Equipment recomendations

Wasp_95

New member
My 16 year old daughter wants skis and boots for Christmas. Her ability is beginer, she isn't carving yet. Can anyone recomend a decent package for her? Thanks man.
 
Never Summer Infinity 147 or 151 (women specific)
Burton bindings. Lexa or Stiletto (also women specific). or whatever fits the budget.

she'll like snowboarding better. support your local snowboard shop.

if not, then i can't help you out. the above advise is for the best, and she'd be stoked on that setup. good luck!
 
Honestly, for a novice it doesn't really matter that much, except stay away from anything above intermediate gear. That said, frankly, find the best package deal you can on novice or low intermediate gear. Once you get down into the lower ability ranges there's very little that could be called bad stuff new on the market today.

One key ingredient is proper boot fit. There may not be bad low-end stuff out there, but there is clearly such a thing as a bad fit. Just like everyone has different shaped feet, different bootmakers from different countries use different shaped lasts. What might be a great-fitting boot for one person might be frightfully uncomfortable or even painful for your daughter. For that reason, it may make more sense to give her a card containing the "gift" and then take her out to the store to pick out her purchase.

Which is where a good bootfitter comes in. You may find good deals at the mass merchandisers (Sports Authority, Dick's Sporting Goods, etc.), but you're also likely to find some pimple-faced sales clerk who doesn't know his arse from a hole in the ground about finding the right stuff for your daughter and your daughter's foot anatomy. Go to a specialty retailer, i.e. a ski shop, and do it the right way.

Is your daughter a natural athlete, a quick learner? If so, don't buy strictly novice gear. Within the context of my earlier comment about not picking up anything oriented toward too high a skill level, don't buy her something that could be holding her back later on in the season. If you're in an area of the world where she's likely to ski more than a half dozen times this year, and she's a quick study in these sorts of things, it would probably make more sense to get something on the low intermediate scale of things.

Finally, beware used gear. If you know what you're looking for you can often find great deals at swaps, etc. If you don't know what you're looking for, there are a ton of dirt-cheap "straight skis" ca. 1997 or earlier on the market that will really retard your daughter's learning curve.

Although I haven't priced such packages lately, by finding some prior-season leftovers or some such deal I'm guessing that you might be heading home in the car around $250-300 lighter in the wallet for everything -- skis, boots, bindings and poles. Sure beats the $450 Garmont Adrenalins, Fritschi Freerides, and Völkl Explosivs I'm looking at -- what's that, about $1,450 MSRP? :shock: Happy shopping, Dad!
 
Oh, one more thing...don't listen to Hamdog. He's just jealous that he can't use his feet independently. :roll:
 
oops.

definately Burton boots too. there are 7 different women specific boots to choose from. i like burton boots, but everyones feet are different. i'd suggest she try on a bunch to see how they fit her feet and choose one that fits her foot. don't believe the sales person if they say the toes will 'pack out' if they're fitting to tight. it's a load of crap. don't believe the hype.
 
but i can skin on my split board..........just no downhill. it's chinese downhill when that happens. look out!
 
hi Wasp_95,
My $.02 would be to forget the skis-package_thing and just go for boots at first.
She'll be renting skis for a while anyways...with Lessons and she'll be increasing length a little anyways.... The one thing that is needed(as mentioned by Marc) is a good fitting pair of boots. Find several shops with some good ski_sales/boot people and simply try on boots...to just find out where she stands as far as foot shape/volume....etc, then she won't make that mistake of buying a boot that's too big based on "beach sandal comfort"....or the *phat*(is this used anymore? :lol: ) Orange one...
If she has some pronation....you might want to first go for footbeds, then do the boot sizing...
 
Definately good,comfortable boots.ESPECIALLY for girls!Girls want to be comfortable and as a beginner you will want this to be as positive an experience as possible.Also make sure the boot is easy to get in and out of.Custom footbeds will help too.Good boots are more important than good skis.
At 16 her feet are pretty much done growing I would think.If not it's pretty close.
Go to a ski shop for skis.If you buy used try to buy them from a ski shop.Some shops even sell consignment.
((*
*))NHPH
 
I'll agree with everyone else on getting boots that feel good and fit. And make sure to try them on with the socks your gonna be shoving in me. Don't try em with thin cottons then shove thick wools in their you might experience some pain. I learned the hardway that even if a boots a really good deal and feels great when you first put it on that it might not do it for you on the slopes. I've spent days in severe pain because my nice head boots are too narrow in the forefoot. Occasionally I can get them right but I've gone through quite a few days where things just wern't so happy, didn't stop me from skiing but it would of stopped a much less die hard skier. My new telemark boots are a heck of alot better and make me a much happier person when i'm skiing because they actually fit my foot properly.
 
Thanks for all the replys . I really had intended on avoiding The Sports Authority and the like. for the equipment. There is a great skishop in the Lehigh Valley called Nestor's that is truly dedicated to skiers and snowboarders. I bought my boots there and I was fitted expertly by a extremely knowlegable sales associate. My skis and bindings tho, I bought online but again Nestor's is the place i take them for tuning and maintenence. I believe Nestor's recieved Ski Magazine's Gold Rating for the past couple of years. I made the mistake of buying boots online a few years ago and I got what I paid for. They were actually decent boots (Raichle) , but their technology was from the nineties. I have since upgraded to a pair of Langes at Nestor's that are as comfortable as a pair of moccasins. Lesson learned.
 
There's nothing wrong with Raichle Flexion boots (Well, provided they fit - it sounds like they didn't.), even if they have been basically unchanged since the 80's. Changing their flex is a simple as swapping on a different tongue.
 
What I've seen is that many flatland ski shops will fit people in a boot that is a full size too large. It feels nice & comfy in the shop but gets really sloppy after a few days of use as the liner packs out. To compensate for this, you have to over-tighen your buckles and this causes foot pain since you put so much downward pressure on your foot.

There's no substitute for a good boot fitter.
 
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