Header Image: Sam Ingles

It’s fair to say that K2 has really perfected the secret sauce with their Mindbender range of freeride skis and touring boots. The Mindbender range of skis has frequently featured in our Ski 100 buyers’ guide of the best ski kit out there. And, similar to the Mindbender ski line, the Mindbender boot line has been designed for all-out freeride touring.

Sporting tech inserts and a walk mode, the Mindbender boot range can handle both resort touring and full-on backcountry skiing missions. The range has been made to cover all bases and foot shapes, with the stiffer 140 – 115 flex rating sporting a narrower ‘race-like’ 98 mm last, while the softer boots (100 – 95) come with a more comfortable 100 mm last.

So what exactly makes up this secret sauce? Well we’re here to take a look under the hood of the Mindbender range to show what makes them such a high performing boot with one of our favourite flex profiles in a freeride touring boot.

Build

The whole Mindbender range is made up from a traditional four-buckle overlap design that features K2’s impressive ‘Powerlite’ shell design. This shell design is essentially a TPU overlap shell that’s made up from four different stiffnesses of TPU depending on where strength and stiffness is required.

Depending on where K2 requires power and stiffness, or a reduction in weight, the TPU varies on thickness. This all means that K2 can get the weight of the Mindbender range down to an impressive number while not giving up too much in terms of performance. This shell construction means that K2 has managed to keep the weight to a pretty similar level across the board. Every boot in the range weighs up to 200 grams of each other.

Flex

The freeride touring boot category is one of the most competitive in the industry, with every major brand (and the smaller touring-specific brands) having a crack at this goldilocks blend of a boot that has a stiff flex for fat metal-laminate skis, yet is able to walk for hours to reach the fresh goodies.

In the case of the Mindbender range, you’ve got the selection of flex ratings ranging from 140 – 95 in both men’s and women’s versions. This flex ranging is one of the smoothest we’ve flet in a touring-capable boot.

Walk Mode

K2’s Powerlock Spyne has been a frequent feature on the Mindbender boots since they first came to market in 2019, and it lives on in the latest iterations of the range. This lever is quickly becoming the adopted solution for ski boot manufacturers to create a touring boot that’s able to keep up high levels of downhill performance.

It all works through this simple lever mechanism. Flip the lever up and you’re released into walk mode. In this case, you’ve got 50 degrees of range of motion in the cuff (which is near enough free from any friction). Flip the lever back down and you’re locked back into a pretty powerful downhill mode.

Fit

We’ve frequently tested the lower volume 98mm last and found them to provide a fantastic wrap around the foot – one of the best for narrow fitting boots, in fact. The powerlite liner paired with the toughened powerlite shell provided fantastic heel hold, without any of us having to ratchet down the instep buckle in an effort to keep our heels locked in. You’ve got the option to go for a more comfortable last with the softer flexing boots, too.

Here’s a quick look at the range.

• K2 Mindbender Team 140

Flex: 140
Sizes: 24.5, 25.5, 26.5 ,27.5, 28.5, 29.5 & 30.5
Weight: 1,825
Last: 98 mm

• K2 Mindbender 130

Flex: 130
Sizes: 24.5, 25.5, 26.5 ,27.5, 28.5, 29.5 & 30.5
Weight: 1,725
Last: 98 mm

• K2 Mindbender 120

Flex: 120
Sizes: 24.5, 25.5, 26.5 ,27.5, 28.5, 29.5 & 30.5
Weight: 1,675
Last: 100 mm

• K2 Mindbender 100

Flex: 100
Sizes: 24.5, 25.5, 26.5 ,27.5, 28.5, 29.5 & 30.5
Weight: 1,700
Last: 100 mm

• K2 Mindbender W Team

Flex: 125
Sizes: 22.5, 23.5, 24.5, 25.5, 26.5 & 27.5
Weight: 1,740g
Last: 98 mm

• K2 Mindbender W 115

Flex: 115
Sizes: 22.5, 23.5, 24.5, 25.5, 26.5 & 27.5
Weight: 1,640g
Last: 98 mm

• K2 Mindbender W 95

Flex: 96
Sizes: 22.5, 23.5, 24.5, 25.5, 26.5 & 27.5
Weight: 1,600g
Last: 100 mm

• K2 Mindbender Team Jr

Flex: 80 – 90 (depending on size)
Sizes: 22.5, 23.5, 24.5, 25.5, 26.5 & 27.5
Weight: 1,600g
Last: 98 – 100 mm

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