So, it’s not an alpine-centric Cochise, and it’s not a touring-focused Zero G—so, to misquote Rudi Garmisch of Hotdog fame, it’s not for skiing on zat side or ziss side, but right in zee middle!
We find the Decoy’s all-black with fuscia plumage attractive, certainly, but we do take issue with the new species name. Decoy would imply a facsimile or imposter, but this boot is the genuine article—yes, it keeps the Zero G family name but it’s a brother from another mother and she’s a bit of a brawler, apparently.
The Zero G shell shape remains intact, but the lower shell is constructed of traditional boot-building polyurethane and the cuff is a carbon-infused Grilamid creation a la the new Tecnica Mach1 builds. The new shell and cuff materials in combination make the Decoy Pro a much stronger-skiing, more stable Zero G.
To compare the Decoy Pro to the Cochise is less fair, as the Zero G platform tours alongside the best of the backcountry boot category whereas the Cochise remains fairly hike-limited and more tethered to a chairlift for primary ascension. The Decoy Pro really does manage to meld the best of both lines to forge Tecnica’s best do-it-all model for up and down, to date, according to our team that has tested both ranges since their inception.
The extra horsepower of polyurethane comes with a weight toll, but testers thought it was an acceptable burden to carry, so to speak. The Decoy’s total weight is 430 grams more than the skinnier Zero G Tour Pro, which appropriately matches the weight of a can of beans—appropriate because testers said that giving it the beans, to reference motorsports parlance, is exactly what they did with this boot once they got it on snow. They said that high-speed, hammer-down descents through variable terrain were the Decoy’s happy place, and in particular, they mentioned that the boot offered a high level of tactile connection to the snow surface through its thin, low-clearance and full-molded GripWalk outsole.
A couple of our largest testers felt that the boot flexed excessively underfoot but admitted they only felt this when standing hard against it on firm groomers which is likely not the preferred habitat for this new half-breed. They did love the sole’s compliance for a smooth roll on and off edge and felt that it enhanced a natural feeling stride with the cuff released for uphill applications. Testers did mention that the heel felt low on the floor of the boot, and several testers tried adding a small amount of heel lift to the boot floor and reported improved fore-aft balance.
The in-between liner (lighter and thinner than Cochise but heavier and more padded than Zero G) hit the sweet spot for testers who said it held them securely for skiing and climbing and had enough substance to resist any noticeable pack-out during the two-week testing window.
