You can run without the boots. Just paint or powder coat the springs to keep them looking decent. the boots keep dust and water away from the fork seals, though, so they may not last as long as normal. If it's not a daily rider, it shouldn't be a problem. I don't run boots on my roadracer, but I did stack a second oil seal on the lower fork tube above the snapring (under the spring) to act as a dirt wiper to protect the oil seal installed in the fork tube. The 175 forks weren't made to accept internal springs. You'd have to change to another brand of forks to get rid of the external springs.
