her ACL (5:00)Claire Harrison reports from the Aosta Valley (6:30) Alex Armand from Tip Top Ski Coaching is in Les 2 Alpes (7:45) Jim Duncombe is in La Clusaz (8:30) Betony Garner reported from Livigno, where she is working for Team GB (10:20) The first of our Special Olympics episodes was released on Wednesday (11:00) Former Team GB Skier X athlete Emily Sarsfield will be joining Iain for those episodes (11:30) Eddie ‘The Eagle’ Edwards on Lindsey Vonn (13:00) Rachael Oakes-Ash is THE expert on skiing in Australia and New Zealand and is Livigno reporting for snowsbest.com (14:45) Australian team chances (15:00) Watch ‘Pipe Dream’ – Scotty James’ story (17:30) Indra Brown (19:15) James and Sinead run SauzeOnline (24:00) Visit the official ‘Via Lattea’ website (25:30) The ski area has 400km of pistes (26:30) Sauze d’Oulx used to have a reputation as a party destination (29:00) A UK company now owns lift systems in the Vialattea and Bardonecchia (27:15) Who is the area suitable for? (30:30) Gastronomy in Via Lattea…and low prices! (32:00) Mike visited Pra Loup in December 2025 (34:00) The Pra Loup ski area has 180km of pistes (37:30) Ski touring tracks in Pra Loup (38:00) The Mercantour National Park (41:30) Pra Loup is a ‘dark sky reserve’ (42:00) Wolves are in the logo and in the park (43:00) Find out about the proposed new slope in Merthyr Tydfil (44:00)FeedbackYou can leave a comment on Spotify, Instagram or Facebook – our handle is @theskipodcast – or drop me an email to theskipodcast@gmail.com You can also follow us on WhatsApp for exclusive material released ahead of the podcast.Xomorph: “Enjoying the pod, but could you do an episode on what to do when you are bored with all the pistes in your area... I can ski all the slopes in my local resorts and now I don't know how to keep on having fun” Ian Brown: "Avid listener of the podcast. I just finished the Serfaus episode this morning, it’s an area on our list that we’d like to explore for sure"If you’d like to get some insight on a particular destination or the latest kit, just go to theskipodcast.com, have a search around the tags and categories and you’re bound to find something you’ll find interesting to listen to. if you’d like to help the podcast, there are three things you can do:     -          you can follow us, or subscribe, so you never miss an episode   -          you can give us a review on Apple Podcasts or leave a comment on Spotify   -          And, if you’re booking ski hire this winter, don’t forget that you can get an additional discount if you use the code ‘SKIPODCAST’ when you book at intersportrent.com or simply take this link for your discount to be automatically applied.

6 Feb 49min

In the first of our special Winter Olympics episodes covering Milan-Cortina 2026, we preview this weekend’s big events - the men and women’s downhill - and look ahead to the Women's Ski Slopestyle. Host Iain Martin was joined in the studio by special guest Emily Sarsfield and down the line by BBC commentator Graham Bell and Ski Sunday's Ed Leigh.SHOW NOTESEmily Sarsfield first appeared on the podcast in Episode 3 (0:45)She represented Team GB in Skier X including at Pyeongchang 2018 (2:00)The opening ceremony takes place at the San Siro in Milan on Friday (4:00)Team GB’s flag bearers are Brad Hall and Lilah Fear (5:00)Download the ski/snowboard schedule - all the dates and timings for the skiing and snowboarding events (5:20) Graham Bell shares his predictions for the Men and Women’s Downhill (6:45) Lindsey Vonn has stated that she has an ACL injury, but will still compete (12:30)The Women's Freeski Slopestyle qualifications are on Saturday, with the final on Monday Ed Leigh shared his thoughts on Kirsty Muir’s chances (14:15) Listen to Iain’s interview with Kirsty Muir in Episode 171 (14:30) If you enjoyed this episode and you want to help the podcast, don’t forget that if you use the code ‘SKIPODCAST’ when you book your ski hire at intersportrent.com you’ll save yourself some money. Simply take this link for your discount to be automatically appliedCover Photo (c) Milano-Cortina 2026

4 Feb 19min

Today we find out about La Tzoumaz in Switzerland and Jasna in Slovakia, plus we preview the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics including interviews with Vicky Gosling, CEO of GB Snowsports and Zak, Luca and Freddy Carrick Smith. We also have our regular snow reports and share our downloadable schedule for all the skiing and snowboarding events at Milan-Cortina.Iain was joined in the studio by Irish ski journalist, Catherine Murphy and Slovakia resident, Richard Patey.---------Tirol in Austria sponsors The Ski Podcast, which means this winter we’re are finding out more about some of the great destinations in Tirol, and how you can connect with the Austrian way of life: ‘Lebensgefühl’ – that you’ll find there.---------SHOW NOTESDave Burrows from Snowpros Ski School reported from Morgins (3:45) James Cove from planetski.eu reports from Revelstoke and Kicking Horse in Canada (5:00) Guy Beatson has been in Furano in Japan (6:00) The Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics start on 06 February (7:30) Download the skiing and snowboarding schedule (8:00) Team GB athletes picked up a stunning five medals at the X Games in Aspen (8:45) Listen to Iain’s interview with Kirsty Muir (9:15) Listen to Iain’s interview with Zoe Atkin (9:15) Mia Brookes spoke to Iain in Episode 188 (9:15) Vicky Gosling is CEO of GB Snowsport (9:30) Watch the documentary ‘She Who Dares’ on Discovery+ (16:00) Watch the Carrick-Smith documentary ‘Beyond the Gate’ on Amazon Prime or YouTube (20:30) Catherine shared her knowledge of Innsbruck in Episode 257 (21:00) Find out more about La Tzoumaz in Switzerland (21:15) The name comes from Valaisan dialect (21:45) How to get there (22:15) Catherine stayed at the Hotel Papillon (27:45)We featured Slovakia on the podcast once before, back in Episode 243 covering ‘Going East’ (29:00) Where is Slovakia? (29:30) Read Richard’s blog post about the transformation going  on in the High Tatras (31:00) ‘Slovakia is entering its “Austria-in-the-90s” phase’ Jasna is the biggest resort (33:30) Richard (and the ‘Going East’ crew’ skied at Stary Smokovec (35:00) The GoPass  covers all resorts as well as other benefits (36:30)Tatranska Lomnica and Štrbské Pleso are also in Slovakia Follow Richard on InstagramFeedbackIf you’ve enjoyed this episode – or even if you didn’t like it – I would love to know. You can leave a comment on Spotify, Instagram or Facebook – our handle is @theskipodcast – or drop me an email to theskipodcast@gmail.com You can also follow us on WhatsApp for exclusive material released ahead of the podcast. David Flynn: “I’m an Irish/French listener, love the podcast. It's become a stable diet in my household and are a life-saver for the walks with the dogs on the beach” Gavin Marsden: “I love each and every episode.” Andrew Wilson: "I am a regular listener. I only took up skiing at the age of 50, 4 years ago and love it." Andrew Brannan: “Iain, your podcast is excellent. Thank you for going to the trouble and not just reading out the latest press releases from Crystal.” There are now 292 episodes of The Ski Podcast to catch up with and 149 of those were listened to in the last week. If you’d like to get some insight on a particular destination or the latest kit, just go to theskipodcast.com, have a search around the tags and categories and you’re bound to find something you’ll find interesting to listen to. If you’d like to help the podcast, there are three things you can do:     -          you can follow us, or subscribe, so you never miss an episode   -          you can give us a review on Apple Podcasts or leave a comment on Spotify   -          And, if you’re booking ski hire this winter, don’t forget that you can get an additional discount if you use the code ‘SKIPODCAST’ when you book at intersportrent.com or simply take this link for your discount to be automatically applied

30 Jan 43min

In this episode, we learn more about the resorts of Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis in the Tirol region of Austria, how Swedish clothing brand, Peak Performance, design their garments and check in on the new Chenus lift in Courchevel. Host Iain Martin was joined by freelance journalist, Simon Miller and Ski Designer at Peak Performance, Marie Andersson ---------Tirol in Austria sponsors The Ski Podcast, which means this winter we’re are finding out more about some of the great destinations in Tirol, and how you can connect with the Austrian way of life: ‘Lebensgefühl’ – that you’ll find there.---------SHOW NOTESSimon has been skiing across Les 3 Vallees (2:45)Iain reported from Val Garden in Episode 242 (3:45) Marie will be skiing in Are, Sweden (4:45) Andy Butterworth from Kaluma Travel is in St Anton (6:15) James from Sauze Online was in Bardoneccia (7:50) Chris from Freeride Republic is in Meribel (9:30) Why we are renumbering the podcasts (11:00) The Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics start on 04 February (12:00) The Winter XGames take place in Aspen this weekend (12:30) Simlon was in Serfaus, staying at the Hotel Cervosa (13:15) Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis is known as a family friendly resort (15:00) ‘We are Family’ (15:10) Find out about the Serfaus subway (17:00) Safe skiing and slow skiing was discussed in Episode 270 (18:45) Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis is actually three separate villages The ski area has 214km of pistes and 69 lifts (20:00) Simon enjoyed the spectacular night show (22:30) Simon also tried the toboggan runs (23:30) Try the Schalber Alm for Kaiserscharnn (24:30) Simon also recommends the SkiHütte Masner (25:00) How to get there (25:45) The Apres-Ski in Serfaus is also excellent (27:00) Try the Patschi Bar or George’s Bar (27:30) Iain spoke with Philippe Mottier, General Manager of 3SV – the Courchevel lift company – about the new Chenus lift (29:45) Marion Guillemot from the Courchevel Tourist Office acted as translator Read Iain’s article on the Chenus lift on welove2ski.com (34:15) Marie’s journey into design (34:45) Working for Peak Perforrmance (36:00) How does the process of design work (36:45) What is the lead time for products (37:15) The R&D Helium Loop Anorak recently won an award at ISPO (38:00) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUeSelbRyb0 What is ISPO? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hTZS_gae84 Peak Performance published their sustainability report last year (41:00) FLO stands for ‘fabric leftovers’ (41:15) Iain upgraded to a Vislight shell jacket this year (44:00)FeedbackIf you’ve enjoyed this episode – or even if you didn’t like it – I would love to know. You can leave a comment on Spotify, Instagram or Facebook – our handle is @theskipodcast – or drop me an email to theskipodcast@gmail.com You can also follow us on WhatsApp for exclusive material released ahead of the podcast. Lara Rosenbaum: “I hope you’re feeling better after your fracture. I admire your spirit and love the podcast!” Claire Harrison [Mentioned last week had asked about Zillertal]: “A great piece on the Zillertal, thank you! Particularly looking forward to the Tirolean cuisine! Thank you for a great podcast: it’s endlessly interesting.  I loved 267 the episode on gloves and socks and bought a pair of the Level Iris glove on Al's recommendation”  Ed Hopkins: “Absolutely loved episode 270 on St Anton, Lech, sustainability and slow skiing. So interesting and learnt a lot!” Ross: “I just discovered The Ski Podcast - really enjoying the insights on snowsports!”  There are now 291 episodes of The Ski Podcast to catch up with. If you’d like to find out more about a particular destination, would like to listen to an interview with an athlete, or get advice on what kit to buy, just go to theskipodcast.com, have a search around the tags and categories and you’re bound to find something that will tick that box. if you’d like to help the podcast, there are three things you can do:     -          you can follow us, or subscribe, so you never miss an episode   -          you can give us a review on Apple Podcasts or leave a comment on Spotify   -          And, if you’re booking ski hire this winter, don’t forget that you can get an additional discount if you use the code ‘SKIPODCAST’ when you book at intersportrent.com or simply take this link for your discount to be automatically applied

23 Jan 47min

We find all about the Zillertal region in the Austrian Tirol, as well as the new expansion in Deer Valley, Utah. We also hear how Val d’Isere are helping skiers to feel safer, and have snow reports from Japan, La Plagne and…Wales!Host Iain Martin was joined in the studio by Katie Seiringer, owner of Kate Seiringer International Language Service in Mayrhofen and Emily Summers from Deer Valley Ski Resort.--------- Tirol in Austria sponsors The Ski Podcast, which means this winter we’re are finding out more about some of the great destinations in Tirol, and how you can connect with the Austrian way of life: ‘Lebensgefühl’ – that you’ll find there.--------- SHOW NOTESRobin Shah reported from Japan (5:15)Robin is staying at Yukiumi House Jen Tsang runs the website That’sLaPlagne (7:00) Mike Richards is the UK’s Wales ski expert (9:15) It is now three weeks until the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics start (12:45) Listen to Iain’s interview with Kirsty Muir (13:00) Kirsty won her second event of the season at the Slopestyle in Aspen https://x.com/skipedia/status/2009716157398548971 Zoe Atkin came second in the ski halfpipe, also in Aspen (13:30) Listen to Iain’s interview with Zoe in Episode 238 (13:45) Visit the official Zillertal website (14:30) The Zillertal ski area consists of Fügen-Kaltenbach, Zell-Gerlos, Mayrhofen-Hippach and Tux-Finkenberg (18:30) All 548km of pists and 180 lifts are covered on the Zillertal Superskipass (19:00) The Hintertux glacier is open from October to early summer (19:45) For non-skiers there are 460km of winter hiking trails, 113km cross-country trails and 48 km toboggan runs (21:15) Find out more about ‘Snowbombing’ (22:45) Mayrhofen hosts ‘The Brits’ - British Snowboard & Freeski Championships in March (23:00) Listen to Iain’s interview with Brits’ organiser Stu Brass in Episode 245 Try the Tristenbachalm mountain hut (24:00) Kate also recommends the Bichlalm in Tux (25:00) She also suggests you try the HolzknechtkrapfenUtah has ‘The Greatest Snow on Earth’ (26:30) The average snowfall at Deer Valley is 762cm/300 inches (27:00) Find out more about the new lift expansion (29:45) Coming up with the names of new runs (34:00) The new East Village Express gondola is designed by Doppelmayr (37:00) Deer Valley East Village will have seven luxury hotels (39:00) Deer Valley is on the Ikon Pass (39:50) The 2034 Winter Olympics will be hosted in Utah (40:20) Nicole Feliciano spoke about the ‘Slow Skiers Club’ in Episode 270 (41:30) Cecile Ferrando from Val d’isere speaks about their new ‘Ski Tranquille’ zones (41:45)Feedback (47:30)You can leave a comment on Spotify, Instagram or Facebook – @theskipodcast – or drop me an email to theskipodcast@gmail.com. You can also follow us on WhatsApp for exclusive material released ahead of the podcast. Colin Tierney: “Episode 270 was interesting: I always go at a speed that I feel safe with for me and people around me”Stuart Campbell: “The podcasts are brilliant, and I've enjoyed the range of topics. The ability to pull so many different people from different countries together is what makes it brilliant. I've just found your piece on St Anton by train so hoping to repeat something similar if I make it out in the spring.” Robert Fogg: “Been catching up on all the podcasts I have missed. Thanks from a wet Cairns in Australia” Jim Duncombe: “I was on the cable car in La Clusaz this morning, and ended up chatting with a Norwegian who lives in Annecy. Turns out he is a fan of the podcast.”There are now 290 episodes of The Ski Podcast to catch up with. If you’d like to get some insight on a particular destination or the latest kit, just go to theskipodcast.com, have a search around the tags and categories and you’re bound to find something you’ll find interesting to listen to. if you’d like to help the podcast, there are three things you can do:     -          you can follow us, or subscribe, so you never miss an episode   -          you can give us a review on Apple Podcasts or leave a comment on Spotify   -          And, if you’re booking ski hire this winter, don’t forget that you can get an additional discount if you use the code ‘SKIPODCAST’ when you book at intersportrent.com or simply take this link for your discount to be automatically applied

16 Jan 50min