Campman Outdoor Gear & Apparel

With more awards to its name than we care to count, the Scarpa Maestrale RS Ski Boot hardly needs introduction. If you aren’t familiar with its pedigree, the long and the short of it is that since the first iteration in 2010, the Maestrale has been widely revered as one of the best alpine touring boots that money can buy. Since then, the color, the materials, and the stiffness of the boot have all changed, but its reputation as one of the best backcountry boots remains the same.

First Look

Right out of the box, it’s clear that the Maestrale means business when it comes to weight. At a meager 1450 grams per boot (3 lbs 3.1 oz for those of us not on the metric system), they easily matched the weight of my previous boots, the  Salomon MTN Explore, while offering a similar cuff rotation while in walk mode and considerably better downhill performance which can be attributed to the three-piece construction, giving the boot a progressive forward flex and a 125 stiffness rating that’s apparent the moment you step into the boot. Walking around the house with them on, as you do when you get new ski boots, the roomy 101mm last will also make an impression on you, for better or worse. Personally, this was one of the reasons I was looking forward to the Maestrale RS, as my forefoot runs slightly wide, but this will not be the case for everyone, and finding the right fit for your foot is the best way to ensure a positive experience while skiing. That said, with a normal volume and slightly wide forefoot, the Maestrale RS fit me quite well out of the box.

Features

One of the things that sets the Maestrale RS apart from its competitors is its ability to retain an incredibly high cuff rotation while remaining lightweight, stiff, and comfortable for long days on the skin track. This is largely accomplished through the three piece design which splits the tongue into two pieces. The result? A comfortable boot for the tour up that performs more like a traditional alpine boot when it comes time to drop by allowing the tongue to provide the majority of the stiffness of the boot.

Of course, that’s only a piece of the stiffness puzzle. Getting the boot to a 125 stiffness rating also involved using three different buckles, and it’s hard to say which is the most interesting. The lowest buckle latches onto an attached cable that provides uniform pressure on the lower cuff, locking it solidly into place. The middle buckle is a simple ratchet-style design that at first glance doesn’t appear to provide much support, but once on the snow, you realize that it can do wonders for locking your heel into place on both the skin up and the ski down, adding to the overall stiffness and eliminating heel rub. Finally, the top buckle and power strap lock the boot firmly into place for a reliable design that you can count on when you’re getting ready to drop into a steep chute.

On the Snow

With over ten days in the Maestrale RS this season, it is safe to say I have experienced them in most conditions that you will find in the Wasatch: sunny bluebird days skinning up in a t-shirt, storm days at the resort, and bitter cold mornings trying to snag a few turns before work. In short, they live up to their reputation. As a backcountry skier first and resort skier second, they fit well into the category of a quiver-killer for me especially when it comes to the things I find most important in a ski boot: weight, breathability, cuff rotation, and stiffness.

Weight

As already mentioned, toting around a measly 3 lbs 3.1 oz per boot isn't much, and you’d be hard pressed to find a boot with the same cuff rotation, stiffness, and price point that weighs less. For the most-intense gram counters, there might be other options, but anyone looking for a reliable, solid boot in the featherweight category will not be disappointed.

Breathability

Despite what many people think, the skin track is not a place to dilly-dally. It’s a place to get your heart rate up, your blood pumping, and to set the occasional PR. As such, breathability may be one of the most important and overlooked qualities in a touring boot. Scarpa built the Maestrale using Grilamid, a lightweight and breathable shell material, and they added generous ventilation throughout the back of the boot, meaning sweaty boots are a thing of the past. Try as I might, I still haven’t been able to sweat in these boots regardless of conditions or how hard I’m working in them.

Cuff Rotation

As soon as you flip these into walk mode and start your uphill stride, you’ll feel the 60° of cuff rotation, or maybe you won’t, which might be the point. Referring to it as their friction-free walk mode, the Maestrales won’t let you down when it comes to being comfortable on the uphill, helping you get the most out of every stride without rubbing you the wrong way.

Stiffness

While the 125 stiffness rating of the Maestrale is more than enough for a 6’0”, 160 lbs, powder-hound of a skier, some may argue that it is not stiff enough. No matter what, there’s always someone who charges harder, drops more cliffs, and wants to throw a “sick backie” off of Chad’s gap in their AT boots, and for those people, I’d point them to the Scarpa Maestrale XT Ski Boot, with many of the same features and a 130+ flex rating. For many of us, a boot rated to 125 is plenty stiff, and for me it does the trick. Not to mention, that for once, this is an AT boot rated to 125 that actually feels that stiff when locked into ski-mode. This may have something to do with the redesigned walk-mode lever, but whatever it is, you no longer need to knock ten points off the stiffness rating just because it’s a touring boot.

Pros

The redesigned Scarpa Maestrale RS performs well in so many categories that it’s hard to pick just a few to highlight, but here’s where it really shines:

• Weight to Performance Ratio: If you want an ultralight boot that performs well on every aspect of the tour, you’d be hard pressed to find a better option.

• Intuition Liners: Instead of including poor-performing, stock liners that are both uncomfortable and tend to pack out early in the season, the Maestrales feature an Intuition® Cross Fit Pro Flex Performance Liner, that while not as cushy as a custom liner, offers much more for an out-of-the-box liner than you’ll get elsewhere.

• Wave Closure System: This unique design eliminates the need for a second buckle on the lower portion of the boot by using a cable mechanism to apply even pressure with just one buckle. It’s hard to say if this mechanism provides the exact same amount of stiffness and control over the boot as another added buckle would, but it seems to be a non-issue in terms of overall control, and the weight savings from dropping that extra buckle make it doubly worth it.

Cons

Searching for downsides to this boot is tougher than finding a lost ski on a powder day. There are a few changes that the boot would benefit from, but you have to nit-pick to get there.

• Getting into the boot: The cuff rotation is amazing on this boot and the construction has many benefits, but the ease of getting the boot on and off is not one of them. Every time I go to pull the Maestrale onto my foot, I almost have to pull it apart, and rely heavily on the liner pull straps to get it situated. Skiers with high insteps beware.

• Removing the liner: The stock footbeds are just that, stock. As such they aren’t great and you’ll likely want to swap them out with your own before your first day on the snow. That’s when you’ll learn how difficult getting the liners into and out of the boot shell can be. It feels more like a wrestling match than a footbed swap, making you grateful that the liners are shaped so well to the boot itself, and quality as far as non-custom options go.

• Walk-Mode Lever: The walk-mode lever doesn’t freeze up nearly as badly as some of the old models used to, but it still has a tendency to collect more ice than normal, making it difficult to switch into ski mode after a long tour in frozen conditions. This problem is easily solved by slamming it down onto the latch steel bar or by clearing it out with a ski pole, making it more of a minor nuisance than serious issue, but it is still worth noting, particularly if you ski in the Pacific Northwest or others areas than receive heavy, wet snow prone to freezing on your boots.

Conclusion

The Maestrale RS is everything you’ve been looking for in a touring boot and more. Sure there are other options out there that are lighter in weight, have a lower price point, or provide a stiffer shell for downhill performance, but you won’t find another boot that does all three as well as the Maestrale. With a construction that provides maximum comfort for all day tours, well-thought out buckle placement, and plenty of drive for everything from low angle-tree skiing to steep and narrow chutes, this is one ski boot that any serious backcountry skier should consider. Plus, if the RS isn’t stiff enough, you can always look into the Maestrale XT, giving you most of the same features as the RS but with a stiffer flex.

Already sold on the boots? We’ve got what you need. Grab the Scarpa Maestrale RS Ski Boots or the Scarpa Maestrale XT Ski Boots before the snow is all gone.

About Campman

Campman is an outdoor retail store located in Salt Lake City, Utah that specializes in gear and equipment for camping, skiing, backpacking, climbing, and everything in between. We understand that the difference between a bad memory and the adventure of a lifetime can come down to the gear you take with you when you head outdoors, and we want our customers to have the best experiences possible. When it comes to getting outside, we get it, and we’ll get you the gear you need to get there.

Questions? Feel free to contact us by phone at (801) 999-8117 or by email at sales@campman.com.