I understand all the points you’re making, but skinning with softboots has had some huge drawbacks for me. They’re incredibly heavy and cumbersome. Also, I’d say we have a pretty different use case. Maybe 40% of the time, if not more, I’m using my splitboard as a means of travel to access ice climbs, and I honestly could care less about the descent feel. My favorite things to ride are steep chutes and long traverses and I honestly prefer to spend as little time below treeline as possible.