Our testers loved the new gold-medal-winning Atomic Hawx XTD Magna 105 W for its massive, Magna-sized volume in the toebox, forefoot and calf. They remind folks that there are not many options for high-volume female skiers looking for a tech-compatible freeride boot, and they were stoked that this one skied as well as it did everywhere on the hill.
The new XTD Magna range offers all the tech found in the medium Prime and narrow Ultra XTD boots but in a generous 102mm last. Testers liked the polyurethane cuff and shell construction in a 105-flex for its support for strong skiers and normal-sized humans who need a higher volume fit. They were really impressed with the amount of flare and available circumference at the boot top for the high volume calf, and that was in the cuff's stock setting--there is a calf-adjustment feature to open that fit further if needed. The toebox and forefoot fit offered vast amounts of space for the foot to spread out without going numb or cold, testers said.
Even though the fit was more relaxed than many of our testers would want in their own boot, as a group they still awarded the XTD Magna 105 W a perfect 5.00 for its Quickness and Steering criterion. That's an impressive metric for a wide boot, as testers often can't look beyond their own foot's lack of firm contact with the shell to see the potential responsiveness for the skier who will appropriately fill-up the internal space available. The Magna's edge power score lagged a little behind its quickness but still logged-in at gold medal levels--testers said the women's wide freerider was predictable, stable and strong on edge in every terrain challenge they threw at it.
Many of our test team made comments that the boot's total score was most hampered by one excessively tight fit zone, right over the top of the foot. Almost every tester made mention of this fact, calling it the Hawx XTD Magna 105 W's only flaw, but it was one that caused numbness and pain for more than one tester. They thought that pre-padding their instep before performing a convection-oven-powered Memory Fit molding, followed by a liner cook job would probably open up the fit in that area. That said, testers with wide feet and big calves but with lower insteps should put this tech-compatible all-rounder at the very top of their list, testers agreed.
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