First time

I assume you are referring to snowboarding and not recreational drugs or bizarre sexual encounters.

In that case, yes, buy your own gear.  Depending on how many times you go per season you will be better off in the long run versus renting gear.  One tip that 99% of people will tell you is try on boots before purchasing!!!

Some light reading for you:

http://www.trusnow.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=45408

http://www.trusnow.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=40125

yes i mean snowboarding. What should i do about the boots if i am buying them online?

If they have better prices online, get them online but before you do go into a local shop and try them on.  If you boot doesn't fit right you're going to have a miserable day of riding.  Also be careful about buying boots used because often times the padding can be worn out if they've been heavily used.  

don't buy used boots.

if you absolutely have to buy online, buy from a big company that pays for return shipping (dogfunk, backcountry, etc).  You just print out the UPS return label, stick it on the box and give it to any UPS delivery person in any UPS truck  - done.

start with buying one size smaller than your tennis shoe.  The boot should fit extremely snug everywhere, except your toes, which should just be grazing the front of the liner (not curled up).  Your toes should also not be pushed/pinched in from the sides ("toe box" should be roomy).

work from there and keep buying and returning until you get the right (snug) fit.  Good luck.

Originally posted by Zbice SO my roommate got me hooked and i just want to know if i should get new stuff?

If you see yourself going more than once or twice a season, definitely buy your own stuff!  Even if you go just twice a season for the rest of your life, that's grounds for buying your own stuff too.  Think long run costs, see how much you spent on rentals last season, then think about how many years of riding you'll be doing in the future, be honest with yourself, and then use that for your working budget when buying stuff.

As for boots, I'm not sure about that half size smaller than your tennis shoe... I'm a size 8 in normal shoes, tennis, basketball, dress shoes, etc.  For runners I sometimes go half a size larger.  With snowboard boots, I do half or full size larger, it REALLY depends on the brand.  Some brands I could be an 8, others 8.5 (Nike ZF1), and some 9 (DC Park).  You MUST go to a store and try them on.  If you can find the ones you want online for a good price, print out the web page and bring it into the store with you to see if they'll price match.  Don't show them until AFTER you've tried them on and found your size though!   But yeah, just courtesy for taking up the guy's time for trying to help you.  If you know for sure you're getting it online, then try not to take up too much of the guy's time at the store.

Originally posted by Zbice SO my roommate got me hooked and i just want to know if i should get new stuff?

as far as returning boots, even if the online co docks your refund, I doubt it's as much as you would pay shipping it back yourself (which they would refund anyhow) and it's worth it for the convenience you're getting (no driving, no rushing, etc)

one of the good things about buying a used board is you won't worry about it as much, especially when doing those first home wax jobs and edge tunes

in the long run buying own gear is def cheaper! renting at resort goes abt $50 each time, i think?

and for me i just feel more sanitary when using own gear.

Definitely more cost efficient in the long run, but I can't stress enough... research, research, research. I'd go another couple times to try different board lengths, and board style (camber and reverse camber if the resort/friends have them available). Also read a bunch of reviews of the gear that you think you want, and not always the fan boy 5-star review always read some lower or one star reviews to understand why people didn't like it.

I always do a lot of research before big money purchases and I have never been upset with what I choose.

Originally posted by keljai ^what charlie said, l remember i time, l wore a boot that was still wet, the guy said that was the last pair avaliable right now. i felt disgusting for the rest of the week