Madshus Eon

Versatile and efficient off-trail xcountry.

This ski is identical to the Karhu XCD GT. This ski comes in either a waxable base or a waxless base. I currently use the waxless base.

These are well designed off-trail xcountry skis. I have skied several hundred kilometers on my current pair, with no problems. Although this ski is marketed as a hybrid between a telemark and a classic xcountry ski, it truly excels as an off-trail classic kick and glide ski.

Yes, it does have a progressive sidecut; it will turn on the downhill. However it has quite a straight tail, and tracks very efficiently during the kick and glide (this sacrifices some turning efficiency).

As far as telemark skiing; there are other skis that turn much more efficiently ("true" telemark skis).  There are different perspectives on what a "true" telemark ski is. My perspective is that telemark skiing is first and foremost a downhill skiing method and system. I see these "hybrid" skis as first and foremost xcountry skis. I am not suggesting that they cannot be used as telemark skis. I am suggesting that if your primary pursuit is downhill performance there are better options out there.

My everyday skiing is off-trail kick and glide, through rolling terrain, with the occasional steep climb and descent. This is an excellent ski for this use — except in deep powder. If you are routinely breaking trail in deep powder, this ski is not enough. For deep, fresh powder I use the Madshus Annum (formerly the Karhu XCD Guide).

For off-trail kick and glide skiing I recommend NNNBC bindings with a burly boot (I am currently using the Alpina Alaska with NNNBC magnum bindings). 75mm bindings are much more versatile; but the NNNBC system is much more efficient with classic xcountry skiing (stride and glide).

Contrary to the marketing, I would recommend choosing a long length. I am currently on 195cm (me: 5'10"; 185lbs). When I am in the perfect conditions for this ski; I often find myself wanting 205mm (better glide and better flotation). If you want them short for telemark turns; I would recommend considering a more downhill-orientated ski.  

As is often said, "this ski is more about the tour than the turn."

Good, but not great ski for nordic touring.

I have skied the Eon for four years mostly in northern Norway/Sweden. It is reasonably efficient under most conditions but not a great climber on any snow due to the shallow scales (as compared to Fischer crowns for example). 

Perhaps they used flatter scales to improve downhill performance, but this ski is not downhill oriented and would actually work better all around with a thinner tip of perhaps 78 or 79 mm. Works well in deep, new snow.

Experience

Long experience and do two multi-week trips in Lapland every year and ski regularly in the Dolomites.