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Gearing up
May. 18th, 2010 02:18 am(I'm thinking out loud about purchases here. Feel free to skip if camping gear doesn't get you all wiggly.)
For my biking/camping trip, I was initially going to get the Eureka Apex 2XT tent, but I think the REI sale catalog I received today has convinced me to get the Marmot Limelight 2. Beginning Friday, it'll be marked down to $130 (from $190), and my 20% member coupon will reduce that to $104, compared to $84 for the Eureka. For the extra $20, I'll be getting a nylon floor (instead of polyester), stronger poly walls, aluminum poles (instead of fiberglass), negative 12 ounces of weight, and goodies I'd've had to buy separately: tent stakes, a "footprint" to put beneath the tent, and a wee hammocky "gear loft" that will hang in the ceiling vault like a cobweb. I'll be giving up five inches of width and a second door, but Marmots seem to be better quality overall than Eurekas. (Also, everyone loves marmots.) Thoughts from outdoorsy types?
I'm also looking at the Black Diamond Orbit LED lantern, this mummy bag (which rolls up tiny), and some sort of sleeping pad and pillow. This REI pad will be marked down to $50 for the sale, but I'm worried about bulk. Hmm.
I'll probably also need a second pannier, and was planning to get another Ortlieb Bike Shopper (which I lurv). But, during the sale, I could get a pair of nigh-identical Ortlieb Backrollers for $27 (30%) more than a single Bike Shopper. That would leave me with three panniers, which is a silly state to be in, but I can donate one to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
adfamiliares, or pass it on to a friend (for a small fee!). If the Bike Shopper's not equivalently discounted, I may do that.
(Nice thing about being an REI member — 10% of every purchase comes back to us at the end of the year, in our REI dividend. So everything really costs 10% less than I think it does.)
I'll also need some emergency bike bits — a hand pump, a spare tube, an allen key — and some camp food. A better map of NE Massachusetts. Maybe a tarp and some rope. I've already got a nice Leatherman. My CamelBak is working out great. I have a rain slicker, hiking clothes, trail shoes, bug spray, a flashlight, a lightweight cooking pot. I'll redeem my free tuneup at Wheelworks before I go, and I've signed up for a basic bike repair class at REI on the day before I leave (free to members). What am I missing?
I realize that I'm veering away from Jack Kerouac and toward Felix Unger. But I want to be judicious.
For my biking/camping trip, I was initially going to get the Eureka Apex 2XT tent, but I think the REI sale catalog I received today has convinced me to get the Marmot Limelight 2. Beginning Friday, it'll be marked down to $130 (from $190), and my 20% member coupon will reduce that to $104, compared to $84 for the Eureka. For the extra $20, I'll be getting a nylon floor (instead of polyester), stronger poly walls, aluminum poles (instead of fiberglass), negative 12 ounces of weight, and goodies I'd've had to buy separately: tent stakes, a "footprint" to put beneath the tent, and a wee hammocky "gear loft" that will hang in the ceiling vault like a cobweb. I'll be giving up five inches of width and a second door, but Marmots seem to be better quality overall than Eurekas. (Also, everyone loves marmots.) Thoughts from outdoorsy types?
I'm also looking at the Black Diamond Orbit LED lantern, this mummy bag (which rolls up tiny), and some sort of sleeping pad and pillow. This REI pad will be marked down to $50 for the sale, but I'm worried about bulk. Hmm.
I'll probably also need a second pannier, and was planning to get another Ortlieb Bike Shopper (which I lurv). But, during the sale, I could get a pair of nigh-identical Ortlieb Backrollers for $27 (30%) more than a single Bike Shopper. That would leave me with three panniers, which is a silly state to be in, but I can donate one to
adfamiliares, or pass it on to a friend (for a small fee!). If the Bike Shopper's not equivalently discounted, I may do that.(Nice thing about being an REI member — 10% of every purchase comes back to us at the end of the year, in our REI dividend. So everything really costs 10% less than I think it does.)
I'll also need some emergency bike bits — a hand pump, a spare tube, an allen key — and some camp food. A better map of NE Massachusetts. Maybe a tarp and some rope. I've already got a nice Leatherman. My CamelBak is working out great. I have a rain slicker, hiking clothes, trail shoes, bug spray, a flashlight, a lightweight cooking pot. I'll redeem my free tuneup at Wheelworks before I go, and I've signed up for a basic bike repair class at REI on the day before I leave (free to members). What am I missing?
I realize that I'm veering away from Jack Kerouac and toward Felix Unger. But I want to be judicious.
