Lange RX 130

The Gist

Last year the Lange RX 130 continued its domination of the medium width group for our test team with its simple recipe for success: ease of use (goes on and off well and it’s warm), anatomical fit (contours around the shape of the foot and leg), power and stability (real plastic drives the ski damply, at speed), quickness and agility (goes where you tell it, not the other way around), balance (the Lange angles work, and so they don’t screw with that). Pretty simple, testers said, it’s a great boot. It returns this year unchanged and testers agree that it maintains its status as the medium width, performance benchmark to judge all others by.

The Fit

The RX remains a little bit roomier than in the past, by design, as Lange wanted to more clearly delineate the difference between the RX LV narrow class gripper and this middle-of-the-roadster-ripper. In the past the medium RX got called out for riding the fence between medium and narrow. Last year testers again noticed the difference, and most loved the extra room. Not that this is a fluffy fit—the well-sculpted Dual 3-D liner is firm and well-matched to the interior of the shell, so the grip on the foot is there, especially in the heel and ankle, but now the shape is opened up for average feet and legs. If this feels too roomy upon initial try-on, then the decision is clear—narrow RX LV for you.

Performance

The flex-feel is firm on the leg (legit 130) but with a energetic, elastic quality. In fact, testers made many comments of the boot's snappy, responsive feel underfoot. "There is something about this Dual Core plastic that behaves very well on snow…" one tester pondered. And there is. Dual Core plastic injection molding sandwiches a less-dense plastic in between higher density plastic within the shell wall itself, throughout both the lower and upper. This differential density creates an energetic internal tension of sorts within the material and gives the boot a lively feel that testers have loved across the board. All this snappiness has not come at the cost of power or stability, said testers who assure this is not a jittery boot. Steep edge angles, high speeds and all manner of snow conditions are where the RX 130 continues to shine.

Cool Features

The new RX 130 remains essentially the same basic four-buckle overlap it always has—no new frills, bells or whistles here. The Velcro power strap is a nice wide 45 mm. There's dual-side upper cuff adjustment that uses an old-school 3 mm Allen key. The Max Grip soles are grippy, hence the name, but not so soft as to wear out or fail to transmit energy to the ski. You can upgrade to GripWalk soles for a few bucks and use them with a GripWalk compatible binding. Testers loved the RX's Dual 3D liner for its firm but sculpted ankle pockets and heel grip.