snow ski

Question
I have a pair of rossignol challenger 175 but I have no boots.  My question is it worth buying a pair of boots or are these ski to far out of date. I ski about 1 or 2 times a year. Please advise...

Answer
Hey Roger,

Those skis are fairly old. I'm guessing late '80's to early '90's. If the edges and bases are still in good condition, they should be skiable. The major factor will be the bindings. If you know enough about bindings to service them (ie; lubricate, inspect, mount, adjust) yourself, then you might be okay to use them. You would probably have trouble getting any ski shops to even touch the bindings. Once bindings reach a certain age, neither the ski shops or manufacturers will take any responsibility for them. Here is a link to an 'indemnification' list. If your bindings are NOT on the list, you will have trouble getting work done on them. Bindings on this list are still covered by the manufacturer.

http://www.nssra.com/2001/nssra/index.asp?centre=article&recno=2651

This doesn't mean that the bindings are bad or won't work with proper care and adjustment, it just means that any liability for injury from the bindings failing is totally on you. Skiing older gear is okay if you are used to using it and have kept up with the maintenance. If they have just been sitting in the garage with very little use and no maintenance, then I would suggest you either buy new, newer used, or rent. If you haven't skied on the newer style skis, give it a try. Any skis 5 years old or newer will be a new experience for you. Newer skis take a lot of the work out of skiing.

Hope this helps.
Keep on skiing,
Windlover