Straps and Highbacks

There’s more padding on the inside of the highback, which is made from 85% nylon and stiffened with 15% glass. It’s reasonably aggressive – capable of mixing it up in the backcountry as well as tackling icy transitions – but is designed to absorb chatter so it never feels bone-jarring. Heelside turns are initiated with precision.

The straps feature AuxTech on the toe, which expands cleverly around the end of your boot, and a bombproof UltraLight ankle strap which is a little more heavy duty but is clearly built to last; it’s made from injected EVA and is on the firm side of squishy. Unlike Rome’s higher-end bindings, there’s no Pivotmount so you can’t customise the position of the straps across your boot.

“It’s reasonably aggressive – capable of mixing it up in the backcountry as well as tackling icy transitions”

Roundup

Rome’s tagline for the DOD is “The Working Class Hero”. It sums them up nicely. These are a binding that are affordable enough for the masses, but which have many of the materials and technology you would expect to find in a more premium model. Why pay more?