Every year a new product comes along that redefines a category. This year is no exception. The Therm-A-Rest NeoAir pad puts serious sleeping comfort into a light-weight and compact package like nothing we’ve seen before. We have the Therm-A-Rest Prolite 4 a t 1.5 lbs and 1.5 inches, the Big Agnes Insulated Air Core pad at 2.5 inches and 1.5 lbs, which are the two most popular pads in the industry. The NeoAir Regular 72″ x 20″ and 2.5″ thick comes in at 14 oz, a full 10 oz lighter than these two favorites. Even the large at 25″ x 77″ only weighs 19 oz. Big guys are licking their chops for the first pad that’s not bulging in their pack. I’ve been able to test the NeoAir a few times and I prefer the horizontal baffles compared to the long vertical tubes on the Big Agnes and Insulmat Pads. There are some other air pads that come close on weight but they have a 0 R value, meaning no insulating value for cool, or hot ground. From my own experience and testimonies from others, the NeoAir Pad is the real deal and a huge leap forward in backpacking sleeping pad technology, comfort and weight
We’re coming back to report on gear for 2009. Campedia will be the place for the latest and greatest information on Gear.
There’s a ton of hype surrounding social networking sites like MySpace.com. Personally, I don’t participate, read or pay much attention to them. Too many teenie boppers. I did run across a different kind of social networking site specifically catered to the outdoor community. According to their press release:
“The site will give outdoor sports enthusiasts an outdoor themed alternative to other
social networks like Myspace.com. Users can sign up for free and upload information,
stories, reviews, pictures, and more to the site. The site design focuses on being
clean and easy to use for the members.”
I poked around a bit and I like what I saw. Check it out at Outdoorzy.com. They’ve got a great looking site with some great ideas for us. I especially like their “trip reports” section that allows us to read about outings from other members or even post our own experiences for others to enjoy.
Heads up adventure freaks and check out the blog over at The Adventure Blog. It’s hard to keep up with all the goings on in the adventure world, but The Adventure Junkie doesn’t seem to miss a beat. I consider myself up to date on what’s going on around the globe, but I hadn’t heard of half the stuff he’s blogging about. The blogs has good, clean, relevant info for all of us to read. Check out the blog and enjoy.
New for 2007, the Big Agnes Big House tents are the ultimate dwelling for 4-6 campers and all their gear. A straight forward floor plan means you’ll be set up, cooking and putting the kids to bed while the guy next door fumbles with his multiple room big-box tent. Because there’s no need to sacrifice comfort when weight isn’t a huge concern, the Big House also features an optional, extra large accessory vestibule for more storage or a shady sitting room. With a head height of 6′ 3″, you’ll be able stand up completely, unless you are taller than most. With The Big House Tent, you’ll feel right at home even when you couldn’t get farther away.
Another year, another tent I must have. Last year Big Agnes lightened up their Seedhouse Superlight tents, making them two of the lightest double wall tents around. The Seedhouse SL 2 was just under 3lbs and their 1 person Superlight was only 2lbs 6oz! They aslo introduced the Seedhouse Superlight 3 tent which sleeps 3 but was lighter than most 2 person tents. With the Superlight tents came sacrifice, and that sacrifice was space. Although you can sleep 2 people in the 2 person Superlight tent, it is a bit tight. Is there a tent that’s lightweight that doesn’t sleep like a can of sardines? Yes, my granola friends, there is. The eagle has landed and hatched the 2007 Big Agnes Emerald Mountain Tent. Slender, voluptuous, sexy…I could go on for minutes. Late night fantasies high in the Tetons have been realized. The Emerald Mountain 2 person tent comes in at 4lbs 3oz. That’s not great on weight, but get this. Two doors and 22 sq ft of vestibule space! Also, the big difference is in the length. This tent is 7′ 6″ from end to end, which should be enough length for just about anyone. The Emerald Mountain 3 gets even more interesting. This 3 person lightweight has 44 sq ft of floor space. The Seedhouse Superlight 3 only had 36. It also comes with 2 doors, 7′ 6″ of length and only 5lbs! Compare this to the MSR Mutha Hubba which has only 40 sq ft of space and comes in at 6lbs 12oz or the Sierra Designs Baku 3 tent which has 42 sq ft and weights 5lb 6oz.
Granite Gear’s latest and greatest pack, Nimbus Meridian, is now available. Granite Gear sent Justin Lichter, also known as “Trauma”, this pack for his 10,000 mile North American journey which he finished on October, 23 2006, a little less than 1 year after he started. 10,000 miles later and a ton of pasta, the Nimbus Meridian was back and performed like a champ. The Granite Gear Nimbus Meridian is available for 249.95. You can read all about Trauma’s trip here.
The new Petzl e+Lite is big on cool and small on size. They say this headlamp is for an emergency, hence the “e”, but I’ll be packing my new toy around as my primary light-weight headlamp. It has 3 white LEDs and 1 red led in the middle for night vision. The strobe mode is for emergency and will blink for days. The light also snugly fits into a nifty red carrying case that is waterproof. Petzl really got it right whe they designed the easy to use yet highly functional e+Lite. MSRP 29.95
3 watts and 104 hrs later, the new Icon finally goes dim. Black Diamond’s new headlamp is an Icon for Headlamps to follow. There have been a handful of 3-watt headlamps come to market this past year but they were either too expensive (see Princeton Tec Apex) or low on quality. The new Black Diamond Icon Headlamp is priced at only 59.95 and made with the quality we have come to expect from Black Diamond. The 3-watt LED also lasts a surprisingly long 104 hours on low, and 70 hrs on high which is longer than some 1-watt LEDs. This headlamp and the new Petzl e+Lite just took over the top two spots on my Christmas wish list.
I’m not a big fan of bulky double wide sleeping bags for a couple of reason. First, they are impractical for backpacking because of size and weight. Second, the only air mattresses available are crummy inflatable mats that seem to always spring a leak in the middle
of the night. Enter the Mother of Comfort, Big Agnes. This year Big Agnes introduc
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