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Principles of Overlanding: Rooftop Tent, Ground Tent, or Wedge Camper? · The Overland Journal Podcast

0:05
Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome to the Overland Journal podcast. I am
0:07
Speaker 1: your host, Scott Brady, and I am here with my
0:10
Speaker 1: co host Matt Scott, who's called in because of the
0:15
Speaker 1: social separation that we're all dealing with right now.
0:17
Speaker 2: How's it going, Matt, Yeah, you know.
0:19
Speaker 3: It's going pretty good all things considered. You know, just
0:21
Speaker 3: taking some time to you know, sit back, relax, plan
0:25
Speaker 3: some adventures and yeah, just do the right thing, do
0:28
Speaker 3: the responsible thing. And we're trying to I guess just
0:31
Speaker 3: stay home and let this think pass.
0:33
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm in the same boat.
0:34
Speaker 1: I've moved the podcast system, all of my electronics that
0:40
Speaker 1: I need for my job, I've moved it all home,
0:43
Speaker 1: and we're recording in this way because we think it's
0:46
Speaker 1: important to continue to produce content. We're getting some great
0:49
Speaker 1: feedback from everyone, and we appreciate that, and we appreciate
0:52
Speaker 1: your support in listening to the topics that we discuss.
0:55
Speaker 1: And of course everybody that is in the overland community
0:58
Speaker 1: is on our mind right now. How many of us
1:01
Speaker 1: loved being outside and exploring and traveling, and many of
1:04
Speaker 1: us are kept at home at the moment. We also
1:07
Speaker 1: have overland travelers, like for in Argentina, for example, who
1:11
Speaker 1: are locked in the borders. We know that there's a
1:14
Speaker 1: large group of them that have kind of huddled together
1:17
Speaker 1: to get through this as a group, and we know
1:19
Speaker 1: that there are travelers throughout the world who were essentially
1:23
Speaker 1: stranded in those countries. Myself, personally, I was struggling to
1:27
Speaker 1: get out of South Africa after the.
1:30
Speaker 3: Day you flew home, what two weeks earlier or something
1:32
Speaker 3: I did?
1:33
Speaker 1: I did, and I was on my sixth travel itinerary
1:36
Speaker 1: by the time I finally got out of there. The
1:38
Speaker 1: day that I was supposed to fly out, South African
1:41
Speaker 1: Airlines shut down all international flights. That was three and
1:45
Speaker 1: a half hours before my departure time. So while I
1:48
Speaker 1: was while I was walking into the terminal and seeing
1:51
Speaker 1: all of the SAA customer service people were gone. It
1:54
Speaker 1: was completely abandoned. I hopped onto the Delta app and
1:58
Speaker 1: I secured one of the last remaining seats on the
2:01
Speaker 1: flight that went out that night. So I do feel
2:03
Speaker 1: very fortunate to have been able to make that happen,
2:06
Speaker 1: though it was pretty challenging, and I think that for
2:10
Speaker 1: me that that does add to the experience as a traveler.
2:14
Speaker 1: But I recognize that many people are separated from their
2:16
Speaker 1: families right now, or they're in difficult situations. So our
2:21
Speaker 1: it's definitely our hearts go out to those folks.
2:23
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, it's not an easy time. And we definitely
2:26
Speaker 3: talk about overlanding.
2:27
Speaker 2: That's right.
2:28
Speaker 1: We definitely don't want to talk about this for too much.
2:30
Speaker 1: But we are also a prepared group. That's one of
2:32
Speaker 1: the cool things that I've seen about overlanders is that
2:35
Speaker 1: totally we are a prepared group. We're used to being
2:38
Speaker 1: out in the field. We oftentimes have additional food and
2:42
Speaker 1: supplies and ways of gathering food and making water and
2:46
Speaker 1: camping remotely, so we already have kind of a mindset
2:48
Speaker 1: of being a little more minimalist and a little more
2:51
Speaker 1: self prepared. And so along that line, we're actually going
2:54
Speaker 1: to talk about camping in general with an emphasis on
2:59
Speaker 1: how do you sleep at night? How do you actually
3:01
Speaker 1: camp out and sleep at night. So we're going to
3:03
Speaker 1: talk about roof tents, we're going to talk about sleeping
3:07
Speaker 1: in the vehicle. We're going to talk about kind of
3:08
Speaker 1: a new class of pseudo camper, which is called a habitat.
3:12
Speaker 1: We're also going to talk about a ground tent, and
3:15
Speaker 1: then we're also going to discuss this swag, which is
3:18
Speaker 1: something that came out of Australia. So maybe let's.
3:21
Speaker 3: Start start with I'm stoked about.
3:23
Speaker 1: Yeah, let's let's start with the swag because I think
3:25
Speaker 1: that's an interesting thing to consider.
3:26
Speaker 2: So Matt, leave us off with that.
3:28
Speaker 3: Yeah, So basically, a swag is a bear burrito. It's
3:30
Speaker 3: something that you can crawl into inside of and it's
3:33
Speaker 3: like this nice canvas wrapping for animals to eat. And
3:36
Speaker 3: that's a joke. I guess that's what some people call them,
3:40
Speaker 3: you know, but a swag. I always kind of describe
3:43
Speaker 3: them as a roof tent for the ground. Now, those
3:46
Speaker 3: swags that have become popular are swags that have tent
3:50
Speaker 3: poles are you know, they're they're more tent like than
3:54
Speaker 3: a traditional swag. A traditional swag is literally just a bedroll.
3:58
Speaker 3: And we're not talking about those tonight. I just spent
4:01
Speaker 3: a few nights in one of those in Africa, and
4:03
Speaker 3: I really don't like them. Now, the swags that are
4:07
Speaker 3: more tent like I do like personally. That's my backup,
4:11
Speaker 3: I guess is a swag. I love them because, you know,
4:13
Speaker 3: you roll them up. Think of a roof tent, right
4:16
Speaker 3: and instead of having that traditional roof tent softshell roofset
4:21
Speaker 3: and instead of having that you know, hard wood or
4:24
Speaker 3: metal space and folding over once similar footprint in a way.
4:28
Speaker 3: But then they roll up and usually it's kind of
4:30
Speaker 3: a you know, some kind of you know, rubber impregnated
4:34
Speaker 3: canvas bottom that runs up the sides maybe six inches,
4:38
Speaker 3: so they're waterproof, they're great in the rain, they're they're
4:41
Speaker 3: just easy. Now. The thing that I really like about
4:44
Speaker 3: swags is that they they're kind of the the most
4:47
Speaker 3: comfort you can get without having too many drawbacks on
4:52
Speaker 3: new vehicle. I always approach roof tents with the idea,
4:55
Speaker 3: oh yeah, I'm going to take it off when I'm
4:56
Speaker 3: not going to use it. That way the truck drives
4:58
Speaker 3: better around the center of gravity is lower, But you
5:02
Speaker 3: never end up doing that. You know, they realistically take
5:04
Speaker 3: two or three people to get down where a swag,
5:08
Speaker 3: you know, you have similar levels of comfort you obviously
5:11
Speaker 3: are on the ground. But I like them. I mean,
5:14
Speaker 3: when I had a Ford raftor, it was our sleeping
5:17
Speaker 3: system until we got that go fast camper, and we
5:21
Speaker 3: would just throw it when we were transporting it. We
5:24
Speaker 3: throw it in the bed of the truck and when
5:25
Speaker 3: we were slipping in it, we would just throw it
5:27
Speaker 3: in the bed of the truck with the tailgate down,
5:29
Speaker 3: and it worked pretty darn well. We had a darch
5:32
Speaker 3: A dirty d it's what they call it. It's about
5:35
Speaker 3: the size of a double bed, which wise and.
5:38
Speaker 2: Really we love this.
5:39
Speaker 1: That's really smart Matt to use it in a pickup
5:43
Speaker 1: and drop the tailgate. And because I've seen people set
5:46
Speaker 1: up traditional tents in a pickup bed and that always
5:48
Speaker 1: looks awkward, but I think a swag would actually work
5:51
Speaker 1: out pretty well because then you end up with that
5:53
Speaker 1: ease of setup, but then you're also not on the rocks,
5:57
Speaker 1: and you're not in the mud, and you're not in
5:59
Speaker 1: the snow or or whatever that's on the ground. You're
6:01
Speaker 1: kind of, yeah, getting the best of both worlds. That's
6:03
Speaker 1: an interesting idea.
6:05
Speaker 3: Yeah, it worked out really well. It meant for a
6:07
Speaker 3: very versatile vehicle. It also meant for a comfortable camping
6:11
Speaker 3: solution definitely better then. You know, it's a step above
6:15
Speaker 3: a ground tent and a step below a roof tent.
6:18
Speaker 3: Some of the more name brand swags, I'll use Archa
6:22
Speaker 3: for an example. It's actually their design, you know, it
6:26
Speaker 3: has really easy to use poles. I mean the thing
6:28
Speaker 3: takes thirty seconds if that to set up. I mean,
6:31
Speaker 3: I know that there's like these claim these egregious claims
6:34
Speaker 3: of these tents are like we're the ten second tent,
6:36
Speaker 3: We're the five second tent, We're the sixty second tent. Yeah,
6:40
Speaker 3: they all they're all kind of still paying this thing.
6:42
Speaker 3: Literally you throw it out on the ground to put
6:44
Speaker 3: two poles in it, to put another two poles likewise,
6:46
Speaker 3: and it's good to go.
6:48
Speaker 2: Yeah, if you ever slept in one of them, Scott,
6:49
Speaker 2: I had a few of them here at the office,
6:51
Speaker 2: so I used I used them on occasion in Arizona.
6:54
Speaker 3: Oh yeah, we had the airb swags.
6:56
Speaker 2: That's right.
6:56
Speaker 1: A couple of things that I've noticed about the swags
6:59
Speaker 1: is I sleep on side, and most of them don't
7:01
Speaker 1: have a thick enough mattress to be comfortable for me
7:06
Speaker 1: on the ground. Some of them, Yeah, a Swagman that
7:13
Speaker 1: I've used had a little bit better mattress in it.
7:15
Speaker 1: It seems like it would lend itself really well to
7:17
Speaker 1: pulling out the foam mattresses that come with them and
7:21
Speaker 1: putting in an air mattress. I think that would make
7:23
Speaker 1: a lot of sense to me.
7:24
Speaker 3: I always thought that would have been a great idea.
7:26
Speaker 1: Yeah, and then the the other thing that I've noticed,
7:29
Speaker 1: particularly on the less expensive ones, like you're talking about
7:31
Speaker 1: the kind of the ubiquitous Chinese models, is they never
7:35
Speaker 1: thought about the fact that you could.
7:37
Speaker 2: Be in the rain and need ventilation.
7:39
Speaker 1: So you've got to go to the higher quality units
7:43
Speaker 1: to get these small little side vents that when the
7:46
Speaker 1: when the swag is all zipped up, you still get
7:48
Speaker 1: some ventilation. Because the reality is is it rains in
7:51
Speaker 1: the desert, which means it could be a warm, hot
7:54
Speaker 1: night and you need some ventilation. So most of these
7:58
Speaker 1: swags are simply designed for the desert, and they kind
8:02
Speaker 1: of expect you to have the top unzipped and maybe
8:04
Speaker 1: the fly net or the bugnet zipped up, but you're
8:07
Speaker 1: getting some ventilation that way. So I think with the swag,
8:10
Speaker 1: you have to make sure that you get some cross
8:13
Speaker 1: ventilation if you have to zip it all up because
8:15
Speaker 1: of the rain. The other thing that that I noticed
8:18
Speaker 1: too is that you you really are kind of inside
8:20
Speaker 1: this thing like a burrito. So if you want to
8:23
Speaker 1: be able to stand up or even get on your
8:25
Speaker 1: knees to change or to if you're doing anything but
8:28
Speaker 1: kind of reading or sleeping.
8:30
Speaker 3: It's not happy, it.
8:30
Speaker 1: Doesn't really it doesn't really lend itself towards a lot
8:33
Speaker 1: of activities that may require more headrooms. So I think
8:36
Speaker 1: that that's one thing that's that's worth that's worth noting
8:39
Speaker 1: as well. And then the other thing is unless you're
8:42
Speaker 1: if you're kind of in a campground or you're in
8:44
Speaker 1: an area with more people, you don't have any privacy
8:46
Speaker 1: really because like I mean, normally I'm out in the
8:48
Speaker 1: middle of the Australian Now I'm in I'm in the
8:52
Speaker 1: middle of the Australian desert, and I don't care if
8:55
Speaker 1: I'm changing my underwear out out with the kangaroos. But
8:58
Speaker 1: if you're camping in groups or you're in you have
9:00
Speaker 1: to recognize the fact that it's a little more difficult
9:02
Speaker 1: if someone is concerned about privacy. So that's just another
9:05
Speaker 1: consideration as well. And they are a little bit bulkier
9:08
Speaker 1: than you'd expect, so they would be more bulky than
9:11
Speaker 1: a typical ground tent with sleeping bag and pad, a
9:15
Speaker 1: little bit more bulky than that, but they are very convenient,
9:18
Speaker 1: they're super easy to set up. You can leave your
9:20
Speaker 1: sleeping bag in them.
9:21
Speaker 3: Yeah, so I guess that's where we get into get
9:24
Speaker 3: into the roof tent, right. Your compromise is that it's
9:28
Speaker 3: essentially mounted to the vehicle. Front Runner makes those quick
9:32
Speaker 3: release mounts, and I have to say, I don't know
9:34
Speaker 3: why more people don't use those, But yeah, I mean, Scott,
9:39
Speaker 3: how do we transition into roof tents. I mean, you're
9:41
Speaker 3: not actually a huge roof tent guy. I'm I mean,
9:44
Speaker 3: you're a ground tent guy.
9:45
Speaker 1: Really well, I think even my preference more than that
9:48
Speaker 1: is to sleep inside the vehicle. And we'll get to
9:50
Speaker 1: that in a little bit. And there's there's some there's
9:52
Speaker 1: some reasons why I've ended up with that, but I
9:55
Speaker 1: think for the roof tent, it's let's talk about the
9:58
Speaker 1: benefits initially, is you really have this comfortable place to
10:03
Speaker 1: retire at the end of the night, and they could
10:04
Speaker 1: be very dark, so you can sleep in in the morning,
10:07
Speaker 1: which that could be a downside. With typical ground tent,
10:09
Speaker 1: you've always got it all on the vehicle, so you
10:12
Speaker 1: can decide that like, hey, I'm doing a drive to
10:15
Speaker 1: California and you get a little tired, you can pull
10:17
Speaker 1: off on a dirt road and it's really easy just
10:19
Speaker 1: to pop it up. I have found that in general,
10:23
Speaker 1: the hard shell tents are superior in almost every way
10:28
Speaker 1: to the soft shell tents, and the reason for that
10:31
Speaker 1: is ease of set up and ease of breakdown. I
10:33
Speaker 1: think people go into a roof tent with the misconception
10:37
Speaker 1: that they're going to have ease of set up and stowing,
10:40
Speaker 1: and I have never experienced that. I have never experienced
10:43
Speaker 1: that with a soft shell tent. Most of them today
10:45
Speaker 1: use a zipper for the cover, and those zippers when
10:48
Speaker 1: they're brand newer a challenge. But once they get dirty,
10:51
Speaker 1: dirty and gummed up and a little bit of use
10:54
Speaker 1: and abuse, they become very difficult to manage. Lots of
10:58
Speaker 1: extra straps, so you can actually spend ten minutes putting
11:02
Speaker 1: away a roof tent. And if your vehicle is tall
11:05
Speaker 1: and you don't have a ladder with you, or you're
11:07
Speaker 1: not tall enough, or you don't have a rock sliders
11:10
Speaker 1: to walk along, I mean, jeeps are great for roof
11:12
Speaker 1: tents because it's easy to transition from a rock slider
11:16
Speaker 1: to a tire to a rear bumper and all that,
11:17
Speaker 1: but not a lot of vehicles are that way, and
11:20
Speaker 1: these things are up way in the air, and I
11:22
Speaker 1: have seen more than Yeah, they can be very challenging.
11:27
Speaker 1: We have to remember that roof tents were originally designed
11:31
Speaker 1: for areas where maybe extremely rocky terrain, muddy terrain, where
11:36
Speaker 1: you don't want to set up a ground tent on
11:38
Speaker 1: the ground. They also are very popular in Africa for
11:41
Speaker 1: lots of reasons because there's things that want to eat
11:43
Speaker 1: you there. So you can get up above, above the
11:46
Speaker 1: black mamba snakes, you can get above the lions and
11:49
Speaker 1: the tigers and the bears.
11:50
Speaker 2: Oh my, I right.
11:51
Speaker 1: So that's one of the reasons why people really like
11:53
Speaker 1: roof tents. And I think people in general love this
11:55
Speaker 1: idea of a tree for it, and it's that is
11:58
Speaker 1: kind of cool.
11:58
Speaker 3: It is neat to wait, is a really it's a
12:00
Speaker 3: cool tree for it. I'll take a differing point of
12:03
Speaker 3: view on this. I've had hard shell tents, I've had
12:06
Speaker 3: soft shelled tents. I've had you know, I have an
12:08
Speaker 3: eighty habitat now, I've had to go fast Camper, I
12:10
Speaker 3: mean fold Scott and I've had a lot of different things.
12:13
Speaker 3: We had a we had a soft show roof tent
12:16
Speaker 3: when we lived in Australia. We had it mounted on
12:18
Speaker 3: top of a front run a rack on top of
12:20
Speaker 3: a you know, lifted troop carrier, so it was very tall.
12:25
Speaker 3: So everything that Scott just said about, you know, being
12:27
Speaker 3: hard to put away one accurate. We just ended up
12:31
Speaker 3: getting to the point since the seventy series we'd walk
12:34
Speaker 3: up on the hood and then up on the roofs
12:35
Speaker 3: and I'd actually have to be on top of the
12:38
Speaker 3: vehicle to effectively put this thing away, and the bag
12:41
Speaker 3: that it goes in with the zipper horrible. Like I mean,
12:45
Speaker 3: imagine a muddy day, all that mud and dust is
12:48
Speaker 3: getting thrown up everywhere on the vehicle and you're literally
12:51
Speaker 3: trying to scramble around this this muddy, dirty truck to
12:55
Speaker 3: put either to get ready to go to bed or
12:58
Speaker 3: after you have slept in your cleaned up now you're
13:00
Speaker 3: dirty again. But I actually liked them for longer, for
13:04
Speaker 3: longer trips. I think they do have more of a
13:07
Speaker 3: tree fort kind of feel to them. They for two
13:10
Speaker 3: people or more, they are they are way roomier. There's
13:14
Speaker 3: days when you're traveling where oh hey, this is a
13:17
Speaker 3: nice campsite's by a beautiful river. Let's hang out for
13:20
Speaker 3: a few days, And I found that it was a
13:22
Speaker 3: nice space to kind of get away from everything, and
13:26
Speaker 3: especially with two people, you have to have some time
13:29
Speaker 3: to yourself, and you know, Laura would go up and
13:31
Speaker 3: read a book, or I'd read a book, or you
13:33
Speaker 3: kind of had separate areas where I never felt that
13:36
Speaker 3: I wanted to be in the hard shale tent that
13:38
Speaker 3: we've had. It was a place to sleep, it was
13:41
Speaker 3: very convenient to put up to put down. But you know,
13:44
Speaker 3: the soft shell tents have the benefit of most of
13:47
Speaker 3: them have a what I call it a safari root.
13:50
Speaker 3: They have that second layer of canvas that kind of
13:53
Speaker 3: takes that initial heat on UV and allow of some
13:56
Speaker 3: airflow between that and the main tent body. I think
13:58
Speaker 3: they stay cooler, you get a little bit of shelter
14:01
Speaker 3: underneath them. But they are pain to put away. So
14:06
Speaker 3: I guess it depends how you travel. If you're traveling
14:08
Speaker 3: really long term and you're moving really slow and you
14:12
Speaker 3: don't care taking the ten to fifteen minutes each morning
14:15
Speaker 3: to put the tent away, I think there's an advantage
14:18
Speaker 3: of the shell. Like I really like I would strongly
14:22
Speaker 3: consider one of the easy On. I want to say Jazz,
14:26
Speaker 3: one of the easy On the tents.
14:29
Speaker 1: Yeah, the Jazz is their lightest tent, and there also
14:32
Speaker 1: happens to be their least expensive as well. And then
14:35
Speaker 1: they have their traditional line which is extremely popular as well.
14:40
Speaker 1: And that's those are the tents that I have the
14:42
Speaker 1: most time in. I probably have two hundred nights in
14:45
Speaker 1: easy On Soft Set, Yeah, and everything down to minus
14:49
Speaker 1: fifty seven degrees fahrenheit.
14:50
Speaker 2: And they, oh, you took.
14:52
Speaker 3: One, that was your trip up north.
14:54
Speaker 1: That's right, And it's amazing how much they endured. Those
14:57
Speaker 1: those tents never gave me the smallest bit of problems.
15:00
Speaker 1: And they actually have a little bit of an advantage
15:02
Speaker 1: because the cover does not have a zipper.
15:06
Speaker 3: It has a ratchet up.
15:08
Speaker 1: It has a ratchet strap, which is way easier to stow.
15:12
Speaker 1: And you make a really good point about when you
15:15
Speaker 1: open up a soft shell roof tent, you end up
15:18
Speaker 1: with an improvised awning because of the way that it
15:21
Speaker 1: folds out. So that's a really good point. And you
15:24
Speaker 1: do end up with a lot more interior space. And
15:26
Speaker 1: there are options like there are exclusive and others at
15:30
Speaker 1: easy On makes where you can actually pull out an
15:33
Speaker 1: extension and then drop down these walls or fix these walls.
15:37
Speaker 1: That allows it to be a complete changing room, shower room.
15:40
Speaker 1: So people who are maybe traveling a little slower or
15:44
Speaker 1: staying in campsites for more than a couple days or
15:46
Speaker 1: more than a day, I think you're right. I think
15:49
Speaker 1: that the soft shell does add a lot more value
15:51
Speaker 1: at that particular point. Again, that this is really about
15:54
Speaker 1: understanding the pros and cons of each. For me, the
15:57
Speaker 1: hardshell tent has a couple distinct advantages for how I
16:01
Speaker 1: like to travel. It is extremely easy to set up.
16:05
Speaker 1: So for example, I did a trip a few years
16:07
Speaker 1: ago in the G Class all the way down to
16:09
Speaker 1: Cabos and Lucas and back camping almost every single night.
16:12
Speaker 2: Most of the night's camping on.
16:13
Speaker 1: The beach, and there was a couple latches and you
16:17
Speaker 1: kind of give a little bit of a push up
16:20
Speaker 1: on the upper shell and it's set up immediately. And
16:23
Speaker 1: I didn't even bring a ladder because the G wagon
16:26
Speaker 1: had a ladder a fix to the rear, So it
16:28
Speaker 1: was less than fifteen seconds to set this thing up, which.
16:32
Speaker 2: Was pretty amazing.
16:33
Speaker 1: Now, the downside is it doesn't have as much ventilation
16:36
Speaker 1: as the soft shell, it doesn't have quite as much
16:38
Speaker 1: room as the soft shell. It's a little bit heavier
16:41
Speaker 1: than the soft shell as well, and quite a bit
16:43
Speaker 1: more expensive. So in that regard, I did really appreciate
16:48
Speaker 1: the fact that it was so easy to use when
16:50
Speaker 1: I was camping almost every single night and moving all
16:53
Speaker 1: of the time. I think that the hard shells also
16:56
Speaker 1: endure long term use a lot better because they're in
16:58
Speaker 1: a hard shell handle the sun exposure and the UV deridation.
17:02
Speaker 1: I see a lot of these soft shell tents. The
17:05
Speaker 1: covers just get really beat up from the sun, especially
17:08
Speaker 1: in Arizona.
17:09
Speaker 3: Yeah, real, real quick. And I think you brought up
17:13
Speaker 3: a point too with kind of ventilation. You know, if
17:16
Speaker 3: it rains in a hard shell tint, you essentially have
17:19
Speaker 3: vertical walls. Now some of them again like easy on stealth.
17:23
Speaker 3: In the blade they have the you know, the little aunium,
17:26
Speaker 3: so you can at least have one window open, but
17:28
Speaker 3: you are going to lose a lot of airflow in these.
17:32
Speaker 3: Yet I like both. I see the advantages to the
17:36
Speaker 3: heart shell, I see the advantages to the soft shell.
17:38
Speaker 3: The other thing with the heartshell, and I'm not trying
17:40
Speaker 3: to be an anti heartshell guy. Is the fact that
17:45
Speaker 3: they take up a lot of room on a roof rack.
17:47
Speaker 3: Sometimes I see what you people will put an entire
17:49
Speaker 3: roof rack on a vehicle and then they'll put a
17:52
Speaker 3: hard shell tents on top. All they really need is
17:54
Speaker 3: with crossbar. Yeah, and then they have an extra hundred
17:58
Speaker 3: pounds on the roof, But then you really don't have
18:00
Speaker 3: much storage. Now with like the Alu cap I want
18:02
Speaker 3: to say they call it their Gen three exhibition tent.
18:05
Speaker 3: They actually have some some tracks on top. It's it's
18:09
Speaker 3: like a what do they call it, diamond play cross
18:12
Speaker 3: hatch finish on the on there so you can actually
18:14
Speaker 3: stand on it, you can put stuff on there. I
18:17
Speaker 3: think that that's nice.
18:18
Speaker 1: Yeah, really nice, really nice tent. And then there's now
18:21
Speaker 1: the the i Caamper Skycamp Mini.
18:23
Speaker 3: Yeah. I don't have any experience with those, but I
18:26
Speaker 3: know you've you've messed around with that product line.
18:29
Speaker 1: I have, and we have a few of them for
18:31
Speaker 1: testing right now. In fact, Overland Journal, we're right in
18:34
Speaker 1: the middle of wrapping up a hardshell rooftop tent test
18:39
Speaker 1: and the I Camper Skycamp Mini. It takes up about
18:43
Speaker 1: the same footprint of a soft shell. It's kind of
18:45
Speaker 1: a hybrid, so you open up the lid and it
18:48
Speaker 1: and it pops up, and then you pull out this
18:51
Speaker 1: panel that extends the overall length. So it's kind of
18:54
Speaker 1: a nice combination of the two. But you do end
18:57
Speaker 1: up with lighter weight and less less rough rack space
19:01
Speaker 1: if you really want to have that. For example, if
19:03
Speaker 1: you want to have your sunroof and you really enjoy
19:05
Speaker 1: having a sunroof, it allows you to do that. Biggest
19:07
Speaker 1: thing about the roof tent in my mind is you've
19:10
Speaker 1: got to know what your vehicle's roofload rating is. And
19:13
Speaker 1: we've talked about this in the Payload podcast, but you've
19:16
Speaker 1: got to know what your roofload rating is, and then
19:18
Speaker 1: you have to know the center of gravity, so you
19:20
Speaker 1: have to be really mindful of that. A lot of
19:22
Speaker 1: these tents are heavier than the manufacturer's rating for roofloads,
19:26
Speaker 1: so that's when you want to start looking at If
19:28
Speaker 1: I really want a heavy hardshell roof tent, you might
19:31
Speaker 1: want to buy a two hundred series land Cruiser because
19:33
Speaker 1: that has two hundred and fifty to two hundred and
19:35
Speaker 1: eighty pounds. I don't remember exactly roofload rating. Of course,
19:38
Speaker 1: the new Defender has what three hundred and seventy pound
19:41
Speaker 1: dynamic roofload ratings.
19:43
Speaker 3: So yeah, it's crazy.
19:44
Speaker 1: There are vehicles that have much higher roofload ratings that
19:47
Speaker 1: lend themselves well to these heavier roof tents. So you
19:50
Speaker 1: really have to be mindful of the weight up top.
19:53
Speaker 3: Yeah, you got to care about how you're doing it.
19:56
Speaker 1: Yeah, just go with the lightest weight tent. You can
19:58
Speaker 1: go with a really light weight tent and with simple
20:01
Speaker 1: crossbars that keep the overall mass low. Just be really
20:05
Speaker 1: mindful of that. You'll notice it as soon as you
20:07
Speaker 1: get the tent up there. And then the other thing
20:09
Speaker 1: to consider with roof tens is the impact of fuel economy,
20:12
Speaker 1: So we do need to always be aware of the
20:14
Speaker 1: fact that it's going to affect range. You may lose
20:16
Speaker 1: a mile and a half to two and a half
20:19
Speaker 1: miles per gallon with a roof tent on top of
20:21
Speaker 1: your vehicle, So those are all things to be aware of.
20:24
Speaker 3: Yeah, you know, I just looked into talking about, you know,
20:26
Speaker 3: dynamic and static roof capacities. Forerunner is a fairly ubiquitous
20:32
Speaker 3: overland vehicle in the US has a roof load to
20:34
Speaker 3: pass you one hundred and twenty pounds from what I've
20:37
Speaker 3: pulled up. An how you cab roof tent, for example,
20:40
Speaker 3: is one hundred and ninety four pounds if that's before
20:43
Speaker 3: you mount it. So it is something that people do
20:46
Speaker 3: need to be a little bit more cognizant about.
20:48
Speaker 2: You know.
20:48
Speaker 3: I see people with five hundred pounds on the roof
20:51
Speaker 3: by the time they do a tent. Iraq lights, solar panels,
20:55
Speaker 3: water fuel, all this kind of stuff. I would love
20:58
Speaker 3: to see that moose test done with it.
21:00
Speaker 2: On a quick test. A quick test, yeah, be really quick.
21:06
Speaker 1: So yeah, it's just something to be It's something to
21:09
Speaker 1: be aware of, to be mindful of. The roof tents
21:12
Speaker 1: are very very beneficial in a lot of ways. Just
21:15
Speaker 1: the whole story has to be considered when you make
21:18
Speaker 1: that purchase decision. So if you're in Africa, I was
21:20
Speaker 1: just I was just in Africa. I was just in
21:23
Speaker 1: in areas with the Big Five. I could hear lions
21:25
Speaker 1: waking me up in the morning when they roared, and
21:28
Speaker 1: I was really glad to be in a roof tent
21:30
Speaker 1: when that was happening.
21:31
Speaker 3: So so I was obviously just an Africa too. And
21:35
Speaker 3: Brad got the my Salue cab roof Tenant and I
21:37
Speaker 3: got to sleep on the ground. So yeah, it's nice
21:41
Speaker 3: to sleep on the roof. Yeah, you sleep inside. I mean,
21:45
Speaker 3: that's that. Oh, that's something that I've never actually done.
21:50
Speaker 3: Of all the vehicles I've built, I've never built a
21:52
Speaker 3: vehicle to sleep inside of. And and I and I
21:55
Speaker 3: really don't know why. It's kind of the obvious solution.
21:59
Speaker 3: Well I do, you know, because I'm like six foot
22:01
Speaker 3: three and I don't fit in most things. But if
22:03
Speaker 3: you do have the right vehicle, like Chris Cornetz and
22:06
Speaker 3: his Excursion, for example, he has that thing set up
22:09
Speaker 3: to sleep inside with Peter and everything. He doesn't even
22:13
Speaker 3: have to worry about it. We've sat those are I
22:15
Speaker 3: think it's a great option, and I wonder, I mean,
22:17
Speaker 3: I know why more people don't do it, as the
22:19
Speaker 3: Forerunner maybe is just a little bit too short that
22:22
Speaker 3: you pus it's a little bit too short to really
22:24
Speaker 3: be comfortable long term or for two people. Good gear
22:27
Speaker 3: makes such great options that can be.
22:29
Speaker 1: The real challenge. You know, even me being six', ONE
22:32
Speaker 1: i have to be mindful of the length of the.
22:35
Speaker 1: Vehicle but all of the vehicles That i've bought in
22:37
Speaker 1: recent years That i've done this with all lend themselves
22:41
Speaker 1: well towards. That the g, wagon you just got to
22:43
Speaker 1: roll the front seats forward a little, bit AND i
22:46
Speaker 1: have a whole system that where the front runner drawers
22:49
Speaker 1: in the back they match the height of the rear
22:52
Speaker 1: seats when they fold, down and THEN.
22:53
Speaker 2: I just stuff a couple redox bags full of.
22:56
Speaker 1: Gear or whatever down into that hole between the front
23:01
Speaker 1: seat and the drawer system and the, seats and THEN
23:04
Speaker 1: i just put up a quick air mattress And i'm sleeping.
23:08
Speaker 1: EASILY i probably have two hundred nights or so in
23:12
Speaker 1: the expedition seven vehicles where we high riff, troopies so
23:16
Speaker 1: that made a huge, difference a lot more, room and
23:19
Speaker 1: we could easily sleep two people inside those. Vehicles AND
23:23
Speaker 1: i slept so many nights that. Way and one of
23:25
Speaker 1: the real advantages of it is everything can stay set.
23:28
Speaker 2: Up so the way THAT.
23:29
Speaker 1: I had the troopers, configured all of the gear was
23:32
Speaker 1: down below the bed surface in at overland door, systems
23:36
Speaker 1: AND i had a sleeping pad set up in a sleeping,
23:39
Speaker 1: bag AND i left it set up all the, time
23:42
Speaker 1: so at the end of a long day of, DRIVING
23:44
Speaker 1: i could just simply shut off the vehicle and crawl
23:46
Speaker 1: into the. Back we also integrated in some s bar
23:49
Speaker 1: heaters into the, vehicles and we did some fancy wiring
23:53
Speaker 1: where we were able to without the engine, running the
23:55
Speaker 1: s bar diesel heaters would, run and then we would
23:58
Speaker 1: be able to turn on the vent fan through the
24:01
Speaker 1: heater core of the, dash and we were able to
24:04
Speaker 1: keep the vehicles very, warm even in conditions Like. Antarctica
24:08
Speaker 1: so a very very warm solution in any polar region
24:13
Speaker 1: and it works out really. Well so sleeping inside the
24:15
Speaker 1: vehicle for, ME i think is very. Efficient it takes
24:18
Speaker 1: advantage of all of the insulation that the car. Has
24:21
Speaker 1: think about modern vehicles and how much insulation they. Have
24:24
Speaker 1: they're totally weather. Proof, yeah they're designed. To, Yet, yeah
24:29
Speaker 1: there are lots of challenges, though so you've got to
24:31
Speaker 1: deal with. Ventilation so on THE e seven, trucks we
24:34
Speaker 1: had these magnetic bug nets that we would put on
24:37
Speaker 1: the metal that would allow us to crack the. Windows
24:40
Speaker 1: so you've got to have some solution like that with a.
24:42
Speaker 3: Vehicle, YEAH i mean there's definitely, consideration BUT i think
24:46
Speaker 3: all of, those if you have the ability to do,
24:48
Speaker 3: that they all come at a lesser compromise to the,
24:52
Speaker 3: vehicle how it, drives you, know and weight and everything
24:55
Speaker 3: that goes along with it than a roof tent or
24:58
Speaker 3: even a slag or a out of get, cold and
25:02
Speaker 3: even if you don't have an spar or bosto, heater
25:05
Speaker 3: you just turn the car. On you, KNOW i don't
25:08
Speaker 3: know how many Times i've woken up shivering and it
25:11
Speaker 3: would just be nice to just to go to bed. Warm,
25:14
Speaker 3: yeah and that's easily.
25:15
Speaker 1: Done we have access to you have access to all
25:18
Speaker 1: of your charging, ports and you're able to and you,
25:22
Speaker 1: know even WHEN i was Crossing antarctica or Acrossing, greenland
25:25
Speaker 1: we slept in the.
25:26
Speaker 2: Vehicles now it was an.
25:27
Speaker 1: Idea we were literally sleeping in the passenger seats as
25:30
Speaker 1: the vehicles were bouncing off along over the over the.
25:33
Speaker 1: Surface but you, know way more Nights i've spent sleeping
25:37
Speaker 1: inside a vehicle than in any form of a, tent
25:40
Speaker 1: just simply because it is a, durable completely weather, proof
25:45
Speaker 1: much more, insulated sound, resistant and more secure location to.
25:50
Speaker 1: Sleep if you're traveling Through Central america and it's getting
25:53
Speaker 1: late in the day and you've got to rock up
25:54
Speaker 1: to a gas. Station you can you, know put over
25:57
Speaker 1: the screens over the windows so nobody can see. In
26:00
Speaker 1: and next, thing you, know you're sleeping and your inside
26:02
Speaker 1: a locked, vehicle WHICH i think allows you and that.
26:05
Speaker 1: Van people have been doing this. Forever it's just a
26:07
Speaker 1: different kind Of, Yeah.
26:08
Speaker 3: Like the stealth camping thing has so many. Benefits you,
26:12
Speaker 3: know my Buddy Brian dor Of Exploring elements is constantly
26:16
Speaker 3: ragging out about stealth camping and, affect but he has
26:19
Speaker 3: some really valid, Points, like you, know he's doing a
26:21
Speaker 3: lot of adventure sport that puts him in places where
26:24
Speaker 3: maybe that is. ADVANTAGEOUS i don't think there's a huge
26:28
Speaker 3: advantage to stealth camping if you're the kind of person
26:30
Speaker 3: that's actively avoiding. People BUT i think for travelers that
26:34
Speaker 3: are going to be interacting and going to be in,
26:36
Speaker 3: SITUATIONS i think stealth camping is. Essential like the ability
26:41
Speaker 3: to not have to set up camp or. Anything you,
26:44
Speaker 3: know as you, said you know you're transiting or whatever
26:47
Speaker 3: you may be, doing that's that becomes then the most
26:49
Speaker 3: ideal way of being able to.
26:51
Speaker 2: SLEEP i think.
26:53
Speaker 1: So AND i THINK i think those that are listening
26:55
Speaker 1: take away this concept is make sure that your vehicle
26:58
Speaker 1: is capable of being slept inside, of and then try,
27:02
Speaker 1: it test it, out and then that way if you
27:04
Speaker 1: have a failure of your roof, tent like if it
27:06
Speaker 1: hits a branch and it gets, destroyed or you end
27:09
Speaker 1: up with a hole in your round, tent or something gets,
27:13
Speaker 1: stolen or you need to do an impromptu sleeping. SITUATION
27:17
Speaker 1: i remember we were Crossing russia and we were at
27:20
Speaker 1: The river Al, dan and it was this crazy Like
27:24
Speaker 1: Star wars bar confluence of individuals WHERE i mean there
27:28
Speaker 1: was bonfires and people were shooting guns and they were,
27:31
Speaker 1: very very, drunk and it was nice to be able
27:33
Speaker 1: to just kind of like not THAT i was so
27:35
Speaker 1: much worried about personal. Security it was more worried about
27:37
Speaker 1: actually getting some sleep in this very, cold, raining crazy,
27:41
Speaker 1: situation and it was nice to be able to lock
27:43
Speaker 1: myself up in the vehicle and then turn on the
27:46
Speaker 1: fan and have the heater, running which gave some white.
27:49
Speaker 1: Noise SO i think those that are listening just think
27:51
Speaker 1: about is it possible to set up your vehicle and
27:53
Speaker 1: configure it to sleep inside. Of it's often much less
27:56
Speaker 1: expensive than any of the other, solutions and it does
27:59
Speaker 1: provide the greatest amount of protection from the weather and otherwise,
28:03
Speaker 1: animals et cetera when you're inside the.
28:04
Speaker 3: Vehicle, yeah should we move on to ground?
28:08
Speaker 1: Tent, yeah let's talk about ground tents BECAUSE i think
28:10
Speaker 1: that they're way. UNDERRATED i think that people have dismissed
28:14
Speaker 1: unfortunately the ground, tent when if you think about, it
28:17
Speaker 1: it's the thing that's probably been around the longest and
28:19
Speaker 1: it's had the most the most.
28:21
Speaker 3: Great ground tents out.
28:22
Speaker 2: There, yeah really really good.
28:23
Speaker 1: Ones and you can get them as durable and as
28:28
Speaker 1: canvassy and safari looking as you, want or you can
28:31
Speaker 1: go ultra light. Weight and one of the tents That
28:34
Speaker 1: i've loved sleeping in the most Was Nemo equipment for
28:38
Speaker 1: years made these air beam tents and it was like
28:41
Speaker 1: the size.
28:41
Speaker 3: Of oh those things are.
28:42
Speaker 2: Great, yeah it was the size.
28:43
Speaker 1: Of a cantalope AND i JUST i always kept it
28:45
Speaker 1: in the. Vehicle in, FACT i still have it in
28:46
Speaker 1: The mercedes today BECAUSE i always have it with me
28:50
Speaker 1: AND i also take it on the motorcycle. Trips it
28:52
Speaker 1: just stuffs easily into a pannier and it has these
28:55
Speaker 1: air beams And i've slept more nights THAN i can
28:59
Speaker 1: count in the and that tent with no, failures and
29:01
Speaker 1: it was very reasonable and it's lasted for well over a.
29:04
Speaker 3: Decade, YEAH i MEAN i have A nemo tent that
29:07
Speaker 3: is your Old nemo. TENT i probably have one hundred nights. In,
29:11
Speaker 3: yeah and you probably had a hundred nights.
29:14
Speaker 2: In that's.
29:14
Speaker 3: Right AND i still have it to this. Day it's
29:18
Speaker 3: actually really. Comfortable now it's a bit of a pain
29:20
Speaker 3: if it rains or. Whatever but that's WHAT i started.
29:22
Speaker 3: Doing WHEN i first started out overlanding and really getting into,
29:25
Speaker 3: THIS i didn't have a lot of. MONEY i, was you,
29:28
Speaker 3: know eighteen years. OLD i didn't have this Nice nemo
29:31
Speaker 3: tent at the. TIME i, had you know, whatever Probably
29:34
Speaker 3: walmart or you, know sporting, good special kind of. Thing
29:37
Speaker 3: and the nice thing is it allowed me to spend
29:39
Speaker 3: the money on. Travel AND i think that's something that
29:42
Speaker 3: people fail to, realize is they they spend almost too
29:46
Speaker 3: much time and money optimizing their sleep setup when they
29:49
Speaker 3: can just get a ground tent and they're going to be.
29:51
Speaker 3: COMFORTABLE i, mean the camping hads these, DAYS i mean
29:54
Speaker 3: they're multi, layer they're, insulated they're really great you, know
29:58
Speaker 3: you can get Those nemo phill they're like a. Microfiber
30:01
Speaker 3: they're really nice and then they blow off with, air
30:04
Speaker 3: but they still have a little bit of memory foam in,
30:06
Speaker 3: them you. Know AND i know that The nemo gear is,
30:08
Speaker 3: expensive BUT i think it's it's. Essential it's like one
30:12
Speaker 3: of those places that if you're going to do the
30:14
Speaker 3: ground tip, thing you have to get the right gear
30:16
Speaker 3: because you buy the cheap twenty thirty dollars you, know
30:19
Speaker 3: sleeping pad and then it has a hole and it's.
30:22
Speaker 3: Useless you, know you buy the cheap tests of poll,
30:24
Speaker 3: breaks it's. Useless the, fabric you, know a stitch it,
30:27
Speaker 3: rich they're. Useless you have to you have to buy
30:30
Speaker 3: the good quality stuff but still the best quality backpacking
30:33
Speaker 3: gear for a tent and a sleeping. Pad what what's
30:38
Speaker 3: the most you could spend on.
30:39
Speaker 2: That, SCOTT i, mean, yeah way less than a hard.
30:41
Speaker 3: Get Very, yeah you could get very high quality, stuff
30:45
Speaker 3: full sleeping system out the door for three to five
30:47
Speaker 3: hundred dollars for. Sure you know The arii SkyDome or
30:50
Speaker 3: whatever it.
30:51
Speaker 2: Is just get.
30:51
Speaker 3: That think about how much you're going to use this
30:54
Speaker 3: stuff if you are on a budget on what we all.
30:57
Speaker 3: Are if your budget doesn't maybe a lot for. IT
31:00
Speaker 3: i always, say just get, out, like go, explore go
31:03
Speaker 3: see the. World you, know you can get a ground
31:05
Speaker 3: tent From goodwill if you need.
31:07
Speaker 1: It, Yeah and ground tens have a bunch of. Advantages
31:10
Speaker 1: they have a lot of engineering behind them because they're
31:12
Speaker 1: sold in such. Volume there's a lot of options to choose,
31:16
Speaker 1: from from the color way to the fact that most,
31:19
Speaker 1: importantly you can stand up inside. Them some people just
31:22
Speaker 1: want to be able to stand up inside of a.
31:24
Speaker 1: Tent being able to retreat inside a tent like that
31:28
Speaker 1: is a real. Advantage and you can easily move it
31:30
Speaker 1: from vehicle to. Vehicle you don't have it on the
31:33
Speaker 1: vehicle all the, time and you can grab it off
31:34
Speaker 1: of the shelf and easily stick it inside the. Car
31:37
Speaker 1: and they are less. Expensive you can buy a premium
31:40
Speaker 1: Like nemo OR msr one of those premiums round tents
31:44
Speaker 1: that you can use for, backpacking and use for motorcycle,
31:47
Speaker 1: trips and use for vehicle based. Overlanding it can be
31:49
Speaker 1: used for all of that stuff and it's going to
31:51
Speaker 1: cost you less than seven hundred. Dollars so there are
31:54
Speaker 1: ways TO i think optimize your budget using traditional camping.
31:59
Speaker 1: Equipment and part of the reason why traditional camping equipment
32:02
Speaker 1: is less expensive is because of the, volume because of the,
32:04
Speaker 1: hundreds if not thousands of units that they produce of these,
32:08
Speaker 1: things so that distributes THAT r AND d cost over
32:10
Speaker 1: a much larger. Area, now the downside is oftentimes they
32:14
Speaker 1: can be. Fragile so tents that are designed for backpacking
32:19
Speaker 1: or optimizing for, weight we don't need to optimize for
32:21
Speaker 1: weight in the. Vehicle so when you look for a,
32:24
Speaker 1: tent look for one that's even positioned a bit as
32:26
Speaker 1: a car camping. Tent they'll oftentimes be. Thicker they'll be
32:29
Speaker 1: they'll have a better standing, room they will be a little.
32:32
Speaker 2: Heavier, YEAH i.
32:33
Speaker 3: MEAN i have a little AND i still have it
32:35
Speaker 3: to this. DAY i have a Little pelican case and
32:38
Speaker 3: that was from WHEN i was testing you, know new
32:40
Speaker 3: press cars and things like that that had my, stove
32:43
Speaker 3: had my, tent had my slipping, bag had EVERYTHING i
32:45
Speaker 3: needed in, it and it was maybe you know. It
32:49
Speaker 3: it was a decent sized, case but still something that
32:51
Speaker 3: could be checked on an airline IF i was flying. Somewhere, yeah,
32:54
Speaker 3: Perfect that's the great. Thing AS i, FLY i flew
32:57
Speaker 3: all over the world with this. Kit it allowed me
32:59
Speaker 3: to just jump onto adventures with, people take a, chance
33:03
Speaker 3: go explore some, stuff and have all of my own.
33:05
Speaker 3: STUFF i was self. Sufficient you, know there are like
33:08
Speaker 3: THE os tents, too which are a ground. Tent they're
33:10
Speaker 3: obviously more. Bulky realistically you need like a roof rack
33:13
Speaker 3: or a truck bed to store. Them BUT i, actually
33:16
Speaker 3: you know you're Mentioning Pacific. NORTHWEST i camped a few
33:18
Speaker 3: nights in one of those at The Northwest over And.
33:21
Speaker 3: RALLY i had like randomly flown, in ended up staying
33:27
Speaker 3: With adventure already had a few tents set up and
33:30
Speaker 3: had nice, cots and it was raining and it was,
33:32
Speaker 3: miserable but we were all hanging out inside of THESE
33:35
Speaker 3: os tents that had kind of been attached to each,
33:38
Speaker 3: other and that was really. Cool NOW i wouldn't want
33:40
Speaker 3: to set those up every.
33:42
Speaker 2: Day, yeah they're really.
33:44
Speaker 3: Covering those things. Are, yeah they're. Durable they're they're made
33:47
Speaker 3: from kind of a similar polycotton canvas as you would
33:50
Speaker 3: get from a roof. Tent they're pretty. Durable i've actually
33:53
Speaker 3: broken one BECAUSE i didn't put it up.
33:55
Speaker 2: Right, yeah, Yeah i've broken.
33:57
Speaker 3: Yet.
33:58
Speaker 1: On most of the people that have them THAT i know,
34:00
Speaker 1: of have broken them either by not setting it up
34:02
Speaker 1: right because the way the hinges need to be, deployed
34:05
Speaker 1: or you get a gust of wind and those plastic
34:09
Speaker 1: joint they can. Fail so it's good to have an
34:11
Speaker 1: extra joint or two with. You not the joint that's
34:15
Speaker 1: become popular in recent, years but the joint that goes
34:18
Speaker 1: inside the aust. Tent and, uh that way you can
34:21
Speaker 1: that way you can replace that, way you can replace
34:23
Speaker 1: it easily in the.
34:24
Speaker 2: Field so, YEAH i know those are.
34:25
Speaker 1: Great and then should we talk a little bit about
34:27
Speaker 1: kind of the hybrid solution the, Habitats, YEAH.
34:31
Speaker 3: I think we should. Start you, KNOW i call them wedge.
34:34
Speaker 3: CAMPERS i think is the is the catch all term for.
34:38
Speaker 2: Them.
34:38
Speaker 3: Now you, KNOW i think that the logical transition is
34:41
Speaker 3: like the go fast. CAMPER i think the go fast
34:43
Speaker 3: camper is like a roof tent rafted onto a to
34:46
Speaker 3: a truck. Bed it's still very utilitary and it's still very.
34:49
Speaker 3: Practical it gives you a little bit more, space you.
34:52
Speaker 3: Know the kind of these panels that can come. Out you,
34:55
Speaker 3: know they're relatively, lightweight they're made in they're made in boze,
34:58
Speaker 3: men which is, cool you, know nice. Guys graham over
35:01
Speaker 3: there is a cool, dude you, Know but there are
35:03
Speaker 3: there are some, downsides like that's more of A i
35:06
Speaker 3: consider To Go fast more of a roof tent THAN
35:08
Speaker 3: i do a living conversion that you, know if you're
35:12
Speaker 3: this is Actually. Graham's IF i was to make a
35:14
Speaker 3: like a little mini shale boat LIKE i did out
35:16
Speaker 3: of my eighteenth, summit MAYBE i wouldn't have started with
35:20
Speaker 3: The Go. Fast BUT i think that they are really.
35:22
Speaker 3: Nice they're a great starting, point and then you can
35:25
Speaker 3: kind of you can go crazy with these wedge. CAMPERS
35:27
Speaker 3: i mean you can get the fifty ten system From Goose.
35:30
Speaker 3: Gear that IS i, mean how much are those things
35:32
Speaker 3: are almost the price of a. Car, yeah but they're really.
35:36
Speaker 1: Cool they're beautifully, made very. Expensive, yeah and they're a total.
35:40
Speaker 1: Replacement remove the bed.
35:41
Speaker 3: Completely, yeah those are not say what you've slept in
35:46
Speaker 3: a few of these. THINGS i have.
35:48
Speaker 2: In most of. THEM I i do like.
35:50
Speaker 1: THEM i think the ones THAT i like are are
35:54
Speaker 1: the ones like The Go fast or the At, habitat
35:58
Speaker 1: where they're as simple as, possible because OTHERWISE i think
36:01
Speaker 1: you're better off building a. Camper you're actually better off
36:04
Speaker 1: using a camper system where you can have all of
36:06
Speaker 1: those luxuries that come along with. IT i think the
36:09
Speaker 1: idea of letting it be the hybrid that it is
36:12
Speaker 1: and not overbuilding it like what you've done with The,
36:14
Speaker 1: gladiator is a great. Example you have some systems in
36:17
Speaker 1: there that make it more, comfortable like a, heater.
36:19
Speaker 2: Etc but you kept the weight.
36:21
Speaker 1: Down you didn't you didn't overburden the vehicle with the
36:24
Speaker 1: weight of it's not designed to be a full. Camper
36:27
Speaker 1: there are other solutions THAT i think are better for.
36:29
Speaker 1: That but if you do keep it lightweight and, SIMPLE
36:32
Speaker 1: i think it is really. Beneficial and then if you
36:34
Speaker 1: look at like a company like ursa minor who makes
36:39
Speaker 1: a habitat system for the jeep, wrangler like what a cool.
36:42
Speaker 1: Solution you end up, with very, ease easy to set.
36:45
Speaker 1: Up you can actually be inside the vehicle in bad
36:48
Speaker 1: weather and also sleep in this little elevated sleeping. Platform
36:53
Speaker 1: we can see. That one of the greatest testaments to
36:56
Speaker 1: that product Is Dan, grek who took it all the
36:58
Speaker 1: way Around africa and he really found it to be
37:02
Speaker 1: a good. Solution now by the end of, it he
37:04
Speaker 1: THINK i think he wanted some more, space and you
37:06
Speaker 1: see he could see the advantage of a. Van BUT
37:08
Speaker 1: i think that something like that where you can end
37:10
Speaker 1: up with the performance of A Jeep Wrangler rubicon with
37:14
Speaker 1: that kind of a sleeping, system that's very.
37:17
Speaker 2: COOL i think it's really.
37:19
Speaker 3: Cool. Yeah, yeah so that's The earth The MINOR j
37:22
Speaker 3: thirty if anybody wants to take a look at, those
37:24
Speaker 3: AND i want to, say they just unveiled it for
37:26
Speaker 3: the J l as, well COOL jk AND. Jl obviously
37:30
Speaker 3: it has to be The, unlimited it's not for the two.
37:32
Speaker 3: Door just before. Door, yeah there's a lot of these
37:34
Speaker 3: pop top things starting to come. Up, YEAH i MEAN
37:37
Speaker 3: i think we're getting a little bit away from, that
37:39
Speaker 3: but there are you, know if you're looking at the
37:41
Speaker 3: roof tent, GAME i do think it warrants looking at
37:44
Speaker 3: one of these wedge, campers AND i think that's where
37:46
Speaker 3: The Go fast is so, attractive is let's look really
37:50
Speaker 3: quick Go fast. CAMPERS i want to say they're sixty
37:55
Speaker 3: seven thousand. Dollars, NOW i know they do have a
37:57
Speaker 3: pretty big a pretty big wait. List they do because
38:00
Speaker 3: they are really. Popularity, yeah so they make two different,
38:04
Speaker 3: wits but that's that's where those things are. Nice by
38:07
Speaker 3: the time you buy your bedrack for A tacoma and
38:09
Speaker 3: by the time you buy the rooften you're not step
38:12
Speaker 3: up into the habitat which is a little bit more
38:14
Speaker 3: money and has. Insulation and, sure you, know maybe it's
38:17
Speaker 3: something that's worth putting a heater and whatever. Into but
38:19
Speaker 3: then then then we're getting away from. Rooftens then we
38:22
Speaker 3: should get off that changer.
38:23
Speaker 2: So, well AND i think that they are a good.
38:25
Speaker 2: Solution they're worth looking.
38:27
Speaker 1: AT i think from my perspective in summary is and
38:31
Speaker 1: we've talked about this so many, times and it's only
38:34
Speaker 1: BECAUSE i have screwed up so many times in my
38:36
Speaker 1: life by spending more money on something or having more
38:38
Speaker 1: complexity THAN i needed THAT i can say, this but.
38:41
Speaker 2: Start with start with, People start.
38:44
Speaker 1: With the most simple solution, possible and then go from.
38:47
Speaker 1: THERE i do think that if you're just doing a
38:50
Speaker 1: couple of weekends a year and you really want a
38:53
Speaker 1: roof tent because you got maybe a family that you
38:56
Speaker 1: want to have the sides and a shower enclosure and,
38:58
Speaker 1: everything there's nothing wrong with a soft shell because you
39:01
Speaker 1: don't mind the time that it takes to set it
39:03
Speaker 1: up and take it, down and they tend to stay
39:05
Speaker 1: in a lot better condition when they're not being heavily.
39:07
Speaker 1: USED i think if you're setting up and you're traveling every,
39:10
Speaker 1: day and you're doing set up and tear down of,
39:13
Speaker 1: camp then sleeping inside the vehicle or having a hardshell
39:16
Speaker 1: is a great, solution as is some of these habitat.
39:19
Speaker 2: SOLUTIONS i think.
39:20
Speaker 1: If you don't know what vehicle you're going to be,
39:23
Speaker 1: using or you also like to go off of a
39:24
Speaker 1: motorcycle and you're trying to keep things as minimalists as,
39:28
Speaker 1: possible then a ground tent is a great solution as.
39:30
Speaker 1: WELL i think if you live in the Desert, southwest
39:33
Speaker 1: or you're In, australia or you're In Southern, africa then
39:36
Speaker 1: a swag is really a great. Solution SO i think
39:39
Speaker 1: the key, is and we'll have all this stuff in
39:41
Speaker 1: the show, notes but the key is to go through
39:43
Speaker 1: these attributes of each one and just be really clear
39:46
Speaker 1: with yourself about what you, need not necessarily what maybe
39:50
Speaker 1: looks the coolest or presents a certain lifestyle that is.
39:55
Speaker 2: Important, yes it is really not what you needed one that's. Right.
39:59
Speaker 3: YEAH i guess my summary Is figure out what your budget,
40:02
Speaker 3: is spend as much of that budget as you can on,
40:05
Speaker 3: travel and what's left over outfit your. Vehicle you, KNOW
40:09
Speaker 3: i started with the ground. TENT i started with a
40:11
Speaker 3: really cheap ground tent with a really really janky Land Rover,
40:14
Speaker 3: discovery and then had a nicer ground tent with an
40:18
Speaker 3: equally janky. Ge but it got me out, there AND
40:20
Speaker 3: i think that's the important. Thing just do what allows
40:23
Speaker 3: you to travel and what makes sense for you to.
40:26
Speaker 3: Travel AND i guess it echoes pretty much What scott.
40:28
Speaker 3: Says but there's a there are, many many, solutions and
40:32
Speaker 3: just because one of them may be better doesn't mean
40:35
Speaker 3: that the one that is in your budget doesn't keep
40:37
Speaker 3: you out. There it doesn't. Work SO i break it
40:39
Speaker 3: down into costs for. Night i'm staying at The amman right,
40:41
Speaker 3: now even Though i'm you, know sixty.
40:44
Speaker 2: Nights in this.
40:44
Speaker 3: Thing you, know a roof tent is going to be
40:47
Speaker 3: a Rich carlton and then you can go you can
40:49
Speaker 3: go down. There you have to use this stuffort to
40:52
Speaker 3: make financial. Sense so that's the WAY i like to
40:55
Speaker 3: break it. Down and it's just a, funny weird thing
40:57
Speaker 3: Because i'm a hotel, snob but break it. Down figure
40:59
Speaker 3: out what your cost per night is to stay in that.
41:01
Speaker 3: Thing is overlining going to be something that is a
41:04
Speaker 3: one trip goal that you want to drive To? Alaska,
41:07
Speaker 3: well figure out how Many knights are actually going to
41:09
Speaker 3: camp because you might want to stay in some cities
41:11
Speaker 3: and you might want to stay at some lodges or some.
41:14
Speaker 3: Campgrounds and just look at your, trips look at how you,
41:17
Speaker 3: travel and then figure out a.
41:18
Speaker 2: Solution and don't be afraid to borrow.
41:20
Speaker 1: Stuff ask start off with a ground, ten ask somebody
41:23
Speaker 1: to borrow one and use, it or rent a roof
41:26
Speaker 1: tent for a weekend and see how you like. It
41:29
Speaker 1: those are great ways to determine what works best for.
41:33
Speaker 1: You set up a mock system of sleeping inside the
41:36
Speaker 1: vehicle and try it for a couple of nights and
41:38
Speaker 1: see if you really like. That and then you end
41:40
Speaker 1: up poning in on what is the best solution for.
41:43
Speaker 1: You and despite all the advice That matt AND i
41:46
Speaker 1: give in these, podcasts everybody is different and they have
41:49
Speaker 1: different needs and. Expectations these are just the things that we've,
41:53
Speaker 1: learned either through sleepless nights or unnecessary expense or even worse.
41:59
Speaker 1: Mistakes so, YEAH i MEAN i THINK i think you
42:02
Speaker 1: get sometimes you end, up you, know on a motorcycle
42:04
Speaker 1: and the only solution on a motorcycle is is a
42:07
Speaker 1: is a ground.
42:07
Speaker 3: Tent, well hopefully this provides you guys with some entertainment
42:11
Speaker 3: during the crisis that we're. Having scott AND i are
42:13
Speaker 3: going to try and record you, know more of. These
42:16
Speaker 3: we do apologize, FOR i guess a slight decrease in
42:20
Speaker 3: production value of having to do these on the, phone
42:22
Speaker 3: but we do we do feel it is important to
42:27
Speaker 3: abide by what our country's brightest medical minds are telling
42:30
Speaker 3: us to.
42:31
Speaker 1: Do, yeah, well thank you all for, listening and it's
42:34
Speaker 1: it is something that is also enjoyable For matt AND
42:37
Speaker 1: i to. Do like we were talking before we started,
42:39
Speaker 1: recording this helps break the monotony of the day and
42:42
Speaker 1: talk about things that we're passionate. About and we appreciate
42:44
Speaker 1: everyone's support in listening and subscribing to the podcast and
42:49
Speaker 1: giving us.
42:49
Speaker 3: Feedback, yeah we've had a lot of. PEOPLE i, mean
42:52
Speaker 3: at LEAST i know myself and probably just got to
42:54
Speaker 3: reach out On. Instagram you have a New instagram, HANDLE
42:58
Speaker 3: I james. IT i want to say, RIGHT i.
43:00
Speaker 1: CHANGED i have no idea WHY i decided On Global.
43:03
Speaker 1: OVERLAND i think maybe it was just something in my
43:06
Speaker 1: long list of. URLs but it's now Just scott dot
43:09
Speaker 1: a Dot brady On, instagram so it's a little more.
43:13
Speaker 3: Personal, yeah and Mine's Matt explore see my random ramblings on.
43:18
Speaker 1: That.
43:18
Speaker 3: Yeah thanks for tuning in this week to the to
43:21
Speaker 3: the Over On journal. Podcast hopefully you guys are doing,
43:23
Speaker 3: well and hopefully soon everybody's out on the.
43:26
Speaker 2: Trail and we will talk to you all next. Time