My wife is in need of some new boots and has had her eye on the Dalbello Raya 6. As I am a snowboarder and don't ski I am not to up on ski boots. Anyone have any thoughts on these boots or suggestions on other boots. She is a solid intermediate skier ready to move up and wants a boot that will last her a while. She also loves the idea that these have the "walk" mode

^ VERY wide high volume "comfort" boot. The entire Raya series is large-volume, and they all have a 3-piece-type construction.

The problem with the Raya 6 as opposed to the higher-in-range sister Raya 10 is that the Raya 6 is made of a compromise plastic that is not easy for bootfitters to work with (should she actually need shell work done).

If her foot isn't actually that wide, she will be OK walking in it but will hate skiing in them, esp. in difficult (icy, moguled, powder, slush) conditions. She might also run into cramping problems of the "these boots are so loose that when I am scared I curl my toes HARD" -type.

So. IF you are blasted sure (i.e. a bootfitter said so) that she has feet that wide, consider moving up to a Raya 10. Edit: or consider moving to a 2-piece boot with a cuff release (read:walk) feature like the Lange Exclusive Delight series.

Otherwise have the fitter also look at medium-lasted boots.

My previous boots were dalbellos with the "walk mode". Barly made a difference.I usually ended up loosing buckles anyway because that was really the relief I was looking for. Agree with comprex go to a good bootfitter. There is a great article in SKI magizine buying guide a couple months ago on boots and the impact they can make.

Ditto what Bumps said...current boots are dalbellos with walk mode...hard to tell the difference between Walk and Ski Hard and Ski Soft mode.

FWIW, I think someone with larger calves, calves that sit lower on the leg (read:typically women), and someone with a shorter stride length overall is probably more likely to notice the difference between Walk and Ski mode.

Especially on steps.