response: I'm not sure if it was the Chinese skiis but traditional ones had rawhide lacings and a hardwood frame.
original_response: I believe that China used something more like a snowshoe.  It had a hardwood frame and lacings
history: I tried to learn snow skiing.  I just never did very well. So I don't like it I see, but skiing has around 5000 years of history. That is a long time.  Was it invented in the Nordic countries? Modern skiing is traced back to Scandinavia.  However, there is evidence it was practiced in China many years before that China-that is interesting.  WHy are modern skis so long? I'm not sure why the narrow strips of materials are long but they're worn under the foot to glide over snow. Were the Chinese skiis made the same way long ago? I think I would be better with snowshoes.
knowledge: Traditional snowshoes have a hardwood frame with rawhide lacings.