Brasher Aso GTX - Quick Look
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Price:
£130
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Weight: 1956 grammes (pair size
43)
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Features: Mountain
trekking boot with C1/C2 crampoon compatibility, upper is
two-tone 1200D abrasion resistant fabric with 2.2mm suede
support structure, moulded toe box, Tri-Fit Mountain
technology, Vibram Ice New sole unit with shock-absorbing PU
mid-sole, Gore-Tex waterproof and breathable lining,
abrasion resistant Lycra collar, memory foam laminate
padding, glass fibre stiff setting insole board.
Ball-bearing lace pulleys.
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What's It For?
Traditionally Brasher has specialised in lightweight hill and
fell-walking boots, but last year they brought out the harder core
Telica
GTX and now they've followed up with the crampon-compatible
Aso GTX.
The company describes the Aso as a 'mountain trekking boot'
designed for all-round useage and compatible with C1 and C2 graded
crampons, so ideal for winter walking above the snowline.
It's not intended as a technical mountaineering boot, more a
platform that you can comfortably use for normal hill and mountain
walking above the snowline with the sort of comfort you'd expect from
Brasher.
The Techy Bits
At the heart of the Aso is what Brasher calls ProVolution. That
means the upper gets external reinforcements in the form of plastic
bracing at the rear of the boot, which are intended to improve
overall fit and stability and hold the foot secure.
Next there's a memory foam ankle cuff - memory foam moulds to the
exact shape of your foot and holds the impression making it
supportive and comfortable. If you jab your finger into it, the
impression remains for a second or two after your remove your
digit.
Finally Brasher uses a relatively advanced footbed that's has a
stiff, plastic heel cup support to hold your heel stable and support
your arch. It's one of the best OE footbeds we've seen.
Other features include a proper chunky winter Vibram sole with
durable PU cushioning and a fabric / suede upper with water-repellant
treatment to back up the Gore-Tex liner.
How It Performs
With their lightweight walking boot heritage, the Aso is a bit of
a departure for Brasher, not least because it's a big, chunky and
fairly weighty unit. That gives the boot a confident, purposeful feel
and, to be fair, a lot of it is down to the properly deep and wintery
Vibram outer sole and durable PU cushioning.
Many modern lightweights use EVA for underfoot padding - the same
material as used in running shoes - but while it's light and
effective, it tends to deteriorate with use and deform, so PU is
arguably a better bet for extended life.
The other thing you notice straight away is that the Aso is roomy
making it ideal for those with high volume, broad, British feet who
find most boots on the tight side.
The high ankle cuff, stiff sole unit and weight do mean they feel
a little clumpy, but the pay-off is good stability and the memory
foam ankle cuff does seem to add a degreee of comfort. You can also
use the slick lacing system to adjust them differentially to give a
snug foot fit but with plenty of ankle leeway for general use.
We haven't had a chance to use them with crampons yet, but our
educated guess is that they'd work well. They're stiff enough to take
a C2-graded crampon with a clip-on rear bale and the flexible ankle
cuff should allow for ankle flex on steeper slopes.
While we're talking crampons, we're not sure how the fabric /
suede uppers would cope with a bit of spiky cack-footedness in the
snow and the lack of a protective rand means we'd advise a careful
approach when kicking in on confined platforms - then again, you'd
never spike your own boots, would you?
Generally the boot seems well made and designed and despite a
relatively lightweight upper and a cut-away at the rear of the ankle
cuff, still feel sturdy and supportive, while still being extremely
comfortable for a four-season boot.
Very definitely a winter walking rather than a winter
mountaineering boot, as you'd expect from Brasher, the Aso GTX is
well made, roomy and very comfortable.
The chunky, full-on Vibram sole adds weight and to some will feel
a mismatch with the lighter upper, but it does give the boot a
sturdy, stable, confident feel that should work well with crampons,
especially when allied to the comfortable ankle cuff with its memory
foam padding.
We're not sure about the durability of the uppers if subjected to
clumsy crampon use, but overall build quality and attention to
details like the footbed and the lacing system are good and at
£130 the price is competitive too.
Definitely worth trying for large-footed folk in search of a
crampon-compatible winter walking stiffy with great comfort levels.
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Well made, stable feel with proper winter sole unit.
Roomy.
A tad heavy and clumpy, a little too roomy for many
users.
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