Sunday, November 22, 2015

The amazing Pro Tongue by Intuition

On December 7, 2013 I presented a few new liners I had received from INTUITION SPORTS. This is almost two years later and I have had ample time to test them “for the duration.” As I promised then "I will do a more in depth analysis of these after a full season with them." So today I will share my experience with the Pro Tongue and show you what they look like after 100+ days in the back country. Yes that is what I have used this liner for, the back country. First a couple of words about me and not only because I love to talk about myself but mostly so you know how much or how little whatever I have to say may apply to you. 

TESTER SPECS

I am 5 feet 10 and weigh in at 180 lbs. I like longer days which for me means 4,000’ – 5,000’ and the occasional “very big day” at 7,000’+. What I am NOT is a featherlight Skimo racer type. I still consider the downhill the main objective and the reward. Once going downhill I like to go after it and so appreciate a lot of control. This all translates into my equipment choices. I like it light but I don’t pick the absolutely lightest. My boots although light are 4-buckle (see below) and although I use Dynafit bindings I opt for the ST Vertical so there again a little bit more weight for a little bit more control. This is to give you a sense of from what perspective I judge my equipment. Another factor to take into consideration, I don't have any commercial interest in INTUITION SPORTS nor do I get any incentives on you or anyone else buying these products. This is just me blogging about my equipment so if it seems biased, it's only based on my appreciation for the equipment I love. There is a fair amount of things I've tried and don't like but I tend to not write about those as my mom taught me that "if you don't have anything nice to say..."

PRO TONGUE SPECS

So back to these Pro Tongue by Intuition. The very pair I show below has seen 100+ days in the back country, mostly in the Wasatch, some in the Tetons and a week in Valdez. The Pro Tongue Liner is the stiffest tongue-style liner Intuition makes which means it’s not necessarily the most geared towards BC (for that they do have the Pro Tour, a softer “fluffier” model). However based on what I said above I enjoy the extra responsiveness the higher flex and stiffness this liner offers. It's made with Intuition's light and warm closed-cell EVA foam that I got heat molded for as precise a fit as possible. The liners come with removable 7mm shims that you can use for soles but I use my beloved custom fit footbeds that have my eternal loyalty.

As the title indicates, I do like these a lot: They fit my skiing style, they seem indestructible and as I said two years ago: Intuition liners are designed to improve on stock boot liners by:

Being lighter and warmer than stock liners
Being more durable than stock liners
Offering a better fit than stock liners

For the fit: I had my boots punched out for a small preassure point. I use custom footbeds, and the heat molded Pro Tongue. With that I get all the control I want plus the a level of comfort that gives me the feeling i am skiing in warm slippers...


After two seasons of use I can confirm that it all holds true. Here is what my pair looks like after two seasons (as you can see this is true amateur pics):
First a vue of how they fit in my Garmont (now Scot)
Cosmos shells. from the front..

...and from the side. Note that on all these pictures I
have left out the booster strap that will cover a good
portion of the visble parts of the liner...

...the other side and...

...from the back. This is exactly how much it sticks out
from the shell as the booster strap in the back falls
below it.

Now the "naked" version from the front. As you can see
they are holding up real well. I did not keep the laces
that they came with. In the BC I like to keep it as simple
as possible and will jetison any non critical parts.

From the side even the logo and text imprint are
still fully readable... 

From the back some minimal wear that
won't affect function...

Here again, only minor cosmetics
after 100+ days in the BC!



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