Sleep mats come in so many different sizes, colours, weights and prices, so how does the Hi Gear Sleeping Mat at £20 shape up? Gill Hook gets the lowdown on a lie down.
During my time camping, I’ve slept on cushions, lilos and even on the tent floor once when hubby forgot to pack the airbed (I’m just saying…).
Self-inflating sleeping mats were appealing, but I wasn’t convinced they’d give me a good night’s rest, and the price of some would definitely cause nightmares!
But the Camping sleep mat from Hi Gear could change my mind.
First off, its rrp is just £20 (although I’ve found it online for as little as £12.97), making it cheap enough. And at 2.5cms thick, it provides enough padding for those nights you fall into your tent after a day on the hills, around the shops or in the pub.
It arrived pre-rolled and held in place by two elastic straps, and although these are not adjustable as on some more expensive mats, they’re perfectly adequate.
Unleash the air
Inflating the mat is easy: you undo the valve at the foot end, which, says the accompanying leaflet, “will unleash air into the open-celled foam”. When it is sufficiently inflated, you close the valve. Simples. However, the leaflet also advises that the mat “will require a few breaths during first inflation”. Actually, it required a lot of breaths, so do this before you start on the beer or you’ll be seeing more stars than just the ones in the night sky.
Deflating is simple too: just open the valve and roll the mat towards it until all the air is out. Once rolled up, the elastic straps keep the mat’s shape and it comes with its own stuff sack and repair kit.At 180cms long and 51cms wide, it’s big enough to support an average-height adult, and even lying on my side, it was surprisingly comfortable.
Repelling the rain
After our last camping expedition, when we discovered the tent’s groundsheet no longer repelled the rain, it’s good to know that the mat is made of waterproof and durable 70D polyester.
However, once inflated, creases appeared across the width of the mat in a couple of places, and I couldn’t help wondering if over time they would become weak spots.
Although not the lightest sleep mat, it’s not bad at 1040g, so could be used for short backpacking trips. But as it’s aimed at festival-goers and ‘overnight camping’, it might not be comfortable enough for prolonged use.
And, when rolled up, its width could cause wind-resistance problems if it’s strapped across your pack when you’re hiking in exposed places.
Roundup
In all, the Hi Gear Camping sleep mat is a good entry-level mat that will give you a comfortable night’s rest for any vehicle-based camping. If you want to head for the hills, spend a bit more.
- Gill Hook is a freelance journalist. For more information, see her website at www.gillianhook.co.uk
Product Information
The Hi Gear Sleeping Mat is £12.97 at Amazon
Alternative camping mats on Ebay
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September 17th, 2009 at 6:58 am
2.5cm sounds very thin, our Fat Airics are 7.5cm. I guess it’s horses for courses, the Fat Airics are too big for backpacking.
We get creases too, it might just something you get with self-inflating mats.
September 17th, 2009 at 7:25 am
The Fat Airics look gorgeous… might get one for the winter.
September 17th, 2009 at 8:19 am
We just invested in some Thermarest Prolite roll mats before heading to Bestival. The noise at festivals is enough to keep you awake so you don’t want a dodgy mattress too. I have to say they are just awesome. They are much more comfortable then either our foam roll mats or our big blow up airbed. The down side was they cost about £70 each. In my opinion they are well worth it but we will end up using them a lot.
September 17th, 2009 at 8:51 am
@Sid Thermarest Prolite looks nice, light at 460g for the regular. Looks like Completeoutdoors.co.uk have them for £57, all sizes – http://www.completeoutdoors.co.uk/Therm_dash_A_dash_Rest-ProLite-Self-Inflating-Mattresses-(XS,-S,-R,-L)