Skinflint's solution to gearing up for the ski season

By COLIN MOORE

It is the hardiest of the media's hardy annuals - the story that shows how expensive it is to go skiing. The tale is usually accompanied by a skier or boarder decked out in Versace gear with the most expensive skis, boots and sunglasses money can buy.

Throw in the cost of five-star accommodation and the cost of a first-class flight to Queenstown and the dollar total is enough to make anyone blanche.

As an exercise in exposing extravagance, it is mildly interesting. As a realistic look at the cost of snow sports, it is more silly than revealing.

No one thinks to apply the same approach to golf, for instance. Yet if you totalled up the cost of the most expensive golfing attire, a top set of clubs, and the cost of a round at one of the country's better courses, you could mischievously pitch golf as beyond the financial reach of most people.

The numbers of people who play golf give the lie to such a picture - and the popularity of snow sports defies their elitist image, too.

Now I am not trying to sell you on skiing or boarding. Some people just aren't interested and some people positively hate snow, cold, mountains and everything else associated with winter sports. But I am suggesting - no, make that asserting - that for most people, cost is not a valid reason among the list of why nots. Snow sports are affordable.

How you prioritise your leisure spending is the real issue and if a trip to the snow has a fairly high priority there are plenty of ways you can enjoy yourself on a moderate budget.

I have taken my children skiing since they were toddlers and I haven't spent substantially more to do so than on the other range of children's sports such as soccer, hockey and waterpolo.

If you have never been skiing or boarding before, the cheapest way to try is with a discovery pass that provides rental equipment, a short lesson and a ticket for a day on the beginner slopes. At Mt Ruapehu this year the cost for youths skiing is $35 and for boarders $50.

If you plan to visit the mountain only once or twice a year then you may as well keep hiring your gear. Full day's ski and boots rental for youths is $18, or $62 for five days.

But if you plan to pursue skiing or boarding it will become cheaper to buy your own gear and begin the cycle of buying and selling equipment as it is outgrown. It can also be more convenient than facing queues at rental hire.

The cost of second-hand equipment will depend on its quality and condition. At the Snow Centre in Auckland, which sells used equipment on behalf of its customers, you can kit out a youngster with skis, boots and poles for about $100.

I have never seen much point in spending a lot of money on ski clothing. Most people have a range of warm and waterproof clothing suitable for beginner skiers.

Go for a layering system of clothing, with a windproof, waterproof top, and buy a jacket that can be used for other than skiing. Shop around and you'll find adequate gloves for as little as $12.

The Snow Centre has used ski clothes at reasonable prices.

Good secondhand adult skis cost from $300 to $400 and boots around $200.

The one item you shouldn't stint on is ski goggles or good, wraparound sunglasses. Goggles start from about $60.

Cheap season passes have considerably reduced the cost of skiing. But you have to be in early to make the best of the savings. Now the season is under way, passes are $200 more expensive than in April with an adult pass at $449, student at $389 and youth at $329.

All-day, all-lift passes at Mt Ruapehu are $54 for an adult and $27 for a youth. A five-day pass is $189 for an adult and $95 for a youth and a five-day anytime pass is $216 for an adult, $108 for a youth.

The cheapest place to stay is with a club but by using the same principle of sharing you can make good savings with commercial accommodation. Stay at a place where you can go with friends and the average cost will be substantially reduced.

For those unconcerned about cost, new boots will cost up to $1000, top skis around $1250, an integrated ski and binding package up to $2000 and a ski jackets up to $1000.

Then there is the Range Rover, the Ohakune condo, walkie talkie radio sets, apres ski ...