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First Timers Equipment Help!

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Can anyone help?

We are going to Kirchdorf in Austria next week, it's our first time skiing.

Is there a definitive list of clothing and equipment that we should take?

I need to know stupid things like:

- do you wear normal cotton socks under the ski socks?

- layers - is it thermals first, then a t-shirt (or should we buy outdoor wicking t-shirts), then what?

- I've bought some bolle goggles, but husband says he's going to wear his normal sunglasses - should he at least get proper skiing sunglasses?

- will normal hiking boots do for getting to where we put the skis on?

Any help would really be appreciated!!!!!
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Welcome to snowHeads, Bags and Shoes snowHead

Somewhere around here there are lengthy discussions on equipment for the absolute beginner...

We started ski=ing fairly recently, anyway to answer your questions:

- do you wear normal cotton socks under the ski socks? No
- layers - is it thermals first, then a t-shirt (or should we buy outdoor wicking t-shirts), then what? Depends on temperature and how sensitive you are to cold! Thermal underwear is the bottom layer. You'll need salopettes / insulated waterproof trousers - which you probably don't have already. The rest you can probably make do with what you already have. I was surprised how hot I got when I was learning to ski, you will be exerting yourself quite a lot. We were relatively low down in Austria in January and typical daytime temperatures didn't go much below zero - which isn't really that cold. I normally wear waterproof trousers, a fairly thin waterproof jacket and some knitted ski tops that Millets were selling a few years ago - if it gets cold I put my thermals on and if it gets really cold I put on a fleece as well. As long as it isn't very windy this works for me down to at least -10C. A decent pair of well insulated and waterproof gloves is a good investment too.
- I've bought some bolle goggles, but husband says he's going to wear his normal sunglasses - should he at least get proper skiing sunglasses? Normal sunglasses will work fine, depending on conditions you might feel the need to get some goggles - these cover your face up a bit more - which is nice if the weather is bad. You might want to get some sort of leash for them so you don't lose them if you fall over.
- will normal hiking boots do for getting to where we put the skis on? Normal hiking boots fine for getting around resort. Most hotels in resort have ski boot and ski storage and typically you will lurch from your hotel to the nearest nursery slope / lift wearing your ski boots. You can also find ski / ski boot storage at hire shops, and big lift stations - which may reduce the amount of lurching required.

So where are you going and when? Very Happy
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 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
welcome Bags and Shoes,

Socks: good ski socks don't need anything under them. Wear them when you go hire your skis
Thermals if you've got them: I wear a light t'shirt under cos it's easier to change a sweaty T than to wear thermals that get stinkier day by day
He'll need goggles: Scott are reasonably priced, but make sure they're double lensed.
Suncream, suncream, suncream, f50 waterproof (kidsstuf is the best)

H'boots are fine.

Aldi do very good cheap thermals, fleeces and skiwear. Take two pairs of gloves and keep a pair in your daypack, If the ones you're wearing get wet or sweaty, your hands will freeze very quickly and one pair will probably be a bit stinky by the end of the week.
A little spray bottle of Febreeze' antibac can keep your boots fresh - well fresher than many.

Decongestant tablets (Boots)
Vit C tabs 1000mg /day
Lip balm
Good skin cream

My favorite: if your plates get smelly, pee on them in the shower, it kiils the bacteria that feeds on sweat.

I'm sure that others will have more for you, Have a great time and don't try to do too much on your first day. And to help avoid stifness, go to a spa on the first and second evening after skiing and get a good massage to the legs at least. It'll work wonders for your muscle recovery.
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Ian Hopkinson wrote:

- I've bought some bolle goggles, but husband says he's going to wear his normal sunglasses - should he at least get proper skiing sunglasses? Normal sunglasses will work fine, depending on conditions you might feel the need to get some goggles - these cover your face up a bit more - which is nice if the weather is bad. You might want to get some sort of leash for them so you don't lose them if you fall over.


I'm not sure about that, if by "normal" we mean ones that block UVA and UVB light and reduce incident light then yes. However, it's worth bearing in mind the type of lenses recommended by opticians for ski use would carry specific prohibition about driving in them. So as a guide, if the glasses are safe to drive in then they're no good to ski in.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Quote:

wear thermals that get stinkier day by day

Most people have more than one pair. And they wash them!
Quote:

He'll need goggles but make sure they're double lensed

Most people are fine with single lenses.
Quote:

one pair (gloves) will probably be a bit stinky by the end of the week.

Again, that's just Masque! You'll be fine with one pair. Just don't take them off on chairlifts wink
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Oh, and for your feet, well, I prefer anti-bacterial talcum powder!
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Bags and Shoes,

You should wear a hat as this will slow down the cooling down period. Googles are desirable but only if it snows for what you will be skiing. Sunglasses are a must at all times. Any good pair should be ok. Plastic lenses and UVA and UVB protective.

Other things, always have a clean/dry pair of skis socks to start the day and make sure you dry your boots out at the end of the day, so they are not damp and uncomfotable the next day. Most boots rooms are heated so put yours near a heat source so they dry. Most hotesl don't like it but if the Boot room is not warm enough dry them in your room but don't wear them on their carpets floors or anywhere in the hotel...!!
Dry Gloves every day. Thats why you may want two pairs...

The only shoe you must take is a weather proof boot if there is snow in the village, otherwise trainers will be ok.
You will not need formal clothing unless the hotel states it, so jeans etc are the norm everywhere.

I'm sure I have forgotten things but someone will have other tips.

Oh. and take an energy bar/or sweats as falling over is very tiring...funny but tiring.
If you are having lessons use layers as you will get warm quick enough.

Compared to over here -10 is quite comfortable if you are energetic and keep moving which you should be doing
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Bags and Shoes, welcome to snowHeads! One key: avoid cotton! It doesn't wick and once it gets wet it loses all insulating properties. Your base layer should be hydrophobic (wicking). Then, an insulation layer (often fleece). Then, your outer layer (waterproof/breathable). Wear the thinnest socks you can (see rules above for base layer-no cotton!), and make sure that they fit snugly around your foot. Folds in a sock can make it a miserable experience.

That said, welcome to skiing! This is my 34th season and I am like a kid again. You are coming into the sport at a wonderful time, when equipment and clothing have advanced to a point that it is easier than ever to learn and advance, and more comfortable than ever to be out in formerly inclement weather.

Don't be shy!
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maggi, Yes I know . . . girls don't smell or sweat or anything remotely disgusting . . . yeah right wink !
Having lost a pair of gloves in a mountain cafe one trip, I always carry a spare pair, not expensive ones, just some fleece ones to get me safe down the hill. If you're wearing single lens goggles and they're not foggin' up, then girl you ain't working hard enough snowHead
It'll need more than talc to dean with some of the boot room occupants I've encountered . . . I swear there was one guy cultivating a new life form in an old pair of Heads.
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Thank you very much, I feel a lot better now. I think we've got most things, but I think we might get another pair of gloves each, ooh and maybe more socks. I'm going to have a look in Aldi today to see what bargains they've got.

We go on Saturday (Kirchdorf), so I'm getting excited. My only regret is that I didn't lose weight and get fit before we go. I think carrying extra weight is going to be a hinderance, but I dare say there'll be worse than me there!

We've got Cross gear, it seems very good, not too cumbersome. Like some of you have said, I imagine it does get sticky when you're learning.

What a friendly lot you are, thanks for all the help.
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
Bags and Shoes,
Quote:

My only regret is that I didn't lose weight and get fit before we go.

You will I'm sure be much fitter when you get back snowHead

Goggles are only needed when it snows, sunglasses are needed at all other times, it's better to have wrap round sunglasses to stop glare from the sides but it's not vital, Get high factor suncream and keep using it each day morning and lunch time, look for one that acts as a moisturiser with a high SPF 25+ is good, even at -10C it is possible to get sunburn especially at altitude where the ozone is thinner, also your skin will dry out more due to the dry air.

Think about gettin a small rucksack to put spare clothes etc in, don't forget to take it off however when getting on chaairlifts and gondolas, carry it in your hand at that point, it's a lot easier than knotting your jacket arround your waist

Have fun
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 And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
More people are wearing helmets in preference to a woolly hat these days...I guess this is a matter of preference but I think it is becoming more popular each year. I suppose there will be interesting opinion expressed in favour and against!
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
D G Orf..
do u mean that oxygen is thinner?
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
enoch, no the higher up you go the thinner the layer of ozone which protects you from sunburn, though yes there is less oxygen, however at most resort altitudes in europe this will present no problems not the same with some of the higher US resorts where some people take several days to get used to the thinner air
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Bags and Shoes, further to above comments...don't be fooled by "ski tubes". Pay the extra £ or two and get proper socks. It's well worth the investment.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
D G Orf thanks i always thought the Ozone layer was the same thickness all the way round, cept for the hole above antactica
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
D G Orf, actually the ozone sits in a high band (the ozone layer) in the stratosphere (above 10km up) above the troposphere (which is the bit we live in with all the weather) - the boundary between the two is called the tropopause. So you have to get very high to experience a thinning effect. The ozone depletion occurs mainly at the poles, so again has minimal effect in the Alps. Any ozone was in the stratosphere is would get highly mixed by the weather and does occur lower down - it however is a pollutant at this level and can have adverse affects on respiratory systems. It might also be a greenhouse gas at low altitudes as well, though I'm less sure of that.

There are two main reasons why you get more sunburn at altitude, one is that the "normal" atmosphere filters sunlight (paticles, moisture and the constituent gases all play a role), and that snow (and ice) can reflect sunlight. Water can also do this and it's possible to get more instense sunburn at sea, I believe.
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 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
enoch, basically, you're right.

Incidentally Bags and Shoes, if you have walking boots you may have perfecrly good socks already. They need to be long though as ski boots come higher up the leg than walking boots. Also, if your (thermal) underwear and wicking stuff and socks etc. is quick drying, you can rinse it out in the shower and it won't get smelly so you can take less pairs. It'll have over 12 hours to dry .It'll need to be non-cotton to guarantee not being still damp the next morning, but two (or three) pairs and you can alternate to guarantee dryness.
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Bags and Shoes, get a spec-saver device (not sure what they're called) or a bit of string so when you fall your sun glasses won't fly off and maybe get skied over by somebody else. Cool Enjoy your trip and let us know how you got on. Cool
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Bags and Shoes, sunglasses - plastic frames and lenses.

I used to wear RB aviators that once got so cold the tears streaming back from my eyes froze on the side bars and when I took them off I removed two neat strips out of each sideburn. The last straw was walking into a mountain cafe in Val D' on a v-very cold morning and on stepping under the heat curtain at the door, both lens retainers snapped and both lenses fell down and smashed on the floor tiles . . seemed to amuse some people!
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Masque, Is there an Aldi around here which stocks the ski gear? need to get the kids some more thermals. Were the Aviators during a Top Gun period you were going through?
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Nick Dawes, They're 'issue' 1971 and were repaired foc by RB and I've still got them!
http://uk.aldi.com/ has a store locator, call for what's in stock.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Also try here.
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 You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
Quote:

Quote:

He'll need goggles but make sure they're double lensed


Most people are fine with single lenses.


I would disagree with this. My girlfriend bought a pair of single lense goggles and they were worse than useless. As soon as she got hot or the temperature dropped they fogged up.

In fact, on the second day of wearing them, sitting on the chairlift up, they fogged up and then the condesation froze on the inside!!
We went straight out and bought an (only slightly) more expensive double lense pair.
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Out of our group of 28 skiers only a very few have double lenses. I have 2 pairs (Bolle and Carrera) and they don't fog. Although I did have a pair of expensive wraparound ski sunglasses that I had to ditch because they fogged so I'm not immune to the problem.

I wouldn't recommend a beginner buying goggles in England anyway. Buy them in resort if you need them. There'll be more choice, better advice and probably will be cheaper. Also, if it's warm and sunny all week (like it was on my first ski hol) you can save your money till next time!
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
Bags and Shoes, I am presuming from the tone of your messages that you are female so I feel it imperative to warn you that most female skiiers I know have admited to spending a good deal of their first week skiing in tears at some point or another. THIS IS PERFECTLY NORMAL AND OK!!
By the end of the first week you might (only might) say you are never going skiing again EVER... but you must, as in a scarily short space of time (within the first three hours of my second trip) you will become a complete ski addict and end up spending every available penny on going on as many trips during the season as is decent!! (three for me this year!!)

KEEP THE FAITH!!! (it IS fun- honest!!!)
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 And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
maggi, It could just have been a combination of the weather conditions and the quality of the single lense goggle we bought!
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Most people I've known who have learned as adults, nearly give up on about Wednesday. All, without fail, who have persevered have been very glad that they have done so. All who have given up have, at some point or other, regretted it. Write this down, put it in your ski jacket pocket.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
skanky, I was that man. I hated it at first and kept taking whole groups of people places they didn't want to go on the ends of my skis. Now.........

I honour your wisdom. snowHead
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Yep, get yourself in those umbrella bars...
and drown a few sorrows.#

It isn't always easy and you are always learning...

Guys love it first time because they are nuts and it is a big kids thing in the snow.

Women don't because...of so many things....!! But they can perservere and love it...!

But it can be the most exhilerating thing which is why we come on here and rant about it 24/7

Disclaimer..!!
And before the women flame me for the generalisation, it is only a generalisation.!!
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Although it wasnt wednesday that I was set to give up (actually it was monday lunchtime!!)..... I can agree there is a definite barrier, once you are over it, you are hooked! Im nearly set for my 2nd holiday now and I am so excited that I can hardly sleep Very Happy

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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
<Masque
My favorite: if your plates get smelly, pee on them in the shower, it kiils the bacteria that feeds on sweat.>

As a Conservative MP I prefer to pay a prostitute to do that for me Toofy Grin
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 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Can you get that on expenses then?
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Scarpa, It'll work. and it wasn't that long ago that a pint of piddle was worth more than a pint of beer! And anyone who remembers Watneys Red Barrel would understand why
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Scarpa,

Yeah, Labour MP's would pay rent boys to do it...!!
And put it on expenses.....!!!!
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Can I suggest lib balm with sunblock as well?

As for talc - a light powdering of your foot with a good anti-bacterial/anti-fungal footpowder will probably help lots, also Scholl do a very good shoe/boot spray (although this is designed for 'normal' footwear, I can't see it being a problem used on ski boots - I plan to!).

(Hi by the way!)
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
IanB, hi and welcome to snowHeads snowHead
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Bags and Shoes, IanB, Welcome to snowHeads snowHead snowHead

If you don't like putting on wet boots in the morning, I thoroughly recommend these. Both Vic and I used these last week in La Tania and they work a treat! Cheap, convenient, no power supply needed, left in overnight the boots were totally dry by the morning. And you can stick them in your luggage on the way home to soak up any moisture.
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Just been up to Matalan. They've microfleece t'shirts at £6 ea. and Trespass jackets at £45. they look decent too. There's also a £40 shell and zip in fleece that'll be great for spring or good weather skiing. OK so it's not technical stuff but it's certainly good enough for a normal couple weeks on piste.

wearin the T'shirt now and I can't find any difference from the £30 one I bought last year!!! Shocked I'll buy a couple more. NB they do seem to be sized a bit smaller than the label . . . or my self image is a bit smaller than reallity.
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Masque, I found myself in Aldi Sudbury yesterday (not in the religious sense you understand) bought the kids a load of thermals, ski socks and mid-layers all at very silly prices. They're mostly branded up Crane Sports who I'm sure I 've heard of before. The adults gear looked very good value again not highly technical but fine for good weather skiing if you can stomach the lack of branding.
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