I have Atlas snowshoes and, normally, they are fine. But last year while taking an Avalanche I course I was using my Atlas 30" snowshoes on a very steep forested mountainside and slipped sidewise downhill about 50 feet before coming to a stop in some bushes. Luckily it wasn't a tree that stopped me.

Anyway, this year I'm buying a pair of 30 inch MSR Lightning Ascent snowshoes. These suckers are THE Mac Daddy of snowshoe traction. They have teeth everywhere except on the tail section.

The innovative design of the flat vertical frame means no aluminum frame tubing to worry about breaking. Their lateral traction from this toothed frame is just unbeatable.

BTW, having been a Nordic ski patroller and racer for 10 years I can say that wider backcountry XC skis are great for touring IF you have gentle terrain or climbing skins for hilly areas. Their speed is much better than snowshoes but it takes the better part of a season and LESSONS (absolutely) to be skilled enough to use them easily in the woods and fields and on hills. The part about lessons cannot be stressed enough.