Powder Review: Tecnica Zero G Tour Pro

• Size Skied: 27.5
• Weight:
• Total: 1290 g

• Stated Flex: 130
• Binding Compatibility: Tech Bindings
• Stated ROM: 60°
• Forward Lean: 14-16°

Tecnica's Zero G Tour Pro will be available soon.

Intro

The Tecnica Zero G Tour Pro has been around for awhile, and throughout its various generations has proven itself as one of the best-performing backcountry skiing boots on the market. It’s light enough for huge days, expeditions, and technical ski mountaineering, but somehow stiff enough that it can double as a freeride boot for soft snow. 

It’s been a go-to choice for ski guides, professional athletes and recreationalists alike, and has proven to be one of the most versatile boots for backcountry skiing out there. However, it definitely has had some issues. Those included ankle pivot durability, a really upright forward lean (with a horrible adjustment system), too thin a liner, and a walk mode that often acted up.

For 2024, Tecnica redesigned the Zero G Tour Pro from the ground up, addressing all of those pain points, and actually improving the design to shave some grams and increase ROM and the fit. The older Zero G Tour Pro has been my everyday touring boot for the past few seasons, and I’ve added quite a few modifications to it including the Raide Research ZGTP forward lean mod (which increases the forward lean by 2 degrees), a Booster strap, and have messed around with different liners, bootboards, and buckles to get it to ski the way I’d like. Out of the box, the new Zero G Tour Pro already addresses all of those issues from the factory. I’ve been skiing the new boot completely stock since January, save for a custom footbed, and it already outperforms my heavily-modded older version. 

Fit

Tecnica has also updated the fit of the boot, particularly in the toe box. It’s now slightly roomier up front, with extra space on the outside sixth-toe area and a more “anatomical” shape under your arch. It retains the fairly low instep, medium-tight heel pocket, and tall toebox of the older boot. I would say that if you fit into the old one, this new one will feel even better.

The shell features Tecnica’s CAS fit system, which isn’t much for at-home fitters, but gives pro bootfitters better options for shell punching and other mods. The liner is also much more substantial than older versions, adding both stiffness and a lot of comfort and warmth to the whole package. It has eyelets for laces (included in the box), but doesn’t have any hard plastic that could cause pain points. 

Features

The first thing that’s immediately obvious is that this boot, well, it looks like a ski boot. It’s got four buckles (GASP, no BOA!), tech fittings, a strap, an external walk mode lever on the spine, and not a whole lot else. That’s awesome. I’m a firm believer that backcountry boots should be simple - it keeps them light, keeps the number of breakable parts to a minimum, and should in theory make them ski and fit predictably. The shell is made of lightweight Grilamid that’s been injected with carbon fiber to add stiffness. Interestingly, it still features an ISO 9523 rockered touring sole, and didn’t switch over to a GripWalk sole.

For the new boot, Tecnica did specifically update a few things. First off, and perhaps the most noticeable is the increased forward lean. The old boot was awfully upright, perhaps a holdover from when most tech bindings had extreme ramp angles (that’s not the case with most anymore). The new boot now has a 14 or 16 degree forward lean, which I find perfectly appropriate for any snow condition or terrain I’d seek out in the backcountry. I’m not taking this boot to carve groomers, so no need for World Cup angles here.

Secondly, the boot now has much beefier hardware around the ankle pivots and buckles. Time will tell how long these will last, but I can already tell that these are much better put together than the older boot that would develop side-to-side play when the plastic around the hardware would ovalize. The cuff strap is also now bolted on (as opposed to riveted) which makes removing it or swapping it for a Booster Strap or removing it to save weight much easier.

Finally, the walk mode lever is now the same as that found on the lighter Zero G Peak boot. It’s still a dual-blocking lever to add rigidity, but it’s lighter and simpler than before, and serves to streamline their product offering. I'd like to think that's better for the Earth.

There's a new 125-flex women's version called the Tour Pro W with a slightly different fit.

Uphill Performance

I wasn’t sure how Tecnica could improve the walkability of an already stellar walking boot, but they added 10 degrees to the ROM, and somehow made the pivot action feel even lighter. In other words, this boot walks like a dream! Frankly, I don’t see the point of owning a 2-buckle skimo style boot anymore when this walks just as well, skis WAY better, and will keep your foot warmer and happier. At 1290 grams, switching to a 1000-gram skimo boot would give you marginal returns on the uptrack, a noticeable decrease in performance on the way down.

While a GripWalk sole would give this boot better compatibility with more bindings, the rockered touring sole walks much more comfortably. This is super noticeable on any kind of bootpack, especially on rough or rocky ground. Walking in the Zero G Tour Pro feels like wearing a mountaineering boot, it’s intuitive, secure, and comfortable.

I tested it with a variety of automatic and semi-automatic crampons, and found no clearance issues with toe and heel bails.

Downhill Performance

Normally, this is where I would say, “this boot skis well for a touring boot.” I won’t, though, because this boot just reset the gold standard for how a backcountry boot should ski. It’s stiff. It’s also really progressive, and dampens vibrations and impacts the way a much heavier alpine boot would. It walks like a Grilamid boot, but it sure doesn't ski like one.

I’ll attribute that to Tecnica’s updated PowerFrame construction, which essentially adds plastic material around the ankle to prevent deformation of the lower shell while flexing the boot. It gives a smooth, progressive, and damp feel that translates to better control over your skis, even in bad snow.

I skied everything from the 95mm underfoot Black Crows Camox Freebird to a 120mm underfoot Atomic Bent 120, and wouldn’t shy away from skiing even bigger and heavier skis with these on my feet. 

What compromises does the Tecnica Zero G Tour Pro make?

In all honesty, this boot doesn’t really make very many compromises. Sure, a GripWalk sole would make it technically compatible with more bindings, but it’s designed for backcountry use, so I’m not that worried that it won’t technically work with some alpine bindings. I will say that it might actually be too stiff for some folks, but that’s where the softer flex Zero G Scout comes in. It’s the same fit, with the same features, with softer plastic. 

What does the Tecnica Zero G Tour Pro’s ideal skier look like?

This boot is for any and all backcountry skiers. It’s a versatile quiver-killer, and I’d take it pretty much anywhere from skiing the Grand Teton, to deep-snow freeride missions, to mellow powder laps, to multi-day traverses that involve way more walking than skiing. It’s comfortable, it’s really light, and it just skis so damn well. 

Tecnica's Zero G Tour Pro will be available soon.