The firmest softboots ever

[jtslalom]

In 1988 I was putting ski boot liners in Sorel boot shells and using them for snowboard boots. Almost 30 years later I tried on a pair of K2 Thraxis soft boots. WOW! What a difference 3 decades makes. These boots were as stiff as some of my old Burton hard boots. Strapping in to a pair of Ride El Hefe bindings and I felt like i was clicking into my old Burton physics race bindings. The new generation of soft boots and bindings really makes riding comfortable and fun and with every new year comes softboots that give me the feel of the support of hard boots.

[ibthomson]

JT, I'm keen to hear how you feel it compared to hardboots. I've consistently bought the hardest soft boots $$ buys, and they invariably fall short of perfect. Specifically, the Driver X has left me feeling like my ankles will break if I dare to turn up the pace after the 10th time out on them.

 

I'm contemplating the switch, just hovering over the $1k investment at the moment.

[lordmetroland]

I got a pair of Salomon Malamutes this year. One day on them, but they are by far the stiffest soft boots I've ever had on. I was planning on going with the Ride Insanos but, counter to conventional wisdom, the Malamutes had a smaller footprint (with my large feet, that's a serious consideration) and were wayyyyy stiffer. Not even close. I didn't try the Thraxes (?) because conventional wisdom is that K2s have a much larger than average footprint. I've had the Malamutes in both El Hefes and Catek FRs and the responsiveness is quite nice.

 

I'm not sure why I would trust "snowboarding conventional wisdom" since that seems like a contradiction in terms. I'm a sheep.

[MikeC]

When I raced I used Driver Xs and still use them for freeriding.  I have cranked down on them and slouched to see how they flex.  (Not much).

[Smilin'Dave]

All my armchair research suggested either burton driver x or salomon malamutes as the stiffest on the market in recent years.

I bought both, each now about 2 years old.

Driver x is just slightly stiffer with better lacing system.

Downside is I never use them. To much heel bang on my rear foot.

Malamutes win hands down, for me. Comfortable all day.

Lacing takes just slightly longer and maybe needs to be redone (tightened) once a day.

Difference in stiffness is little to none.

Bottom line, I'll take a 9 stiff boot that's comfortable over a 10 stiff uncomfortable any day.

Of course, all this is nil point if your bindings are for sh!t.

[bumpyride]

3 strap Burton Bindings were what I started out on.  Plenty stiff compared to any 2 straps.  Still have a couple of pair that I was going to use in strictly Alpine environments.

[xy9ine]

i need to pick up some new stiff softies. had the malamutes / drivers in mind as well; will come down to fit. 

 

also deliberating a new stiff binding. i have some burton c60's currently, which aren't bad. picked up some diodes, but the size large was too big for my sz 10 boots (too much heel overhang relative to the toe). light and stiff, but the heel piece on this (and the c60) is a bit thicker than i'd like - having to run steeper angles than i'd like to avoid booting out. seems there's a gaggle of stiffer options out there now - dm flux, now drive, ride el heffe, salomon quantum, union fc, nitro machine... anyone with recommendations based on a carving biased application? 

[Maxlanaudiere]

Definatly have a look at the K2 boots. I replaced my DriverX by the Maysis + and couldn't be happier. The thraxis is even stiffer.
 

[lordmetroland]

seems there's a gaggle of stiffer options out there now - dm flux, now drive, ride el heffe, salomon quantum, union fc, nitro machine... anyone with recommendations based on a carving biased application? 

 

I've run the El Hefes for a couple years and I like them quite a bit - stiff, highly adjustable, solid construction (cost a friggin' ton though). Liked them enough that I took the straps and highbacks off a couple pairs to mate onto Catek FR2 chassis.The real downside to the El Hefes (or the Cateks or nearly any other soft binding, for that matter) is the jutting heel loop. Flows solve this problem, but in person, the construction looks iffy, even on the high end models. The money wanted to fly out of my pocket for the Now Overdrives, but couldn't find them in person. However, I was astonished by the flimsiness of the Drive (one model down from the O-drive) highback. This is the thing Jeremy Jones trusts his life with? And, at least as yet, Now hasn't added canting options or highback rotation to their features, so you're stuck with the default setup.

[jtslalom]

I ended up buying a pair of the Ride El Hefes last week. I have ridden with them on for three days and think they are an excellent soft binding to ride in. I had a pair of Ride Double Agents that were suppose to be one of the stiffest bindings made as of five years ago. The El Hefes seem stiffer. I also ride in Burton Ion boots from 3 years ago. At the time I was told that they were one of the stiffest boots that Burton made. Those K2 Thraxis boots I tried on were stiffer and had a few more adjustments then the Burton Ions.

[Missionman]

I tried my K2 T1's for the first time.  Not the absolute stiffest boot out there (Goodride rates them at their max stiff rating; evo rates this boot 8 out of 10)  but I love them.     I thought i wanted a double boa system, but the single boa for the liner seems to work perfectly for me anyways.  I can tighten whatever area of the boot i want with laces.  My big issue with laces before was that i found i always had to tie and untie them for whatever reason.  Well that reason was i was always fiddling with the liner.  Now with the boa on the liner i never have to fiddle, and i only have to mess with the laces when i put them on or take them off.  If I do fiddle with the liner, i just use the Boa without undoing the laces.  Awesome.  Comfy and great support too.  

[pokkis]

[piusthedrcarve]

 

Interesting.  Seems a lot like Marker's DNR. 

[steven]

3 straps made a big difference. 

 

any 3 strap binding options out there currently?

[Jack M]

Got a new softboot setup for the first time in like 15 years.  Winterstick SW 164, Burton Driver X, Burton Genesis X.  The boots are very stiff, a lot of plastic inside it seems.  I'm happy with them.  Most of the flex in the system seems to come from the binding baseplate lifting off the board, and these are supposed to be some of Burton's stiffest bindings.

[piusthedrcarve]

I went mire with POW friendly setup. O'Sin 3800 + Burton Cartel ReFlex + Burton Ion boots. I found too firm setup wasn't ideal for softboot riding. If I want responsiveness, I go with hardboots.

[svr]

Got a new softboot setup for the first time in like 15 years. Winterstick SW 164, Burton Driver X, Burton Genesis X. The boots are very stiff, a lot of plastic inside it seems. I'm happy with them. Most of the flex in the system seems to come from the binding baseplate lifting off the board, and these are supposed to be some of Burton's stiffest bindings.

Jack,

I found the sme problem with the diode's. Love the new straps, but the reflex baseplate flexes way too much for me.

I switched to the Union T.Rice and love the baseplate but the straps are not the best, so I will take my diode's straps and put them on the T.Rice's for the ultimate freeride Franken-binding.

Would love to hear what other bindings you considered?

Cheers,

Sandy

[Johnny]

Ride Insano's are what I've got, quite insanely stiff.

[rbaldwin]

So, what is it like to ride in these super stiff softboot setups, compared to a soft hardboot setup?  Edge hold, agility, and tweakability?

 

Anyone ridden in carved up Alpine touring boots and stiff softboots?  

[Jack M]

Jack,

I found the sme problem with the diode's. Love the new straps, but the reflex baseplate flexes way too much for me.

I switched to the Union T.Rice and love the baseplate but the straps are not the best, so I will take my diode's straps and put them on the T.Rice's for the ultimate freeride Franken-binding.

Would love to hear what other bindings you considered?

Cheers,

Sandy

 

I don't think I consider the flex of the baseplate a problem, as long as they don't break.  I've been out of the loop on soft gear for quite some time, so I just went into the shop at Sugarloaf and asked my friend who runs it to give me the best bindings for how I ride, which he knows.  They retail for over $400, so I assume they're the good stuff.  With the season pass discount and redeeming some Boyne points they were reasonable.  They seem to ride well.

[gdboytyler]

So, what is it like to ride in these super stiff softboot setups, compared to a soft hardboot setup?  Edge hold, agility, and tweakability?

 

Anyone ridden in carved up Alpine touring boots and stiff softboots?

My softboot setup is Burton C60 bindings and K2 T1 boots.

Hardboot setup is Dynafit TLT5 boots and F2 plate bindings.

I can get the same tweakability for grabs on the TLT5 by riding with the top buckle undone. Even with just one snug buckle, I get better heel down on the TLT5 than with the soft boots. Edge hold/agility is better with the TLT5 because of less boot out when run at the same angles as soft boot.

TLT5 are one of the lightest hardboots around. So overall weight of both setups is about the same.

[John Gilmour]

Not sure if anyone really cares..but..I was on the hunt once for the firmest soft boot, to simulate the power a hard boot would give me.

What I found was very similar to when I ride a very stiff hard boot on a freeride board. The flex profile of the boot is out of step with the flex profile of the board and the boot tends to "override" the board flex.

So I find that stiffer freeride boards aren't always the answer to more edge hold when ridden with stiffer soft boots. In part because the mechanics of a soft boot binding lend to more rear stiffness than front flex stiffness ( flow bindings excluded) .

I do like a firmer soft boot and I find more important for edge hold is a true articulated cuff as opposed to a non articulating cuff like on certain burton boots and my circa 1995 Solomon Malamutes.

The boot ' binding /board interface should flex as a unit without any sudden changes.

[Waboarder]

Don't know if these are the stiffest, but I like Diodes, Malamutes and Power Plates or Catek Freeride. For pow, I use the Diodes by themselves or the

Now Drive bindings. Neither one of those by themselves work that great  for aggressive carving as far as I'm concerned.

[scrapster]

Nice to hear the Driver X's have stiffened up again--they played with the flex for a few years, dialing them down and making the boot nothing special for carving. The older, stiff Driver X's were wonderful, but they did eventually break down. I imagine incorporating more plastic should help that. Otherwise, the stiffest boot that I've ever found was the old, Deeluxe GTX. (I still have a NOS pair in my closet I plan tor break out one day.) They came with both plastic and metal torsion rods you could insert on the sides!

 

As for bindings, yeah, it's hard to find ones that are truly stiff. Nidecker Carbons have been my personal fav. Some of the aluminum baseplate/heelcup may work well too.