Nobody Demos anymore?

**vtdownhiller** · 03-09-2007, 12:58 PM

What's up with all these threads started by these guys wanting to know which skis to buy....Did the ski shops out there do away with their demo programs?....these threads just seem endless

**single** · 03-09-2007, 01:29 PM

Unless you have some connection with a shop up here, it costs like 40 bucks, which is refundable if you buy the ski, but isn't if you dont. And what are you doing ski-racing vermont with spats?

L7 · 03-09-2007, 01:44 PM

We don't demo fat stuff. Time and again in the past the fat skis would come back thrashed. 'Dude, you fucked up our skis'. 'Whoa dude, they're powder skis.... I had to find some powder to try them.' 'It hasn't snowed in three weeks, there's a reason that powder was still untouched. Enjoy the freshly destroyed skis you just bought'. Amazing how often something like that exchange took place. Easier to just not take them.

One of the last hills that welcomed us recently announced we'd need to carry $5mil in liability insurance to have our skis on their hill. Others want $300 just to show up with $20K of equipment and guys to do it all for their clients to try skis for free. Not worth screwing with that either. A lot of things are making it hard to offer demoes, not sure how that is impacting shops.

**waxman** · 03-09-2007, 02:12 PM

i've spent some time in a tent near L7 and the era of manufacturers demos may be coming to an end for the reasons he mentions
40$ for demo seems about right, in fact it is pretty cheap considering you can apply it to purchase
you local retailer or hill shop while on holiday will be the best source of demos but you should expect to pay for them and really why wouldn't you? in this era of everyone surfing the net for the best deal why should the local retiler supply your fun for free if you going to buy something from Joes Hardware in Texas becaue you save 3$?

**Hutch** · 03-09-2007, 02:16 PM

Originally Posted by waxman

Joes Hardware in Texas becaue you save 3$?

Good deals at Joe's? linky?

**lemon boy** · 03-09-2007, 02:19 PM

On top of that...there plain are not demos available* for many of the skis that are popular here.

*at shops

**mrw** · 03-09-2007, 04:03 PM

This whole subject tends to piss me off. If manufacturers hope to sell their latest skis, I as a consumer need a reason to dump last years stuff on gear swap and buy new. Demo days are what makes this happen.Stepping onto freshly tuned skis and blasting around the local hill is what builds the stoke to make new purchases. No demo, no stoke = no sales.

I relate it to this mentality...
My wife runs retail clothing stores for a major chain. Down comes a memo from corporate that reads "Effective immediately, remove all mirrors from the walls of your sales floor" My wife's initial reaction was that it was a joke. What chick is going to buy clothes without trying them on and checking a mirror? Nope, they were serious. some genius figured out that by removing the mirrors they could gain 3 more feet of selling space. That leaves an entire store of chicks competing for one Small mirror in the dressing room area. Within days, sales plummet. To date, corporate refuses to admit that they have screwed the pooch.

To me it's the same thing with demos. Why would I want to buy new without having tried the ski? It's just fucking stupid.

**macdadmorgan** · 03-09-2007, 05:39 PM

i have been sour on skis becouse of there crappy demo binders. I don't trust them, and when i do, they let me down. F demo bindings, f them right in there ear. particulary a set of of B4's with salomon demos on them.

**iceman** · 03-09-2007, 05:47 PM

Originally Posted by macdadmorgan

i have been sour on skies becouse of there crappy demo binders. I don't trust them, and when i do, they let me down. F demo bindings, f them right in there ear. particulary a set of of B4's with salomon demos on them.

And how can you argue with that?

**tommyvee** · 03-09-2007, 05:59 PM

Loveland had a great demo this early season, with many skis set up with Naxos and Freerides (from G3 and Black Diamond),etc. Alpine bindings were well set up and worked fine.
It was $40 for a lift ticket, lunch, and demos. I would happily do it again. I found out I did not really like the "Big Mountain Free-ride" category of skis very much, tried various Armada models and they seemed too planky for me. A few centimeters in length makes a huge diifference.
So the demo is not dead, at least in Colorado.

**RPW83014** · 03-09-2007, 09:32 PM

If you're in Teton CO. and need demos, I'd hit up Teton Village Sports. It's next to the Moose. Basically, the place kills it. Hit 'em up: http://www.tetonvillagesports.com and ask for Ryan or Abbie- they'll set you up. Not too many places like this still around these days...

**tigerstripe40** · 03-09-2007, 09:42 PM

I demo'd a ski, boot and binding and I know exactly what I want when I go buy the whole setup tomorrow.

I demo'd a dozen or so sets of ski's and have half paid for it.

;-)

**SLSki** · 03-09-2007, 09:59 PM

For me, all the deals (pro-forms, swaps, blowouts) are available before most of the slopes are open.

**MrDirt** · 03-09-2007, 10:06 PM

My shop demos every ski we sell in every single size. I wouldn't expect that to change anytime soon. Shoot me a PM if you're coming to Teton Village and want to demo some skis.