Kamik SnoBuster 1 Kids’ Snow Boots Gear Review

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Getting the right boots for your kids is kind of a big deal. We know how much kids can be burdened by ill-fitting shoes, right? Well, multiply that by ten to get the amount of complaints that can come from a winter boot that doesn’t fit correctly.

Why? Do winter boots cramp or chafe more than regular shoes? Well, no.

But a poorly fitting boot also contributes to the ineffectiveness of insulation in a winter boot. In other words, boots that are too small are too cold… and also boots that are too big are too cold.

You will probably get tired of hearing me say (if you haven’t already) that ‘insulation doesn’t create warmth, it traps in warmth.’ All insulation does is stop a heat exchange from happening between the stuff on one side of the insulation from the stuff on the other side.

In the case of a snow boot, one side has cold air and cold snow; the other side has your foot. Your foot is generating the heat. The boot’s job is to trap that heat inside the insulation. A boot that fits too tightly, then, compresses your foot against the insulation, shrinking the loft of the insulation, making it less efficient at trapping air. If your boot is too big, then the heat being generated from your foot has more space around it that it needs to heat up - like a floor heater in a big room - making the whole system limited in its effectiveness.

So, take that regular shoe that fits too poorly with all the discomfort and complaints that come from that, and add in that your child’s feet are now also cold.

And back to the garden variety complaints for a moment; if the boot is too small or two big, you are going to wear out the boot sooner, too. In either circumstance, your kid will start walking in a way to avoid uncomfortable pressure points on their feet (like cramped toes or heels sliding up the boot). That changed gait will create different impact points on the boot sole when it hits the ground, wearing the sole in ways that weren’t intended in the design.

So, getting a good fit is a good idea.

How do you do that? Especially if you are going to do something like order a Kamik SnoBuster 1 - or any boot - over the internet and don’t have the luxury of having your kid try on the boots?

Well, the wildcard in this equation is if the boot fits true to size. You can search the internet at sites that specialize in shoes, sites like The Shoe Company and Zappos, where every review also has a sliding scale on if the boots run long/short or narrow/wide. Just scroll down and see what the consensus is.

For what it’s worth, the Kamik SnoBuster 1s fit true to size for our kids, and that also seems to be the consensus.

So, now turn your attention to one of your kid’s regular, good fitting, shoes. What does the consensus say about its fit on those websites?

Finally, have your kid try on those good fitting shoes, but with the set of winter socks they are going to have on when they head out into the snow. Do the usual checks. Is there a finger width of space in the heel if you push their foot to the front of the toe?

Now, you put all that information together. If the shoe fits “true to size” and the boot fits “true to size” but the shoe doesn’t have the necessary room when the winter socks are on, then size up half a size when you order the boot. If the shoe fits “large” and the boot fits “true to size” and the shoe doesn’t have the necessary room with the winter socks, then size up a full size. And in reverse if you have too much room or a shoe that typically fits “small.”

Most of these places have great return policies, too, if they turn out to not fit; but this is a great way to narrow down the probability of that happening.

And happy feet make happy hikers… in any season.