As the summer heat fades away, school has begun and autumn is around the corner, many skiing families will be asking themselves whether they should buy or rent their ski and snowboard equipment for this winter. With one of the largest seasonal rental programs in all of New England, as well as one of the best selections available for buying skiing and snowboarding gear–Zimmermanns can help you and your family answer this question.

Advantage of Renting

For young kids who are just beginning to ski or ride until they become a teenager it almost always makes more sense for a family to rent rather than buy. If your kid rents, you are assured that the equipment is always the right size for your child. At the same time, if you are part of an avid or even moderate skiing family it makes far more sense to do a seasonal rental program versus renting each day at the mountain. Zimmermanns’ used Jr. rental program provides excellent equipment for $119.99 for the entire season, as well as in-store discounts and perks to ski resorts as well! Meanwhile, renting at a resort each day wastes valuable time on the slopes, sometimes isn’t as high quality equipment and will typically cost somewhere between $30-$60 per day.

Disadvantage of Buying

What invariably happens if you purchase gear for a growing kid, is that in order to get multiple years out of the skis or snowboard, parents will always start their kids in equipment that is far too big. As a result, the first year on the new equipment is a struggle as the kid is trying to learn and are further hindered by boots that don’t fit right and equipment that is too difficult to maneuver. Plus, there is a chance that depending on when growth spurts occur–the equipment you buy for a growing kid may never be the “perfect size” they truly need.

So, when should you buy equipment?

There comes a point–usually as a kid reaches their mid-teenage years or you are pretty confident as a parent your child is no longer growing–when buying becomes far more advantageous then renting. Once a person is fully grown, there is little reason to rent vs. buy. Just like owning a car, if you take good care of the equipment you purchase there is no reason it shouldn’t last 5-10 years or possibly longer.

Ski and snowboard equipment is an important investment, so make sure that when the time comes to buy you go to an experienced boot fitter that can explain to you exactly how your boots should fit, and can guide you toward the best ski or snowboard for your ability level and preferred terrain on the slopes. Boots are the most important part of the equation when it comes to skiing or riding, so find a place like Zimmermanns which is well-established (fun fact: we are celebrating our 50th anniversary this season!) and can help you with any boot customization you may need–we even offer our performance fit guarantee on all ski and snowboard boots we sell.

Whether you are renting for your kids, or buying for yourself, Zimmermanns has the friendly-staff, product knowledge, customer-service, and competitive pricing that has helped make us a staple of the ski industry for 50 years!