Snowboarding Equipment

Curran

Hey guys,

I have a quick question on Snowboarding gear!

Basically i went snowboarding in Andorra last March and had a great time!! In January im heading to Turin and back to Andorra in March again cos we got more beginners and i am going to get all the gear to save me having to rent it!
I was looking on-line at the Great Outdoor shop off Grafton St. and to get a board, boots, and bindings (all Burton) would be about 650.

Is it cheaper to buy in Italy??
If i was going to Andorra first, id buy all my stuff there cos its tax free and being there last year i know the prices are cheaper there.

So is there much difference between prices in Dublin and in Italy???

JahEerie

There are few places on da planet more expensive than Great Outdoors
- have ya had a look online?
Cheapsnowboards.com used to be a superb site, but now they only sell thru ebay as 'sideways people'

I haven't bought any gear in Italy but I'd be shocked if it wasn't cheaper than here - again, have a look at some Italian online shops.

Another option is a guy closer to home
- Paul at Irish Snowboards (www.irishsnowboards.com)
He's based in Dublin & has some good stuff.
Maybe ya could get last seasons stuff for a better price.

Anyway, good luck with da snow - sounds like you're hooked
Cheers

JohnBoy

da7a

The great outdoors was a total rip off last year, i dont know if they are any better this year. I wouldnt bother with them. I dont know about italy as i havent been but most european resorts are usaully cheaper than here...

You need to spend about 220 to 250 on the boots alone, otherwise you'll end up with very low spec boots which will be heavy, and loose thier stiffness very quickly which is no use. The boots are the most important part of your set up.
You cant really buy boots without trying them on first either so maybe wait until you get to the resort to get them.Even different burton boots of the same size fit differently and if your boots are hurting you it will ruin your holiday. If you have a bit of time before you go you could chance buying them off the net and then send them back if they dont fit but i think postage from ireland to mainland europe for boots is about 40euros or something stupid like that.

I also reckon youre better off with standard laces rather than any of these boa systems or the burton rulers type that you pull on the cord (i have these unfortunately). You get better tech in the rest of the boot where is mattters like in the support and in the soles for the same money if you go for ones with regular laces. I also had pair of 250euro vans boots with the boa system which broke after 5 days riding....

If youre on a tight budget look for last years models as you can save loads.
You can pick up good condition second hand boards cheaply from forums such as http://www.snowboardclub.co.uk and www.goneboarding.co.uk.

if youre not that constrained by budget then id say up your spend to about 900-1000 euros. Youll get yourself much better spec gear that will be lighter, more responsive and last you at least three seasons worth of holidays. id say spend about 400-450 on the board, 220-250 on the boots and 200-250 on bindings.

If you are buying new look on www.blue-tomato.at and www.hot-zone.tv - two of the best imo. Ive bought from both of these before without a problem.

ive found http://www.snowboardclub.co.uk to be great for info....

also check out document snowboard magazine for thier test bible of most of the boards boots and bindings available this season

good luck.

Curran

Cheers for the posts lads.
Going to check out them site now!!
Sounds like the Great Outdoors is over priced :rolleyes: - well i think i'll go in and have a look and try on a few pairs of boots to see what the difference is so that i dont spend all day in a shop when i get over to Italy!! :cool:

monkey tennis

You'd be best off finding somewhere in the resort that will let you try the gear out for a few days before buying. A lot of shops that do rental will let you do this. No sense in spending hundreds on gear, only to realize it doesn't suit you.

wideangle

Chain reaction cycles are bases up north,they have started to do snowboarding stuff and free delivery.Take a look anyway.
www.chainreactioncycles.com

giddyup

ahem - Lidl are doing a snowboard. I know that may be like going into Tommys Wonderland of Value to buy a skateboard. But in their defence for this type of thing they usually source one good generic item and buy shed loads of them and sell them very cheap. If you're just a duffer and want to save rental on regular trips then this moight do the job.

http://www.lidl.ie/IE/home.nsf/pages/c.o.20061120.p.FreerideSnowboardwithBinding

RoadRunner

Good find. Already have a board, but on the first holiday I rented gear.

They gave me a plank with bindings. I'm sure I paid near enough to what that board costs for renting the plank

Grab

Hey.. Does anybody know were the best place to look for a snowboard is im going to austria the end of jan and want my own board.. cheers thanks!

Steve.N

Grab wrote: »

Hey.. Does anybody know were the best place to look for a snowboard is im going to austria the end of jan and want my own board.. cheers thanks!

As the other posts state - avoid Great Outdoors as they're pretty expensive and have very limited choice! When I was over in Kaprun last year I got myself a new Burton board as they were having an end of season sale - it was nearly half price. Suppose it depends when you're going over!!

Everything here in Ireland looks well over priced!

CianRyan

Head into BLVD.


They're on South William Street.
(I don't know why this is all bold, it wont go away)