Day Trippers. What Do You Do With Your Boot Bag?

[at_nyc]

True, but is it really a close call or toss up for what you end up doing "most"?

It's a toss up between free bag check and leave it under the table.. With booting up in the car as a close 3rd option

I split my skiing between east and west. When I go west, I tend to stay in one place.So that means I ski the big resorts (day trip from hotel or friend's crash pad to mountain). Almost all of them make you park miles away. And almost all of them now banned bags under the table. But most provide free bag checks. So that's what I do most days.

Back east, I seek out less glitzy mountains. Almost all of them allows bags under the table. So that's what I do most often.

One of two of my local hills, the parking is so close I can boot up in the car and walk to lift!

 

[crgildart]

I remember right after 911 I was expecting them to ban leaving unattended bags in the lodge. I have a feeling that worries about terrorism might be behind the recent crusade to ban leaving bags under tables... It's always been a pet peeve to sit at a table for lunch and have a pile of random stranger's stuff crowding your foot room. Why now the change? Although, not much more secure to allow random people access to pay lockers and bag checks unless they require some kind of ID or video record of who gets what key number or claim check..

 

[Plai]

I don't use a boot bag. From the parking lot, just sling the boots over one shoulder, the skis and poles over the other. At the lodge, rent a locker or, like some above, throw the street shoes on top of the lockers (even though I'm shorter than most).

 

[François Pugh]

Typically when I'm skiing off the clock, I rent a locker. If I were skiing at any of the hills I patrol at, I would probably leave the boot bag in the car, it not far at all. Mind you as I realize how hard it is going to be to find a new heel piece for those old Koflachs, I'm trending more and more towards the cubbies or on top of the lockers (when lockers available, but all taken).

I used to boot up at the car. I guess I was eager to get to the snow that much sooner. I'm more laid back now. Or maybe I value the comfort of changing into ski boots in the lodge instead of half in and half out of a cramped car.

 

[Clark]

I toss my boot bag on top of the paid lockers.

 

[crgildart]

Typically when I'm skiing off the clock, I rent a locker. If I were skiing at any of the hills I patrol at, I would probably leave the boot bag in the car, it not far at all. Mind you as I realize how hard it is going to be to find a new heel piece for those old Koflachs, I'm trending more and more towards the cubbies or on top of the lockers (when lockers available, but all taken).

I used to boot up at the car. I guess I was eager to get to the snow that much sooner. I'm more laid back now. Or maybe I value the comfort of changing into ski boots in the lodge instead of half in and half out of a cramped car.

There are some pretty good options out there for protecting boot soles for those long walks across the lot.. rockered with tread way better than the old cat tracks were. I boot up at the car 90% of the time but NEVER walk across the lot without the boot soles covered. Just hang the yak trax on the lock cable on the racks at the base while I'm skiing and put them back on the boots for the walk back to the car.

If it's super cold or dumping I'm more likely to throw the boot bag backpack on and boot up at the lodge instead.

 

[Fuller]

At Jay Peak the cafeteria is wall to wall and floor to ceiling stacked with boot and duffle bags, total chaos usually. I view it as part of the ambience and the only thing that ever went missing was ONE glove. How does that happen?

At Whitefish we boot up in the Subie, sitting under the hatchback lid keeps most of the snow out. The parking lot is an easy ski-in / ski -out so the extra skis and stuff are available if conditions change. It does require getting an early start when the crowds show up in order to get a favorable spot. Box lunches however go in the backpack which is hung on one of the rare hooks in the Summit House.

If I had put my name on the waiting list 3 years ago I would probably have a real locker at Base Lodge by now.

 

[crgildart]

Typically when I'm skiing off the clock, I rent a locker. If I were skiing at any of the hills I patrol at, I would probably leave the boot bag in the car, it not far at all. Mind you as I realize how hard it is going to be to find a new heel piece for those old Koflachs, I'm trending more and more towards the cubbies or on top of the lockers (when lockers available, but all taken).

I used to boot up at the car. I guess I was eager to get to the snow that much sooner. I'm more laid back now. Or maybe I value the comfort of changing into ski boots in the lodge instead of half in and half out of a cramped car.

There are some pretty good options out there for protecting boot soles for those long walks across the lot.. rockered with tread way better than the old cat tracks were. I boot up at the car 90% of the time but NEVER walk across the lot without the boot soles covered. Just hang the yak trax on the lock cable on the racks at the base while I'm skiing and put them back on the boots for the walk back to the car.

If it's super cold or dumping I'm more likely to throw the boot bag backpack on and boot up at the lodge instead.

 

[Varmintmist]

Boot up at the truck. The boot heaters are on the inverter, so they come out, my footsies go it.

 

[Scruffy]

Totally depends on the place; we are assuming no slope side accommodations, of course. In the N.E. USA, I'm carrying a boot bag ( well. really on my back, like a back pack ) into the lodge and booting up in the lodge. Where I put the boot bag for the day depends on the lodge and what's available. In the west ( USA ), the custom is to boot up in the parking lot if you're parking a car there, or at the hotel/motel/condo if busing it in; however, I know where I can stash a boot bag at Jackson Hole, so I've been know to bring my east coast habits there. At Aspen, I've left shoes under the benches at the base near the gondola at AJAXs; seems to be customary there, and no one touches them. Europe seems to be like the Western USA in terms of booting up at home and wearing ski boots everywhere.

 

[David Chaus]

At Stevens Pass, one day lodge has pegs along the walls of two floors, so I can usually find a spot. Another day lodge has more brown bag designated areas, and is where race teams and independent ski schools meet and stow their gear, and there are pegs as well as several nooks where people stow their bags. I have rarely needed to use a pay locker.

 

[at_nyc]

Ya, parking lottery can really impact the reasonable choices. If you're in shuttle bus land, bringing a boot bag becomes a huge PTA. If you're super close, bringing the bags back to the car is easy peasy..

I never bother to walk back to the car after changing into ski boots. I just find wherever possible to stash my bags.

But if I’m lucky to park near the lift, or in a shuttle lot, I just boot up in the car.

Helmets, skis, poles, boot bags... it’s a lot of stuff to carry. So yeah, if I don’t have long to walk, I prefer to boot up in the car. One less thing to carry.

 

[Don in Morrison]

I boot up in the car. I have a boot bag that holds boots, helmet, gloves, et al, but it stays in the car. The lockers where I ski won't hold my boot bag anyway. Lunch box also stays in the car, so it's back to the car for lunch, and maybe swap skis if I feel like it.

 

[Johnny V.]

Booting up in the car is a last resort-I'll do anything to avoid it. Free cubbies are best, but if it looks like the bag will be confiscated I'll rent a locker or if the car is close I'll walk the bag back out too it (like Alta if you're there early).

To each his own, but I'm always amazed at people who boot up in the car when there's places to change and store stuff. At our home hill there's lots of free storage available on weekdays and still I see people booting up in the parking lot. I was amazed to see people do it at Snowbasin which had nice chairs and mahogany veneered cubbies-why be uncomfortable to gain 5 minutes?

 

[BC.]

Locally in NEPA and/or day trips to Catskiills we do dawn patrols, so we are early enough to park pretty darn close to walk on/lifts. With that said, we just boot up in lot.....head back to truck at lunch for beers and a sandwich.

On trips out west we usually stay in a ski in/out....so we boot in the house/condo. If we travel around, we boot at truck.

Sorry, but I like to avoid the lodge area like the plague!

 

[David Chaus]

My biggest issue is that my hands get cold easily, so I would rather grab my boot bag and skis and go to the base lodge as soon as I can. If I boot up at the car, after a 1 1/2 to 2 hour drive, that also means layering up at the car, so more cold hands. I prefer to do all that from the (sometime relative) warm of the lodge.

The parkade at Whistler Creekside is great for that, it’s heated down there and you can gear up and boot up comfortably, then a short walk accross the bridge to the Creekside base.

Spring skiing it’s not so big a deal.

 

[mdf]

I usually prefer free bag check, although I have had an issue where I just caught last chair and then took my timne, and the checker was gone when I got there. Took a long time to find someone who could retrieve my bag.

Next up preference is open cubbies or hooks -- some have rows of hooks up by the ceiling where they are out of the way.
If there is an out of the way corner where people are stacking bags that is ok too. Sometimes underneath a changing bench.

Then lockers, but I never put stuff in coin lockers and leave it unrented -- that is a pet peeve of mine. Bags under tables are another.

 

[SKI-3PO]

It depends on the custom of the area. Cubby, free bag check, under table, on top of locker, in locker, etc. all may apply. I probably prefer the cubby.

I hate to boot up in the car.

 

[at_nyc]

I hate to boot up in the car.

For me, it's a competition between having to carry the boots to the lodge vs just carrying skis/poles, whichever I hate more.

I generally don't like to carry boots or boot bag to the lodge. It's a heavy bag. And my shoulder is kind of narrow and rounded, so nothing stays on my shoulder without some struggle. It's hard enough to should skis. Add the boot bag just makes it even more of a struggle.

While most people hate shuttles. I LOVE them. Because it solve the problem of having to deal with a long walk, whether that's in ski boots, or carrying ski boots.

 

[at_nyc]

but I never put stuff in coin lockers and leave it unrented -- that is a pet peeve of mine.

I quite agree on not using lockers without paying. Though I do that sometimes, but ONLY when I see a lot of empty lockers on a non-holiday. And only when the free bag check is far away, or the mountain doesn't offer free bag check.

On the rare occasion when I have something of value in the bag so need to rent a locker but can't find an empty one, I pull the bag out of an unpaid locker and just toss it into the corner. (when I do use a locker without paying, I understand there's a potential of NOT finding my bag there at the end of day. But so far it hadn't happen)