Skimaven

1. Nicole Ballinger  |  Monday, October 13, 2008 at 08:55 PM

Hi Skimaven,

Thanks for posting these in one place--it's been very handy to keep track. After selling a few odd bits of old gear, we are now down to just one pair of brown size 12 men's snowboard boots that need a new home. Come to think of it they'd be perfect for a Chewbacca costume!

Nicole

2. Skimaven  |  Tuesday, October 14, 2008 at 03:06 PM

Ah, size 12 is much too big for me. Sorry! And I'm going out at Halloween as a snow angel, so they wouldn't work for my costume either!

Cochran's ski swap is up next...hope to find some tele boots!

3. strolz  |  Tuesday, November 11, 2008 at 06:54 PM

Hope this not too long. With only a few swaps left I would like to comment on the ones we had and see if you agree. The fist one my wife and I went to was at K-Mart (Killington). By the way this could be the best day for the buying season in that the anual Ibex sale is usually held the same day. If you are not aware of this line of clothing in general let's just say that all those beautiful merrino wool garments with those wonderful zip pockets on the chest, the ones nobody can afford , are on sale. When I sold this stuff at the ski shop I worked, They were the most tried on clothing that nobody bought. Too costly. Well how would you like to be standing in front a pile of all their last years goods in a tent that could be used as an airplane hanger. Last year we paid ablut $300 for what we added up retail would go for about $2500. We both bought wool blend pants fot $10 that were marked $225. We have so much Ibex that this year we didn't buy that much. That, I can assure you is a serious sale of all new goods. The stuff is the best in the business, period.
The next thing we did is to arrive early at K-Mart. The trick is this -YOU CAN LOOK BUT YOU CAN'T BUY UNTIL THE BELL GOES OFF AT 5:30. At that time valley Girl and yours truly have gone through everything and are ready to check out. needless to say we are the first on line to pay and get out before the hoards.
We have everything we neeed so that's it for ski sales. I have been going to them for 20 years and have a feel for them. So I have an idea about the type of things they have.
So here goes. KILLINGTON---Nice and open, devided into two areas. Hard goods and soft goods. Not to many retailers to spoil the fun. Good
all arround balance. 4 stars out of 5
Colchester High School.. Clearly the best. Biggest. Nice amount of clothing. Skis are aranged on 5 foot square islands all over the place. They were the first to arrange skis by size if you can believe it. They have an ample hockey section. 5 Stars.
Cochrans. I got there on Sunday. Only thing left was the nice smell of tomato soup for the massive quantities of volunteers with not much to do. 3 stars
Waitsfield. The place is so crowded that it can give you claustrpohobia. I mean so crowded , you can't move. Hardly any clothes. The retailers are too prevelent. Every ski shop is here offering the same stuff you could have gotten last year for the same price. GMVS ski school is here so you can get some racing skis if you want them. You can realy get nervous dealing with the hoards. It is the smallest show on the circuit. It is the last sale of the season. 2 stars
Thanks skimaven, from skishopping maven,

4. Skimaven  |  Wednesday, November 12, 2008 at 10:52 AM

Nice round-up! Clearly, you get around to the ski swaps in Vermont. I agree Colchester's is good, although I didn't find what I needed there this year.

Cochran's swap in Richmond is a very popular one in this area and when I got there just before it opened I was in a line into the parking lot. But, it's got a good selection and I found some classic cross-country ski boots for myself. They came from the Catamount Touring Center and are nearly new.

I went to the Waitsfield ski swap a couple years ago and had the same claustrophobic feeling that you got. I can't recall which swap it was where I found brand-new Karhu backcountry skis (still in the wrapper) two seasons ago. Oh well!