[leadin]New Hampshire-based NEMO Equipment is known for bringing high-end innovation to backpackers. Now that list can include bike-packers as well.[/leadin]
NEMO gave GearJunkie an early peek at its to-be-released 2016 kit. It includes a tent, bivy, and sleeping bag, all small, lightweight, and packable — perfect for carrying on a bike.
Together, the kit weighs less than 4 pounds and packs small enough to fit in frame or seat bags. It will cost about $650 altogether when it comes to market in a few months.
‘Bike-Packing’ Trend
Bike-packing has become increasingly popular. While the 2,800-mile Great Divide race may be too much for most, smaller, more manageable overnight races are sprouting up yearly.
NEMO may be the first company to develop a kit dedicated to the burgeoning sport.
The company’s kit is made of three components that integrate with each other to give the rider a compact setup: The Apollo 3P tent ($250), the Escape Pod 1P bivy ($120), and the Moonwalk sleeping bag ($280).
Apollo 3P tent. ($250)
Pyramid tents have long been a go-to shelter for bike-packers. With no floor and simple single wall construction, it’s easy to set up, quick to take down, and crunches into the size of a water bottle. NEMO brings a 1lb, 5oz, floor-less pyramid to its kit with room for three people, or one person plus a bike. An adjustable aluminum tarp pole (included) packs down tight and props the shelter taut.
Escape Pod 1P bivy ($120)
Most bivy sacks are claustrophobic. And with a tent, they can be overkill. But bugs…that can be a buzzkill to a good night’s sleep. To keep the hum out of your ear, NEMO uses its inflatable air-beam (and inflatable column) to prop a bug mesh over your head.
The bottom of the mesh bivy wraps the torso of the bag, keeping bugs out and your inner space wide open. The back of the Escape snugs with the Apollo shelter. The Escape packs down to the size of a grapefruit and weighs just 7 ounces.
Moonwalk sleeping bag ($280)
The Moonwalk is a hoodless mummy bag with an integrated bathtub floor –technology commonly used in tent floors. This lets you lay the bag directly on wet ground. Since any bike-packer worth their salty rime already carries a cap, NEMO removed the hood.
Inside the floor of the bag is a pad sleeve that keeps you positioned over the pad. The top quilt is lofted with 700-fill DownTek down. The bag weighs 2lbs, 2oz.
NEMO will be debuting its bike-packing kit next week at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market trade show in Salt Lake City. The spring 2016 lineup will be available to consumers in January, 2016.
