Welcome to #EdLeighsMoneySavingSnowTips | Ep 12 | How to save on your ski or snowboard kit.
Buying boots and skis/snowboard brand new you’re not going to get much change from a grand, and that’s without buying the protective ski/board bags you need to put them in, so they don’t get smashed up by the baggage handlers. You’ll need to wax and service them each year too… so that’s another cost to add in.
Renting in resort will of course cost you each year but it does save you that big initial outlay and the airline costs, not to mention the giant faff of getting your kit to the airport on the train/tube/bus. If I’m taking my board bag I often get cabs, which adds further to the bottom line.
The other plus side to renting is that you get to ride the latest skis and snowboards every winter. Sign up for Intersport’s ski hire newsletters here as they’re always running discount codes and what I like about hiring through them is that you can take back your kit at any point during the week and switch it for something that suits you better, you can even switch between skiing and snowboarding depending on the conditions [ Ссылка ] Yes, in the past, ski hire - and especially snowboard hire - has often meant poor kit, but these days you really can get some amazing kit, including splitboards, swallowtail powder boards, wider powder skis, freestyle twintips and carving or race skis.
If you’re going for the first time, you DEFINITELY need to rent your skis or snowboard and boots. No question.
Clothing-wise, first-timers should beg, steal, and borrow anything you can. Especially if you’re taking kids who grow out of things so quickly.
When you’re buying snow kit, and this applies to everyone not just first-timers, look on ebay, shpock and gumtree: a second hand jacket from a quality brand is better than a brand new jacket from a non-technical brand. Or buy kit at the end of each season or in summer even, when brands sell off their stock at cheaper prices. Lots of brands do good Black Friday deals, especially US companies such as Burton and Patagonia. Kit is always more expensive in resort so try to avoid buying stuff there like the plague.
Of course, if that’s too budget for you (and hey, this is about saving money, but also you have to feel comfortable, and some people don’t want second hand, I get that!) then for jackets, pants, helmets and gloves you’ll need to do a bit more research and it doesn’t make sense to scrimp on any of these and risk having a miserable time on the mountain. To narrow down what you’re looking for, then sign up to the brand’s newsletters to keep in the know about any flash sales or Black Friday deals.
The alternative for clothing is to rent! Crevasse Clothing rent out ski and snowboarding kit for your holiday that might be worth looking into if you don't want to splash the cash on outerwear.
If you’re buying a snowboard attend a demo session as part of your research with The Snowboard Asylum at one of the UK’s indoor slopes such as Tamworth Snowdome or Xscape Milton Keynes, Castleford/Leeds and Glasgow/Braehead.
Once you know the board, skis, jacket or whatever it is that you want you can then look to find the best price online or set up ebay alerts for it. Often the tech in skis or snowboards doesn’t change heaps from year to year so looking for last year’s model at a much cheaper price can be a good plan eg by googling ‘Burton Women’s Feelgood 2017/18’ and seeing what the internet throws up.
Lastly - ski boots… buy or rent. Ok so this is a big one - and I might even do a whole episode on this alone, but put it this way: ski boots are the single most important piece of kit in your whole armoury. Snowboard boots are simple: if they fit, they’re generally comfortable. But ill-fitting ski boots can ruin a holiday. Like genuinely ruin it. So here’s my take on it… if you rent, you can take them back and keep swapping them until you get a pair that fits. There is - of course - an argument to suggest that you should spend a lot of money to get a custom pair - Ellis Brigham, Surefoot and Profeet are well known for this kind of service in the UK, but if I were to go down that route, personally I would try a few pairs out in resort by renting them, then get the best-fitting pair as a base model and have those custom fitted to my feet. Because there is a world of difference between trying boots out by walking around a shop in London and actually taking them out for a run or two on the hill.
