Ski Hire -what to look for?

Hi all, I am off to Tignes this year and now in my 5th season, after a few years of lessons last year was my first without, being able to tackle all but the scariest of blacks. When the time came to book ski hire this year I plummed for the premium ski on the website thinking whilst it cost a bit more the kit should be better than the standard skis. Firstly in your opinion is this worth doing? Secondly what exactly should I be looking for to ensure that I am indeed getting premium skis for the week?

tonyo74 wrote:Hi all, I am off to Tignes this year and now in my 5th season, after a few years of lessons last year was my first without, being able to tackle all but the scariest of blacks. When the time came to book ski hire this year I plummed for the premium ski on the website thinking whilst it cost a bit more the kit should be better than the standard skis. Firstly in your opinion is this worth doing? Secondly what exactly should I be looking for to ensure that I am indeed getting premium skis for the week?

Yes I'd say so. For a small extra cost you should be getting this seasons models in good condition. I suggest you try out skis suitable for the conditions, ie maybe ski on some fatter skis than normal if theres fresh snow. Maybe you should try out these Salomon BBRs that everyones banging on about.

And don't be afraid to take the skis back and swap them for something else a) if you don't like what you get or b) if the conditions change and you want something better suited.

I always get "performance" skis but have never thought of taking them back to change - would not know what I was asking for to be honest :roll:

But I have always found them to be superior to the standard ones :)

That's exactly my issue I am not sure what the difference should be between to performance or premium ski and the standard ski, to be honest if they gave me skis and smiled and nodded at them and me (as usual) I would probably just get on with it!!

tonyo74 wrote:That's exactly my issue I am not sure what the difference should be between to performance or premium ski and the standard ski, to be honest if they gave me skis and smiled and nodded at them and me (as usual) I would probably just get on with it!!

Time to research and get learning then!!!!

My advice would be to try and get to the hire shop when they're not too busy and 'butter up' the staff so that they're actually interested in you and what sort of skis would suit you taking the current conditions into account.

I always take what they give me, after I've explained things like my previous ski-ing history, and so far I haven't had to take a pair back except for the free waxing or sharpening service they do overnight. I reckon I usually get last year's models but that doesn't bother me as I think it's more important to get a ski that suits me rather than a bang up to date model that I hate ski-ing on.

The last few years we've always paid for the top quality skis and I do reckon it's worth it. But it generally takes me a couple of days before I feel I've really got to know my skis - their good and bad points and how to get the best out of them. And then I usually look them up on the internet to see if the official reviews match what I think of them - which is actually quite a fun thing to do.

I was rather sceptical about the skis I hired last week - they were fairly scruffy looking, pretty stiff and weighed about a tonne - I couldn't even carry them up the gondola steps holding them vertically in one hand (I had to use my other hand to take some of the weight). But I soon discovered that if I worked hard and got my technique right (which does occasionally happen) they went like rockets and carved fantastically fast through all the chopped up messy powdery lumps on piste and felt really stable even at high speeds. And as long as I was doing my part correctly and remembered to 'bounce' they were fine in the powder as well. And when I looked at the reviews they said pretty much what I'd discovered for myself. They were Dynastar Contact 4X4's which are apparently an adapted version of GS racing skis and really great fun to ski on. I would say they're the best skis I've ever been on - although if I got things too wrong they'd throw me off pretty fast :lol:

So - I wouldn't necessarily reject a pair of skis because they look a bit scruffy. But, as Tony says, wider skis are much easier in powder and you don't have to worry about your technique so much.

And, as Far queue says, if you can't get on with them at all or the conditions change, you can always take them back and swap them for a different pair.

Best of luck with finding a great pair of skis :D.

Ally

Unless you go to the shop at peak times when they are trying to fix up 30 people at the same time, I have usually found that the guys in the rental shops are more than happy to talk to you about things.

They should discuss your abilities and ski preferences, and hopefully will suggest suitable skis. It helps if you do some research first and have an idea about what is available, but do not be put off if not.

Edit. Must type faster :lol: