Dalbello Sports Lupo T.I. I.D. Ski Touring Boot

Coming out with totally new stuff every year isn't Dalbello's M. O., because it'd rather work on perfecting what it has than trying to reinvent an already awesome wheel. Case in point: the Lupo T. I. I. D. Men's Ski Boot, which is a refined version of the SP I. D. made with lighter plastics, touring friendly sole lugs, and alloy tech inserts so you can rally around the backcountry, uphill and down, like a squirrel that's had its tail set on fire.Dalbello knows what works, so it didn't change much between the Lupo T. I. I. D. and the SP I. D. The three piece Cabrio design works as well for touring as it does for in bounds schralping, with a killer combination of precision, comfort, and energy transfer, and Dalbello's legendary interchangeable tongue design lets you rock a stiff 130 flex. Unchanged too are the venerable Contour 4 Shell fit, which is anatomically designed to accommodate the weird bumps on your ankles, toes, and feet without tons of grinding and punching, and the center balanced Rocker stance, which puts you in a more neutral position that's well suited for riding fat, rockered skis.It did change the cuff material from PU to a lighter, stiffer polymer called dbHylite, which trims a few ounces off the SP I. D.'s weight and lets you ski the T. I. I. D. harder and faster. Different, too, are the replaceable Xtra Grip rubber sole lugs, which have the rockered shape that works with tech bindings and frame style alpine touring bindings, but not with traditional alpine clamps. This touring specific design is reinforced by the boot's I. D. Max Hike wrap style liner and burly, reliable skihike switch that unlocks the cuff for easy hiking and clamps down for bomber downhill performance. The T. I. I. D. also serves up Dalbello's legendary Dynalink rearfoot retention system, which pulls your heel into the pocket for a killer slop free fit, along with a more durable inverted forefoot buckle and canting, flex, and lean adjustments that allow you to nail a near ...