I spring ordered and have been enjoying my ‘22 BC X-RS 850 154/2.5 as my second sled to my mountain sled. Here in the PNW the Backcountry is ideal for conditions we often face through the season - Cascade concrete and hard packed trails. I’m looking forward to upgrading it to a Gen 5 Backcountry but will probably opt for a 146/2 next time and may opt for the wider front end, too. I’m surprised more riders in the PNW and coastal BC don’t ride crossovers but maybe this Gen 5 version (especially the Turbo R) and the new AC Riot Catalyst and Polaris Switchback Boost will create more crossover converts.
Have Spring Checked two 2025 BCXRS 850 16x154x2 39" +/- 1 front ends for wife an I. Blk an FY/Blk. Elec & Shot an 10.25" screens. Living in PNW BC... hoping to do a lot of sledding this year. First new sleds. Covered trailer to take them out further.
I don’t get why they are making the backcountry more trail oriented. Wish they would make a version that is basically a summit/freeride suspension with the trail cooling. We don’t get deep snow here on prairies but ride almost all off trail. Would be nice to have something we can run a 1.6-2” track at home then swap to a 2.5-3” for trips out west
I agree with you. To me the question is simple: Does backcountry riding include putting the sled on-edge and side hilling? If yes, the only crossover sled in the market is the Backcountry (with the narrow ski stance). If no, then you have lots of choices. Learning to ride a snowmobile on-edge is hard enough for a trail rider and doing it with a trail width front end takes a ton of effort and leads to bad habits. With that said, I think Ski-Doo made a good choice offering the wider stance as an option. There are a lot of trail biased critics that don't consider riding on-edge a necessity. Even when I ride in the mountains, I notice quite a few people limit their terrain choices to areas that don't require side hilling or very little of it. I bought a 2020 BXCRS with hopes of riding it on the trails of Wisconsin, the UP of Michigan and out West. It took some tweaking to dial that suspension in for the trails. I keep up with an aggressive group of riders but I do have to work a little harder through the corners. I've also ridden it in the UP and West Yellowstone. My 146/1.6" track severely limits me in the mountains, so the track swap you mention would be a nice option. I considered doing a 154/2.5 swap on mine, but after falling in love with mountain riding, I now own a Summit. I will eventually replace the Backcountry with a 137" trail sled.
