Lightweight Pakems: Flip Flops for Cold Weather
Clever new “portable” boot makes feet happy.
Pakems CEO Julie Adams shows off high and low models at the Boston Ski and Snowboard Show.
Credit: SeniorsSkiing.com
We’ve been padding around SeniorsSkiing.com’s New England office for the past few days wear-testing our new Pakems boots that we picked up at the Boston Ski and Snowboard Show last month. The real trial will come in a couple of weeks on some ski hill in New Hampshire, Vermont, or Maine after the final run of the day. I look forward to the moment when I take off my ski boots, relieving that clamped feeling—[regardless of how comfortable you think your boots are, there is always that clamped feeling]—and slipping on these lightweight, comfortable, warm and water-resistant booties and head off for après ski activities. Ahhh.
Pakems are relaxation machines.
Credit: SeniorsSkiing.com
Julie Adams, CEO and “Cruise Director” of Pakems, calls her company’s innovative boots, “flip-flops for cold weather.” After a day of skiing, rather than put on another heavy pair of hiking boots, Merrells, Sorrels, or even Bean boots, the solution, according to Pakems, is to slip on these ultra-light comfies for “happy relaxation.” We think it’s a pretty good idea to let your feet be happy after all that hard work.
There are many kinds of Pakems, from low to high cut, in different colors and ruggedness features. You’d probably want the insulated and thicker-soled Extreme model if you were planning to regularly trudge across a slushy parking lot back to your car. For us, the Classic boot is just fine for cruising around the lodge, condo or even heading out to an informal dinner. You can also give your kids or grandkids the chance to design their own boots with a set of fabric pens that come with the Kid’s Bodie model, named after Julie Adams’ eight-year old.
Pakems come in a very clever, squishable tote bag into which you can store the boots, making carrying them around instantly easy and convenient. Put Pakems in a backpack if you’re cross-country skiing , snowshoeing or ice-skating up a frozen river. Oh, and also for non-winter activities like cycling, hiking, fishing or being a tourist in a foreign land. You’ll be glad to have them at the end of the day.
Check the Pakems website for models, dealer locations and ordering information. You can also get them on Amazon.
Flash: Colder, Snowier Winter 2015 Forecast For New England
Latest Prediction from WBZ-TV Meteorologist Forecasts Cold and Snow
With the season just getting started, we’ve been diligently watching snow forecasts as we know know you have as well. As we reported in an earlier post, Joel Gratz, our favorite snow meteorologist who prognosticates at OpenSnow, has been compared a number of weather models and found a consensus for dry in the Northwest, snowy in the Far West, and uncertain from the Rockies to New England. But, then he says, don’t trust long range forecasts.
2015 Snowfall Predictions for New England
Credit: WBZ-TV Graphic
With a couple of more months of data and many models to contemplate, Barry Burbank, Boston’s WBZ-TV meteorologist, has just put a new winter prediction in play. Barry says that he’s “relatively confident of a cold and snow winter overall.” He is calling for more snow in the New England area, 10-20 inches above average, for a total forecast of 55-65 in Boston. That places 2014-15 as the third consecutive year above average. He also is calling for cold, speculating that the Polar Vortex that vexed the Midwest last winter will be moving eastward. Below average temperatures should reign especially in January when he expects an “outbreak of arctic air.”
So, New England senior snow enthusiasts, this is good news. It also means you have to dress for the weather, prepare your equipment your car, and your self. As the old Swedish expression says: “There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing.” Get ready.
Here’s Barry. Click here for WBZ’s Winter 2015 video report.
Huff Post: What Senior Skiers Must Remember
Huffington Post Highlight’s SeniorSkiing’s Co-Founder: Is there something outdated about your equipment?
SeniorsSkiing.com’s Co-Founder Jon Weisberg has a new article on Huffington Post’s Post 50 blog, this time about the potential risks of skiing with old equipment and a lack of reasonable fitness in senior skiers. Click here for the Huffington Post blog about what seniors should think about before heading downhill with those long, skinny skis, rear-entry boots and untoned muscles.
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