Having lately packed out about 400 pounds of elk, there’s nothing I will not do to make my pack weight the bottom it will possibly go with out placing me in peril—thanks, Life Straw. However even earlier than my 9 and a half hour packout hell, I used to be at all times a fan of going as gentle as attainable, particularly after I was tenting from the again of a motorbike.
Even when you’ve got nice panniers, any further weight on an journey or enduro machine can imply a top-heavy, unstable expertise. One thing you most undoubtedly don’t need whenever you’re 40 miles into the backcountry and the one of us round to assist are a bunch of hungry grizzly bears. They do not have thumbs!
And one of many heaviest items of package in anybody’s backcountry tenting pack is historically their tent, as you’ve got a bunch of material, poles, and stakes that simply pack on the kilos. Whereas there’s been some nice advances within the space lately, due to hunters and ultralight backpackers—keep tuned, I am utilizing a Stone Glacier ultralight tent for an upcoming journey on the again of a motorcycle—there hasn’t been one particularly designed with the motorcyclist in thoughts. That is nonetheless true with Aper’s Apex1 ultralight tent, because it was designed for bicyclists.
That does not imply it will possibly’t work for motorcyclists, although.
Photograph by: Aper
Aper’s Apex1 is a 1.6-pound one-person tent that makes use of a bicycle’s body as one in every of its most important tie-downs, utilizing a guyline to connect to the bicycle’s handlebar to maintain the tent upright and roomy. However what’s a motorbike if not only a heavier, taller, extra rugged bicycle? But, it is that weight that has me so intrigued, as most different one-person tents are nonetheless fairly heavy, and even the Stone Glacier that I’ve acquired proper now makes use of my looking trekking poles as its most important system of help. And including these make the system heavier in the event you’re not simply backcountry looking or climbing.
This Apex1, nonetheless, is able to go every time the temper strikes you to plant stakes and camp out for the night time whenever you’re off on some far-flung moto journey on the again of the brand new Ducati Multistrada V4 Rally ala ‘Long Way Round.” And that is excellent.
Photograph by: Aper
In response to our pals at New Atlas, “Parked upright beside the tent, it is related to a tensioning wire that runs from the fly to [the bike’s] handlebars, then from its bars all the way down to a peg within the floor. This association reportedly offers the Apex1 30% extra inside house than it will have in any other case, for a complete of two cubic meters. Setting the tent up is claimed to take lower than 5 minutes. And do you have to be questioning, a strap cinched round one of many bike’s brake levers acts as a parking brake.”
The complete tent itself consists of a ripstop nylon double-walled silicone-coated fly, i.e. the tent construction, a 40-Denier groundsheet, a mesh inside tent, a most important carbon fiber rod for help, and the cords and stakes. And once more, it weighs beneath two kilos, which whenever you’re touring off grid means extra space for meals, water, or different niceties. Or, in the event you’re like me, extra space for Uncrustables.
As for worth and availability, Aper continues to be taking backers on Kickstarter, although the corporate has already reached its acknowledged purpose. Pricing for individuals who acquired in early will likely be round $526, although as soon as it hits manufacturing for everybody else, that’ll shoot as much as $701. Costly, sure, however for individuals who wish to pack gentle or carry extra essential issues, you are not far off different ultralight tents out there. Plus, this one works together with your bike.
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