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Expensive poles. Restaurant. What to do?

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
I've just invested in some fancy carbon ski poles as they were on sale, as we're taking our own gear for the first time ever due to driving. And we're going to be skiing for a fortnight.

However, they're Leki, with the fancy S attachment thing which means they don't have the usual loop.

It then occurred to me that leaving a pair of carbon poles outside a mountain restaurant with no way of locking them to the skis (going to be bringing a ski lock too) may not be the best idea. After all, it's a lot easier to nick poles than skis.

What do people do in this sort of situation? Tempted to bring them in with me. Will I get yelled at?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Where are you going?
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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?
i wouldn't worry about it personally.
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Les Arcs for the first week, Val Thorens for the second. First two weeks of the Easter holidays.

We never leave skis/poles etc unattended for long in towns, but like everyone, we do up the mountain.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
This will lock them to your skis / a fixed object.

https://www.loqski.com/
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Swap a pole with yr ski partner and stash seperately
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Chuck them under the table/stand them in the corner if you're indoors. N has a pair – they're a pain to leave on the ski rack as they always fall over, but I don't think he's ever been too concerned about theft. We still have them after 3 years, anyway.
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Kj82 wrote:
i wouldn't worry about it personally.
I would. Have had carbon poles nicked on the mountain in St.Moritz (where all the poor people hang out). I just use a pair of ancient beaten up aluminium poles now. No problem!
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Don't know whether Les Arcs or Val Thorens have a problem with thieves, but others on here will know. Surely they are no use to anyone without the special gloves that go with them?
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I carry a similar thing to this https://www.amazon.com/Bosvision-Ultra-Secure-Combination-Retractable-Snowboard/dp/B0774BG125?tag=amz07b-21 and just wrap it round my skis and poles.

Deters idiots and presumabky casual tealeaves.
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@telford_mike, You can usually see a single Leki strap on the floor of any cable car.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
@sparklies, we have a safeman ski lock and another similar one which is as thick on the cable, which I have used around my skis and poles together. Somebody determined I am sure could get them out but definitely will deter the casual opportunist and it fits in the pocket reasonably easily while skiing.
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Hmmm.. I guess if I wrap the cable tight enough it might do the trick. We'll do the ski swap thing as well, might as well pole swap too.

They still work without the Leki gloves, it's just you're more likely to drop them. And replacement Leki things that go over your regular gloves aren't that expensive. Interesting though that they're easily lost.. now wondering if I should get the special gloves.

As always, none of these things are impossible for a thief to get past, it's just most people don't have them so they're easier targets!
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Get a refund on the expensive poles and buy some £10 old skool specials from the charity shop or brand new from Decathlon.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
I also now after a day skiing pow with one pole have to pack a spare with me on trips.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
I've had trigger-S poles for a while now. Have been to on-piste restaurants in Val Thorens, Les Arcs and many other resorts and so far have not had any problem whatsoever. The straps are on my gloves (not Leki gloves they work on any gloves) at all time so they're not on the poles when I "park" them (having said that I have seen lots of people foolishly ski without them so that's probably not a deterrent.)

I don't ever ski during French or British half-term though so maybe theft is more prevalent during busy times. If you're worried about it, just put them where you can see them or use the swap trick.
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@GrosPierre,
Quote:
I have seen lots of people foolishly ski without them
Why is that foolish?
I never use straps btw.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
I have had Carbon Poles for years....and they go wherever I go....never had a problem bringing them into a restaurant....provided they aren't left where they can trip people.

Restaurants are well used to looking at ski clobber, be it helmets, goggles, gloves, backpacks and jackets etc
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@Steilhang

2 reasons, the trigger-S system adds to the cost of the poles. If you're not going to use the straps, you're better off using standard poles which will be cheaper. Not using the straps impairs your ability to apply pressure on the poles when planting them. This leads to less efficient turns, particularly on steep terrain (this is part of the reason why there is a "better way" to put the straps on with regular poles - the other reason being to reduce injuries. See https://www.ski.com.au/xf/threads/ski-pole-straps.53905/)
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@sparklies, i don’t think there’s a major market in resetting ski poles.

My lock retracts, so it can me made tight enough that grips wouldn’t go past, let alone baskets.
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GrosPierre wrote:
@Steilhang

2 reasons, the trigger-S system adds to the cost of the poles. If you're not going to use the straps, you're better off using standard poles which will be cheaper. Not using the straps impairs your ability to apply pressure on the poles when planting them. This leads to less efficient turns, particularly on steep terrain (this is part of the reason why there is a "better way" to put the straps on with regular poles - the other reason being to reduce injuries. See https://www.ski.com.au/xf/threads/ski-pole-straps.53905/)


I'm a great fan of pole leverage but also ski close to a lot of trees. The really old skool Scott flanged grips seem to be a decent compromise and another reason to go vintage (beyond more durable alu construction)
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Quote:

Get a refund on the expensive poles and buy some £10 old skool specials from the charity shop or brand new from Decathlon.


This. I don't wear straps, either. wink
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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!
@Dave of the Marmottes, Not to mention the faff. I reckon that in a group of 6ish, you lose about 2 hours a day to pole faff (stop sniggering at the back wink ). Grab and go, and you'd be amazed how much further you get, and I've not unwittingly dropped one yet (though I'm happy to let 'em go when it all goes wrong).
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Dave of the Marmottes wrote:
The really old skool Scott flanged grips seem to be a decent compromise and another reason to go vintage (beyond more durable alu construction)

Scott still sell them now.
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Yeah - I don't use pole straps anymore after using them for most of my skiing life. I stopped because I found I was using them habitually and you really don't want to use them in trees or where there is avalanche risk - wanted to get out of the habit. And I found it makes no difference to my ability to plant powerfully when I need to - you just get into the habit of gripping firmly before you plant. Main downside is your ability to scatter them if you fall but I think that's preferable to the risk of skiers thumb.
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I also hate pole faff which is why I thought I'd try out the Leki S Trigger thing! It wasn't a lot more to get a carbon set than a regular one with the sale, but full price they're a bit eyewatering should I ever need to replace them.

After all that I may hate the S Trigger system anyway.. slightly OT but how do people who use it find it? I've only seen positive things online so far.
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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.
I love it, instant release of straps and easy to reattach. I'm looking out for some trigger s gloves but haven't seen any to try yet. I have the Vario carbon poles so I can infantely fiddle with my pole length to add a whole new layer of what is better to my skiing....
As to the OT I always took mine in with me.
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I used the poles with the basic straps last year ( the ones that don't attach permanently to the gloves) and hated them . Twice dropped straps while on chairlifts due to the ingrained habit of taking loops off hands. The straps seemed hell-bent on detaching from the poles at every inopportune moment such as when pushing along in a queue for a chair etc. Then I tried the straps fixed to gloves routine - better, much more convenient but still not great. I found it difficult to get the loop to engage the clip on the pole. A bit of a faff to be honest..

This season I bought gloves with the integrated loop. A revelation! the loop is sufficiently rigid to make the clipping in a quick one-handed motion, and the more I used them the easier I found both clipping in, and out. I still took the over the glove straps with me as I have spare gloves which don't have the loops. The one thing I did take specifically for use with this system is one of those clips which holds the two poles together- I find this much more secure for use on chairlifts and keeping the poles together when leaving at a rack . In all, I'm pretty happy with the system , but would probably have been equally OK with , for example , the Salomon poles which the straps release from the grips in the event of a pull. I'd like the LEKI ones to be adjustable for release tension , but there is no way to do this.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
+1 for safeman lock. £20 from a well-known cycle shop and with it you can apply a strangle hold to your poles which means someone would have to unscrew the baskets to steal them, and then the other loop secures your skis.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
@Scarlet, Can’t you just put your straps on as you’re skiing?
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Its amazing how stupid people are in resorts. Eldest daughter ended up with two different poles after a late lunch (the last two left). The new one she'd unfortunately acquired was six inches longer than the original so WTF takes two odd poles away and doesn't realise immediately when there's that much of a difference. Only cost a couple of euros at the end of the day but seriously annoying. Mad
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Roguevfr wrote:
I used the poles with the basic straps last year ( the ones that don't attach permanently to the gloves) and hated them . Twice dropped straps while on chairlifts due to the ingrained habit of taking loops off hands. The straps seemed hell-bent on detaching from the poles at every inopportune moment such as when pushing along in a queue for a chair etc. Then I tried the straps fixed to gloves routine - better, much more convenient but still not great. I found it difficult to get the loop to engage the clip on the pole. A bit of a faff to be honest..

This season I bought gloves with the integrated loop. A revelation! the loop is sufficiently rigid to make the clipping in a quick one-handed motion, and the more I used them the easier I found both clipping in, and out. I still took the over the glove straps with me as I have spare gloves which don't have the loops. The one thing I did take specifically for use with this system is one of those clips which holds the two poles together- I find this much more secure for use on chairlifts and keeping the poles together when leaving at a rack . In all, I'm pretty happy with the system , but would probably have been equally OK with , for example , the Salomon poles which the straps release from the grips in the event of a pull. I'd like the LEKI ones to be adjustable for release tension , but there is no way to do this.


this year I copied the kool kids and sat on my poles on chairlifts. A revelation.
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Nope. That can't go uncommented upon. Sat on them? What across the seat or sticking out the front? Seems like a recipe for disaster.
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Dave of the Marmottes wrote:
Get a refund on the expensive poles and buy some £10 old skool specials from the charity shop or brand new from Decathlon.


Good advice.
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@Spin Doctor, how stupid people are... yes... which is why we lock our skis...
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I’ve cut out two of the ribs at the back of the handle and then slide the cable lock through the gap. You can’t notice the missing ribs.
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@Roguevfr, poles go either across the chair behind you or (if there’s a gap in the chair and they won’t be secure, or you’re sharing a lift with strangers) sat underneath you pointing forward. It amazes me how many people have them dangling, looped around their wrists. I saw four poles underneath one lift today, all in places they wouldn’t be returning from
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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!
I cable tied a small keyring to each of my poles (on the shaft), the ski lock goes through the keyring.

If somebody goes to the effort of cutting of your cable tie, that's more than an opportunist move. It also means if you see somebody with your poles, after the cable ties have been removed, you can legitimately hit them around the head with a ski.
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@moseyp, why not just hold them with your hands?
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I don’t bother with the straps on my poles. Haven’t gone to the length of cutting them off yet though.

Poles go between my legs on the chair. I’d imagine sitting on them to be pretty uncomfortable, and if they are sticking out forwards I think you’re asking for a painful surprise one day if you are day dreaming as the lift bar comes up.
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