Traditionally, ski boots are notorious foot-crunchers. The heavy plastic boots don't yield to the movement of your soft flesh, and the strenuous actions of skiing entail substantial pressure as skin and bone work within rigid boots.

The common practice of skiers is to simply grin and bear the discomfort as the price paid for the joys of skiing. Fortunately, those days have come to an end — at least, for skiers savvy enough to step into the new generation of ski boots. For alpine touring enthusiasts, one of the best options these days is the brand-new Spirit 4 boot from Scarpa. This do-it-all boot provides the rigid support need to crank powerful turns inbounds. Yet is it also light enough for most backcountry touring adventures. As a fairly large (6 foot 2 and 225 pounds) skier who likes to ski fairly aggressively, I found the Spirit 4s offer plenty of power and support to handle even the cruddiest Cascade concrete. The Spirit 4s replaced Scarpa's venerable old Denali TT boots, with several improvements over that hugely popular model.

The four-buckle design keeps the foot locked firmly in place, while the Plus-FIT heat-moldable inner boot wraps your foot comfortably and securely. Your local ski shop can help you mold the inner boot to your foot's specific shape, giving you a custom fit for absolute comfort. In fact, I found these to be the most comfortable ski boots I've ever worn, right out of the box. Once I tweaked the inner boots, they proved even more comfortable than most of my hiking boots!

The walking mode of these AT boots is easy to activate with a smooth lever-action switch on the heel plate. The soft flex of the walk mode gives way to super-firm support and an aggressive forward cant when shifted to ski mode.

The boots are a bit heavier than some other models, and that proved a bit tiring on long tours, such as the climb up Schreibers Meadows on Mount Baker, or up the south flank of Mount St. Helens. Bigger skiers, though, who favor fast runs down the steeps will surely find the extra weight is well worth the effort on the climb. And those who like to tear it up inbounds and off-piste will appreciate the versatile nature of the Spirit 4s. They are equally at home on ski resort groomed hills and in backcountry powder.

Suggested retail is $669. See www.scarpa.com for more information.

— Dan A. Nelson, special to The Seattle Times

Freelancer Dan A. Nelson, of Puyallup, is a regular contributor to Backpacker magazine, and an author of outdoor guides with The Mountaineers Books. For the purpose of review, gear manufacturers lend products, which are returned after a typical use of four to six weeks. There is no payment from manufacturers and they have no control over the content of reviews. Contact Dan with gear-related questions at gearguy@adventuresnw.net.