Question: Where can I buy affordable kids skis, boots and a helmet?

[Blondeinabmw]

My little guy will be celebrating is fifth birthday with two consecutive full weeks in the mountains this year. This will be his second year skiing. I checked into the gear rental prices for him (the rest of our party own our gear). Frankly, I think it may be slightly more cost-effective to buy instead of rent for him considering the duration of our trip. Ski school rents gear too, but the discount is negligible and would only apply to those days when we plan to put him in lessons.

Any secret gems for buying (little) kids gear - skis, boots and a helmet, specifically? I would prefer to buy online with a flexible return policy. Atlanta's selection of ski shops is poor at best, and kids gear is even worse.

He's about 42-43" tall, and weighs about 37 pounds soaking wet. We have all his clothes already, which thankfully still fit from last year. He was starting to be parallel in turns last year on green runs, very comfortable on the lift and able to slow down when told - though he wasn't especially happy when told.

Just for comparison - These prices are for 13 days:
Ski rental (including boots) $19.95/day = $259.35
Helmet $8.95/day = $116.35 (I have to be able to buy a helmet for less than this!)
Less a 20% discount, including a damage waiver and tax, the total comes to $351.45.

 

[Blondeinabmw]

FYI, in case anyone has anything they want to sell me, I think his mondo size would be a 17.5, or an 11 in kids sizes. Ski length is likely 80-90 cm.

 

[geargrrl]

Look for a jr lease program.

 

[Jilly]

A full kids skis and boots, should be less than that. And helmet for sure.

Are they any ski swaps in the area? And you might find a helmet at Costco. They are promoting them for tobogganing too. Although Atlanta is not the centre of the snow world for that either.

And GG has the best idea. Or at least a 1/2 back program.

 

[contesstant]

Level Nine Sports. Being in LA myself, I can relate to not having season leases available. I bought my daughter boots on ebay when she was 3 for dirt cheap. I bought her boots and skis from Level Nine last year (online) and paid less than $150 for everything. (I want to say it was around $120.) She'll be using the same equipment this year as she just isn't a fast grower. She's 6 this year.

I got her helmet and goggles on clearance from REI. I think trying on helmets WITH the goggles is a must. You might have to pay full retail for these, but it's probably worth it. I'm kind of weird about kids sharing helmets, though. Lice!! Yuck!!

 

[mustski]

I have always purchased DS's gear because in SoCal we don't have any season lease options. Chech eBay. You can resell it there next year at the same price if you need to. For a kid just use the mondo charts for boots. It will work fine. As for lice, easily handled (trust the drama teacher here)! If you buy a used helmet, seal it in a plastic crate or bag for two weeks and no worries! I have had more than one lice outbreak over the years. Since I have the "privilege" of doing the laundry ... Nothing comes home unless it has spent 14 days sealed in plastic!

 

[BackCountryGirl]

The online camping store, www.campmor.com often has previous season helmets at great rates.

 

[Blondeinabmw]

THANK YOU ALL! I will check these out. My kiddo has a giant head, so we may have to try stuff on locally first. These are great suggestions!

 

[Moonrocket]

We paid a lot less than that for seasonal rentals this year (in Boulder, CO.) We have to have them back by May I think. I would call around and see if any of the local shops do seasonal rentals or discounts for multi days. (Just skis and Boots though.) (Well the base price was less- but it may have been close in the end when we went with the "performance" package to get the pink boots and skis

Where we got them they will free tune seasonal rentals throughout the season and trade out anything outgrown for free. The skis were in a lot better shape than the buy back program ones that do not include tunes.

ETA- our kids are almost the same exact size (38 pounds and 42") and sound similar in abilities- she will ski easy blues. We rented 90s for the season. (But my daughter is also just shy of 4- just really big.)

We have her old boots - her shoes were a sz 10 last year- not sure on boot size if they would work for you (they are red.)

 

[diymom]

For kids gear for that age, I'd say used is the best way to go. Ebay, Craigslist, etc. And kids stuff generally has good resale value. You probably know already having your own gear, but the big thing to watch out for with used is the bindings. Just double check they are on the indemnified list before buying anything. (And not too close to the bottom of the list either for the manufacturer for resale purposes.) Bargain skis aren't much of a bargain if the techies won't adjust for you, or you need a remount, etc. I agree that Level Nine is also a good one for online, you can get kids skis and bindings, mounted and ready to go for $120. Their boots are mostly Roces adjustable. Which is good if your kid isn't just on the cusp of a size range. But they aren't cheap. I was just going through the myriad of ski stuff in our garage yesterday to see what I need to replace but the smallest ski I have is a 97cm, and the only boot I have smaller than a 19 is pink.

 

[Blondeinabmw]

Thank you for the tips! Oh, I wish those boots would work - he's an 11. I'm checking with a ski instructor friend in Colorado to see if she has anything hiding in her garage from when her kids were small, or if she can recommend any services locally. EBay prices are definitely good too. I'll let you know when we find a solution!

 

[HarpoUtah]

Ski lease is best option if you can arrange over the phone from Atlanta. Most are available until early December here in Salt Lake. Check the town you like to ski in. Also, there are several outdoor consignment stores here in town like Second Tracks, where you buy at a discount then consign it back when they outgrow it. This actually gets you better gear for less money. This is what we do with our kids. The consignment franchise Play It Again Sports is probably in Atlanta and may be worth checking out.

 

[Blondeinabmw]

I talked to our regular shop in Colorado about a season lease and they said they'd "take care of us", but always the skeptic, I'm looking at other options too. My ski instructor friend is checking around for us too and said she'd let us know about the best season lease program.

Our local shop in Atlanta has a buy back program for 50% credit toward future year gear purchases, but I don't think that would help us all that much. This year is the exception in that we are able to go for two consecutive weeks, but once the little man starts school, I doubt we will be able to pull him out of class for that length of time without serious repercussions. Their boots/ski/binding rates are in the $225-$285 range, plus mounting. I doubt we will need to buy gear for him in the future as rental fees for one week are far more reasonable. I also looked into buying discounted gear online, but again, the mounting fees make the savings negligible.

 

[Jilly]

They are going to charge to mount new bindings on new skis they are selling you?? That should be a package price with all included. It is here in our store....And our 1/2 back program has the binding adjust as part of the price too. Whether it's skis or just boots.

 

[SkiBam]

I expect it would be hard to beat the "deal" my daughter found in getting boots for her daughter when she started skiing at age 4 a number of years ago. The kiddie has really small feet (takes after her grandma SkiBam) and they couldn't find anything to fit her. Then, lo and behold my daughter found a pair that someone had put out with the garbage! The boots were just fine and served the little one well. Talk about a lucky fluke!

 

[water.rat]

Have had good luck with a local consignment shop. For years we bought used gear and when it was outgrown, sold it back to the shop, usually for about 1/2 what I paid. Could not have afforded to ski with my family if renting or buying new had been the only option.

 

[Gloria]

https://hartskis.com/hart-flexlease-program

Down payment on junior skis $39.95 and $19.95 month. It looks like you can buy them at the end of 1 year for an additional 39 or extend the lease for another year at 9.95/mo and then keep them or turn them in for $99 credit towards the next pair. I have no idea if this is a good option or not, never leased before, just passing it on.

 

[HeidiInTheAlps]

The second hand market here in Holland is great. As most Dutch ski but once a year, and people use it for 2 years before the kids grows out of it, you're buying 2nd hand stuff that's been used 12 times. I've outfitted my kids with ski's, boots, bindings and poles for less $100,-. And that were pretty modern and lightly used items. Only last year I had a problem getting mini diva #2 an advanced ski in her length on line, and ending up buying new...but she'll ski them again this year, so such as life on that one.

 

[Albertan ski girl]

I have to second level nine sports! I bought awesome skis and bindings for my zippy 8 year-old and it was $60. They are great and, more importantly, she loves them!

 

[soliloquy72]

Level Nine Sports! I highly recommend their packages with Roces adjustable boots. I was skeptical about the boots but they really deliver. They will fit my kids for 3-4 seasons.

I have gotten some deals on used equipment but you have to be lucky, it seems. Recently I bought equipment for my youngest. He was 3.5 and the cheapest used skis I could find for him were $125! At Level Nine I got him brand new Rossignol skis, bindings, and the adjustable boots for $200 total. They mounted and set the bindings for free.

Their return process is very smooth, also. To return boots, you only pay a $7 flat shipping fee.

The next time my kids need gear, I'm buying new from Level Nine. That way I know I can count on passing it down or getting a decent price for it at a swap.

I'm not a fan of buying former rental skis. A lot of the used skis online are former rentals. They've seen a lot of use and seem over-priced, in my opinion. Maybe I'm just cheap but if I can get new skis for $100-$150, former rentals should be $25 or less, considering how beat up they are and having been in use for 3 seasons.