ck8-04

Hi all, I recently started skiing. I live in the greater Boston area and I've been to 3 ski areas so far: Nashoba Valley, Wachusett Mountain, and Pat's Peak. I plan to do more skiing, but before I do, I'd like to purchase my own equipment to save money and hassle from renting. I've been to a couple of stores so far and was taught a little about the different types of skis and the materials they are made out of and the different types of boots that exist. One thing that seems to be very prohibitive about skis are the price. I've seen skis that cost up to $1200 and boots that cost up to $600! Now, I'm just a beginner and don't need anything fancy to learn on. I am not familiar with the brands or anything, but I could care less if I started out with brand name skis or not. All I want are skis that won't break after a short period of time, are easy to learn on, and don't cost a fortune (I'm looking to spend no more than $400 on boots, poles, skis, and bindings). Would purchasing equipment online be a good idea? I would appreciate very much any and all advice on my first ski purchase! Thanks!

KIRKWOOD-$LUT

first is

what do you want to do with the ski?
what runs do you go on?
how many days do you ski?

ck8-04

Sorry, I should have given that info first. I am 135 lbs., 5'6" and I'm a track runner. I ski mostly blue trails, but black occassionally and have never touched double black. All I plan to do is downhill skiing - no freestyle, racing, or anything special. At the moment, I plan to ski around 10 days a winter, but that number may increase with season passes.

KIRKWOOD-$LUT

what have you riden so far???

ck8-04

I'm not sure what you mean by that, but Pat's peak was ungroomed powder when I went, and the other two places I went to had groomed snow, although the snow at Wachusett was a lot harder to control than at Nashoba.

KIRKWOOD-$LUT

SKI wise i meant
and what boots

i would go with a volkl/atomic/k2 for the groomers

Im the head tech at my shop over here for 10 years

ck8-04

I'm not sure of the models, but I know the manufacturers were Rossignol and Head. I rode in 130cm skis (I know, they're way too short, but that's what the rental shop personnel told me to use when I was just beginning).