Do Magnetic Ski Poles Make Sense? I Skied the Yardsale P1s to Find Out

Ski poles haven’t changed in decades. But that is exactly why I was so intrigued by the Yardsale P1 Resort Poles. With their fun color options, a modular design, and a magnetic system built into the handles and baskets, Yardsale is clearly trying to rethink a category that is often overlooked. 

I tested the Yardsale P1 ski poles over roughly 9 days of downhill skiing, all at Aspen Snowmass’s four ski areas. It’s been a warm, dry, and not-particularly-snowy winter so far, which meant limited powder testing and a lot of early-season conditions: groomers, hardpack, and thin coverage where pole plants regularly hit whatever lurks beneath. 

At first glance, the P1s feel more design-forward than traditional ski poles — cool. I headed into this testing process wondering whether these design tweaks actually made the ski pole experience better, or merely added fiddling where it wasn’t needed. But it turns out, I’m a fan of reinventing the wheel … or ski pole.

In short: The Yardsale P1 Resort Poles ($160) are smart, fun, and genuinely useful in ways I didn’t expect. The magnets make carrying and managing poles way easier (especially if you’re also wrangling kids), the modular design lets you customize and replace parts instead of buying a whole new set, and the leashes are some of the easiest I’ve used with mittens on.

Read up on other pairs in the Best Ski Poles buyer’s guide.

Yardsale P1 Resort Poles Review

Founded in 2023, Yardsale is a newer brand created by lifelong skiers. Their goal: outdoor gear that’s fun, functional, and simpler. Rather than shaving ounces that no one noticed anyway, the founders focused on small frustrations they experienced on the slopes. 

That thinking led them to magnets, modular parts, and a design that encourages customization and longevity. Ski poles are a category that doesn’t see much — if any — in the way of innovation, but I think recreational skiers with a flair for aesthetics will like what Yardsale has done.

Magnetic Poles That Make the Schlep Easier

Magnetics are the calling card of Yardsale; it’s how they’ve made their name. The brand uses a proprietary magnetic system with magnets embedded in both the handles and the baskets.

Yes, it sounds a bit weird, but it allows the poles to snap together as a single unit. And if you’re already eye rolling as you read this, I get it; I had the same reaction at first. Do we really need magnets in ski poles?

Of course not. But also, maybe yes. If you’re a solo adult skier who can confidently pull your ski bibs on in the morning, chances are good that you can also carry your own skis without much hassle. But in my testing experience, this system really shines with families.

Parents know that the walk to the ski hill is pure chaos. Maybe there’s a wagon; maybe there isn’t. Maybe your kid is willing to help schlep gear; maybe she is swan diving into the snowbank on the other side of the parking lot.

At minimum, you’re carrying your own skis and poles, plus your kids’ skis and poles, and everything is somehow tangled around your body like a traveling circus, and there is always one ski pole being dragged across the pavement.

How Well Do the Magnets Work?

In my mind, being able to snap the poles together and manage one object instead of two effectively cuts your chaos down by half — and I’ll take every advantage I can get.

The magnets aren’t so strong that they stick to everything you walk by, but they’re intuitive. You line the poles up, feel the pull, and they connect. I never had issues with them coming apart unintentionally.

The lazy side of me also loved this feature at the ski racks during lunch. I always hang my leashes over the tips of my skis so they don’t accidentally walk away, but it’s sometimes a bit fiddly. Instead of battling with two poles, I could hang one loop over my skis and be done. 

A Little Assembly Required, But That’s the Point

When the Yardsale P1 poles first showed up, I was irritated. Unlike pretty much every other pole I’ve tested, I couldn’t just pull them out of the box, snap on the baskets, and go skiing. Every component, including the shafts, handles, leashes, and baskets, was individually packaged in small cardboard boxes. I remember thinking, absolutely not today, tossing the box in my office, and saving it for my future self.

Eventually, future me had no choice. And once I actually sat down to assemble them, I realized it took maybe 5-7 minutes total — and the build-out was for a reason. Handles, leashes, and baskets are all swappable in the Yardsale system. This means you can genuinely customize the poles.

Pink handles on yellow shafts with blue baskets? Go for it. The brand sells them all in one color (I chose the Butter yellow and love it), but there are options for customization if you decide you want a change. 

More importantly, the mix-and-match design adds longevity. If you tear a grip or damage a basket, you don’t need to replace the entire pole. Instead, you can buy that single component and easily swap it out yourself. I like gear that stays out of landfills, and this feels like a smart way to keep something functional and fun for years.

The Unsung Heroes: Leashes

I didn’t think much about the leashes while assembling the poles, or pretty much ever. But they oddly ended up being one of my favorite features. Yardsale uses a daisy-chain-style leash made with a stiffer yarn and 3D-knit construction that naturally stays open in a circular shape — like an actual circle.

If you ski with mittens and hate fumbling to get your hands in and out of tiny leashes, this is a big upgrade. I always rely on leashes to take weight off my grip since I have carpal tunnel, and these made that easy. Adjusting them is simple too: just move the hook-and-loop buckle to a different loop. It’s much easier than threading the leash through a buckle, and especially better than dismantling an entire grip to change the size. 

Caveat: The baskets, however, are small. On groomers and hardpack, they’re totally fine. But on my one proper powder day of the testing cycle, they sank straight through. If you regularly ski deep snow, I’d take a look at their Powder Baskets.

Final Thoughts

The Yardsale P1 ski poles won’t be for everyone. Traditionalists will kvetch about magnets and modular parts, wondering why anyone would add “fuss” to something as simple as a ski pole (I bet you also hate BOA on ski boots!) But for recreational skiers — especially parents, fashion-forward skiers, or recreational skiers who just like the aesthetic — these poles offer something legitimately different.

Plus, they ski well, too.