One of the drawbacks of warm weather skiing is sweating. Even if you wear your lighter ski clothing that wick and vent, as soon as you exert yourself you start to perspire. So then your gloves and boots are getting wet from the inside. What do you do?

• Do you forget and leave your wet boots and gloves in your boot bag?
• Do you lean your boots and gloves against a floor vent or radiator and hope they dry enough to use the next day?
• Or do you sit there with a hair dryer, believing that the air is circulating into your boots and gloves?

BEEN THERE! DONE THAT!!

In this newsletter I would like to introduce you to the world of Boot & Glove Dryers. An electric boot dryer or warmer will make your ski or snowboard boots more comfortable and enjoyable. The 2 main reasons why you should use boot & glove dryers are:

1. Boot & Glove Dryers will remove the moisture that make your hands and feet feel cold.
2. Boot & Glove Dryers will remove the moisture that mildew and bacteria thrive on.

Convection boot dryer/warmer:

Keep in mind, you do not want hot air (like from a clothes or hair dryer or heat vent) to dry your boot as the excessive heat will damage your liners. Instead, you want warm air to dry your liners. Boot warmers heat thermally at 99 degrees and have no moving parts. They dry from the inside out without removing your liners. Dry time depends on the dampness of your boots but usually takes no longer than overnight. If you wish to just warm your boots, it only takes about 30 minutes. See Happy Feet Dry n Warm boot dryers See DryGuy DryStix boot dryer

Forced air boot dryers/warmers:

Circulating warm air from a fan works best and is the fastest way to dry your boots. Gently circulating warmed air can efficiently dry and warm all types of footwear. Some models are good for work, sport and hiking boots, ski boots, snowboard boots, skates, dress and casual shoes, athletic shoes, golf shoes or whatever you need warm and dry. Some boot dryers are designed for the home while other boot dryers are designed for traveling. So you will need to pick the model that best fits your lifestyle. See all boot dryers

Boot & glove dryers:

This is the best portable boot and glove dryer/warmer that we tested. The DryGuy Transporter boot dryer has two rotating adjustable arms telescope in and out easily into all boots, skates, and gloves or mittens. Safely warms and dries one pair of boots and one pair of gloves at once The size allows it to travel easily. It’s compact and collapses for easy transportation. See the DryGuy Transporter boot dryer

Debbdidit

The K2 Super Burnin is probably one of the most difficult skis to match a ski jacket to.  Our buyers found the Bonfire womens Heavenly jacket in Mahogany and the O’Neill Star pant in yellow to match the Super Burnin skis.

Wear the Marmot Portillo jacket in purple and the Nomis Womens Zoey Scribble Print Pant with your K2 Super Free Skis.

AND FOR THE GUYS

The K2 Stinger Ski will be rockin with the O’Neill Escape Jacket in Dresden Blue.  Or try the Special Blend Unit Snowboard Jacket.

Go to one of the pre-season consumer ski and snowboard shows such as the Windy City Ski and Snowboard Show.  There you will find lift ticket vouchers given as well as great deals on gear and clothing at the swap.

Go on a group trip with a ski and snowboard club.  You will not get a better deal than the group rates. And when you go with a club all the organizing is done for you.  In the Midwest you can find a CMSC member club where you will find great deals on trips and meet many great people to go out on the slopes with.

Put together your own group to get group rates and Free lift tickets.  Most areas have a minimum of 15-20 to be eligible for the group rate, and you get a free lift ticket when 15-25 or more tickets are purchased. 
Depending on the resort to qualify for discounted group lift tickets you will need:
• A ski group of 15 – 20 or more
• A single form of payment (cash or credit card)
• 10 – 14 day advance purchase and Same start date for all group members
 • For every 15 – 25 tickets purchased, your group will receive one FREE lift ticket
• Lift tickets can be sent to your group leader or picked up when you arrive at the resort ticket window.

Ski Patrol:   Volunteer at your local area for ski patrol and you will get free lift tickets to the area you patrol at.   You will also get discounts at many other areas.  Go to the main ticket office and show your Ski Patrol ID card to get your discount. 

Work part time at a ski area as an instructor, ticket counter, rental desk, and get free lift passes for the area you work at.

Season Passes:  Many know about the EPIC pass deal.  The EPIC pass ranges from $389 to $669 depending on the areas and restrictions chosen. Save even more when you buy during the summer months.    

At Mount Bohemia MI you can get a season pass during their one day only sale on Dec. 3^rd for $99.00 – regularly $340. So if you ski at $50 per lift ticket you break even at 2 days or 7 days of skiing at the regular rate.  At Wilmot Mtn. WI the season pass is ranges from $345 to $555 depending if you buy the pass during the summer or once the snow is flying.

Early Season Deals:  Get on the email list for your local area to get notification of special events and lift ticket deals.  For example, from opening day to December 16^th you can get a lift ticket for only $15.00 at Chestnut Mountain in Galena IL.   Chestnut  also has Two-fer-Tuesdays.  

Cascade Mountain has a NEW- 3-day lift ticket for only $88! Buy a 2-day lift ticket for only $88 and your 3rd consecutive day is free!   

Many areas offer military discounts. Be sure to bring your ID to get the discount.

Senior discounts:  The age for senior rates has been creeping up since many older skiers are sticking with the sport, usually 70 and up.

Kids Ski Free:  Many resorts have free lift tickets for kids 5 and under.  When you arrange a ski package including lodging with the resorts central reservations, kids under 12 ski free.

Many shops offer lift tickets for a discount.  Go to area ski shops or grocery stores for discount tickets.

Skiing Wisconsin has put together a great lift ticket package so you can get to know the Wisconsin ski and snowboard area resorts.  For only $89.95, you can get 1 lift ticket to each of the following areas; Alpine Valley, Cascade Mountain, Christie Mountain, Grand Geneva, Highlands of Olympia, Mt La Crosse, Sunburst, Trollhaugen, Tyrol Basin and Wilmot Mountain.   That’s $89.95 for 10 lift tickets!

Free Lift Tickets with Descente Ski Jackets!  Descente has done it again!  When you buy a Descente Passport ski jacket you will receive a book of Free Lift Ticket vouchers to 35 resorts. When lift tickets cost up to $90 you could easily make up the cost of the new jacket in free lift tickets.  All you have to do to get the free lift ticket is to bring the book of vouchers to the lift ticket window and you are given a free lift ticket. It’s that easy.
The models you will find at Alpine Accessories are the Men’s Course, Hudson, Trek and Adventure jackets and the Carrie jacket for the women.  Order yours now so you can start using the Free Lift Tickets as soon as the snow flies.

Geigerrig Hydration Packs also offer Passport books which includes vouchers for free lift tickets and discounts. 

Let us know if you have any lift ticket deals you would like to share with us by leaving a comment on this blog.

Alpine Accessories has been thinking about what ski equipment you will be using this winter, since last winter!
In January our test team went to Denver for the SIA* Show and then to Winterpark to evaluate the 2011-12 ski equipment. It’s a gruelling job, but sombody has to do it.

Rick - Buyer, Debb - Email Marketing, Laurie - Buyer, Bill - Mooch, Each has 40 years skiing experience.

Many of the skis that Alpine Accessories has to offer this year, had already been selected by Rick, but he wanted other opinions. He designed a score card and listed the skis that he wanted each of us to try. Each ski was ridden for 2 runs on various terrains and consistently the same route. The results were not a surprise. Rick does his homework. Which is why buying your equipment from Alpine Accessories is the smart choice, they know their stuff!

Joey Keen - Sales staff & Ski racer (Elite Class CMSC)

So now this month, Alpine Accessories is celebrating their Store Grand Opening! The store was doubled in size over the summer and now has more room for skis, ski boots, poles, etc. All of the stuff that was selected at the SIA* Show and Winterpark is arriving. The displays as well as the website are being filled with new stock daily.

NOW is the time for you to Do Your Homework. You have 2 months before winter arrives. During that time your assignment is to; Check out the ski equipment that Alpine Accessories has to offer. 
Read our comments about the skis that we tested. 
And visualize yourself gliding down virgin runs. 

 You will not be graded on your work, but there is a test at the end.  Which skis will you ride?
If you have any questions, you can cheat on the test by contacting Rick at customer-service@alpineaccessories.com

And after you have tried your new skis, please write your own review on AlpineAccessories.com. Help other skiers study for their test.
 *SnowSports Industries America

This summer, the vacant unit next to the store was purchased and the wall between the two units was torn down doubling the size of the store. Then, a new paint job, new ceiling and new carpet installed.  It was cramped before but now customers will be able move around and see more merchandise.  With the additional space, many new brands have been brought in this season. And for the 2012 summer season, we will introduce the sport of Stand Up Paddle boarding as well as accessories and active travel apparel.

Last season we saw many people who have not participated in skiing for many years and got back into the sport with their family.  Parents like our seasonal rentals for their growing kids.  So many customers took advantage of the seasonal rentals that we ran out last season. But with more space, we were able to increase our rentals by 25%.

Our rental equipment is well serviced.  All rental service is documented for each piece of equipment.  Rental equipment consists of Rossignol skis, bindings & boots along with Flow Snowboards, bindings and boots. Last season we brought new Flow Snowboard with rocker, Flow rear entry bindings and Flow boots with the BOA system. The BOA system makes it easier customers to put on and remove their boots.

Alpine Accessories belongs to the Nation’s Best Sports buying group.  This allows us to purchase products at the same low prices as the big box stores. But what we do better is bring in unique items and a wide variety of each category. Where the big box may only have 6 different goggles, we have over 40 goggle models to choose from.  Big box stores normally carry only beginner to intermediate equipment, but at Alpine Accessories, you will find gear for beginners to experts and for tots to seniors. We also sell our products on our website www.AlpineAccessories.com .  

New product for this season has arrived and put out in the new showroom.   We’re ready for the snow.