The 2021/2022 Dalbello Chakra Elevate 115 was tested in the women’s All-Mountain Traditional narrow category by the experts at America's Best Bootfitters, powered by Masterfit.
The Gist
The Chakra has been reimagined for the modern freerider with tech fittings in the toe only, to allow for an effective uphill on a pin binding like, say, the Marker Duke PT, but otherwise remains a full-fledged alpine boot for a dominant downhill—no hike mode, no flimsy plastics. The Chakra Elevate 115 is a serious skiing tool, say testers who found it solid, upright and super snug. Wimps need not apply they said.
The Fit
The Dalbello/Intuition I.D. spiral wrap liner is not designed to be skied out of the box, so while you can certainly try it on in a shop, the final fit, post molding, is vastly superior to what you sense initially. Testers who performed a full cook job on the liners with toe caps and pre-padding for bony prominences came out the other side with a customized fit that was opened-up for a little more creature comfort and blood flow. This is a true narrow class boot, they say. Shin fit, they say, was especially improved once the spiral overlap was cooked and compressed into a more anatomical wrap around the leg shaft. The ankles and heel pocket remain snug no matter what, they said.
Performance
Testers agreed that the Elevate 115 stands with an upright angle and pushes back with more oompf than the 115 label would suggest. Even our strongest testers mentioned wanting more leverage over the stout, tall cuff, with some suggesting a they might need a little bit of heel lift or time playing around with a bootfitter’s help to possibly soften the flex a touch. The spiral liner’s double wrap in front of the shin plus the 60mm cam lock power strap help to bolster this solid forward lever to the ski—testers said it was the strongest set-up they’ve tested from Dalbello’s cabrio collections over the years.
Cool Features
Testers were unsure how far they’d like to tour in this boot but could see the merits of a real descender that has tech compatibility in the toe for the sake of a quick ascent as an out of gate surgical strike on something worth skiing. GripWalk soles add a bit to the boot’s mobility resume as well. Testers make note that this boot comes in a rare and miniscule 21.5, so ultra-petite rippers should put this on their short list.
