I do not think that the 195cm Epoch is too long for distance-oriented Nordic touring- at all.AKjohn wrote: I found a new looking used set of Madshus Epoch 195's with Voile 3-pin with cable bindings that I picked up for $250. I am 5'7" 175 the skis might be oversized but I figure most of the time it will be overnighters or hunting trips so with gear, it should put me past the min weight recomendation.
My family owns multiple pairs of this ski. It is a soft-flexing, single-cambered ski, you will not have ANY trouble flexing and pressuring this ski- even at 195cm.
The Ski March will not be any warmer than the Rossi BCX6- I own both of these boots- they are both warm enough to keep your feet warm if you are vigorously XC skiing in temperatures as low as -25C (my Alpina Alaskas are warmer).Boots are something that I have had trouble trying to decide on. The same shop I talked to only carriees the Rossi bcx6 boot for 75mm bindings. In talking to the employee there he said that with my running cold feet the bcx6's might be too cold for me and suggested plastics like the t4 or excursions he thought they would probably work best in the areas I told him I was interested in. In reading some of the threads on here I saw the Alico's mentioned and wondered if those might be a good boot for what I have planned.
The BCX6 does not breathe at all, however- I would not recommend it for a multi-day trip in very cold weather- it would be very difficult to keep them dry and warm once you have stopped skiing.
Even in a XC context- not needing the downhill support of a plastic Telemark boot- one of the advantages of the plastic boot- with liner- is the ability to take the liner out and dry it out.
I personally am not a big fan of the Epoch for distance-oriented touring. It does not have enough camber and stiffness for effective XC skiing, and at my weight (185lbs) I don't find it offers enough flotation in truly deep snow. It does have a wonderful flex for deep, soft snow- but I much prefer the wider Annum, as it offers more effective flotation in deep snow. Both the Annum and the Epoch are miserably inefficient on hard/dense snow, nor are they torsionally rigid enough to hold an edge when downhill skiing on hardpack.Also wondering if the ski choice sounds good for what I have in mind.
What is the snow like? You are lighter than me- you might like the Epoch as a XC ski on soft snow...
The BC90 you were considering is also single-cambered but is stiffer than the Epoch- better XC ski.
The Epoch is a wonderful downhill ski on soft snow, and moderate terrain.
The BCX6 would work well on both the Epoch and XC track skis.Since it has been so long since I have skied I had noticed that there is a recomendation to ski trails to start with to get used to the motion. My last trip to my parents I picked up my dad's old Lampinen Foam step skis with 3 pin bindings hoping to use the same boot for both.