Dalbello Sports Lupo SP I.D. Ski Boot

The Dalbello Lupo SP I. D. Men's Ski Boot is let's be real a beast, with a 130 flex and a skihike mode that make it easier to get to the top of backcountry lines and shred them to smithereens. It's not designed for long tours where the approach is a priority, but for short skins outside the resort boundary and in bounds approaches where you're focused on making the way down look good and the way up a little easier. It also has a rubber clad arch for some grip, and replaceable toe and heel lugs that let you keep your ridgeline traction maxed out from year to year.Ignore the skihike mode, though, and the Lupo is pretty damn similar to Dalbello's world crushing Krypton. It has the same three piece Cabrio architecture, which employs a stiff polyurethane cuff and polyether shell for powerful lateral stiffness and power transmission, and a progressively flexing Kinetic Response tongue for stiffness when you're descending and flexibility on the uphill the Lupo comes stock with the 130 flex C' tongue. The Contour 4 shell is also mapped to accommodate your ankle and foot bones, reducing the amount of punching and grinding you'll have to do, and it has a heat moldable I. D. Max Hike liner for comfort and serious performance on the hike and the descent.The Lupo also has the same Dynalink rearfoot retention system as Dalbello's more freestyle oriented boots. Attaching to the shell, rather than the cuff, it pulls your heel snugly into the heel pocket without interfering with the boot's flex or deforming the fit. The toe buckle is located on top of the boot, which pulls your foot down into bootboard rather than squeezing the shell around it, and it also helps prevent breaking and bending in a crash not that you'd ever do that. The Lupo also has a center balanced Rocker stance that's designed to drive fat, rockered skis comfortably, too, so you won't have to mess around with lean angles and stances although with canting, flex, and lean adjustments, you could if you wa...