First, I want to thank all those involved in helping me select my ski boots. The guidance from this group helped me to make what I think was the right choice in boots. Thank you for your knowledge and patience. FWIW, I had tried on several different brands besides Technica: Lange, Salomon, Atomic, Rossignol Dalbello and K2. I would have liked to have tried the Full Tilt boots as I had a few different pairs of Raichle Flexons years back. But of the boots I tried, for me the ramp angle of the Tecnicas was just a little greater and better for my particular stance. And so I ordered new 2021 Tecnica Mach1 130's as by the time I got to making a decision there were few 27.5's of any brand or model left at nearby shops .
My Mach 1 130's came in this past week and I was excited to ski them. I bought the MV version as y'all talked me out of the HV. My feet measure 103mm/104mm and the MV is only a 100mm last. I was concerned that the 130 flex would be too stiff, but that's what I went with based on forum comments. It should be noted that when initially trying on the Mach 1's the 2020 version seemed too stiff in the shop. When I went back to try again, they didn't feel as stiff, which perplexed me, until the sales guy said that they'd sold the last 2020 model and I was in the new 2021 version. I think based on what I was experiencing on the second try I think made the right decision to go with the new 130's. I'd had a pair of 2020 120's on hold, but changed my mind based on new information.
At the initial fitting, the technician did expand the shell ever-so-slightly at the ball of the foot as I had pinching there and at the baby toe. The expansion solved the hot spots in both areas. No other work was done to the boots other than pulling the removable/repositionable tongue back one "notch".
I got to ski them for the first time yesterday. While we really don't have a "full mountain experience" out here in the midwest, the area had some genuine steeps and some modest length of runs (Chestnut Mountain, for those familiar with the area) . The conditions were icy and flat and 20° in the morning and in the afternoon we got a peek of sun and the snow softened a touch.
First run... Yikes! I had a bit of that "fish out of water" feeling. The Mach 1's were so much different than the old Salomon Xwave 8's that I came out of. While the Mach 1 130 might be slightly stiffer overall than my old Xwaves with a (old) flex rating of 90, I felt the Mach 1's had a more progressive and even flex and, good comfort at the shin. I had moved the tongues back on "notch" which really helped the tongue/shin interface. The moveable tongue is a great feature and I'm not sure why other boot makers don't include it. The right boot performed great with the cursory cuff angle that I'd set at home, but the left wasn't quite there and I was a bit tentative making right turns.
Edit: I forgot to add the edge engagement was immediate, and compared to my old boots felt almost severe! I think it was a combination of lateral stiffness and a more progressive but flex that responded positively and immediately- something I hadn't been used to.
After about 90 minutes I went in and adjusted the cuff in my left by increasing the cuff angle on my left less than 1°. Tecnica's cuff adjustment is "continuous" and has adjustments on both inside and outside of the cuff. It is worth mentioning that the cuff adjustments on the boots are available on both the inside and outside of the cuffs. I've found that using both sides are useful. My old Salomons had cuff adjustments on the outside only, I found the inside adjustment to be a key factor in helping me dial in the angle for both the inside and outside of my legs.
Following the mini-tweak I went back out. Mercifully we got a little sun and could see where I was going. With that minute adjustment I started just ripping it up. I was less tentative because I had an idea of what to expect and the small cuff adjustment eliminated some of the extra compensation that I felt I was doing with my right turns. As I became more familiar with the boots I started to enjoy them more and more. The flex gave me just enough leverage and shock absorption. Edit: The lateral stiffness combined with the right flex allowed me to tip my skis over farther. But not only that, having boots with the right stance and flex I could feel that I could pressure the tips of the skis much earlier in the turns and found myself able to make tighter turns. I'm not sure if I'd have had the same response with the Mach1 120's? I think I was surpised at how much more I could lay these skis over on edge- it was significant. I'd say (by feel) another 20% or more than you can see in my avatar. I could feel the turn radius tighten and G force increase as I was able to add more edge angle. While I cannot be sure, I have to believe that being able to bend the ski tip earlier in the turn due to a better flex pattern allowed for the higher edge angles,by securing a platform much earlier in the turn, then allowing the lateral stiffness to do its thing.
The one thing that I've still got to work out is the comfort thing. The left boot with the expanded ball area gave me no pain, but we super tight and I expect will be fine after a few days. The right, which did not have the shell modified at all wasn't bad, but at the end of the day my baby toe was irritated. I didn't experience any real pain until the end of the day. I've got to teach tomorrow, so I'll give it one more day before taking them back to the shop. Other than the baby toe issue on the one boot I don't think anything further needs to be done on the shells.
The one thing I can say is that my feet weren't exactly "warm" throughout the day. But I think that's a circulation issue due to the closeness of the fit and new boots. I found myself unlatching the lower buckles between runs which helped. With the fit and closness of these boots, I really didn't need much more tension on the lower buckles than enough to keep them closed.
The big difference between the 2020 and 2021 models is their new "T-Drive System" that attaches the upper cuff to the boots' lower. They do it with a carbon fiber piece that bolts onto both parts of the boot. Tecnica tells me that they'll be offering a replacement piece in the fall that will make the flex softer. I don't think I'll be needing to get them, but might just as an experiment. I'm not sure what other changes they've made to their boots, but the rest seems rather similar. It might be important to note that when first started searching for boots and trying on Tecnicas, I was comparing 2020 models and did find the 130 flex of the 2020 model rather on the stiff side (in the shop) and perhaps waiting for the old stock to run dry in my size was to my benefit.
Bottom line, the 2021 Tecnica Mach1 130's are the best performing boots I've ever tried (and I owned a ton in my younger days). They were the right stance for me, and aside from a few tweaks for comfort, really nice out of the box. I'd give it 5 stars for performance, and 3 stars for initial comfort, but I have high hopes that when it breaks in it will be a great all-day boot. Thanks for taking time to read this.
My Mach 1 130's came in this past week and I was excited to ski them. I bought the MV version as y'all talked me out of the HV. My feet measure 103mm/104mm and the MV is only a 100mm last. I was concerned that the 130 flex would be too stiff, but that's what I went with based on forum comments. It should be noted that when initially trying on the Mach 1's the 2020 version seemed too stiff in the shop. When I went back to try again, they didn't feel as stiff, which perplexed me, until the sales guy said that they'd sold the last 2020 model and I was in the new 2021 version. I think based on what I was experiencing on the second try I think made the right decision to go with the new 130's. I'd had a pair of 2020 120's on hold, but changed my mind based on new information.
At the initial fitting, the technician did expand the shell ever-so-slightly at the ball of the foot as I had pinching there and at the baby toe. The expansion solved the hot spots in both areas. No other work was done to the boots other than pulling the removable/repositionable tongue back one "notch".
I got to ski them for the first time yesterday. While we really don't have a "full mountain experience" out here in the midwest, the area had some genuine steeps and some modest length of runs (Chestnut Mountain, for those familiar with the area) . The conditions were icy and flat and 20° in the morning and in the afternoon we got a peek of sun and the snow softened a touch.
First run... Yikes! I had a bit of that "fish out of water" feeling. The Mach 1's were so much different than the old Salomon Xwave 8's that I came out of. While the Mach 1 130 might be slightly stiffer overall than my old Xwaves with a (old) flex rating of 90, I felt the Mach 1's had a more progressive and even flex and, good comfort at the shin. I had moved the tongues back on "notch" which really helped the tongue/shin interface. The moveable tongue is a great feature and I'm not sure why other boot makers don't include it. The right boot performed great with the cursory cuff angle that I'd set at home, but the left wasn't quite there and I was a bit tentative making right turns.
Edit: I forgot to add the edge engagement was immediate, and compared to my old boots felt almost severe! I think it was a combination of lateral stiffness and a more progressive but flex that responded positively and immediately- something I hadn't been used to.
After about 90 minutes I went in and adjusted the cuff in my left by increasing the cuff angle on my left less than 1°. Tecnica's cuff adjustment is "continuous" and has adjustments on both inside and outside of the cuff. It is worth mentioning that the cuff adjustments on the boots are available on both the inside and outside of the cuffs. I've found that using both sides are useful. My old Salomons had cuff adjustments on the outside only, I found the inside adjustment to be a key factor in helping me dial in the angle for both the inside and outside of my legs.
Following the mini-tweak I went back out. Mercifully we got a little sun and could see where I was going. With that minute adjustment I started just ripping it up. I was less tentative because I had an idea of what to expect and the small cuff adjustment eliminated some of the extra compensation that I felt I was doing with my right turns. As I became more familiar with the boots I started to enjoy them more and more. The flex gave me just enough leverage and shock absorption. Edit: The lateral stiffness combined with the right flex allowed me to tip my skis over farther. But not only that, having boots with the right stance and flex I could feel that I could pressure the tips of the skis much earlier in the turns and found myself able to make tighter turns. I'm not sure if I'd have had the same response with the Mach1 120's? I think I was surpised at how much more I could lay these skis over on edge- it was significant. I'd say (by feel) another 20% or more than you can see in my avatar. I could feel the turn radius tighten and G force increase as I was able to add more edge angle. While I cannot be sure, I have to believe that being able to bend the ski tip earlier in the turn due to a better flex pattern allowed for the higher edge angles,by securing a platform much earlier in the turn, then allowing the lateral stiffness to do its thing.
The one thing that I've still got to work out is the comfort thing. The left boot with the expanded ball area gave me no pain, but we super tight and I expect will be fine after a few days. The right, which did not have the shell modified at all wasn't bad, but at the end of the day my baby toe was irritated. I didn't experience any real pain until the end of the day. I've got to teach tomorrow, so I'll give it one more day before taking them back to the shop. Other than the baby toe issue on the one boot I don't think anything further needs to be done on the shells.
The one thing I can say is that my feet weren't exactly "warm" throughout the day. But I think that's a circulation issue due to the closeness of the fit and new boots. I found myself unlatching the lower buckles between runs which helped. With the fit and closness of these boots, I really didn't need much more tension on the lower buckles than enough to keep them closed.
The big difference between the 2020 and 2021 models is their new "T-Drive System" that attaches the upper cuff to the boots' lower. They do it with a carbon fiber piece that bolts onto both parts of the boot. Tecnica tells me that they'll be offering a replacement piece in the fall that will make the flex softer. I don't think I'll be needing to get them, but might just as an experiment. I'm not sure what other changes they've made to their boots, but the rest seems rather similar. It might be important to note that when first started searching for boots and trying on Tecnicas, I was comparing 2020 models and did find the 130 flex of the 2020 model rather on the stiff side (in the shop) and perhaps waiting for the old stock to run dry in my size was to my benefit.
Bottom line, the 2021 Tecnica Mach1 130's are the best performing boots I've ever tried (and I owned a ton in my younger days). They were the right stance for me, and aside from a few tweaks for comfort, really nice out of the box. I'd give it 5 stars for performance, and 3 stars for initial comfort, but I have high hopes that when it breaks in it will be a great all-day boot. Thanks for taking time to read this.
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