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> Ultralight culture seems a little nuts to the uninitiated. I prefer "Durable, but as light as possible", not the other way around. Most ultralight gear break
by exabrial 1y ago
> Ultralight culture seems a little nuts to the uninitiated.
I prefer "Durable, but as light as possible", not the other way around. Most ultralight gear breaks after a few uses or when it is mishandled in anything-less-than-perfect conditions, which, happens a lot outside.
- s0rce 1y agoMy ultralight gear has been sufficiently durable for my backpacking and hiking, even off trail. I'm not hunting or repairing trails but stuff lasts a while. The only exception I've found is inflatable pads which get punctured but no more often than bicycle tire inner tubes and they can similarly be patched with some effort.
- wkat4242 1y agoWhat do you use those pads for I wonder?
- mrexroad 1y agosleeping. my thermarest pad is a decade+ old and I won't hesitate to take it on a lengthy backpacking trip as long as I have a patch kit, same as a bike tire.
- trenchpilgrim 1y agoYou put them under your sleeping bag and they make your sleep way warmer than if your sleeping bag is directly on the tent floor. https://www.nemoequipment.com/collections/sleeping-pads https://www.nemoequipment.com/collections/sleeping-pads
- ashdksnndck 1y agoThat the purpose of the sleeping pad is characterized as thermal performance and not comfort is proof that I am not capable of the ultralight mindset.
- deleted 1y ago[deleted]
- trenchpilgrim 1y agoI spent time in India as a kid sleeping on the hard floor of my grandmother's home. Maybe my sense of comfort is different IDK, but I don't consider a pad essential on a warm night
- ics 1y agoI’m from the US but a “floor sleeper” and have never camped with a pad like these even in near-freezing temperatures. I’m sure it helps but these days I get the impression from people around that they just like gear, don’t like being uncomfortable, and any other benefit is just a bonus to rationalize spending money. Maybe I’ll try it some day and be a convert, until then…
- trenchpilgrim 1y agoFor my setup my nemo pad + bag is smaller packed volume than an equivalently warm bag without pad. I mostly motocamp so packed volume is at premium. My nemo pad packs down to about the size of a soda can in my saddlebag.
- voidmain0001 1y agoYou sleep on a hard surface? That is really difficult for me as a side sleeper. I have slept on hard surfaces out of necessity and my hips and knees are hurting by morning. Do you use a pillow or is your head on the hard surface too?
- ics 1y agoI started doing it as a kid in order to break my reliance on side sleeping and help general posture. These days I'm less strict but benefit from being able to find a comfortable position anywhere. I'd recommend not resting your head on a pillow but using firm cushioning under your neck; that will very slightly lift and relieve pressure from your head and keep head/neck/shoulders adequately separated. A straw cushion (common in Japan, maybe elsewhere) is nice but a tightly rolled hoodie is almost as good.
- j45 1y agoMost efficient volume, weight, and durability is valuable in so many ways. Quite often they end up being used a lot more too.
- hinkley 1y agoThe max weight is a bunch of bullshit on the ultralight gear. Last time I moved I showed up the day before my stuff did, I slept on a camp cot I had bought for which I was 90% of the max weight. I used it on a carpeted floor for one night, it bent in two places. If I’d put the damned thing across a root it would have looked like a pretzel the next morning.
- ashdksnndck 1y agoThe designers forgot that a human is a live load!
- hinkley 1y ago"Up to" does seem to be a perfectly distributed load that doesn't ever for instance toss and turn, or sneeze. Apparently I'm not a spherical cow.
- procinct 1y agoI’m not sure I understand the point… I don’t think many (if any) backpackers are taking a camp cot with them? I imagine most are using an inflatable sleep pad or a foam sleep mat.
- hinkley 1y agoIt's all of a piece.
- uneekname 1y agoIn my experience, the third main variable here is cost. Light gear can be durable, but that usually costs a lot more because it uses expensive materials like titanium.
- bobsmooth 1y agoI think people that do long distance hiking are a little nuts but to each their own.
- dotancohen 1y agoPeople that do long distance hiking happen to like that you think that way.
- bdhcuidbebe 1y agoThats a bit strongly put.. I’d say a little bit goofy.
- deleted 1y ago[deleted]
- globular-toast 1y agoCan confirm there are not many mundanes doing it. It's a bit like how hacker culture used to be before the money.
- DynamicStatic 1y agoBest thing I've done in my lifetime.
- macNchz 1y agoI feel like advances in manufacturing and materials science have really made some massive strides in the past 10 years or so—my sub-2lb 2p tent feels just as durable as my 7lb backpacking tent from the late 90s did.
- twothamendment 1y agoJury is still out on my new lightweight tent vs my 34 year old Eureka that still gets used when weight doesn't matter. My Big Agnes is treated as if it is tissue paper where the Eureka somehow survived containing teens wrestling inside. I hope my BA lasts the rest of my life. I will agree with the advances in materials, they are amazing - I just think we've made some amount of trade-off in durability.
- exabrial 1y agoAlso: useful. Packs used to have MOLLE/PALS strips and/or external pockets. Packs made now seem to have supersonic flight aerodynamics as the primary design feature… heaven forbid we add 20 grams of stitching/webbing for expansion/versatility.