Staff Review
D. Mack here at the House, talking about the second techiest snowboard boot I got in the shop after the SLX. This is the
Burton Ruler snowboard boot, an awesome free ride snowboard boot from these guys. Definitely looking at a firmer flex in this one, sitting at around an 8 out of 10 for stiffness.
Lots of cool stuff going on with this snowboard boot. First off, you have the shrinkage tech, which basically takes a size 12 snowboard boot and shrinks it down to a size 11 snowboard boot. If you have a larger foot, it's a good way to get on a shorter snowboard to give you quicker edge-to-edge transitioning time.
This one also has their EST midsole that will sink your foot further down in the snowboard boot. It works well with the EST snowboard bindings because you have more cushioning with those. You can take some of the cushioning out of the snowboard boot, so it enhances your overall snowboard feel.
This year they also added a pressure relief panel, because of the stiffness of the snowboard boot, that relieves the crimping pressure when you're bending your knees. It also has the Speed Zone lacing, which happens to be my favorite lacing on the market due to its super quick in-and-out. There's also a performance advantage: You're always going to lock the bottom pretty tight to keep you nice and responsive in the setup. However, you can ride the upper zone looser for less demanding days to make it a softer flexing snowboard boot, or lock it in tight for uneven terrain, heavy powder or trees to stiffen up the snowboard boot quite a bit.
This snowboard boot also has their RX Cushioning System in the bottom of the outer, which includes gel for the colder days and air for the warmer days. Or you can change it out for personal preference rather easily, just placing it in the bottom of the snowboard boot.
There's also B3 gel in the sole, along with gripping rubber spikes and a super lightweight shell. It also has the lace harness to hold your foot and the liner still, giving you a really good heel-hold.
The liner is a very high-end, Imprint 4 liner, the second best liner they make. As with all of the
Burton liners, it's extremely lightweight and really good at heat molding. You can ride them right out of the box, and they only get better with the more you ride them. The Infinifit sole only adds more cushioning, also helping to mold the bottom part of the snowboard boot just like the upper part. There's now a Velcro cuff instead of last year's Power Strap, very easy to get in and out of, which also holds better than the old cuff did.
The entire liner is equipped with Outlast, a space-age fabric that takes any heat your foot gives off and stores it, only to release it back to your foot once your foot's temperature drops. It definitely keeps your feet at a consistent temperature throughout the day.
There's also a lycra panel in the snowboard boot where your heel usually gets stuck to help it slide in. It also has good Achilles grabbers, letting you get a great heel-hold. The directional fabric helps keep your sock in place and improve the heel-hold, not letting the sock move around too much, and a micro-panel in the toe helps you move your toes around to increase bloodflow and keep your feet warm.
The tri-component footbed has really good cushioning in the heel, but a stiffer middle for good arch support, to keep your heel where it's supposed to be. If you're a free-rider, this is definitely one of the best snowboard boots in the shop. Or if you're doing a lot of pipe, larger tabletop jumps, the Burton Ruler snowboard boot is definitely one of the most tech-ridden snowboard boots in the shop.
