While the Fischer RC4 105 LV BOA is a Vacuum boot and one of the unique qualities about the Fischer Vacuum molding system is that it can compress the shell around the foot, actually making a heel p
Liner revisions aren't always the sexiest updates made to boots, but for testers who knew well the Shadow 130 LV in its previous form, this year's revised liner was the headline. The liner's exterior material was slightly stiffened and thickened and the padding through the instep at the throat of the boot was marginally beefed up. The result of these minute changes created big effect--more snug throughout, especially in the lower boot, with particularly better hold at the instep, which in turn drove the heel deeper into its pocket and opened up some needed toebox room, lengthwise.
Testers who were paying close attention to this change said it did the trick for better differentiating the fits of the Shadow LV and MV and moved the Shadow LV 130 farther toward the tight end of the spectrum among other narrow class boots in the All-Mountain Traditional cateogory where it was tested.
Testers who were new to the Shadow experience (or weren't aware of the specific liner changes) were impressed with the Shadow's characteristic ease-of-entry, straightforward and traditional overlap, four-buckle closure system, and the silky first (and last) feel of the Auxetic liner.
The unique shell-to-cuff connections make for a solid and transmissive chassis. The four points of contact at the cuff's hinge point (two are the axes of rotation, two are rubberized anchors) and the gliding, tongue-in-groove spine interface called the Suspension Blade all combine to create a strong drivetrain for skiing movements making it to the ski--testers remark that small flexing and tipping movements reap big results in a wide variety of terrain. These connection points between cuff and shell also allow for the use of thinner, more flexible plastic through the instep, which enables an easy slide into the boot and a smooth wrap around the foot as the buckles are closed down (no BOA required for that).
The Auxetic liner is marked (literally) by hexagonal, etched cuts in the exterior material which can expand slightly to allow for point-specific stretch points around bony or wide spots. The result is less peak tension points in those areas which makes for a shockingly even and comfortable feel without a packed-out or loose sensation. Some testers mistake the lack of hotspot pressure as general looseness until they ski the boot and feel held in place, just comfortably so.
The marketing pitch of the Shadow boots is that the gliding spine interface and dampened cuff connections produce a leveraged energy delivery that loads more pressure to the ski shovel in forward flexing moves and more edge power, laterally, with less pilot input and energy expenditure. Sounds like mumbo jumbo, we know, but testers every year who've tested the Shadow boots attest that it's for real. More power with less effort, without losing fine control of things. The balance of power and quickness is well blended and subtle edge-feathering comes easily, testers report.
The rubber bushings located at three points on each boot (lower pivot anchors and top of Suspension Blade) can be changed out to softer units which come in the box, but few testers report wanting to soften the flex. Those who have experimented with it say it's effective for lengthening the flex range but they caution to make the modification in a clean, clear area where you can easily find the little buggers when they invariably fall to the floor and bounce around under all manner of furniture.
Testers do say that the length fit still remains a touch shorter than other boots of the same size but not enough to spark size-up thoughts. They appreciate the straightforward powerstrap and GripWalk soles for enhancing the uncluttered and rewarding ski experience that is the Shadow 130 LV.
The Head Edge returns to tester acclaim with the addition of a BOA reel on the lower shell, which testers loved for its ability to cleanly close the gap around the forefoot and instep without crushing the top of the foot or pinching toes. The Edge 105 W HV BOA impressed testers with its high volume fit that didn't give up on foot control and performance, and the list of creature comforts and useful features was long.
Getting the Edge 105 W HV BOA on the foot was one of the many five-star moments for testers who ran this one through its paces at our springtime test at Mt. Bachelor. Testers said that it is hands-down one of the easiest-on overlap designs on the market, and where the addition of a BOA reel can often restrict the shell's spread and ease-of-entry, that was absolutely not the case with the Edge 105 W HV BOA, testers assured.
Our thicker-legged testers who keep an eye on how easy it is to get the cuff buckled up gave five-stars, again, to the Edge 105 W's upper for its wide-ranging buckle catch sliders and the double-power flip-away levers that help provide additional leverage for closing up the boot top. There is a shell-expanding cuff adjustment at the rear of the cuff, which testers say works well, and for the huge of calf there's the option to oven-bake the shell to employ the Form Fit auto-molding feature. Testers did mention that the top, rear portion of the liner cuff is pretty stiff and initially negated the roomy feel of the boot's calf area but said it will flare back with some liner heat molding or wear time--prospective buyers should keep that in mind at the point of first try-on, testers said.
Testers loved how the Edge 105 W HV BOA skied--responsive underfoot with a tuned-in, tactile feel for the snow, they said. They thought it was strong and stable in its stock 105-flex setting, but they mentioned that the flex adjustment offered an easy and noticeable difference for those looking for a little softer flex feel on the shin. They liked the hold the liner and shell put on the heel and ankles, which translated to accurate edge control and crisp steering. While most didn't mention any need for a tighter heel pocket, the Liquid Fit liner could be injected with Head's special goo to snug that up (best to wait until having skied it in, for a while, testers with LF experience said).
For many testers the Head Kaliber 105 W BOA2 marked their introduction to dual BOA models at this year's test, and it may have unfairly colored the whole group in a positive way! Some testers were concerned that entry would be more difficult due to the second reel installed on top but they discovered that on the Kaliber it didn't have much affect on that, once the cable release system got sorted out. Some testers with thicker calves were worried that the BOA spool might not store enough cable for their prodigious circumference, but again, not so! And then, topping that was the gold-medal-level fit and the skiing performance.
One tester said the Kaliber 105 W BOA2 was the best-fitting Head boot she'd put on her foot in years, and other testers echoed that, calling it a nearly perfect medium fit. They unanimously praised the toebox and forefoot fit for its modern anatomical shaping and comfortable match with the liner's interior environment. They similarly all loved the ankle and heel pockets for a securely snug hold on the foot for performance skiing without trending toward narrow boot pinch levels. Testers did agree that the fit over the top of the foot and into the instep's "throat" where it transitions into the lower leg shaft was uncharacteristically snug for a medium width, and a couple testers felt that the fit across the midfoot caused them to get a little numb. Most felt that liner molding would fix this issue but cautioned the high-arched and thick-footed to mind this area.
How the Kaliber 105 W BOA2 skied was a point of agreement--and testers were unanimously impressed. The said the boot generated a lot of energy in and out of the turn, with a spring-loaded feel that progressively built power to the ski without feeling nervous or jittery. The Kaliber 105 W BOA2 also surprised testers with its power and stability once it was on edge, holding the ski through fast turns in variable terrain or on boilerplate surfaces. They said it was as solid and dependable in the turn as it was agile and reactive in between them--and that's a rare combination of boot performance characteristics, they reminded.
The aqua blue highlights on the dual finish black body was a hit with testers who appreciated the stylish and unisex cosmetic of the Kaliber BOA2 line-up, and testers felt the on-board feature set was functional: cam buckle power strap, lateral cuff adjustment, two-stiffness flex adjustment (stiffer at 115 available) and GripWalk soles. A lot to absolutely love here, testers said, with very few caveats.
The Head Edge 130 HV BOA impressed our test team with its good looks, ease-of-entry, intuitive closure, roomy wide-last fit and its strong skiing performance. That's pretty much the whole ball of wax there--and they liked every bit of it. The tester commentary was unanimously positive--literally, no negative comments. And yet the numeric score average kept the Edge 130 HV BOA out of gold medal status--what gives there? As hindsight is 20/20, we'd have to say some mistake was made--perhaps testers got confused? Well, there isn't any changing the scores now, but we can do our best to represent how testers experienced the boot, regardless of the scoring conundrum.
One veteran tester said that this boot would make any skier better--and this is a guy who's devoted his adult life to teaching skiing and coaching junior athletes. Another tester said that this boot offered solutions, not problems, anywhere and everywhere on the mountain. The 130 flex was rated as legitimate, with a smooth flex feel and predictable power delivery that didn't fold or fail regardless of the size of the tester or how hard he hammered on it, they said.
They agreed that the Edge 130 HV was no bucket, meaning it was not an amorphously wide and generally boxy fit, but at the same time they said it could house a massive foot and leg. They explained that the heel and ankles were held with just enough firmness of grip to manage the skis through variable terrain but they said there was room there for the very high volume foot everywhere else. They liked the convenience of the BOA reel on the lower shell and had zero complaints about it hindering entry. They also liked the big range of adjustment that the cuff buckles' slider catches offered to big, muscular calves, with flip-out Double Power buckle levers to help close up shop around said tree trunks. Huge guys should look here first, testers said, mentioning that the big fit was matched by even bigger sizing--up to a gargantuan 34.5!
The flex feel of the 130-flex was lauded by many--adequate shin cushioning without feeling bulky and a solid stopping point to prop up a big dude in a functional, neutral stance. The sliding, position-adjustable power driver plate on the power strap was a hit with testers for dialing in the flex feel, just so. The flex is set at the stiffer 130 position but it can be adjusted down to a 120 if needed.
The liner in all sizes but the largest is a Liquid Fit model, meaning the heel and ankle area can be snugged a bit by pumping some proprietary Head goo into the internal bladders with the help of a Head dealer bootfitter-type, but testers didn't feel a need to make any change to the fit here.
After two years of single BOA boots on the market, this year’s test marked the entry of dual BOA technology to the alpine boot market. Our testers unanimously put the new Head Kaliber 130 MV GW BOA2 at the top of the group of boots that sported the dial on both top and bottom.
Let’s get the frivolous superficialities out of the way from the start: first, while Head’s dual BOA design shares a name with a crappy non-alcoholic beer it shares none of said swill's attributes, and second, the Head Kaliber is drop dead gorgeous—if you look at boots that way, and we do—the gloss and matte black butted up against each other with subdued aqua highlights on the reels and tongue…damn, that’s good, testers said.
Now, if two years ago we were visually drawn to the BOA reel itself, this year, as the BOA has crept up onto the cuff like a vine, testers were fascinated by the cuff BOA’s cable routing and pulley points, with a particular curiosity to see how each different brand’s take on how it untethered the system for entry. Testers liked the Kaliber’s simple pull cord release and what they said was an easier pass-through for the foot’s slide into the boot than other dual models they tested.
Some testers saw the mechanical advantage mechanism of a compound bow in the cuff BOA cabling and others compared it to a Z-Drag rope system for getting a raft un-pinned, but most testers agreed that the Kaliber’s cuff BOA did what lower shell BOA systems had not—closed loose areas more than tight ones. A click at a time, the Kaliber’s boot shaft wrapped the lower leg evenly, regardless of how the leg shape tapered below the calf muscle, or didn’t. That was pretty cool, testers agreed.
Boot brands are now positioning their boots based on the position of the BOA. On the lower shell? That’s for convenience. On the upper cuff? That’s for performance. How one chooses is a bit like deciding between steak or lobster on the menu, as they’re both good. Head Kaliber? That’s surf and turf, baby—we might as well have it all, big American style.
For many of our testers, the BOA reel is convenient, while for others the surprisingly loud sound of a ratcheting reel is like fingernails on a chalkboard. But most of our testers would agree that cuff BOA can be considered a performance feature so far as it may provide a good grip on the lower leg, which is a boon to ski control--and by the way, this came in spades on the Kaliber, said testers who plowed it through a mix of morning frozen slush, perfect midday corn and a few days of late season, thick pow at this spring’s test.
The dual BOA is definitely a strings-attached experience, and testers cautioned skiers who have anxiety attacks over fishing reel backlash, tangled Slinkys or wadded up piles of extension cords may want to keep that BOA on the convenience down-low (aka, on the lower shell).
After the novelty of two knobs to play with wore off, our test team realized that the Kaliber’s real surf and turf was fit and performance—two core elements that got upstaged by the BOAs but were really the stars of the show. Testers called the Kaliber 130 MV GW BOA2 Head’s best medium width boot, ever, and this is coming from guys who still mourn the loss of Vector, nearly a decade on.
As one tester put it: “No problems here, it fits perfectly and offers instant fun—I skied some gnarly stuff at speed and the Kaliber put the skis exactly where they needed to be, every turn.”
The top-shelf, women's narrow all-mountain boot from Fischer is a complex collection of performance features, and its full name is similarly intricate: RC4 Carbon Pro LV 115+ BOA ZF.
Let's decode that cipher. The Carbon refers to the cuff material where the polyurethane is injected with a carbon additive for increased rigidity, responsiveness and reduced weight--and testers loved the cuff's shape, snug wrap and high energy rebound energy generated by a long-travel flex feel. The Pro means it gets paid to be badass, we think. The LV, as we all know, means low volume and testers say it is, in places (and we'll get to that in a moment), and it bears a 97mm last rating when other narrows in the RC4 line-up are only 98mm--so this one is even more LV, pro-level. The 115+ lets us know that this is almost a 120, but perhaps Fischer didn't want to scare off a potential women's audience, since the boot crosses over, unisex-style, available from a 22.5 all the way to a 30.5. The BOA means, well sure, you get it--but it's just on the lower shell here. ZF is the abbreviation for ZipFit, and that aftermarket liner is made to suit the 97mm LV Pro models (there's a 130+ available too) and comes with the boot.
Allow us to dive deeper into the last thing, first. The ZipFit liner is a somewhat divisive element for our test team, as in some love it and well, others don't. The nature of the ZipFit shape serves as the primary point of division--it's very open and long in the toebox, and widely splayed in the forefoot, then it tapers aggressively into the upper instep, ankle pockets and heel with a chipped-cork-and-resin-powered grip on those bits. This is not a usual out-of-box fit but something unique and specific, targeted for particular preference. For some testers this is a fit match made in heaven (ZipFit has a somewhat fanatical following of adherents) and for others it simply isn't, a dichotomy which understandably led to its reduced average fit scores. On closer inspection, if we averaged scores from only the ZipFit fans on the test team, the RC4 Carbon LV 115+ BOA ZF's total score would have been a 9.77, one of the highest of the whole women's test. If we average scores only from the ZF detractors, we get an 8.67. So, that final score of 9.14 doesn't tell the whole story.
One tester said this: Way roomy in the toebox and forefoot, then like a firm cast everywhere else--which I happen to like! Another said this: The fit doesn’t feel cohesive--overly tight on the navicular and ankles, with an extra-large toebox and forefoot. You get the picture.
The ZipFit continued to divide the test team in other ways--some love the protection the lace-up liner offered the bony top of the foot when donned first, World Cup race style and crammed into the shell per usual ZipFit entry protocol, while others simply don't appreciate this extra, atypical step for boot entry. Testers agree that trying to get the boot on in more typical fashion, with the liner already in the shell was overly difficult due to the liner's somewhat tacky interior material and tendency of the Achilles area to crumple down upon entry attempt. A point of agreement on the laces, however--testers all love how it snugs the liner around their leg shaft and promotes a good connection between tongue and shin.
One thing to note for those initially trying on any of the Fischer boots with ZipFit liners is that the cork-and-resin filler is moldable but dense stuff, and it doesn't move quickly. It takes some heat (either from the body or from a liner cooking device) to get the material to migrate, mold and match the foot shape, and even with some heating it still doesn't happen quickly--ZipFit afficionados will attest to days or even weeks of break-in before the fit is ideally personalized. So, testers who first put on this boot will be feeling the most recent tester's semi-mold shape, which will improve slightly during testing but often not enough to change their initial fit opinion. The other thing that happens over time with the ZipFit liner is that it stretches-out and better mates with the interior shape of the shell environment--prior to that happening the liner can be felt slipping around inside the shell, which can detract from on-snow performance.
All that said, testers love the way this boot skis, hands down. The love the quickness, the power, the stability and the high-energy flex feel that loaded lots of rebound energy against the skis.
They also thought the BOA worked perfectly well here and paired nicely with traditional buckles up top. They dig the elasticized power strap with a quick-releasing cam buckle closure and enjoyed the predictable grip and roll of GripWalk soles for getting to the goods, car or bar.
Its a very good boot or an absolutely fantastic boot, they say, depending on how you like your ZF.
This year's Fischer boots were well received by our testers who especially liked the evenly snug and padded feeling RC4 130 MV BOA for its instantly accessible entry, fit and easy-skiing nature. This was a boot that wouldn't require much fit fuss-about for most average shaped humans, testers said, and they loved how its trouble-free operation kept the fun skiing experience front and center.
The lower BOA reel was never mentioned as an impediment to entry or to a straightforward snug-up, which we always take as a good sign--boot features should fade into the background if they're working properly, and here testers say they are. They liked the traditional buckles up top and appreciated the cam-buckle power strap's releasable clasp for a low-hassle closure at boot top. There was plenty of room in the cuff for muscular legs and the instep height also made it possible for the higher volume skier to get comfortably into this medium volume boot.
This was a non-ZipFit liner, which our test team has enjoyed across all Fischer models for how well-shaped it is for the common prominences and wide spots of the foot and for its padded-enough construction that offered a layer of cushion from the plastic with a firm-enough grip for an aggressive attack through demanding conditions, when called for. They didn't feel that the liner got substantially roomier or packed-out over the course of the test period and said that it remained evenly mediumish from toe to heel and instep to calf.
The boot is a Vacuum model, meaning it is highly customizable by a dealer with Fischer's proprietary Vacuum molding oven and tools, but skilled bootfitters who aren't Fischer dealers will be able to make all common bootfitting mods as needed. It's also a Fischer boot still offering a SomaTec stance set-up which favors skiers with more naturally toed-out stances, but our test team made no mention of the stance feeling anything other than neutral, regardless of their personal amount of toe-out (abduction), which we consider a positive report--no news on stance is good news on stance, for us.
Put it on, buckle (and BOA) it up, go ski. Our team liked the RC4 130 MV BOA's simple recipe for skiing success and figure a lot of other skiers will too.
Of the long and somewhat coded, cryptic model name--Fischer RC4 Carbon Pro LV 130+ BOA ZF--the last two letters, ZF, made the difference for our test team. The difference, specifically, between loving it, and well, maybe not so much. ZF stands for ZipFit, as in the aftermarket, customizable liner known for its ground-up, cork-in-resin fill material (ankle pockets and tongue) and for its liner-on-foot-then-cram-in-shell entry method. Fischer's ZF boots utilize this liner as an almost-custom solution to the inner boot question and about half our test team thinks that is the best idea Fischer has ever had.
The thing about the ZipFit liner is that it's not for everyone, but it's absolutely fantastic for skiers who need what it offers--namely, ultra-snug ankle and heel pockets and very snug lower leg shaft at the throat of the boot, coupled with a very open and airy toebox and forefoot fit. For testers with a low-volume rearfoot, instep and lower leg shaft with a flipper-flared forefoot and squared-off toe shape there aren't many better fit combinations.
That the Carbon Pro LV 130+ BOA ZF offers this unique fit map means that it suffered a bit on the fit scoring from testers who thought the forefoot and toebox didn't hit the target for a so-called narrow boot. These were not the testers who categorically love ZipFit. If we looked only at the group of testers who fit the ZipFit bill (and who have previous, positive experiences with the liner) the boot's total average score would have been 9.67 (out of 10) and the second-highest scoring boot of the men's test. Looking only at testers who feel the ZipFit's fit tension is incongruent from rearfoot to forefoot, it would have scored a silver-medal-worthy 8.63. You see where we're going here.
Regardless of the fit argument, some testers said that the skiing performance of the Carbon Pro LV 130+ BOA ZF was so good that it erased whatever demerit they'd given the boot on fit. Testers said the blend of smooth-but-limitless power coupled with mind-blowing quickness of response was one of the best of test. The carbon fiber infused polyurethane cuff offered a solid and balanced base of support but testers loved how it moved--long and progressive with a lot of rebound energy. Laterally and torsionally, testers said it was brick outhouse strong, making their edges feel sharper and readily leaving trenches through a.m. melt-freeze hard pan.
One of the benefits of a Fischer ZF model is that you get the rather spendy ZipFit liner as part of the deal, rather than buying it separately and discarding a stock liner. Yes, the boot is over a thousand bucks, so perhaps the cost is baked-in, but this is a ZipFit built specifically for this particular boot, and that helps with fit and performance.
Testers often notice at the beginning of the test period that the ZF liner shears about inside the shell during skiing, which is disconcerting. This phenomenon gets less noticeable with each tester who helps break-in the liner, matching its exterior material to the interior shape of the shell. The inside of the ZipFit also takes some time, and heat, to mold to the skier's foot, and while each tester will comment that the fit and feel improved over the course of three test runs, the real benefits of the personalized ZipFit auto-mold become most apparent after subsequent days and even weeks of use. It's dense, movement-transmissive stuff that doesn't pack-out, but it doesn't move quickly. It lets you do that.
The women's Veloce Space Dual 105 W received its highest scores for its fit, both the initial, out-of-box fit and its dynamic, on-snow fit. Testers loved the evenly average shape that should be the hallmark of the medium width last--they said that there was nothing problematic about how the liner and shell contoured around their foot and leg once they were in this double-BOA design.
The act of getting into it was a challenge, they agreed, citing that the shell didn't seem to want to open enough for a trouble free entry. They all got there of course, because they're pros, and that may be the nature of many of the dual BOA boots on the market currently--they aren't generally marketed toward an intermediate or lower audience. We wonder if perhaps they're pitched as a performance feature because many of them aren't super convenient for entry and closure for the uninitiated. Expert skiers who are looking for a ratcheting wrap along the lower leg shaft for instant ski response to multi-directional movements, on the other hand, will be just fine with a little get-it-on challenge.
And our test team did love the way that the lower and cuff BOA reels worked independently to wrap the boot around them, just so, a click or two at a time. They particularly liked the subtle, comfortable way they could increase the hold over the instep, driving them back down into the heel pocket without crushing the top of their foot.
A few testers thought that the cuff was both upright in its fore-aft positioning and pretty firm feeling in flex, even though the liner tongue was adequately padded, they said. They thought that the 105-flex was understated and mentioned that the tall-feeling cuff would suit longer-legged testers well and offered enough room for a muscular calf, which might help to create a slightly more forward-feeling position.
Testers who could get past the entry point of the Veloce Space Dual 120, literally, discovered a great-skiing, medium width utility model that took them everywhere around the mountain with power and precision.
Testers oft commented that adding BOA to the cuff added a little extra hurdle to entry, and that was an observation that was made across almost all brands that employed twin reels, top and bottom, this year. The double-down dial design is being marketed as a performance element, we think, primarily because it can't be called a convenience element if it makes entry trickier for skiers who might typically have more trouble getting a boot on--namely less-skilled skiers. So, dual BOA has been presented as a performance feature at the top tier price points and we think that makes pretty good sense. Expert skiers can probably manage to get a boot on--just the way our test team did. It wasn't bad--our guys just enjoy grousing about it.
Once on, the fit was well-engineered for the average foot and leg, testers agreed. And grudgingly, or not (a lot of our crew is very pro-BOA), they admit that the closure around the foot and the leg shaft were both wrapped incrementally and evenly tighter with each twist and click of the reels.
The clean closure of lower and upper set the stage for crisp edging moves and powerful control of the ski, testers said. They thought the stance side-to-side was ideally neutral and ready to engage inside or outside edge equally well. Testers agreed that the stock stance set-up that they tested was well on the upright end of the balanced spectrum and most suggested adding a bit of rear spoiler between the shell and liner to fine-tune the fore-aft positioning. In terms of flex feel the consensus was that the Veloce Space Dual 120 packed more punch than it claimed--enough that for an over-C-note savings buyers may want to forego stepping up to the 130-flex version.
Also unanimous was the opinion that the muted stone grey and ecru cosmetics worked well together and provided a nice canvas for some electric orange highlights to pop.
This season Armada launches its entry into the alpine-slash-freeride boot market with the AR line-up of two boots, a tech-compatible 130-flex and its slew of step-down-brothers 120-, 110- (reviewed here), 100- and 90-flex. Many of our test team who work as bootfitters and retailers had already been selling the early-released Armada boots this past season but most of them hadn't gotten the chance to ski in them yet, and so the anticipation level was high going into this year's boot test.
First, testers were very impressed with the similarities in performance of the AR ONE 110 when compared to the tougher 130-flex we also tested this year, and at a list price $225 less than the stiffer model, we considered it one of the best deals of the test and certainly felt it qualified as a legit sleeper that would impress a lot of other skiers. True, a skier gives up on the tech fittings at this performance tier--in fact, they're only available on the 130-flex and toe only--but in addition to the reduced tariff, testers say folks gain a lot more by going with less flex.
Specifically, the softer 110 plastic (130, 120 and 110 flexes all use polyurethane throughout) allowed testers to glide into the boot, past the constriction point of the cabrio instep with relative ease--at least more ease than they found in the 130-flex--and testers said that it seemed to wrap their foot and leg shaft in a clean, comfortable way.
The 110's flex feel was also favored by testers who felt it offered more of the classic cabrio/three-piece range of travel and comfy shin fit that they were hoping to find in the Armada design. While they liked the progressive flex feel and range of flexion (Armada is calling this Natty Flex) of the 110, they said it was probably a bit stronger-than-billed and performed admirably well on snow, driving a variety of different ski widths through every type of snow and terrain Mt. Bachelor had on offer.
Testers liked the pairing of the flexible 110- plastic platform with the shock-mitigating Damp Kush bootboard for softening off-piste impacts and landings sent beyond the transition. They also felt like the slightly softer cuff gave them freedom to find a fore-aft position that worked for them, regardless of their terrain or stance preferences. A bit more ankle flexion fueled some quick transitions and rapid direction changes for testers in the AR ONE 110, and that translated into its highest score of 9.25, awarded for Quickness and Steering.
Fitwise, testers say the AR fits more snugly than suggested by the medium 100mm badging. Most of the fit impressions were scored near 2.5, which is right between narrow and medium fit tension, though the tightest fit zone was over the top of the foot in the instep/midfoot where it averaged out to a 2.0, and testers' comments mirrored this as the boot's least comfortable area--at least for those with high arched, bony feet. Testers liked the fact that the 110 sports the same performance-tier Team liner as the 130 version and they dug the elasticized 50mm cam-locking power strap for closing down the fit around the shin. The heel and ankle zones were similarly locked-in for performance skiing.
The boot was rated as just a touch forward-leaning of ideal in its stock setting but there is an Atomic-style, 3-position forward lean adjustment on board. Testers liked the fact that there was an eliptical-cam-style lateral cuff adjustment for fine-tuning the edge feel--a few testers thought it was set-up a little on the under-edged, schmeary side of neutral which worked well for a loose and slashy off-piste attack but some thought it might feel stronger underfoot with a small adjustment made there.
Our test team was stoked to have a chance to get the new Armada boots on their feet, out the door of our test center and on-snow for testing after a long build-up to launch that included early release sales of the boot over the course of this past season. Many of our testers who work in the bootfitting and retail sectors had already had experience selling the boot but hadn't yet skied it. The takeaway after 8-days of on-snow testing was that the AR ONE 130 is a seriously good-skiing boot with some stealthy ascending skills and some fit and entry challenges that shouldn't be a problem for the tough guys who ski a 130-flex. Right?
There was a lot of curiosity about what Armada would bring to market with their first boot project--those in the know expected it would be a three-piece shell design since that was where their brand's ski audience was already focused but the details were secret. When testers first got the 130 in their hands they realized this was not a gooey-soft cabrio best suited for dull-edged butters and rail work--no, the AR ONE 130 is a legitimate 130-flex built to charge, testers said. It's a boot that means business and isn't interested in coddling the unsure.
That begins with entry. It's not the easiest boot to get on, even though ease-of-entry is oft heralded as a cabrio characteristic. It all depends on the stiffness of the the cabrio clog, or open-throated lower shell. In this case the 130-level polyurethane doesn't budge much, so the edges of the cabrio opening are waiting like a stealthy rattler to bite any foot that strays outside the padding offered by the traditional tongue style liner. So, testers say, take a moment to ease the foot past the boot throat's constriction point without yarding the tongue inadvertently off center--let it lay over the top of the foot to protect its slower slide into the boot.
Once in, testers did a little fumbling with the typical three-piece layering puzzle (one tester called it the labia labyrinth) to ensure that the liner tongue and outer cuff layers mated up inside the cuff buckles, without accidentally trapping the cable-dangling, Slingshot middle buckle under the external tongue. That accomplished, testers say this 100mm offers closer closure than expected for a medium-width, with a narrow-class clamp-down across the top of the foot prior to heat molding the liner. They loved the control over the ski that this fit enabled, but they said that the out-of-box fit favored the lower-volume-than-average foot and leg. The heel pocket was tight and right, and the fit remained performance-snug from the instep, through the navicular, inside ankle bone and up into the base of the shin. Some testers loved the snug, ski-tipping grip and others lamented the to-do list in their overgrown hot-spot garden.
While the cuff is solid and strong, both in forward flex and laterally, testers found that the stock geometry best suited skiers who prefer a slightly more forward leaning position and a neutral-to-looser, side-to-side set-up. The AR ONE is well-outfitted to fine-tune stance alignment with a three-position forward lean adjustment (stock is in the middle setting) and an eliptical-cam-style lateral cuff adjustment, so depending on the athlete's intended application there's a way to get dialed in straightforward fashion.
For aggressive all-mountain chargers who want the ability to approach adventure terrain using skins, the AR ONE 130 is the only option for them in the new Armada range as it's the only model that offers toe-only tech fittings. While testers liked the softer styling of the 110-flex we tested and surmised that the 120-flex version might be the all-mountain sweet spot for them, they point out that a lot of core rippers will be choosing the 130 for the ascent option found there.
