Want a great winter sports season? Start planning now - Boston Herald

We’ve officially crossed into autumn, easily one of New England’s most spectacular seasons. But before you nibble your cider doughnut as you peep at the leaves, one piece of advice: Think winter first.

For skiers and riders, now is the time to plan for the upcoming winter sports season. Whether you’re a long timer or a newbie, you’ll want to take some time to pick your spots, secure your gear (rentals, leases or purchases) and most of all: find your stoke as you look ahead to winter.

Here’s what to focus on now:

Pick your spot(s): While there are still ski areas where you can simply show up, grab a lift ticket and head out for fun, the industry has shifted to more of a plan ahead kind of sport. Some of that started before the pandemic — with season passes becoming the more affordable way to ski (even for those who only go a handful of times a year). The pandemic pushed it into overdrive though, when a plethora of enthusiasts either discovered or rediscovered the sport.

That means, if you are planning on heading out to ski more than a few times this winter, you’ll want a pass. Prices are still at discount rates; most go up a level in price after the first week of October.

The Epic Pass includes many Northeast ski spots, such as Okemo mountain resort in Vermont. (Photo by Moira McCarthy)

How to choose? Think about where you might ski the most and then go backwards from there. The Epic Pass (epicpass.com), Vail’s season pass, stays below $900 for the full pass until Oct. 9. Epic offers a multitude of passes, from that full pass (a great choice if you are planning on going west to one of their resorts; think of it as the rest of your east season free). They also offer a Northeast Pass for less, and multiday passes that, when purchased ahead of time, can get you out skiing all day for under $90 a day.

The Ikon Pass (ikonpass.com) gives you access to a long list of resorts, including eight in the Northeast and many more in the U.S. and around the world. Ikon’s prices go up in early October as well. Ikon has added five new resorts, including iconic Sun Valley, Idaho, this year. They do require reservations (even with a pass) at some resorts, so make them now to secure your spot.

Both those passes offer other additional bonuses like discount passes for friends and family, as well as discounts on retail, food and more.

Stowe Mountain Resort in Vermont is on the Epic Pass. (Photo by Moira McCarthy)

The Indy Pass (indyskipass.com) is a great add-on to a season pass — or a stand alone pass. It gets you two days of skiing at each of 110 independently owned ski areas across America.

And then there’s your local resort pass — still a great choice, particularly if you like the vibe of being a regular. Ragged Mountain Resort (raggedmountainresort.com) in Danbury, N.H., still has their low season pass rates in place until Oct 11. For less than $600 you ski all season and get four buddy passes to share with friends or family during the season. They offer reciprocal rights to other resorts they own across the country. And since they just purchased Jay Peak in Vermont, one can hope they may offer some deals there as well.

Get your gear: A great way to find the gear you need — be it a purchase or a season lease (season leases are a great deal for newbies as well as for growing kids) is to attend the Country Ski Expo (countryski.com/ski-expo) Nov. 10-13 in Hanover. Country Ski & Sport, once the main retail provider of the now-defunct Boston Ski Show, now does their own thing — all in their huge Hanover warehouse.

While this summer’s sales were a bit thin due to the demand over the winter, Country Ski used their purchase power to buy out some big brands. You’ll find a huge inventory.

You’ll also find exhibitors (resorts, brands, destinations and more), lots of swag, a beer garden, food trucks and some surprise entertainment and guests. There will be ticket deals, giveaways and raffles.

And for those looking to lease, this is a great place to get that all in place.

Ragged Mountain Resort, a quick ride from greater Boston, still has pass deals to be had. (Photo courtesy Ragged Mountain Resort)

Find your stoke: And then there is the newest edition to the Boston “get ready for winter” scene: The Snowbound Expo (snowboundexpo.com) debuts at the Hynes Convention Center Nov. 18-20.

With amazing world class speakers like Milton’s own Dan Egan and many others, the event will serve as a way to not just amp yourself up but set goals for the season. There will be two speaking stages — the “Inspiration stage” and the “skills stage” where you can learn about everything from how to better your skills to stories of extreme trips you can dream of.

You’ll find resort reps to talk destination choices, equipment experts to help you find the products best for you, an indoor slope for you to try as well as a cool Nordic skiing experience, along with food and other fun. In other words, it should be the perfect place to amp up your winter spirit.

Adblock test (Why?)