Shoutout to the guy at REI who told me to ditch my inflatable pad for foam

I spent three nights last summer in the Smokies waking up at 2 AM with my hip digging into the dirt because my Therm-a-Rest had a slow leak I couldn't find. Randy, the 60 year old REI employee in Knoxville, said just get a Z Lite Sol and stop messing with air. I argued with him for 10 minutes about weight and packed size. Finally gave in after patching that damn pad for the fourth time. The foam pad is noisier and takes up more room but I sleep through the whole night now. Has anyone else had better luck with foam over inflatable?

2 comments

2 Comments

jana_henderson524d ago

Tbh Randy at REI sounds like a legend. Ngl I had the same argument with myself for months before finally switching to foam. The Z Lite Sol is bulky as hell on my pack but I haven't woken up cold or on the ground once since I made the switch. Honestly the noise is just part of the deal now, beats deflating at 3 AM.

victor_adams954d ago

Yo @jana_henderson52 you're totally right about that noise tradeoff! I actually read somewhere that foam pads last like 10x longer than inflatables cause there's no valve to fail. My buddy still uses his dad's old Z Lite from like 2012 and it's fine. I switched to the Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest after hearing Randy give his spiel and honestly the bulk is annoying but I'll take strapping it to my pack over waking up with my hipbone on frozen dirt any day. The crinkle sounds are basically lullaby material now lol.