Try Before You Buy: Rent Your Sporting Gear First!

From BMX bikes and scuba gear rentals to camping equipment and saltwater fishing reels, your neighborhood sporty spot rents nearly every kind of athletic gear found under the sun!

Renting a piece of specialty equipment is a great way to both conserve cash (perfect for that rare three-day camping weekend or once-in-a-lifetime rock climbing expedition) and to check out new equipment without making a huge dollar commitment to a particular brand or style.

Major nationwide sporting goods retailers such as REI and Sports Authority will actually rent most of their outdoor gear for skiing, camping (sleeping bags, stoves and tents) and other hard-body hobbies, including rentals of backpacks, paddling gear, rock-climbing and mountaineering equipment.

While you should check with your own local store first, here's just some of the gear you can get from national retailers:

• Sports Authority will rent skis and snowboards, service your bike, sharpen your inline skates and rent out all manner of fishing gear.


• In-store Sports Chalet bike techs complete 40 hours of mechanic training developed by the Barnett Bicycle Institute of Certified Mechanics. Bike University provides comprehensive product training, as well as product demonstration and expert know-how in standard assembly, accessory installation, safety checks, bike maintenance clinics, and road-ready bicycle tune-ups.


• REI specializes in cold-weather rentals and heavy-duty mountaineering and hiking equipment, and also offers a free REI Snow Report phone application that makes it easy to check snow conditions, the weather and lift status at your favorite resorts.


• Snow University at Sports Chalet provides full-service ski and snowboard repair, and "boot fit guarantees." They also offer in-store ski and snowboard tune-ups with purchase.

To gear up for more hardcore athletic workouts all year round, learn how to take your favorite outdoor adventures inside.

Fitness expert Nicole Dorsey Straff is a Los Angeles-based exercise physiologist and author, and frequently writes about diet, health and wellness.