Tecnica Cochise 105 Women's Ski Boots Review: A Touring and Downhill Wonder

The Tecnica Cochise boots have an upgraded fit, a new walk mode mechanism, and more options for flex — including 115 stiffness.

I didn't upgrade my ski boots for over 8 years. Go ahead and let your imagination run wild for a second as to what my (pre-owned) circa ~2000s ski boots looked like.

Last season, I got the chance to get my feet into the Tecnica Cochise 105s. And the boots’ comfort, fit, and function blew me away.

In short: These boots were made for walkin’ … and touring, and downhill skiing. While the boot has a standard, two-piece, four-buckle design, its performance was well above "standard." With a 50-degree range of movement in walk mode, it's comfortable for long days, and performs well on the skin track.

This is a resort-oriented boot that drives skis well, but can also tour the backcountry. These are already my favorite ski boots, and I expect they will be for a while.

I put in over 30 days in these boots resort skiing, and about 2 weeks in the boots in the skin track and backcountry skiing.

At my home resort (and a host of others), these ski boots really shined. The shell is anatomically designed to fit women's feet. And in my case, they were comfortable right out of the box.

Given the claims of the design, I was pretty thrilled with that initial out-of-the-box and all-day comfort. Not once did I get hot spots or aches in these boots, no matter the conditions or terrain.

The new flex option — the 115 — is also one that Cochise lovers have been waiting for. The 115 will allow for more aggressive skiing and will maximize speed and responsiveness. It will be a strong boot option for those who like to go fast and go steep.

I went for the 105 flex Cochise boots. They’re still stiff but not overly so for my weight and build. But after skiing a month's worth of days in these boots, I’d actually be game to try the 115 flex boots as well.

My first chance to really put these boots to a strong uphill test was on a 3-day backcountry hut trip last season (as I haven't quite made it out to a hut this season yet!).

The boots were really, really comfortable. And for ski boots, that's saying something. They fit well and were fairly easy to make minor adjustments to fit on the way up. So, at least when I had to troubleshoot an issue with one front pin on my tech bindings, I knew I could take a sigh of relief that any problem or discomfort wasn't coming from my Tecnica Cochise boots.

That's a big win. (The second win was me fixing that toe pin problem on my own before the way down.)

The Tecnica Cochise 105 boots have a "frictionless" hinge point on the shell to provide ultimate comfort when hiking/skinning uphill. And they have 50 degrees of range in walk mode. Combined, it's a solid design for an uphill boot, especially one with these downhill chops.

Finally, the Cochise 105s have Tecnica's "T-Ride" walk mechanism, which provides a way to lock the boot in place after converting from walk mode to ski mode. That prevents the boots from popping into walk mode while skiing. It's a nice feature and one I used often for peace of mind.

All in all, I was very impressed with the form, fit, feel, and function of these boots. The liner is fantastic, contributing a lot to overall comfort. The buckles worked well, and so did the walk mode.

And the 50 degrees of movement in walk mode is stellar. The boots were compatible with several sets of skis/bindings in my possession — I tested them with both alpine and tech bindings, downhill skiing, and ski touring. And I was hard-pressed to find any cons.

The Tecnica Cochise blew me away not only with their initial comfort and fit and construction of the boot and shell, but also their lasting performance throughout the season. For those who spend most time inbounds and freeskiing, these could replace a skier's entire boot quiver for both backcountry and resort skiing. That said, it's definitely on the heavier end for touring, so those who put more emphasis on the uphill performance will be better served elsewhere.

But for those aiming to drive larger touring skis downhill, this boot is a solid choice. Given the fact that the women's model now comes in the stiffer 115 flex for more aggressive downhill skiing, I expect these Tecnica Cochise boots to be a staple model for many skiers this season and beyond.

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