Ride Rook Snowboard Boots Review

Hello and welcome to my Ride Rook review.

In this review I will take a look at the Rook as freestyle snowboard boots.

As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the Rook a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and see how they compare with other freestyle boots.

Overall Rating

Boots: Ride Rook

Price: $229 (USD recommended retail)

Style: Freestyle

Other Uses: Casual All-Mountain

Flex Rating: Medium-Soft (4/10)

Flex Feel: Soft (3/10)

Rating Score: 73.6/100

Compared to other Freestyle Boots

Out of the 26 freestyle boots that I rated:

Overview of the Rook’s Specs

Check out the tables for the Rook’s specs and available sizes.

Specs

Who are the Rook Most Suited to?

The Rook are best suited to beginners looking for a really forgiving, easy to ride in, comfortable boot that is uncomplicated and is low cost. 

Best suited to beginners. But intermediate riders or even advanced riders looking for a really soft boot with great board feel as their dedicated jib boot, kind of thing, might also like these. 

Beginners who are bigger riders might find these boots too soft though. 

The Rook in More Detail

Bindings angles: +15/-15

Board Demoed With: YES Greats

Bindings Demoed With: Union Falcor

Rider Height: 6'0"

Rider Weight: 180lbs

Outersole Length: 30.3cm (mondo 28cm)

Difference between Mondo & Outersole: 2.3cm

Backstay Height: 10.7" (27.2cm)

Weight: 1lb 8oz (680 grams)*

* Average of a sample of around 50 boots I've weighed was 1028g (2lbs 4oz). Heaviest I've weighed were 2lbs 15oz (1320g) and lightest were 1lb 8oz (680g). 

Flex

These boots felt really soft, even for the first run. Noticeably softer than my control boots (Adidas Tactical ADV) and noticeably softer than the average boot. 

Fit

Width: Before heat molding and riding in them, they felt medium bordering on narrow at the forefoot. During the on-snow test, they felt right on medium width. Snug but comfy, with no pressure points at fore foot and sides of toes. 

True to Size?: My first thoughts were, "this is a 10!?". And I was thinking that Ride in the past have been true to size for me and even potentially even being at a point I could try a 9.5. But they felt way really tight on the end of my toes.

But I figured these were soft boots and soft boots tend to pack out quick. And I was right - even just wearing them for 30 minutes during the initial try-on,  they felt like they were already starting to pack out a bit! And felt considerably more comfortable at the end of the toes already. 

When riding in them I could still feel my toes touching the ends but they weren't uncomfortable. And by the time I'd finished testing them, they fit really well. Packed out super fast for me, so that's something to note with these boots, if you're trying them on. 

Room for top of toes: A bit of wriggle room. Just enough.

Top of Foot (Instep): Felt normal to me. A little pressure on top of my right foot, which is the case for 99% of boots, when I first try them on. During riding that eased quickly and felt really good after just a couple of runs. 

Around Ankles: Some pressure points around ankle when I first tried them on, but nothing that was too uncomfortable. This eased when riding too. Did I say these boots broke in quickly! 

Shock Absorption

Very little shock absorption and don't absorb chatter well either - you feel everything in these boots! 

You can also hear, in the video below, how much duller/damper the control boot (Tactical ADV) sounds compared to the Rook. That said, the Tactical ADV is a very damp boot. But on snow was the real test and the Rook were not good shock absorbers. 

Board Feel

Really good board feel - that's the plus side of feeling everything. 

Whilst that lack of shock absorption doesn't feel great for landing jumps, I liked it for buttering around and hitting jibs. But prob try to pair with bindings that have good shock absorption!

Responsiveness

Really good agility when riding slow but can't lean as deep into carves as my control boot or most other boots. A touch better agility when riding slow than my control boots, but similar. And definitely worse for leaning into carves or support at high speeds in general. 

Adjustability

Only one boa for whole outer boot, so not very adjustable. And nothing else going for it in terms of adjustability. They are very simple to use but lack adjustability. 

Comfort

When I initially tried them on, they weren't very comfortable - with some pressure points around ankles and at the end of my toes. But they got super comfortable super quickly. Could happily ride in them all day, though you do start to feel that lack of shock absorption over time. 

Heel Hold

Heel hold is OK but not great. Some heel lift, though I noticed it more when walking in them than I did when riding in them. 

Reduced Footprint

They are quite low profile at just 2.3cm over mondo. 

Traction

As expected with a cheaper boot, it’s a pretty basic sole.

Some pattern variety but not a whole lot. Mid-low tread depth.

Entry/Exit

For the liner there is a traditional lacing harness – no velcro at top of liner like a lot of boots have these days. Didn’t much like the clip thing they use for tightening/loosening the harness. 

Initially it was a bit of effort to get into. But the second time I put them on it was much easier to get into. They loosened up and packed out a bit just wearing them for 30 minutes.

The BOA isn’t a self coiler – so you’ve got to twist it the whole way! So that makes it take longer and require a bit more effort than a typical BOA boot. Typically the side boa on a double boa boot isn't a self coiler, but you always expect the front to be one (this is a small complaint though). 

Score Breakdown and Final Verdict

The Rook excel mostly for slow speed, playful riding or for beginners who aren't riding too fast or aggressively yet. They have great board feel and get comfortable really quickly. 

They lack shock absorption and adjustability and lack support for higher speed riding and laying into carves.