• Help my wife to sleep

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 8:25 am**

My wife and I are taking our kids bikepacking/touring this summer.

I've got plenty of lightweight sleeping gear for myself and the kids, but my wife is adamant that, although she is looking forward to the trip, she wants what she describes as a "very very comfy" mat to sleep on.

I've looked at the Exped Megamat and a few other car-camping type ones, which do promise a bed-like experience, but at a considerable weight penalty and financial cost. I could find a way to carry this if necessary but would rather not if possible.

Does anyone have any suggestions for a 'middle ground' mat? She specifically wants something wide and not slippy, too.

Thanks in advance for helping my picky but otherwise vaguely exciting wife!

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 9:32 am**

My initial thought is, has she tried a 'normal' air mat to see how comfy it is? Something like a 9cm thick Exped (or even a 7cm) is quite comfortable - the trick is getting the correct air pressure.

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 11:57 am**

I agree with Stu on the air pressure side. If I pump my mat so it feels firm I have to let loads of air out when I lie on it so I don't feel perched on it

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 3:00 pm**

That's good advice, thanks. She's not very patient but I might be able to persuade her to try out a few different kinds at different pressures - as you say they will be nicer than my lightweight stuff.

Will give that a go and see. Any particular recommendations for reasonably priced 'normal' mats? Will start with the 9cm Expeds I think.

By the way, I enjoyed that the forum auto-corrected my description of my wife to 'vaguely exciting'. I hadn't thought about it before but it's actually not a bad description of her...

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 3:35 pm**

As a cheaper, heavier, bulkier alternative, whatever the latest version of Alpkit's biggest self inflating mat (used to be Fat Airic, can't remember what the new version is called) is very comfy. We have one to use in the pop up roof bed of our camper van and it's pretty good (definitely more comfy than my Synmat 7 is). It is relatively bulky and heavy to carry on a bike though so would depend on how minimalist you intend to go.

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 4:04 pm**

I personally find traditional Thermarests - the foam filled self-inflating types to be way comfier than my Exped Synmat. I’ve played with inflation pressures and to be sure the Synmat is adequate but I actively enjoy sleeping on an old Thermarest - probably more so than the £1500 king size mattress on my bed at home.

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 4:07 pm**

You're probably already aware of this but... I find the biggest factor in my comfort is the pillow. If my heads not supported then it doesn't matter if I'm on a 3/4 Klymit Inertia X Lite of a Alpkit Dozer or just wont get a good nights sleep. I'm a side sleeper so this might be a factor.

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 5:04 pm**

Nemo Tensor regular wide or Exped Synmat HL MW would be my choices, great mats and the best sleep I've ever had camping

(I thought I'd posted this earlier, the gremlins must've got it)

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 6:30 pm**

Shewie wrote: ↑Tue Jan 18, 2022 5:04 pm Exped Synmat HL MW

Another vote for the Synmat HL or it's winter version for use below about -10 °C.
I'm 182 cm tall and find the longer LW version (with hardly any weight penalty) a better fit.

Mine needs replacement though. After about 100 nights the insulation on the inside has become loose and tends to move to one end. This leaves me with basically just an air mat and it feeling cold at round about 5 °C or lower. After about 100 nights I feel loss of performance of any brand of air mats (like Neoair etc.) and by then they are full of fixed punctures and/or some sort of delamination. Good thing is, they get replaced.

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 7:17 pm**

My wife has similar concerns but found my Exped winter synmat LW very comfy. It's 9cm thick I believe.

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 7:41 pm**

ootini wrote: ↑Tue Jan 18, 2022 7:17 pm My wife has similar concerns but found my Exped winter synmat LW very comfy. It's 9cm thick I believe.

As luck would have it, 30% off

https://www.trekitt.co.uk/sleep-shelter ... x8QAvD_BwE

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 10:11 pm**

RIP wrote: ↑Tue Jan 18, 2022 7:41 pm
ootini wrote: ↑Tue Jan 18, 2022 7:17 pm My wife has similar concerns but found my Exped winter synmat LW very comfy. It's 9cm thick I believe.
As luck would have it, 30% off https://www.trekitt.co.uk/sleep-shelter ... x8QAvD_BwE

Excellent spot!

I will have a chat with my wife and see what she thinks. Possibly supported by a short PowerPoint presentation with everyone's advice on it.

Thanks all, very much appreciate your wisdom.

Posted: **Tue Jan 18, 2022 10:16 pm**

Linkpin wrote: ↑Tue Jan 18, 2022 10:11 pm

I will have a chat with my wife and see what she thinks. Possibly supported by a short PowerPoint presentation with everyone's advice on it.

I think the PowerPoint will help your wife sleep if my experiences of PP presentations are anything to go by!

Posted: **Wed Jan 19, 2022 1:05 am**

As said before LW exped does make for a comfier sleep for not much of a weight penalty. My arms used to fall off the narrower ones if I wasnt properly tucked in my bag.

I hope you edit your post before your wife sees it - I'm hoping you mean vaguely excited wife .... not vaguely exciting wife.

Really resisting the urge to make any puns here

Posted: **Wed Jan 19, 2022 10:01 am**

Remember that 'awesome' gets replaced with 'vaguely exciting' by the swear filter

Posted: **Wed Jan 19, 2022 10:02 am**

More concerning is what word does the swear filter replace with 'vaguely excited'

.

Back to the mats... (maybe)....

PS. A mug of hot chocolate/ovaltine/horlicks (other milk/malt-based beverages are available) is probably a cheaper option than a new mat by the way. And counting sheep is even cheaper than that....

Posted: **Wed Jan 19, 2022 12:19 pm**

Just tell her to sleep near the edge of the mat, she'll soon drop off...

OK, I had to wait for all the sensible responses before dropping that old cherry in. Sorry.

Posted: **Wed Jan 19, 2022 12:33 pm**

Posted: **Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:53 pm**

psling wrote: ↑Wed Jan 19, 2022 12:19 pm Just tell her to sleep near the edge of the mat, she'll soon drop off...

Boom Tish

Posted: **Fri Jan 21, 2022 12:51 am**

Linkpin wrote: ↑Tue Jan 18, 2022 8:25 am My wife and I are taking our kids bikepacking/touring this summer.

I've got plenty of lightweight sleeping gear for myself and the kids, but my wife is adamant that, although she is looking forward to the trip, she wants what she describes as a "very very comfy" mat to sleep on.

I've looked at the Exped Megamat and a few other car-camping type ones, which do promise a bed-like experience, but at a considerable weight penalty and financial cost. I could find a way to carry this if necessary but would rather not if possible.

Does anyone have any suggestions for a 'middle ground' mat? She specifically wants something wide and not slippy, too.

Thanks in advance for helping my picky but otherwise vaguely exciting wife!

Get her off the ground, buy her a bed. 1.5kg, but that extra few hundred grams could be worth their weight in gold if the trip goes well and she enjoys it.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/suyi-Ultraligh ... C66&sr=8-5

Posted: **Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:32 am**

Just remember that 'camp beds' will generally be cold and will require some kind of insulation, which mean mean carrying a mat too.

Posted: **Mon Jan 24, 2022 12:07 pm**

Am I the only one who thinks that "Help my wife to sleep" sounds like a Mafia euphemism?

Posted: **Mon Jan 24, 2022 4:36 pm**

The Cumbrian wrote: ↑Mon Jan 24, 2022 12:07 pm Am I the only one who thinks that "Help my wife to sleep" sounds like a Mafia euphemism?

I kept seeing "help put my wife to sleep" in the title. Not sure what that says.....

Posted: **Tue Jan 25, 2022 9:53 pm**

I've never felt the need to say this publicly before, but for the record I am not planning to kill my wife.

I'm not always sure the feeling is mutual, mind...

Posted: **Sun Feb 13, 2022 10:24 pm**

In the end, mainly based on advice from folks on this thread to focus more on getting the air pressure right than the size of the mat, I bought my wife an Alpkit Dumo in their sale.

She has tried it and proclaimed it to be 'alright'. I will take that as a success.

Thanks all for your input.

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