The Rossignol Vizion vision was to create an extremely easy-to-put-on boot that didn't sacrifice modern fit and performance standards and also looked and functioned like a "real" four-buckle overlap boot. Our testers say that the Vizion 120 HV represents a Mission Accomplished moment that an ex-president could envy.
The look of the four-buckle design isn't a faux-closure facade--it is a legitimate overlap design here, with four fully functional buckles to close up the high-volume fit in traditional fashion. No laces, no cables and no knobs to foul the user-friendly and familiar format. Some testers were super impressed with the smoothly contoured anatomical fit and comfortably contained wide fit but didn't understand that the boot was unique until another tester showed them the secret, under-buckle latch that releases the rear half of the cuff and allows it to drop back into its massive-maw, foot-gobbling-mode. It's not a requirement for entry into the Vizion boot, releasing the rear cuff--it goes on easier than most while left locked, but once the lever is thrown and the back of the boot hinges to the stern, all barrier to entry is removed and the foot and leg glide into place with ease.
That is the nature of the All-Mountain Access category--removal of barriers to the enjoyment of skiing, be they entry-exit, warmth or convenience challenges. Many skiers have been faced with the choice between settling for a gooey soft bucket of a boot for the sake of getting the damn thing on or giving up on skiing--seems extreme but that not an exaggeration as our bootfitting, boot-selling test team can vouch. Yes, wide-lasted, soft flexing models have represented the best solution for skiers struggling with boot entry, and retromod rear-entry boots and three-piece designs also have good ease-of-entry characteristics, but often these are one-off solutions without a spread of multiple widths and stiffnesses to offer. The Vizion 120 HV represents the stiffest of the range's wides, but it's also available in a 100-flex, and in multiple flexes in a medium-width and also in a narrow, and again in women's models. The Vizion is a far-sighted project that's going all-in for its debut season, and our testers' initial experience with it has been 100-percent positive.
One veteran (30-plus years) boot tester said this of the Vizion 120 HV: The most comfortable, easy on, easy off, easiest to ski boot--ever! That's a pretty solid appraisal from someone who knows. Testers especially liked the wide-load fit for the fat, splayed foot. One of our testers with a spatula like that said that he loved the extra room and curvature of fit along the lateral side of the foot and he also commented that while there was plenty of room where needed there was still enough hold elsewhere to control the ski. This comment was echoed by several testers who praised the wide last fit for exactly that--a proper blend of room and well-shaped containment.
Rossignol has hit its stride with testers for its perfectly balanced stance angles across all models, and the Vizion 120 HV was no different. Testers loved how it put them in a position to make functional, balanced, comfortable skiing moves without adopting any unwanted modifications to their style. Testers said the balanced stance set the stage for the boot to perform on edge (strongly) and in transitions between turns (quickly). Testers had nothing but good things to say about how the Vizion HV skied, but they kept their highest scores in the Convenience, Warmth and Features criterion where it secured a 4.88 out of 5.
Testers said that wide-footed skiers of all abilities would be happy in the Vizion 120 HV but said that if ease of entry was of any importance at all, then it would be a no-brainer, next boot buy.
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