Bamboo Odyssey » camping | Bamboo Odyssey

Therm-a-rest fiasco

Jules — Mon, 27 Jan 2014 07:55:34 +0000

It could have been grounds for divorce. Sleeping next to someone on a defunct camping mat…..the “f”ing and “b”ing…. The thrashing…. In bed, out of bed….tossing. More “f”ing….. tantrums…are you sure you are ok…’YES!’….thrashing…blowing air in….letting air out. No matter how comfortable your own bed….sleeping next to this……so we took it in turns sleeping upon a deteriorating mat in deteriorating camping conditions.
What I am writing about is our faulty Therm-a-rest NeoAir Trekker mattress. Li’s faulty “f”ing mattress.
For most campers or maybe festival goers, the delamination of a sleeping mat is no big deal. A couple of baffles may come apart, a wee hernia of sorts. In the average situation it will be a day or two sleeping upon a bubble, most likely comfortable summer evenings, maybe spring,…..maybe you are even too drunk to notice. After a few days you return home to your real….really comfy, bed…and at your leisure, arrange a replacement mattress under warranty.
I have had 2 mattresses delaminate in the past. Maybe I should have noticed the warning bells…..as one of the mattresses was a Therm-a-rest NeoAir Trekker which delaminated after a handful of uses. I sent it to the company and had a replacement sent out to me within a 2 week turn around. Therm-a-rest make quality products and do have a good limited lifetime warranty……but when you are on the road?
The Neo Air is incredibly lightweight in relation to the comfort. For a similar weight to mass ratio I have had self inflatable mattresses in the past but the comfort is incomparable. Self inflating mattresses are around 2-3 cm thick….the Neo Air…6.3 cm thick. Li and I both found this mattress more comfortable than many beds we have slept upon and decided it would suit us for 12 plus months on the road at only 480 grams and very compact.
Blowing up the mattress by mouth is not so much fun, and cycling for months has not appeared to make filling the mattresses with air any easier on our lungs. We opted out on several pump options due to weight and one more minute of huffing and puffing really doesn’t add much more to what we are doing from one hour to the next hour, cycling day to day.
Others reviewers of the NeoAir Trekker complain about noise when moving or turning over upon the mattress but I don’t find the noise significant. No louder than the rustling of the sleeping bags and a lot quieter than snorting wild pigs and cackling jackals. The mattress provides a blissful sleep.
The mattress fabric appears thin and we expected to have to patch some holes during our adventure. Again this was nothing to worry about with holes being no more difficult to repair than a bike tyre puncture. 10 months on the road and the fabric has proved robust and no patching has been necessary. It is also very easy to clean….and for the different seasons…carrying a space blanket for a ground sheet we were warm enough in well below zero degrees temperatures…..while the baffles were intact!
The NeoAir Trekker is a dreamy acquisition…..until the baffles “f”ing rupture. Aktau….the seam between two baffles burst….like a gun shot, loud explosion. We are surprised as the mattress had just been blown up with no weight upon it. Surprised by the “bang” and surprised about the malfunction. We were always careful not to overinflated it and in hot weather always let out some air, to avoid expansion.
Li emailed cascade designs (Therm-a- rest) enquiring about the lifetime warranty, explained our remote situation and asked if a photo would suffice? Even posting a letter from Kazakhstan, FedEx…..to endure a trouble free delivery…. would cost US$70.
As well as the cost we could not wait a months plus, turn around for Therm-a-rest to inspect the faulty mattress and forward on another. Also…..while the mattress was uncomfortable……and soon to become increasingly uncomfortable…..it was all we had…..We could not post it on and do without. The temperatures overnight were dropping drastically. Our water froze, our breath froze….our fruit…..we froze. There were no alternatives we could purchase and indeed carry in this part of the world and as the ground became like stone holding onto the mattress was our only option. Would Thermarest accept our photos and forward a replacement to await us in Almaty about a month’s ride from the time of the malfunction? No.
Would the mattress get worse….. Could it get worse….a great big….lots of “f”ing …YES. Every few nights in between the swearing, the cursing, cursing Therm-a-rest, the cold, cursing the frozen ground…..there was another explosion, and a following night, and another and another. This was meant to be stealth camping….instead drawing attention to some otherwise well hidden loonies appearing to be taking pot shots into the dark.
We both had alternative methods to try and find a peaceful nights sleep. Tying the ever increasing giant bubble in several places with rope to try and restrict its bulbous growth. Blowing it up firm so that the undamaged section did not deflate leaving hips, legs, feet upon the stone cold ground, the concrete of culverts, snow, mud…..each night some new experience of discomfort awaited. Another explosion. I tried tying the mattress together, folded in the middle….the baffles delaminating half the length of the mattress, in half….my upper body weighted the free flowing air like a water bed….and tossed me off continually. Li preferred to sleep with the mattress the other way around…..legs high in the air like a patient in traction…..and equally as bad tempered!
Would I purchase this mattress again….actually, Yes….but only if I can’t find a company with similar….even slightly less comfortable product, a company that will do everything they can to assist when you are on the road.
Is it reasonable for a company to send out a replacement….or try….maybe to the next reliable postal destination….without viewing the damaged item? Sea to Summit another great brand with great products will not.
Some companies do! We are very thank full to Topeak, Tout Terrain, and Portland Design Works. Even the best gear will break or malfunction when like us….they are tested to the limits.
In Hong Kong we bought a mediocre self inflating mattress just to tide us over….the faulty mattress has been returned to the manufacturer. A new replacement NeoAir Trekker awaits Li at her Mum’s home…..in London.

Hello Georgia

Jules — Tue, 03 Sep 2013 12:07:14 +0000

Feeling immensely happy, feel like i am glowing….despite being covered in mud. Sitting in a cafe in Batumi, Georgia. Life is treating us so extremely well. We have located the Azerbaijan consulate and will shortly book into a hostel, get passport photos and apply for Visas for this, our following country…..after a brief detour back into Turkey.
Riding across the border from Turkey the change of culture, architecture, is immediate. So is the driving style! The driving is more chaotic than any I have encountered and to make sure we don’t get bored, the road surface has also deteriorated drastically. There are traffic lights…..round abouts…..but apparently no rules. Maybe, red, means go?……..Fortunately the drivers are kind and every now and then one lets us merge into the non existent lanes. Others toot and wave and hopefully continue to keep one eye on the road. It is strange for me to view women with short skirts, without head scarfs.
So we are back at the Black Sea, this time pebbles instead of sand, more ramshackle charm than the built up sterile resorts we witnessed in Bulgaria. Last night, rather than ride into Georgia, in the dark, we camped meters from the sea, still in Turkey, in a muddy but secluded area hidden from the road. We were also meters from the road, but confident not to be disturbed, as no one in their right mind…….would tramp through the bog…..to our refuge……
I am drinking coffee…..but have dully noted on the menu a huge drop in the price of beer, compared to Turkey…..ok…..shortly I will be drinking beer……and later I intend to sample the wine Georgia is renowned for. We have been relatively dry in Turkey, because of the heat, and often because of its absence in rural areas. It is only 10.30 in the morning but of course we are celebrating country number 12 so it must be close to beer o’clock.
I look forward to parking the bikes…..after our dry ish spell one beer has an effect. Gamarjoba Georgia……oh….can anyone tell me if I am back in Europe, or still in Asia?

Our MSR Hubba Hubba HP tent review

Jules — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 20:46:44 +0000

Why didn’t anyone mention buffeting winds are not nice and pitching a tent upon top of a mount no matter how pretty, is not so wise? We did get more than bargained for when wanting excitement and Diderots predictions of the weather in Langres were really,really spot on.
After our first night at this camp spot we lay in the tent procrastinating about wether or not to move on. Spread half in and out of the main door I felt the first warmth of the suns rays in uncountable months and the decision was made. We would stay one more night, dry off more and explore the town.
Dry off we did, get wet, dry off some more. We again experienced all seasons before retiring to our tent for the night.
Around about midnight we were both woken to the sound of gail forced winds. The tent shaking and bending in all directions. I popped up my head to check all was secure….did not pop outside as the wind was truly frightening. I did briefly consider what I would do if the tent was not holding and imagined undignified naked leg cartwheels over the precipice. I burrowed deeper into my sleeping bag.
It rained and it blew and at times the fabric lay almost flat against us before popping back up on its half moon poles. We remained dry and the pegs, fabric and poles held without us lashing the remaining guys we had chosen not to secure.
Our 2 person Hubba Hubba HP tent was chosen after much research with us being keen to find something lightweight, compact and with enough room so that living in a tent remains a pleasure, not just a necessity to avoid some of the elements.
Similar weight yet it has twice the footprint of our previous euro hike backpacker tent, ….ok…also 10 times the price….the newly chosen having a door for each of us and sitting/ crouching room so we can dress simultaneously or go to the loo without waking each other in the night. Two things that make for much calmer relations when together 24/7.
The tent has withstood downpours that intrude through our best gortex and the only moisture inside being from our own breath. Unfortunately the tent does not stop these vapours turning to ice although it is much warmer inside than out when taking refuge.
We are yet to see how long the fabric lasts and how our Hubba stands up to heat and mosquitoes but so far so good. We also bought a vestibule , “Gear Shed”giving almost the same foot print again to store our luggage and for extra space in foul weather and use when staying somewhere longer than a day. At a push we could fit in bikes lying down. It’s been so easy to set up that we have used it every site to this point, with the exception of wild camping when stealth is our main priority. When the weather permits the use if pegs is not necessary for an even quicker departure. The tent comes in 2 colour options and yellow for us was definitely not a stealthy option. The green is adequate and really depends upon the environment. We have managed to blend in satisfactorily when wild camping however a darker green in Europe at the end of winter may be more appropriate camouflage. My coughing and Li’s sneezing a likely more of a flag to our whereabouts but as yet we have had no problems with detection including Germany where camping outside of designated sites is forbidden.
I really enjoy this tent and hope it stands up to the next 18 months which will be the real test. I smile to myself as I remember my parents remark each time I left a door open….”do you live in a tent”……actually….yes I do!