Contributions by Powder.com (12)

Jon Olsson, the mastermind behind the new Head Mojo XP, is known most for his prowess in the park. But Jon is also an accomplished big mountain ripper, and this season he wanted a boot that could keep up with him off-piste. Featuring the same narrow last as Head’s expert race boots, the Mojo XP is also much stiffer than the ’06-07 Mojo. New asymmetrical hinge placement improves edge control in modern two-footed techniques, and a polyurethane boot board absorbs impact from huge airs. Jon didn’t stop with performance. The Mojo XP features faux rust buckles and a faux bondage style stitched leather shell.

After Karhu joined K2 last year, Garmont took over as North American distributor of the 7tm series, a releasable freeheel binding manufactured by Rezotec GmbH in Germany. The 7tm Power ($280) is powerful, smooth and active--an excellent resort binding, and also great for jib sessions. But with the Power Tour, you get all the juice plus a frictionless touring function. While the DIN-release is much safer while traveling in avalanche terrain, bigger, stronger skiers might question its trustworthiness on uber-steep terrain.

Best known for its touring boots, Garmont is turning its focus inbounds with the Shaman. With a flex rating of 120 and an anatomically close fit, the Shaman can hold its own against any other boot in the big-mountain category. Basically a plug boot with all the important areas punched out—like the “sixth toe”—the Shaman is still meant for skiers who occasionally hike for their turns. Standard DIN soles can be swapped for rockered mountaineering soles more adept at navigating rocky routes. An excellent choice to pair with the Marker Duke binding, the Shaman might be a keystone in the ultimate do-all setup.

The Scarpa T-X—another NTN boot—is a versatile option because it is also Dynafit compatible. How you like them apples? Its most identifiable feature as a tele boot is that it doesn’t have a duckbill. Instead, with the NTN, the rounded front of the sole and the “second heel,” a lip beneath the arch of the boot, are clasped by the binding. This creates a rigid interface to transfer energy and power directly to the ski edge. Other features include thermo Intuition liner, three buckles and mid-stiff flex.

Only a slight change in the T-Race. Along with the same four-buckle, high-performance stiffness, the boot comes with an Intuition liner, a thermo liner more durable, lightweight and comfortable than in previous Scarpa models. Despite the upgrade, though, the boot’s price stays the same. The T-Race has a fixed forward lean and no walking mechanism. Because, after all, it’s called skiing.

New from Voile, the Switchback combines the time-tested mettle of the classic Hardwire—cartridges set on metal rods for torsional stiffness—with a pivot-free touring mechanism. Like the other touring bindings listed here, this system is activated by switching a toggle to the side. What’s more, the Switchback gives you energy savings on the way up: It’s the lightest weight option in the touring class, not to mention the most affordable.

The O1 returns unchanged for its second year. Thank goodness. Cable cartridges underfoot—available in “freeflex,” “mid stiff,” and, our favorite, “ridiculously stiff”—drive power to the ski on the downhill. But the best part of the O1 is its touring mechanism. A simple press of a toggle offers a frictionless pivot of the stainless steel toe piece, allowing you to ascend unhindered by either boot or binding. The only downside is that on super cold days the toe piece is occasionally reluctant to snap back into place, creating a slight panic until it finally does.

Despite its unfortunate name, we here at POWDER assure you Nordica’s Supercharger Blower does not, in fact, blow. Quite the opposite, it kicks ass. Everything about the Blower is designed to take the impact out of skiing: Dampening foot board, rubber spoiler, padded tongue, padded liner cuff, neoprene toe box, and built-in booster straps smooth out the chatter in the bumpiest of run outs. Asymmetrical hinge placement on the Blower heightens edge control and ski agility when railing long, fast turns. Lastly, the Blower features a relatively narrow 98mm last for a high performance and customizable fit.

Dalbello keeps a good thing going by bringing back the Krypton Pro unchanged this season. If you haven’t been paying attention the last few years, Dalbello—with the help of Glen Plake—remade and improved the cult classic Raichle Flexon. The simple three-piece shell continues to deliver comfortable performance on two levels: The stepped tongue provides buttery-smooth forward flex to absorb impact, and the low-hinged cuff wraps the skier’s calf to transfer energy efficiently to the ski edge for heightened lateral control. Or in dude-speak: they won’t harsh on your shins. Regarded as the best liner besides custom foam, Dalbello’s ID Intuition liners are molded inside each shell to eliminate slop out of the box.

When a guy like Jeremy Nobis slays first descents in places like Alaska's Tordrillo Range, the boots you make for him had better be burly. Lange cranked its Freeride boot up a notch this season from 120 to 130 making it stiffer throughout. The tight 98mm last fits better out of the box this year, and the race plug shell is designed to easily be altered by a skilled bootfitter. Freeride specific features include Velcro closures on the liner tongue to keep things together when hiking with open buckles, and a dampening foot board to soften hard landings. Your shins will appreciate the thick elastic power strap.

Despite competition from others, the Fristchi Freeride Plus remains the most popular and trusted alpine touring binding on the market. If you need proof, simply look to Chris Davenport, who depended on this binding to get him up and down all of Colorado's 14ers last year. Returning unchanged, the Freeride Plus excels inbounds and out due to a heel-locking mechanism to prevent unwanted switches to touring mode. Wide mounting plates allow you to gain leverage over increasingly wide skis. Accepting both alpine and touring boot soles, the possibilities are huge with this binding.

From the ashes of its discontinued pivot heel race bindings, the Look PX18 rises to begin a new era in metal high-DIN freeride bindings. Ski techs the world over welcome with open arms removable brakes available in various widths and a micro-drive heel to dial in forward pressure. The PX18 achieves the same torsional rigidity as its consumer level little brothers (PX14 and PX12), but does it with a bombproof all-metal housing and a shorter footprint on the ski. This allows you to control ultra-fat skis while still letting them flex naturally.