I tried BURTON's STEP ON system that will appear next year !!


"We are releasing innovative bindings and boots." At the end of November last year, a BURTON marketer announced. It is said that a test drive event for the new product will be held at Hakuba Goryu Ski Resort on January 11th. A message added with "innovative" that says, "I can't tell you too much about it, but it's like a step-in."I waited for the day, even more intrigued by the feeling that the whole picture was wrapped in a mysterious veil.On the day of the event, there were a lot of riders such as Terje Håkonsen, Masanori Takeuchi, Shota Suzuki, Yuya Nakayama, Tatsumasa Takahashi, Yuki Furihata, and Shigefumi Yoshimura.The riders also confirmed the feel of STEP ON.

Binding is extremely simple
Binding is extremely simple


What is STEP ON in the first place? ??

A system that cuts off unnecessary things, specializes in a simple design and step-on (boots are fixed to the binding system with one touch) function, and fits the boots and bindings perfectly.
The heel cleat attached to the heel locks to the heel buckle of the binding, and the toe cleats equipped on both sides of the toe part are fixed to the toe hook of the binding and play a role in suppressing the displacement of the boot from side to side. It is fixed at 3 connection points, but it is a safe system that the heel buckle is fixed so that it will not come off.
To unlock, just pull up the release lever on the side of the base plate, and after removing the boots, the release lever will be reset automatically.In addition, this system is compatible with all insert patterns.The boots are equipped with the BOA system, and currently STEP ON is installed in RULER and PHOTON, but RULER does not have the rugged ankle strap that was attached to the step-in boots so far, and PHOTON has a snugger strap. Equipped with the so-called ankle strap and utilizing the BOA system, the weight has been reduced.

RULER has no ankle straps and looks like normal boots.The toe hooks on both sides of the toe and the lock parts on the heel side are proof of STEP ON.
RULER has no ankle snugger straps and looks like normal boots
04_women
This has a snugger strap equipped with BOA on the ankle like FELIX for WOMEN'S and PHOTON for MEN'S.

The outline is such a place.

BURTON revealed that the system was completed in a lab named White Room, where four engineers worked intensively for four months for development while staying overnight.After that, the ON SNOW test took 4 hours.Tests have been conducted in various fields such as Chile, USA and Japan.Never before has a project put so much effort into a single product, said Eric, headquarter and development manager at BURTON.

Why?

Why did BURTON spend so much effort on this system?
"Evolution of riding with innovative system"
That's exactly what you asked for.
You can quickly attach the binding without having to put your hips down on the snow.
As mentioned earlier, considering that the heel cleats on the heels should be locked first, there is no doubt that the speed is faster than the previous step-in.The lock to the toe hook is said to be in time even from the start.And the biggest feature is that the boots do not have a large metal plate built in.In other words, the boots are extremely light and easy to walk.In particular, RULER without ankle straps looks almost the same as normal boots.Furthermore, because the boot metal plate is not built in, you can control while feeling the feeling of the board firmly on the sole of the foot.
STEP ON is clearly a system with charm that has never been seen before.

No big metal parts on the sole !!
No big metal parts on the sole !!
03_heel
The heel cleat equipped on this part is the connection point with the binding.The clip attached on the top is to prevent the hem of the wear from getting caught in the system.
The binding is simple and light with no extra parts.
The binding is simple and light with no extra parts.
This is the heel lock system
This is the heel buckle, which is the lock system for the heel.Equipped with a release lever on the left side

Test riding !!

FIRST IMPRESSION

The moment I pick up my boots, it's really light.I am convinced. Of course, the installation of the BOA system also plays a role here. BURTON's BOA system uses New England Ropes' natural fiber lace, which has a smooth winding and moderate flex, which is a nice touch.Looking at the difference from normal boots with RULER, it is equipped with BOA system, heel cleats are attached to the heel part, and toe cleats are attached to both sides of the toe. In addition to this, PHOTON has a snugger strap (ankle strap) that tightens with BOA, but the weight of the parts is light and it seems that it is not necessary to apply so much tension here.
The binding is also extremely simple.As the word says, it has been scraped off, and it is finished in a range that can be said to be lightweight.Heel cleats on the heel can be locked immediately by stepping on the binding with the heel. According to BURTON staff, if this part is locked, it will not come off, and when the toe cleat gets stuck in the toe hook, it will make a clicking sound.The fixed state is the most flexible impression compared to the step-in system I have tried so far.Perhaps because there are no large metal parts on the soles of the feet, it feels like I'm riding on the binding naturally.Does this mean STEP ON?I was convinced.
When powder, how much snow should be removed to fix it?When I asked the BURTON staff about such a question, he said, "Please try STEP ON in this state." I tried STEP ON with a cushion material of about 2 cm on the binding base.This is also beautifully cleared.As with the strap bindings, it's okay to have some snow on it.It seems like that.

STEP ON at the feet of Terrier

Terrier cruising the slopes of Hakuba Goryu
Terrier cruising the slopes of Hakuba Goryu photo: yoshitoyanagida.net
One-shot STEP ON from the jump like a demo video
Terrier photo: yoshitoyanagida.net that shows the one-shot STEP ON from the jump, which was also in one scene of the demo video released at the venue of the briefing session.


FEEL

STEP ON enters as soon as you step on the heel of the boot so that it slides into the high back.The heel locks and the toes are stepped on and secured to the toe hook. If you can't get in with one shot, just screw your toes left and right and you'll get in.If you get used to it, you can put on your hind legs when you get off the lift and start slipping immediately.For release, pull up the release lever to unlock the heel buckle, and then step forward to unlock it.Moreover, the release lever is reset naturally after it comes off, so restarting is easy.
Now, when you actually turn, the boots and bindings fit perfectly, so the response with board control is very good.You can get a sufficient response without putting too much tension on the snugger strap.You can also fine-tune the response by adjusting the BOA system of the boots.Indeed, this is a system only with the BOA function.Moreover, BURTON's BOA has a moderate amount of flex, which seems to work for this system.The response of the heel side turn is also good.You can also adjust the forward lean of the high back, so this response is also fine-tuned.
There is no feeling of turning or pulling up somewhere as a fulcrum, and it feels like controlling the entire sole.It can be predicted that the more the boots become familiar with the feet, the more free the feeling will be.
With that in mind, I tried out BURTON's next model with the STEP ON system on this day.It was the first system in the second half, and since it was a new boot, there was a little pain on both sides of the toes of the foot, but if you get used to it, it will be a problem-solving level.It may be because I changed the test drive board steadily.
It seems that some fine adjustments will still be added to the final commercialization, and it seems that it will be finished and appear even better by the time it is sold.There is no doubt that this will be a product that will be a hot topic in the next model.

Forward lean can be adjusted by turning the screw in this part.
Forward lean can be adjusted by turning the screw in this part.
_YOS1193STEPON-TOUR_ @ goryu_20170119_yoshito
photo: yoshitoyanagida.net

In the past, BURTON also sold a step-in called the SI series.I've been using that system for about two seasons, but it's a completely different system from SI.And I felt that this STEP ON, which was completed with considerable development power, is quite close to the feeling of control with normal strap binding.Obviously innovative, one of the evolutions to make riding easier and more enjoyable.After all it is a lot of fun to try new things. I am very much looking forward to the introduction of STEP ON to the market.

BURTON BRAND PAGE