First Time Skiing HELP Please

Ronseal

Hi Everyone :wave:

First time i have used this forum so here we go.

I have finally decided that Skiing would be a fun way to go so booked up a Skiing holiday in March 2011 in the French alps :dance:, as part of the package i get Ski and Boot hire and lift passes all sorted but was wondering if someone could help with a breakdown of exactly what i will need to take with me. lots of sites seem to have conflicting details with great ideas on how to spend £1000's on kit which i probably dont need and may never use again, so hopefully someone on here will have an idea without the need to re-morgage to buy all the kit.

also being 31, 6ft and 19stone with the balance of a todler im aware i will probably spend a lot of my time rolling down the mountain rather than the more conventional mannor so anyone got any idea of a good company for Travel / holiday Insurace that 1, covers winter sports i.e. Skiing and 2, doesnt refuse to pay out if i were to break something, (other than the Ski lift :laugh: or the Ski's:rotfl:)

Any help would be much appreciated

many thanks

Ron.......
(live in West Sussex if that helps)

poe.tuesday

buy second hand from ebay, however, given your size I would suggest that you go to a ski shop such as trespass or snow and rock and try on the clothing to find out the brands and sizes that fit you, then go onto ebay and get them from there.

you will not need clothing for extreme temps so I would suggest that you get a good base layer (that needs to be breathable) and then the outerlayer, you will need gloves and sunglasses too (not glass ones) and naturally I suggest you to get a helmet (Vans discount shops do these and you can get them for about £20 and they come in good sizes, the protest brand that they sell is good) - you will need some good socks to protect your shins and some boots to tromp about in, you won't need anything special though as there will not be extreme temps - on info on what to wear skiing have a look at www.lapland.fruitbandit.com - it is mainly for lapland so deals with temp extremes but it does give you lots of info about ski wear etc

as for insurance, there are lots that will cover you, just check out the comparison sites and make sure you have winter sports cover

have fun

CountryGoose

Things for skiing.....

1) Thermal Underwear. Tops and bottoms. More than 1 set if you're sharing a room with someone.

2) Base Layer - depending on how warm it is - fleece or warm top. More than one to allow for sweat & drying out.

3) Top Layer - Ski Jacket & Trousers. Waterproof and insulated. You will be spending a lot of time on you @rse in the snow - you don't want them to be leaking.

4) Good Gloves - again, waterproof. You choose between mittens and gloves. MUST have a leather palm, or they will be ripped to shreds by the end of the skis.

5) Ski socks - whatever suits.

6) Sunglasses and possibly goggles for snow (Yellow). That's the goggles, not the snow. Don't eat yellow snow.

7) Silly hat - many styles are available. Optional.

8) Helmet - I've skied for 15 years without one and will be buying one next season. I won't let my kids out without one - and they now understand "hypocrite".

Where to buy/hire. You can get stuff off ebay, or you can rent - google rent ski clothes and you'll find a big operation near Gatwick, which would be good for you.

If you can get to a branch of Decathlon you'll find a wealth of cheap ski clothes and accessories as the season starts. They are starting with online shopping and you may find that the new prices are very close to renting or named gear online. You'll see a lot of people in France skiing in Decathlon gear. If you don't like skiing, put it all on ebay next year.

Final Tip: Get yourself to an indoor ski slope before you go and have some lessons. It may seem expensive, but you'll get so much more out of your time and expensive lift pass if you can ski a little before you go.

shockingmoment

TK Maxx is usually pretty good for ski gear bargains. You have to rummage though. Mrs SM is a top rummager....

Top tip: get your boot and ski rental as soon as you get to resort. If you wait till the following morning - you'll be in a queue with all the new arrivals.... not pleasant when you want to get out on the slopes!

Countrygoose is right about the lessons - you'll get so much more out of your very expensive time on the mountain....
And the helmet. I won't ski without one now.

Don't underestimate the expense... mountain restaurants are not cheap.....

mandragora_2

There's a couple of specailiast forums that will give you loads of help ;

http://www.j2ski.com/ski-chat-forum/recentTopics/list.page

and:
http://www.pistepals.com/

there's a third one, but I'm not the skier round here - I'll ask Himself when he wakes up tomorrow...

Dave_Z

I bought all my ski gear from TK Maxx. If you don't care about wearing 'last seasons' ski wear there are some great deals to be had. I got ski jackets, trousers, gloves, hats, etc for very little cash. Most of my Wife's gear is Trespass, so it's good stuff too.

Ronseal

Thanks for the help guys, looks like i have some shopping to do......Booooo!!

benjus

I went skiing for the first time at the beginning of last year. It was a very impromptu thing - someone I know lives in the French Alps and I stayed with them, just paid on the day for lift passes and boot hire etc.

To get kitted out I went to a "Troc" or second hand shop in a local town. They had an all-in-one ski suit in a lovely lilac colour that was just my size (not always easy, as I'm 6'2") for €20. I bought that and some gloves and that was about it... underneath the ski suit I just wore some normal cotton clothes. I wasn't exactly the best turned out person on the slopes, but it was certainly cheap...

poe.tuesday

benjus wrote: »

They had an all-in-one ski suit in a lovely lilac colour that was just my size (not always easy, as I'm 6'2") for €20. I bought that and some gloves and that was about it... underneath the ski suit I just wore some normal cotton clothes. I wasn't exactly the best turned out person on the slopes, but it was certainly cheap...

please tell me you area woman :eek:

mandragora_2

found it - the third forum.website you should look at:

http://www.neilson.co.uk/forums.aspx

987654

Decathlon sports shops have a great range & prices for all ski wear.