This is a continuation of the story. If you want to read about Atomic, Alpina and Fischer offerings as of this autumn, go here
A few additional things to mull over:
– Some (not all) ski bootmakers say that designing and producing true racing Classic boots is actually more difficult than the ones for Skating. Due to conflicting characteristics the sole should posses: rigid in some parts, flexible in others.
– Top market for Classic boots is Scandinavia & Finland. Warmth is more of an issue in long-distance Classic races Norwegians, Swedes and Finns are so fond of.
Madshus Super Nano Classic are venerable product that is still being used by the world’s best ( cue Krista Parmakoski) . Pros: cheapest carbon classic boots on the market Cons: also the heaviestNewest Redline Classic are by all accounts a massive improvement on already cool Super Nanos. Certainly lighter. In the shops across several continents as of this autumnRossignol X-IUM Carbon Premium Classic are the ones propelling Alex Bolshunov to his Classic podiums. They are also vying with Super Nanos for the title of the most budgety true racing bootsRossi is about to send to aforementioned Bolshunov their newest boots. We’ve seen them and they are very impressive indeed. Don’t expect them in the shop till next year though..Here’s one thing about Salomon S/LAB Classic 18/19 that we do not quite understand: they actually cost MORE than the model that is coming to replace them! The only explanation we have is that outgoing S/LABs 18/19 developed a true cult status among those who could afford them – they are the most expensive boots in our review with European RRP around 600 eurosAnd here are the newest S/LAB Carbon Classic 19/20. Lighter, used by Salomon athletes last season – not in the best shops across this part of the Universe
Honorable mention:
Technically, neither of the two boots below fit into our set parameters as they lack carbon sole. They both, however, are close to carbon soled racer from price point and .. we simplyhave have something so say about them
Gone are the days when ski stars were competing in Alfa Classic boots, alas. Still, the Exc Advance GTX are probably the warmest close-to-real racing boots on the market right now, thanks to their Gore-Tex linerThese Spine Concept Classic Pro should give one a good idea as to how the upcoming carbon-soled Spine racing boots would look. The bootmakers from the city of Yaroslavl are hard at work testing them as of this writing. We’ve seen the prototype and it looks cool.
