"Boots are made for walking" goes a well-known American country song. But not all ski boots are suitable for touring with. In the PowderGuide market overview, you can read which currently available boots meet freeride requirements.
Different manufacturers, both from the ski boot and ski touring industry, are pushing into this rapidly growing (niche) market and trying to offer ever better products for freeriders. Touring boot manufacturers are trying to make their boots stiffer and more suitable for downhill skiing. Alpine ski boot manufacturers, on the other hand, are trying to make their hard plastic bombs lighter and more comfortable for walking. But beware: some cheat packs promise "freeride suitability", but are nothing more than relabeled normal ski or touring boots that are advertised in a fancy design with a hefty surcharge.
The candidates
We present all models currently available in German-speaking countries in the PowderGuide market overview. Our inclusion condition: the models must be suitable for uphill and downhill freeriding. Relabeled standard boots that are at home in one of the standard disciplines are explicitly not listed here. The decisive factor for inclusion was a relatively hard flex and therefore a downhill-oriented design of the boot. At the same time, there must at least be a profiled sole or the possibility of fitting one. Whether a curved sole with DIN approval for touring soles or an alpine sole with a light profile in some places was not a knockout criterion.
The flex values are based on the scale of the market leader Salomon and are not measured, but rather felt. They therefore do not represent an absolutely reliable value, but allow a meaningful classification and comparison of models from different manufacturers (discussion on the hardness specifications in the PowderGuide.com forum).
The hard minimal tourer
The models with a flex of well over 100 have the weight, strength and classic construction with a two-piece shell of sporty alpine boots. As a result, they are in no way inferior in terms of power transmission. They are recommended for freeriders who attach great importance to downhill performance and want to be able to rely on their boots one hundred percent in every situation. However, they must be prepared to accept the shoes' moderate comfort on the ascent. The models from Garmont Shaman and Astral (women's model) as well as Scarpa Hurricane don't even have a walking mechanism, but the models from Lange Blaster pro and Superblaster are also more for the hardy on longer ascents with skins. The main area of use for these boots is likely to be short hikes on foot through rocky terrain and shorter ascents with skins, as well as on extremely difficult and technical lines. In combination with a Marker Duke, you can achieve the stability of alpine equipment - with a correspondingly high weight.
The versatile all-rounders
The models with a flex of 90-100 can't quite keep up with the hardest models in terms of firmness and therefore power transmission. When riding, they give you more of a feeling of being in touring boots. On the other hand, their properties on the ascent are really much better. They have a well-engineered walking mechanism and the models with inserts for Dynafit or G3 tech bindings in particular also save a lot of weight. Nevertheless, downhill performance is still clearly in the foreground here and with the Dynafit Titan and the Black Diamond Factor, there are still some tough shoes on offer. These shoes can really be used anywhere, from a short ascent to a day on the slopes to a day tour. The user has to decide for themselves whether the performance of a softer boot on the piste is enough for them or whether they want to go on longer tours with a relatively heavy and hard boot.
The sensitive lightweight
Models with a flex of around 80 were the toughest touring boots available until recently. Today, they can hardly keep up in this respect. They offer the freerider with an affinity for touring a relatively low weight and quite comfortable ascent characteristics, as they usually also have less support and a lower shaft than the harder shoes. They are mainly used for long ascents as well as day and multi-day tours, with downhill performance taking a back seat, especially if you value comfort on the ascent. It should not be forgotten here that steep north faces, narrow couloirs and icy slopes can also be skied without any problems with these boots, provided you have sufficient skiing ability.
As always, when buying ski and touring ski boots, a personal fitting and, if necessary, advice and adjustment of the boots are absolutely essential. Experience has shown that buying ski boots blindly on the internet has led to happy results in at least one case.
Are you ready boots? Start walkin'! (Nancy Sinatra)
PowderGuide tip
From mid-January, most stores still have almost all models to choose from - usually medium to large price discounts are already possible at this time.
Disclaimer
- Not included in the list is the Salomon Quest. As soon as information on this model is available, it will be provided.
- Long Blaster Pro and Superblaster are also referred to as Banshee Pro or Superbanshee, depending on the country.
- The Salomon Flex Index indicates the flexibility of the ski boot. The higher the value, the harder the boot. The value 100 is generally referred to as "hard". The scale starts at around 40 for adult boots and ends at ~150 for commercially available ski and touring boots.
- Unfortunately, it was not possible to classify the flex hardness of the women's models, as the authors' feet do not fit in them with the best will in the world and the boots are new and not very common. The flex is in relation to the corresponding men's model due to the lower weight of the female freeriders.
Text & graphics: Lorenzo Rieg, Marius Schwager
