The Rossignol Hi-Speed 140 Elite LV is a boot that doesn’t make promises it can’t keep, meaning, what you see and feel from the first try-on is exactly what you get on snow, without a bunch of post-purchase fiddling, heating and molding to get there.
While it’s not an all-new model, some key updates have breathed surprising new life into this perennial favorite. The improvements were simple but substantial enough that the Hi-Speed Elite LV was testers’ unanimous favorite and highest-scoring boot of this year’s test.
The now-140-flex we tested is stiffer than it used to be (though there’s a 120-flex version available as well) but it also received some liner changes that brought huge fit and performance gains to the narrow Hi-Speed.
The new R-Go Fit liner has new internal material around the heel and ankle pockets that blends different foams for more-sculpted grip on the foot and a purported 15% reduction of liner pack-out in those critical control areas. The internal material that contacts the sock is also new, slightly thicker with a touch more texture for better performance hold but without restricting entry—testers noticed this most of all, claiming that the boot held them perfectly in place without the slippery feel of previous versions. Additionally, the liner’s exterior material is updated with a thin, rubberized polyurethane film that enhances how the liner molds against the shell itself for an unbroken connection between body, liner, shell and ski.
If this seems like much liner-ado about nothing, testers would strongly disagree, as several of them made mention that these liner updates made more positive difference to this model than most wholesale shell-mold changes they test each year.
Where the Hi-Speed Elite used to be known as the comfy-narrow, now its nickname is the perfect-narrow—firm, snug, consistent in feel, flex and power. Testers said the improved (more snug) fit unlocked power and quickness they’d always suspected was there, which was now front and center in the Hi-Speed Elite experience.
It’s more stealth than flash in its cosmetics, and its name isn’t new, so testers worry that the Elite may not get the respect it deserves—so, they encourage good skiers to take a fresh look at this all-mountain veteran that’s now ascended to the all-mountain podium’s top step.
