On Nov 24, 1:27*pm, runcyclexcski wrote:
the bigger Telemarks suffer from much less glide because of the
width and (usually) much less camber (sometimes none!) to keep the grip
zone up

I've noticed that with the wide "mainstream" backcountry skis The
first pair I BC skied on in the Sierras were the Karhu 10th Mountain.
Those things had no camber, weighed a ton and had no glide at all. I
guess the whole point of "mainstream" backcountry skiing is downhill
part... the kick and glide part and the uphill part are mere
unavoidable inconveniences you have to go through to ski down a
mountain. The E99s work magic in kick and glide.

It's a continuum. BC covers the gamut. Today's short wide skis
sometimes have nowax fishscales that let you easily hike back up.
They're not made for kick'n'glide but for earning your turns,
up'n'down -- and are great for that. But there are also lighter,
narrower short tour skis with metal edges -- Fischer has the new
Spider or whatever it's called -- that let you turn in moderate
conditions with a bit o' iceiness and also let you do kick'n'glide.
Your long E99's are dandy for moderate loads in moderate conditions
and give better kick'n'glide than the shorts but don't turn as good.
Anyway, for every terrain there's a suitable ski.

Then there's you...

Going to a groomed area with your desired gear and getting familiar
with it there is a great idea. If you're a real rookie, start without
a pack and on easy slopes, etc. It's a whole new skill but readily
learned. Heck, you might be wearing a pack and on blue runs and little
bumps by end of the day.

I'd think that quite a lot of crust is skiable -- ya gotta use jump
turns. The new short skis help with that, especially on tight trails.
Longer skis basically need more room. Match gear to situation and
conditions. Of course at some point crust is nasty for everyone but it
can be awfully thick and heavy BC stuff will blast thru it, but again
it won't be kick'n'glide gear.

NNN-BC is great stuff -- but probably steep narrow action --
especially in crust -- and with 60 lb pack -- is overdoing it.

My expert pals can ski basically anything nicely with NNN-BC and light
short 60mm skis -- but they only haul 15 lb pack. And they are extreme
tele monsters on their heavier stuff. So a mere mortal on the same
gear with 60 lb pack isn't going to be doing pretty flowing turns
except in very nice open conditions.

I use reg NNN and new-style short tour skis -- 65mm wide -- with 15 lb
pack -- and find that I have to do the long traverses thru the woods
when it gets steep 'n' dicey. I can tele-shred these skis on the blues
at a groomed area.

Anyway, if there's steep up'n'downs plus plenty of kick'n'glide to do
plus a 60 lb pack plus crust plus novice skills -- ha -- count on the
traverses. Or even hiking.

Doing XC skiing on narrow steep hiking trails is a big challenge.

It's fun finding what fits your needs, skills, conditions, terrain.
Good luck! : )