Marquette Backcountry Ski is a new product that melds snowshoeing and skiing advantages into one package. They are short and very wide but no metal edges... Also, the learning curve is quite short on these for those who are not intermediate/expert skiers. Any thoughts on how this might or might not work up in the Sierra Nevada Backcountry?

http://www.adventureskier.com/2010/12/0 ... untry-ski/

Sure. They will 'work', but they won't be the best choice for the Sierra backcountry. Good for putzing around on the little stuff is the way I read their description.

Seems like they would be a good ski to have if you aren't into skiing but you want to ski a little. Maybe you would take them out if the conditions were such that you didn't want to take out your good skis. They definitely are a good ski to take along on your snowmobile, for when you get stuck.

Without metal edges, they're shit.

They might work well in places where there's a lot of bushwhacking, like the Adirondacks, where snowshoes seem to be the preferred mode of travel. But again, they need metal edges to be worthwhile.

Looks about 75% snowshoe, 25% XC ski. Decent for XC-style travel in fairly easy terrain, maybe fun for an easy day trip, but I definately would want edges on 'em if going into the backcountry. I'd just pony up the extra $$$ for a good set of XC skis/bindings.

I actually think that a good binding-boot connection is more important than metal edges.

I wouldn't even waste my time trying out a pair of skis without metal edges, and I've been skiing since the days of leather boots and bamboo poles.