Testing 2027 Ski Boots with SkiEssentials - Jeff's Experience

I really appreciated Bob’s comment in his recent article where he made the admission that boot testing is "somewhat useless." It's just so gosh darn subjective. Skis are too, of course, but biomechanics contributes far more to boot performance than it does to ski performance. Foot shape, ankle shape, ankle flexion, tibia length (and as a percentage of height), all of these variables contribute directly to boot performance. It makes it significantly harder to “review” boots, because ultimately the experience is going to vary from skier to skier. That said, we do our best, and we enjoy the process.

I personally seem to have a more challenging time testing boots compared to my colleagues Bob and Matt. Part of that is availability, as my 24.5 Mondo boot size can be significantly harder to find than the 27.5 and 28.5 Bob and Matt ski in respectively. I’ve had experiences where a manufacturer only brought in 5 total pairs of a 24.5 into the country, and often in those circumstances, those 5 pairs are already spoken for. I think I might also be more sensitive to boot fit. Over half a decade of nordic ski racing destroyed the circulation in my toes, at least I like to blame it on that. It’s not really a pain tolerance thing, but I often find my feet completely losing feeling when trying different boots, which makes me less keen to switch it up as often as some. Generally, our main goals at SkiEssentials revolve around assessing ski performance, and doing that in uncomfortable boots is tough. Not really fair to the ski, in a sense.

Compared to ski testing, boot testing for me is more personal. I’m always intrigued by trying something different, mostly because of those challenges I just mentioned. In that light, I’m more than happy to share my experiences from this past season, and I do think I have a somewhat unique perspective on boot performance combining the need to test high level skis with the personal desire to also spend a lot of time in the terrain park.

2027 Nordica Speedmachine 3 130 Boa DD Ski Boots

In the video about Bob’s boots, he started with his Tecnica Mach1 130 LV as he felt like it was his “baseline” boot. That’s why I’m going to start with the Nordica Speedmachine 130 BOA DD. Over the past two seasons, I’ve spent more time in this boot than anything else. The fit is comfortable, yet locks me in nicely. My ankle and heel feel secure in these boots, while my forefoot has some room to spread out, which I’ve come to really appreciate. It’s definitely not the stiffest, strongest boot, and power transfer isn’t as exact as the Promachine I used to ski in, but it checks a lot of boxes for me. Good power transfer, predictable performance, a smooth feel, and works well in the park too.

I think the most interesting part of the story with these boots is I had to retire them, unfortunately. The pair I have easily hit 150 ski days, and probably closer to 200, and the plastic just started breaking down a bit. I never had any issues with BOA durability, for all the BOA haters out there, but as is true with any boot, the plastic reached the end of its lifespan. I had an older pair of Speedmachines kicking around with just the lower BOA, so ended up going back to those. That was a fun, albeit unplanned, experience as it allowed me to revisit the “buckles vs BOA” conversation. At least in the Speedmachine, I can whole-heartedly say I prefer the feel of upper cuff BOA. It spreads out forces more evenly across your shin. That’s really the biggest thing for me. I find that gives me more confidence not only driving power into a carving turn, but also when you’re landing switch in the park, upper cuff BOA feels WAY better than buckles. Do the buckles deliver more efficient power transfer? Maybe, but barely, and it’s at the cost of comfort in all situations and at the significant cost of performance and feel in the park. I just prefer the wrapping and the way the BOA spreads out forces.

You see a lot of conversations and debates about BOA vs buckles these days, and I have developed a theory that buckle advocates are focusing on relatively acute performance characteristics. I’m not saying you’re wrong if you like buckles more than BOA on the upper cuff, I am just suggesting that you and I might have different priorities when we have skis on our feet, and that’s perfectly fine.

2027 K2 Cortex Team 140 Zonal Boa Ski Boots

When we first heard about this boot from K2, I personally was quite excited. On paper, I was intrigued by the 2.5 degree ramp angle. It’s mostly a working theory, but in my head a flatter ramp angle should work better in the park. Mostly for rails as it provides a slightly more balanced feel. I’m pretty much convinced that notion is true, but in the case of this Cortex 140, for me personally, it’s countered by its weight. It just feels a lot heavier on your feet compared to the other boots I use, and I’m not that big of a person, so it definitely hinders what I can do on snow. Everything about the stance feels great, but the heavier feel doesn't really work for me.

They’re also exceptionally stiff and feel incredibly solid. They’re really, really good boots when skiing fast on the right type of ski. I found this boot paired with the Revolt 101 felt like an absolute missile. K2 has a whole line of boots intended for the park, so I’m not surprised it doesn’t feel great in that application, I suppose I was just hoping for a bit more. I think a bigger skier than me wouldn’t have as many limitations, but really this boot is best for high speed, big mountain freeride styles. I like skiing like that, but it’s not what I do all the time, so it’s unlikely this would ever become my go-to boot. It’s also pretty hard to get on. There’s certainly a benefit to its performance, you just have to be willing to deal with the challenges.

Shop Now: K2 Cortex Team 140 Zonal Boa Ski Boots

2027 Salomon S/Pro Alpha C Boa 130 Ski Boots

This boot is unlike anything I’ve ever tried before. It reminds me of the Lange Shadow in the sense that something about it feels mechanically different than other boots on the market. The ExoDrive design makes sense to me, but I was admittedly weary of whether I’d like it or not. At first, I really didn’t. It��s so stiff and so reactive, it’s a bit shocking at first. It doesn’t feel as solid as the Cortex overall, but I do think it’s just as stiff, which given the fact we’re back in the sub-2000 g weight range, gives it a much more reactive feel. It’s also a tight fit, and the combination of those elements made me somewhat uncomfortable at first, both from fit and performance perspectives.

Once I got used to it, however, it eventually worked its way into my go-to boot, essentially for the second half of this past season. Its reactivity and how directly it transfers movement and power, simply put, means you don’t have to try as hard. Less motion from your body results in the same ski performance compared to a traditional ski boot. It’s somewhat hard to explain, but you basically just don’t have to try as hard. You have to be 100% committed to what you’re doing because the boot is so precise, but you don’t physically have to put in as much effort to get high performance results out of your skis.

I’m also quite surprised how much I like it in the park. At first, I thought I would hate its flex for things like switch landings, but it actually feels quite supportive and encouraging in the park for me. I think a lot of it comes from that upper cuff BOA. It provides similar benefits as the Speedmachine with the wrapping and spreading out of forces. Both the fit and performance of this boot are so precise, if gives you a tremendous amount of control, and it surprised me how well that translated to park skiing.

Shop Now: 2027 Salomon S/Pro Alpha C 130 BOA

Chairlift Chat: 2027 Salomon S/Pro Alpha C 130 Boa Introduction & First Impressions

2027 Dalbello Il Moro Pro Ski Boots

I used to ski in Dalbello Il Moro and Krypton boots exclusively, around 2014-2017. Before that, I was skiing mostly in the old Nordica Ace of Spades. At that time in my life, I spent about 90% of my time on snow in the park. It’s really all I cared about, and Ioved the performance Dalbello boots provided for that application. When I had a chance to get back in the boots this past season and try the Il Moro Pro, I was quite excited.

I still really like them in the park, but now having so much more experience in properly-fit overlap boots, I found it lacked the power transfer and precision I’ve come to appreciate. I also don’t think it actually fits me very well. I find I have a lot of room through the ankle. Not from a width perspective, more I can’t quite get it tight enough to really feel like it’s locking in my heel and fully utilizing ankle flexion. It basically feels like it’s blocking me from flexing the boot, if that makes sense. It’s not actually, but it feels that way. I think someone with bigger, kind of chunkier ankles would do much better.

Performance limitations aside, I still fully appreciate what these boots are, who they’re good for, and why someone would choose them. Given how much less time I spend in the park these days, I just don’t think they’re for me anymore, which is somewhat of an identity-crisis, but that’s ok.

Shop Now: 2026 Dalbello Il Moro Pro Ski Boot

2027 Armada AR One 110 MV Ski Boots

These have been on the market for a while now and the response has been interesting. Some people seem to love them, others seem to not have much success. My biggest issue with the AR One has been getting them comfortable across the top of my foot. I still don’t really know why it happens, but I get a series of pressure points. I really like the feel of them, so that part has always been a bummer for me. There’s a lot going on in how much material overlaps on top of your foot, so I think that’s part of it, or maybe I never fully gave the liner a chance to break in.

Regardless, this season I tried putting my ZipFit Gara LV in it and in turn, I think it has become my favorite park boot. The 110 flex isn’t stiff enough for me when it comes to general all-mountain skiing and carving, but it’s really fun in the park. The ZipFit liner also stiffens it up a bit too. It is super weird getting them on and off with the aftermarket liner as it tends to catch on certain spots of the complicated shell design. Still, you can do it, and the feel when you’re in there is great. I’m looking forward to more dedicated park days in this boot. I’d also love to try the 130 flex boot. I don’t think it would surpass the first three boots I talked about here for power transfer and precision, but I’m intrigued if it would provide more high speed freeride performance without taking away from its feel in the park.

Shop Now: 2027 Armada AR ONE 110 MV Ski Boots

2027 Tecnica Zero G Decoy Pro Ski Boots

Tecnica asked if I was interested in testing these boots and to be honest, I was somewhat reluctant. I don’t shy away from the fact I don’t spend that much time alpine touring. It’s not high of my list of priorities. I enjoy it when I have the opportunity, especially if I’m exploring new terrain in western mountains, but yeah, realistically I just don’t do it that much. Tecnica was adamant this was a touring boot made for a skier like me with more freeride tendencies and high expectations for how my boots will support me. It’s only a couple hundred grams lighter than the Nordica and Salomon in this article, so it’s not like it’s a super-light touring boot.

The first thing I noticed was how much proper range of motions helps when you’re going uphill. This boot boats 65 degrees of cuff motion, which is over 10 degrees more than anything else I’ve ever used. My touring boots have included the Nordica Unlimited 130, Atomic Hawx Ultra XTD 130, Salomon Shift Alpha 130, and other hybrid boots that are essentially designed off an alpine boot. The Zero G Decoy Pro is basically the opposite. Tecnica took a touring boot design and strengthened it, and the uphill performance was the best I’ve ever felt.

I still just don’t really like how boots like this feel overall when you’re descending, but I was also impressed by the Decoy Pro overall. It does feel supportive and it does feel powerful, for a touring boot. Stylistically, however, something about it doesn’t match how I like to ski. I like to maintain a certain amount of ankle flexion when I ski. In other words, I like it when I can get a deep flex into a boot and just kind of stay there. With lighter weight plastic like this, it’s just more reactive, so when I flex into it, it wants to bounce back. For me, it just doesn’t feel as smooth, which I’m sure isn’t tremendously surprising or ground-breaking information, but I do feel like I get bounced around more on boots like this than true alpine boots.

Still, out of all the touring boots I’ve tried over the years, I like and appreciate this the most, so it will very likely take the spot of “most used touring boot” for me, even though “most” doesn’t equate to “a lot.”

Shop Now: 2027 Tecnica Zero G Decoy Pro Ski Boots

Looking forward, I expect I’ll spend a lot of time in the Salomon Salomon S/Pro Alpha C 130 BOA this season. I feel like I skied my best when I was in that boot, which I can’t ignore. The Cortex 140 will get some use too if I’m feeling strong and feel like skiing fast. I’d love to replace my Nordicas and get another Speedmachine 3 130 BOA DD as I do prefer the feel of the upper cuff BOA over the buckles. I might, however, give the Tecnica Mach BOA MV 130 Dual a try instead. Aside from the Decoy Pro, I don’t have much experience in Tecnica boots, and I expect I’ll really like it. It’s also slightly lighter than the Nordica equivalent, which is intriguing. The AR ONE will get some time in the park and the Decoy Pro might inspire me to spend more time touring (my wife would also be psyched). Understanding ski boot performance and how it matches bio mechanics and stylistics preferences is quite a journey and one that I’m excited to continue in the years to come!