(above photo from Sea2Summit)
I’ve used this pad for more than a year on the European leg of my bike trip. Right now, I would have camped ninety times or more in that time so I think I’m qualified to review this sleeping pad.
TLDR: I love it and hate it but love Sea2Summit. It’s super comfortable. It’s the most comfortable sleeping pad I’ve ever used, but I’m now on my third, due to lots of leaks happening in quick succession and all from the same points. Sea2Summit have been absolutely brilliant and have replaced the original and the first replacement very quickly and cheerfully.
Some detail…
I’d say it’s expensive but the comfort level is worth every cent. I just don’t know how I ever coped sleeping on a thin foam pad all those years ago. I guess I was much younger
The pad is very easy to inflate and packs away well. The supplied stuff sack doubles as a pump so after a long day’s ride I don’t need to have the lungs of a twenty year old to blow it up. I have to say, it’s a bit noisy when you move around, but I’ll often put a shirt or towel under it to significantly reduce the noise.
I’m a side sleeper, so I love it. It feels pretty luxurious.
When it works, it’s the perfect sleeping pad, but as you all know, a sleeping pad with a leak is a no-sleeping pad. And there have been a few leaks …
The leaks come from the edge of the dimples and only ever on the top. They must be the weakest points on the pad. These days after a leak deflates the pad overnight, the next day, I’ll inflate it, then pour water into the dimples to find the latest leak. It’s a super quick process – just a quick squirt of water on each dimple and the telltale bubbles start happening. Then I’ll use the 3M patches to fix it. It’s pretty simple and quick to sort out, and the patches are excellent but I’m very disappointed in the pad’s durability.
Strangely, when one leak occurs, the next one or three are only days away. Then there’ll be a period of a couple of weeks when I start to think there’ll be no more leaks and there’ll be another couple in a day or two.
On the Sea2Summit website, I noticed a review by another bikepacker who had similar issues to me. I think that the leaks are caused by small grit that can collect on the top of the pad while camping. When the pad is rolled up and packed on the bike, I think the grit acts like sandpaper as the bike jostles and bumps its way along. That’s my theory anyway.
For this second replacement, I’m going to try wiping it down with a cloth before rolling it up and packing it away. I’ll update this review after a few more months of camping.
I hope that solves the issue because otherwise, I’d find it hard to recommend this pad (even though I really want to).
Pros:
• Comfort, comfort, comfort
• ease of setup
• patches
• Sea2Summit’s amazing customer service
Cons:
• Durability, durability, durability
• Noise