Vail Resorts Introduces My Epic Gear: New Option for Renting Ski Gear

Any skier or snowboarder knows that a trip to the slopes is much more than just showing up ready to shred.

You have to have a full set of gear to have a successful trip, and if you’re not an avid skier, it can get expensive to constantly rent gear for a week at a time (especially if you’re not using it every day). It can also be a hassle to constantly schlep your own gear across the country if you don’t live at a major ski destination.

Vail Resorts, the massive ski resort operator that has over 37 “destination mountain resorts and regional ski areas” in its portfolio, is making an attempt to shake up the gear rental space by introducing a subscription-like service for gear rental called My Epic Gear.

“Having the right gear is essential to the experience of every skier and rider, however, the traditional model of gear ownership and gear rental has not changed in decades,” said Kirsten Lynch, Chief Executive Officer of Vail Resorts. “My Epic Gear reimagines gear ownership and gear rental, whether guests want the certainty of their gear for the season or for the day, transforming the quality, service, convenience, and cost of one of the most critical parts of the mountain experience.”

Here’s what you should know about this new option for your next ski trip to a Vail Resorts property.

How It Works

My Epic Gear is a membership-based program that promises to provide members with the ability to “choose the gear they want, for the full season or for the day, from a selection of the most popular and latest ski and snowboard models, and have it delivered to them when and where they want it, guaranteed, with free slopeside pickup and drop off every day.”

Members can manage their gear right from the forthcoming My Epic mobile app, and they can choose from a range of over 50 ski and snowboard options, as well as name-brand boots with access to scanning technology to guarantee the perfect fit.

Members can try a different model of skis or snowboard any day (subject to availability), and they can enjoy free in-resort delivery and slopeside pickup and dropoff every day at participating resorts, so there’s no need to lug the heavy gear to, from, and around the resort.

Hot Tip: Heading on a ski trip? Make sure you read our ultimate ski and snowboard packing list before you go!

Cost and Availability

As mentioned, My Epic Gear members can manage their gear right from the upcoming My Epic app, including selecting the gear they want and arranging a pickup and dropoff point.

Membership costs $50 for the full season, and each day of gear rental will cost an additional $50. Child pricing will be introduced in the 2024/2025 season.

Initially, access to My Epic Gear will be available to a “limited number” of Epic Pass holders in the 2023/2024 season at the following resorts: Vail, Beaver Creek, and Keystone.

The program is poised to expand in the 2024/2025 season and will be offered at Crested Butte, Heavenly, Mount Snow, Northstar, Okemo, Park City Mountain, Stowe, and Whistler Blackcomb. Vail Resorts says it plans even more expansion beyond that.

Final Thoughts

Vail Resorts is providing a new way for skiers and snowboarders to rent or own their gear. Whether it’s worth it to you will depend on how often you go on trips to the slopes and how you prefer to ski or snowboard, but the convenience of having gear guaranteed when you want it — and free pickup and dropoff — could certainly be worth the cost of membership.