Ski and snowboard bootfitters will again be honing their craft this fall at MasterFit University (www.masterfituniversity.com), the nationwide training centers for boot fit education.

Masterfit University will be held at the following locations this fall: Bear Creek, PA, Sept. 25-26; Stratton Mountain, VT, Sept. 28-29; Charlotte, NC, Oct. 2-3; Minneapolis, MN, Oct. 11-12; Breckenridge, CO, Oct. 25-26; S. Lake Tahoe, CA, Oct. 30-31.

Now in its 14th year, Masterfit U is recognized as the world-wide standard in boot fit education, drawing attendees from North America, Europe, Australia and Asia.

Attendees can look forward to new state-of-the-art equipment, improved multi-media presentation capabilities and a learning environment that provides significantly expanded hands-on practice opportunities. “The new ‘Learn It, See It, Do it’ format better simulates the actual shop environment,” says MFU curriculum director Mark Elling. “and accommodates people with different learning styles.”

Students can choose from six locations and three levels of training, all with extensive hands-on experience in Masterfit’s state-of-the-art traveling boot labs.

• The Associate Course ($190) is a one-day program that hammers home the nuts and bolts of basic bootfitting in a mid to high-volume shop environment. The program lasers in on the basics of boot sales, off-the-shelf footbeds, and simplified problem solving for day-to-day boot bench combat. This course includes hands-on workshops on essential liner and shell modifications as well as snowboard specific fitting tactics.The Associate Course is aimed at returning seasonal employees, new hires and rental shop personnel.

• The Master’s Course ($390) is an intensive two-day session for experienced boot techs packed with practical information they can use to improve their businesses immediately. Students learn everything from biomechanical analysis techniques that let them better match sliders to the right boots to advanced modification and stance balancing strategies and footbed construction techniques. The course provides more experiential learning sessions in seminar-style workshops with top industry pros. Past attendees of the course will appreciate the new “less talk, more action” format that reduces long lecture blocks and increases access to more application-based work sessions. This small-group approach will shift focus toward individual feedback with ample observed practice time to produce real results. It also opens the door for more task-specific workshops available on an “elective” basis.

•The Master's Plus “Dark Arts” Course ($405) “is like getting a doctorate in boot fitting," says MasterFit U founder Jeff Rich. The two-day advanced curriculum is designed for techs that are already near the pinnacle of experience and knowledge and want an immersion experience to study more complex modification techniques and strategies. (Master’s Plus held only at Stratton, Breckenridge and Lake Tahoe locations.)

All attendees receive Masterfit’s comprehensive training manual, lunch daily, a pair of Eurosocks and the opportunity to make their own custom insoles.

MasterFit University's content has been recognized by several national professional certification organizations. The Master's Course qualifies for 14 Continuing Education Points from the Board for Certification on Pedorthics and 13.25 Continuing Education Units from the National Athletic Trainers Assn. Board of Certification. The Master's Course also earns Update Credit for members of the Eastern Professional Ski Instructors Assn.

MasterFit University is an industry support program of Snowsports Industries America and is presented by Ski Magazine, Snowboarding Trade News and SAM. It is sponsored by many of the industry's premier boot and bootfitting customization companies including Atomic, Blademaster, Booster Strap, Dalbello, Dry Guy, Garmont, Eurosock, Head, Hotronic, Instaprint, Lange, Nordica, Rossignol, Salomon, Ski Kare, Tecnica, The Cant Co., Toe Jam Spreader and Transpack.

For more information or registration visit the MFU website at www.masterfituniversity.com or contact: (914) 944-9038, info@masterfitinc.com