My new sleeping pad popped on the first night in the Sawtooths

Just got back from a 4 day trip in Idaho and my brand new Therm-a-Rest NeoAir Xlite decided to give out around 2 AM on the first night. The seam near the valve split open completely, and I spent the rest of the night on the cold ground. I've always heard good things about them, but this was a huge letdown for a $200 piece of gear. Has anyone else had a major failure with a high-end pad right out of the box?

3 comments

3 Comments

logan_gonzalez20d ago

Nah, sometimes you just get a dud. My Xlite has been through like 30 nights and it's still perfect. Stuff happens in manufacturing, it's why they have warranties. You got super unlucky, but it doesn't mean the whole brand is trash.

fiona_carr2620d ago

Ugh, that's the worst! My brand new Nemo Tensor did the same thing on a trip last fall. A tiny puncture near the baffle that the repair kit couldn't fix. I was so mad after saving up for it. You expect that kind of fail from a cheap pad, not the expensive one you researched for weeks. Sleeping on roots for two nights was brutal.

emma_baker6120d ago

Man, that reminds me of my buddy's trip last year. He bought one of those fancy sea to summit pads, the really light one. First night out, it just goes flat for no clear reason. He spent an hour trying to find the leak with water, couldn't even spot it. He was so bummed because he'd just finished telling us all how great it was. Ended up using his pack under his legs and just suffered through it. It really does feel like a personal insult when the expensive gear fails right away.