Race: boots
Innovation at the lower end of the market
- Author: Claudio Primavesi
- Photographer: Pierre Lucianaz
Race boots are the biggest challenge for brands, who have spent years trying to strike the right balance between weight, comfort, performance, reliability, and cost. The introduction of carbon, a material that was almost unheard of in the beginning, greatly complicated matters, so much so that the real testing was effectively carried out during the races themselves. These days, the technology has caught up and breakages are rare. All brands, even when it comes to pure race models, have reached the minimum weight permitted by regulations, sacrificing comfort where necessary.
Among the few (three) elite models there haven’t been any changes for the last few seasons. In the less extreme (semi-carbon) models, there has been a little more activity, with new models entering the market each season. A little extra weight doesn’t always equal better skiability or increased comfort, but does mean more affordable price points. The fact remains—especially when it comes to full-carbon boots where bootfitting is basically impossible—that it’s often the boot that chooses the athlete, rather than the other way round.
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