General questions about Chamonix...

Hoop I rented from Cham Sport as a walk in. This meant I was able to look at the equipment before parting with any money. If you prebook/prepay, you lose the right to walk without losing money and feeling cheated. You might get a description of the models, but you cannot see the condition of the kit before you pay.
If a rental shop or 3rd party agency is offering a discount, it will be to shift kit. It will be the stuff that gets left behind when all the shiny skis have been taken (huge generalisation).
I cannot say if you will be okay or not by renting with Chamsport, they are a part of the Twinner chain, so on a par with the local Intersport.

Bandit

I know that you know an awful lot more than me about skis but I suspect you are being a bit harsh on Sport 2000. In my experience, the hire shops vary enormously regardless of which franchise they are with and you can be lucky or unlucky. However, I do accept that you need to be fairly demanding in any ski shop if you want good quality kit. Unfortunately, most skiers simply don't know what good kit is other than liking something that looks new and shiny and I include myself in that category :oops:.

I have used Snowrental/Sport2000 for the past few years and have not noticed any particular problems with their gear - of course, it is possible that I have been given crap and not known the difference :oops:.

However, there is no doubting that their online prices are significantly cheaper than walking in off the street, usually 40% lower. Given that the OP and his pals are pretty much beginners, do they really need to be very fussy about their equipment - within reason of course, nobody is going to enjoy their skiing in clapped out old skis :?:

Wanderer wrote:

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However, there is no doubting that their online prices are significantly cheaper than walking in off the street, usually 40% lower. Given that the OP and his pals are pretty much beginners, do they really need to be very fussy about their equipment - within reason of course, nobody is going to enjoy their skiing in clapped out old skis :?:

At least the OP and his friends could learn how to recognise dull edges and sloppy bindings.
Better still, the beginners could learn before they go,then the worst bits of learning are over and done.
I do think they need to be fussy, there are safety issues to be considered, plus, if the beginners have a poor experience because the hire kit is tat, then they won't be back.
They might have a poor experience for lots of other reasons, but some things can be controlled.
Folks here, seem to be fixated on the % saving, and losing focus on the big picture.

I understand what you're saying bandit, so please don't think your opinions and warnings are going unheeded. Unfortunately, for some of my group, budget is a massive consideration, so we may have to take a chance on web hire and hope that the kit is serviceable.

On that point, is there a hard and fast way to recognise skis that have or haven't been properly prepared?

I emailed Cham sport on this point and this was their reply:

Hi,

All the ski are prepared, and the edges are done after the end of the rent .

Regards,

CHAM' SPORT

I know they could claim whatever they wanted, but at least they've taken the time to get back to me on an important point.

Hoop I understand where you are coming from on this. I do hope you will be taking the email with you, nice one :thumbup:

Ski edges should be smooth and sharp enough to take a shaving from a fingernail. Bases should be smooth, free of gouges, freshly waxed and scraped back to reveal the base structure.
Bindings should hold the boot without any loose movement, no slop. There should be no excessive gouging on the glide plate under the toe piece.

Everyone in your party should have a multi tool of some sort with them on the hill, they are handy for quick repairs, though most lift stations do have tools on a rack outside, you may not be at a lift when you need them.

I got caught out recently, with brand new test skis, and a faulty binding brake. One ski sped off by itself onto a crevassed glacier area, and no way could I go after it, much too dangerous. I did get the ski back, I was lucky, someone picked it up lower down and returned it.
It serves me right for not doing my own checks.

Hoop - you'll get a minimum of 20% discount off the walk-in price with SkiSet, our partners for Ski Hire, so worth your while to check a quote from them. I'm not sure of your dates but if outside the peak weeks the discount may be 25% or more.

They have an Economy range and, even for this, guarantee that all skis will be serviced (edges and wax) prior to each hire.

You can check your appropriate ski category on our Chamonix Ski Hire page or get a quote (and book) via http://chamonix.skiset.co.uk/j2ski/.

bandit wrote:Hoop I understand where you are coming from on this. I do hope you will be taking the email with you, nice one :thumbup:

Ski edges should be smooth and sharp enough to take a shaving from a fingernail. Bases should be smooth, free of gouges, freshly waxed and scraped back to reveal the base structure.
Bindings should hold the boot without any loose movement, no slop. There should be no excessive gouging on the glide plate under the toe piece.

Great info. Cheers, bandit. If i decide to go with Cham sport then I will definitely be taking the email with me.

Admin Thanks for the link. The economy range looks more than good enough for our needs. That's another option well worth considering...good prices. We go out on 28 January, so I think that falls outside peak times...25% discount I believe 8)