New Dynafit ‘Winter Guide’ Boot Promises End of Swamp Foot

by Lou Dawson
written by Lou Dawson
Dynafit Winter Guide boot has a liner that promises dryer feet.

Dynafit Winter Guide boot has a liner that promises dryer feet. They do have a real sample here in France that I got my hands on, this is a PR shot. Click to enlarge.

I put this report in a separate blog post because I think it’s a big deal. Not because of the boot, which is really just a simplified TLT-6 made from Pebax instead of Grilamid (same shell as Dynafit Neo), but because of the liner. For years, various ski touring boot companies have been working on the sweaty foot problem. Solutions seem to usually involve making the liner with a Gore-tex interior sock that helps moisture from warm moist feet end up outside the comfort area and in the liner foam next to the shell. In other words, (the claim is) when you dry your liners they’re wet on the outside instead of the inside (and of course need to be removed from the shell to dry quickly).

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New Dynafit Boots, Bindings, Skis for 2015/2016

by Lou Dawson
written by Lou Dawson
Ok, check this out! TLT Speed Superlight with a removable brake, 175 grams!

Ok, check this out! TLT Superlight 2.0 with a removable brake, 175 grams!

I’ve seen the future and it is the past. Dynafit TLT Superlight 2.0 is the big news for ski touring. Yeah, this binding has existed in various incarnations for years, but guess what? Hearkening back decades ago, Dynafit has cooked up a removable brake that appears in initial bench evaluation (warning, Koolaid consumed) to be the ultimate A1 sweet spot for ski touring when weight is key. 175 grams with the brake adding a bit more, but you can pop the brake on and off in seconds. The binding uses the old “U spring” vertical release system that engineers have told me they “wished would just go away,” but persists because it allows building a light simple “beautiful” binding. Women’s version lateral release sets from 5-10 RV , men’s 7-12. You can swap the U springs to change vertical release, men’s in the box is 9, women’s is 7. But the big news with this is the swap brake. Only in 80 mm for now, but the modders will take care of that problem in mere seconds.

We’re at the annual Dynafit press event, this time being held in Beaufort, France. A quick summary now, more meat later. Dynafit’s new products for 2015-2016 are strong in the freeride “free touring” category, and the racing side is getting attention as well. The Khion boot is an entirely new model that may fit nicely in the 4-buckle lightweight-but-stiff arena that few boots can survive. Claim is the new shoe “combines the rigidity and support of an alpine downhill boot with the comfort and lightness of a modern ski touring boot.” Yeah, you’ve heard that before, and these days that dream does sometimes become reality. Will Khion deliver the dream? It does look good.

TLT Speed Superlight with removable brake. So cool it is beyond even my highly developed ability to express myself in writing.

TLT Speed Superlight with removable brake. So cool it is beyond even my highly developed ability to express myself in writing. Here at press event, you should have seen the photographers hovering around this thing, it looked like Angelina J. had just showed up with her latest look. Hilarious to see the powers-that-be in backcountry skiing journalism virtually ignoring the latest engineering and fawning over 20-year-old technology. But 20? That was a very good age.

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Giga-light Gignoux Ski Boots

by Doug Stenclik
written by Doug Stenclik
12,000 feet of vert, 25 miles long crossing our local ski areas -- Snowmass, Buttermilk, Aspen Highlands, Aspen Mountain -- a true human powered ski race.

12,000 feet of vert, 25 miles long crossing our local ski areas — Snowmass, Buttermilk, Aspen Highlands, Aspen Mountain — a true human powered ski race.

In whiteout conditions I struggled with my downhill transitions, the wind nearly ripping my skis out my numb hands. Rarely has a “ski mountaineering race” ever really felt like actual mountaineering until this year’s Power of Four at the top of Highlands Bowl, above Aspen. We were one of the last teams waved through for the boot pack. The teams that followed were given the choice of going to the top and still others were eventually denied as the violent wind knocked racers to their knees for minutes at a time.

Hypothermic and exhausted, I felt the sudden relief as my Pierre Gignoux Morpho boots simultaneously snapped into ski mode, clicked into my race bindings and fled the hellish summit. At the time, skiing these incredibly light boots was new to me and skiing them through hip-deep, wind-transported powder seemed inconceivable. As a true testament to their ski ability, I never once thought about the boots as my quads burned through the incredibly agonizing, yet heroically fun descent.

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Scott Cosmos II vs Cosmos 1

by Guest Blogger
written by Guest Blogger

Peter Anzalone

Cosmos 1 is my go-to AT boot. WildSnow handed over a pair of the new 2014/2015 Cosmos II for comparo. The boots are more similar than different (I’m happy with either), but a few changes make them worth a blog post.

(Editor’s notes: Below, for the sake of our prose we’ll standardize by writing these as “model two, model one,” or “Cosmos 2, Cosmos 1,” with a few Roman numerals thrown in for search results.)

Cosmos II on left, ID with white cuff.

Cosmos II on left, ID with white cuff. Pictured without the liners.

To begin testing, I used the Cosmos II for a few inbounds uphills and ski descents on flawless corduroy and hero powder. In these conditions they performed perfectly and were thoroughly enjoyable — living up to their reputation as a precise and powerful boot. I could perceive no difference vis-à-vis the Cosmos 1.

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Evo Rivelato! Scarpa F1 Revealed

by Lou Dawson
written by Lou Dawson

A boot company goes for it with innovation. They deserve respect. We had the honor of being the first journalists (bloggers sometimes call themselves that, though we get scolded by the “real” scribes) to cover Scarpa F1 Evo ski touring boot. That was during our epic European gear journey last January — when in truth I was surprised we even got that blog post done in between the flowing prosecco and scurrying waiters delivering four course meals that made any other victuals of the world seem inedible.

While the Evo was indeed radical, in truth the Scarpa Alien 2.0 was the jaw dropper that used up our blogger energy. So perhaps we’ve not been giving Evo the blogination it deserved, the poor little thing. In an attempt to redeem our carbon composite transgressions, check out a few details regarding Evo. Oh, and I’ve skied them enough times for a take — yes Virginia, in the end that’s what is important. Read on, oh esteemed WildSnowers.

Scarpa F1 Evo. Always fun to take things apart.

Scarpa F1 Evo. Always fun to take things apart. Per a foundational design philosophy at the Asolo “Fabbrica di scarpe” where dystopian injection molding machines cause chemicals to become ski boots, let there be removable fasteners wherever possible! In this case, the cuff comes off with a bit of effort on the hex keys, with the lower tongue screwed on as well, along with the main cuff buckle Velcro (actual cuff buckle is riveted). Here at WildSnow we almost worship boots that we can take apart. Omanepadmehum, or in Western terms, Praise the Lord, I can mod these boots! (This has been heard sincerely voiced in the WildSnow mod shop; it is not blasphemy, though one has to assume that the entity upstairs might have better things to do than fiddle with boot fasteners. Om. Click all images to enlarge.)

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Scarpa Freedom SL Boot Review

by Louie Dawson
written by Louie Dawson
Riding the Scarpa Freedom's in Nelson, BC this winter.

Riding the Scarpa Freedom's in Nelson, BC this winter.

It is undeniable that overlap shell ski boots flex better and ski better than almost all boots with tongue (cabrio) construction. There’s a reason that they are used for most alpine ski boots (e.g., with the exception of three piece boots such as the venerable Raichle Flexon, which have their diehard fans). Thus, overlap boots still have an important place in the world of AT ski touring boots.

The Scarpa Freedom SL is a lightweight overlap boot that focuses on balancing skiing well with being usable for long backcountry ski tours. I’ve been testing out the boot since the beginning of this year’s ski season. The Freedom comes in two versions: the SL, made from lightweight Pebax plastic, and a heavier, stiffer version made out of polyurethane. I’ve been using the SL, so I’ll focus on that in this review. However, the PU version is very similar, while simply being stiffer, heavier, and with a slightly less flexible walk mode.

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