ski and boot advice please...

hugh_b wrote:Hey guy's, I've been a keen snowboarder for the last couple of years, however all my friends ski and i have found that the resorts in the Pyrenees and the Alps are far more ski friendly. I am booked up to go to the alps at the end of January. I have 2 full days of ski lessons planned over here to get me up to a reasonable standard before i hit the slopes.
I'm pretty sure I'll be buying my own boots so i have nice warm comfy feet, do you think it's worth buying ski's? I know I'll be sticking with the skiing although I will be keeping my snowboard gear for some fun at some point in the future.
My friends have been skiing for about 12-13 years so have alot of experience with buying kit. I'm guessing i do the same as i did with boards and buy something above my level?
For this reason i have been looking at a pair of last years atomic nomad whiteouts in my size of-course. I plan on doing mainly on-piste but some off piste too!

Any advice welcome.

Thanks-Hugh

Definitely buy your own boots.
As for skis, I would wait until you are at a good intermediate level, otherwise good skis will be too good for you initially, and beginner skis will soon be useless.
If you shop around you might just be able to get a really good pair of skis to suit you for around £200, which means that in 3 weeks of ski trips, you have paid for them compared to hiring.
There is no need to consider paying £500+ for a first pair of skis to be honest.

hymac580 wrote:I'd agree with Dorset Boy, with one reservation. That is the quality of skis you're able to hire. Many hire shops will palm you off with some poorly serviced inferior skis, especially if you've booked with a TO, and it's late in the season. At least with your own skis, if they're not in good nick, you've only got yourself to blame.
Boots are a definite though. Buy them in resort, may cost more, but can usually get to hire a new pair on the basis that you'll buy if you like them. They'll take real good care of you on this basis, and will adjust/tweak to your exact needs during the holiday.

They will only palm you if off with older poor condition ski's if you let them, do not accept them. :twisted:

thanks for the advice guy's. I had by all day ski course on Sunday and i'm up to level 5 so I'm now onto parallel turns. I'll be going for a couple of practice sessions like my instructor advised and then i'll have one more 1 & 1/2 hour lesson before i go away.

I'll definitely be buying my own boots as the hire ones i used on my lesson didn't fit all that well but were the best i could get and no doubt this was because of the amount of use they had had by different people.
I went to decathlon today to try some boots with a very experienced friend, i tried some salomon mission alu, atomic b90's and a set of rossignol and head boots (sorry i can't remember the names of the latter)

Basically i have quite narrow feet, i'm a uk10 and length wasn't a problem but i found that i had to adjust the boots nearly as tight as possible on most brands especially the salomon's to get a snug fit around the front of my foot. My ankle felt pretty secure in all of them.

I'll be going to captains cabin near to where I live tomorrow to get some expert advice and try some more boots. I was just wondering if anyone could describe to me what i should be feeling when wearing a boot and if anyone has any advice? My friend did a good job of explaining it but I'm unsure as to weather or not i'm expecting my boot to be tighter than it needs to be.
Also what makes tend to come up narrower if any? Would an insole help?

sorry about the essay!

thanks-hugh

Dorset boy uses the hire figures for skis only of £70~£100. I have just hired ski and boots, for beginner friends for 61 Euros a set. At that cost, it doesn't make any sense to buy skis (£200/£300), and pay the transfer cost, (£33) each time you use them.

When I am not in Niederau, I hire skis. After a couple of hire experiences, I learned to book the bronze level, (lowest cost) My experience was that the higher ranges tended to be much stiffer skis, and these did not suit my skiing.

Every time I have hired, I have changed the skis at least once during the week, for varying reasons. This is never an issue, so should you feel that there is a problem with your skis, it is easy to fix. None of this has to be confrontational, most places want to please the customer ~ especially when you have made an effort to be friendly from the first instant.

As regards ski condition, most, but not all places are hiring stock that is current or last seasons stock. Sure there are other places that go with older stuff, but they earn their own reputation.

For the previous three or four hires, (since joining J2ski), I have used Skiset, finding their hire outlets to be very acceptable.

With regard to boots, I would not be averse, in hugh_b's situation, to hiring for the first holiday. You have been a boarder, so may have no experience of ski boots. Also, if you buy, and there is a problem that later arises, you may or may not be able to get it fixed. Conversely, if you have a problem in the hire boots, you can go back and change them. By hiring, you will learn a lot, that will stand you in good stead when you do come to buy.

Ian W's point then may come into play, that if the boots do perform well, you may get an opportunity to buy. The best time to do this is normally towards the end of March, but you never know. This is an odd year for all concerned in the ski industry.

Oh, one tip about hiring. Keep a note of the gear you were given, including all the gear you changed, and write down the strengths and weaknesses. If you end up hiring two or three times before you buy, you will have some good reference information that applies only to you.

Ski well

A number of the responses to this thread (and others) have highlighted the need not to be fobbed off with rubbish skis by ski hire shops. While I agree completely with the sentiment, I struggle with putting this into practice. While the following questions in relation to ski hire will certainly sound very foolish to the more expert out there, perhaps somebody can provide some guidance on:

- How do you know that the skis are rubbish or unsuited to your ability just by looking at them?

- What checks can you make when you are presented with a pair?

- As a once a year intermediate skier with decidely imperfect tecnique, how do you distinguish between problems you are having on the mountain because of crap or unsuitable skis rather than because of poor technique?

Wanderer wrote:A number of the responses to this thread (and others) have highlighted the need not to be fobbed off with rubbish skis by ski hire shops. While I agree completely with the sentiment, I struggle with putting this into practice. While the following questions in relation to ski hire will certainly sound very foolish to the more expert out there, perhaps somebody can provide some guidance on:

- How do you know that the skis are rubbish or unsuited to your ability just by looking at them?

- What checks can you make when you are presented with a pair?

- As a once a year intermediate skier with decidely imperfect tecnique, how do you distinguish between problems you are having on the mountain because of crap or unsuitable skis rather than because of poor technique?

A general inspection of the base and edge's of the ski will confirm to you if the ski has been looked after/Serviced, when I first started skiing with the TO's and using the pay before you go policy for ski equipment, I used to join the queue in the shop, the turn around used to be very quick, relying on the shop's judgement or lack of it.
Since those days and hind sight being such a wonderful thing I now take my daughter into the ski shop to get the personal service she deserves the fitting possibly can take up to an hour, where before I was in and out in twenty minutes are most of that time was queuing. Your are paying for a product demand the best.
As for the right ski for you that is where the ski shop should earn there corn , if your not happy take it back.

Wanderer wrote:A number of the responses to this thread (and others) have highlighted the need not to be fobbed off with rubbish skis by ski hire shops. While I agree completely with the sentiment, I struggle with putting this into practice. While the following questions in relation to ski hire will certainly sound very foolish to the more expert out there, perhaps somebody can provide some guidance on:

- How do you know that the skis are rubbish or unsuited to your ability just by looking at them?

- What checks can you make when you are presented with a pair?

- As a once a year intermediate skier with decidely imperfect tecnique, how do you distinguish between problems you are having on the mountain because of crap or unsuitable skis rather than because of poor technique?

Damned good questions, to be honest. Experience is a wonderful thing, as looking back I have in the past been issued with ill fitting boots and crappy skis, and wondered why my shins were sore or why I wasnt getting as good an edge as I would have liked.

Basically, if skis are in bad condition, you would be able to see it. Dont just accept a pair of skis handed to you - tell them your level of experience, what type of terrain you expect to ski, and discuss length - dont just take what they tell you as being correct. I prefer a shorter ski to turn faster, so I have skis that stand on their ends to my chin, other people prefer them to eye or head level, but shorter skis will help you with turning, although may not be as fast. But trust me, if you get handed some ropy skis, you will be able to tell. Ask them when they were last serviced, and make sure you get them to go over the edges and at least apply a wax to the bases. Anything lose or wobbly, dont take them for obvious reasons.

If you insist on edging and waxing, and the bases dont look as if they have any gouges or deep scratches, the skis should be in good order, but get someone you know who has their own skis, maybe an instructor, to give them a look over to check.

Then, if you are skiing like a squirrel on roller blades, you can start to blame your own technique.

Have fun.

Tony_H wrote:

If you insist on edging and waxing, and the bases dont look as if they have any gouges or deep scratches, the skis should be in good order, but get someone you know who has their own skis, maybe an instructor, to give them a look over to check.

Also check that the skis aren't railed. The base should be level with the metal edges. Worn skis develop a groove in the base, alongside the edge.