Binding Review: 10-11 Rome Strut

Location: Winter Park, Colorado

Snow Conditions: Hardpacked snow conditions that softened up during the day with bluebird skies.

Setup: I rode the Rome Struts with the Roxy Ollie Pop C2 snowboard with my Vans Veil Boots size 8.

Time to set up the binding: Average amount of time to set them up, no bells and whistles to worry about with the strut binding.

Fit: Rome bindings always fit my Vans boots very good and snug in the width factor.  The highback was perfectly aligned with my boots, the height was good with my boot height and didn’t feel any gaps or weird pressure points from anywhere on the bindings to my boot.  The ankle and toe strap were easy to adjust to my boots and I never felt them move when riding.

First Impression: The struts have definitely moved up a notch for women’s bindings with a stiffer highback and good response.

Appearance: Blue is my favorite color hands down, especially a bright blue.  The struts come in white or blue for 10-11 and I really liked the blue color I was riding on.  The highback design has the swirls around the emblem which is subtle but a good look for the struts.

Comfort: The padding on the baseplate helps absorb vibrations from riding and the softer ankle straps really conform to your boot with a good amount of padding.  I found the stiffer highback really ideal for good heel edge hold when turning but also not hurt my calf with the stiffness.

Functionality: The struts are definitely a functional solid binding, more responsive than the madisons but with similar comfort that rome is good for.  The binding was on the heavier side and the combo of the ollie pop made it slightly heavier setup than others I had ridden but it offered a good solid ride for freeriding and very comfortable.

Flex: There was a much softer lateral flex to the binding than the forward flex, with the stiffer highback you felt the stiffer flex from toes to heelside turns but if you wanted to play around and butter you had some forgiveness to the side flex of the bindings.  Overall the binding is on the heavier side so you still have a lot of stability and it absorbs rougher terrain/impacts without worry.

Response: The struts are the more responsive women’s binding from Rome, with a powerful highback and a comfortable but supportive ankle strap you definitely get response when you want it from the struts.  I didn’t find them overly responsive where every tweak would result in a turn but enough pressure and the binding would get into a turn quickly.

Toe Strap: The Rome strut has the Rome conformist toe strap which grips the boot but doesn’t slide.  I always find myself making sure it’s snug against my boot and the material conforms around the toe of my boot when rocking cap strap.  The strap seems bigger than you need when you look at it, but it helps distribute over your boot better that way.

Overall Impression: The struts continue to be the all mountain ride everywhere binding from Rome and for women offering up good comfort with great response.  On turns you can really hold your heelside carve thanks to the highback and the comfort from the straps gives you a good ride all day long without pressure.

Shay’s Honesty Box: In the past the struts were a bit too responsive for me but I’ve warmed up to the binding and found them to be a solid women’s binding for those wanting more response on the mountain.

Ready to buy? Head over to evo for the Rome Strut or shop their full line of Rome snowboard bindings

On Snow Photos

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Rome Strut Description

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Review Disclosure: I rode this binding at a demo day.