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Motorcycle Camping Tents

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I like the ones with a vestibule , big enough to park in , so the bike is right outside the door, under cover. Its not for security, its so the bike isnt covered in dew in the am and if its pouring rain I'm getting things in/out of the lugage bags under cover . I have a piece of 3/4 lightweight plywood cut to size that slides into a side bag , so the bike parks on the centerstand, it takes up less space than when it leans over.

Best thing I take when motorcycle traveling? my visa card. Its always dry inside the Hilton.
 
When I did a trip a few years ago to camp for 4 days I took a regular 3 person tent and put it perpendicular to the side luggage on my CBR250. It was larger than I'd like, but it made the camping part very comfortable.
It's one of those old tents from CT that you open up, pull up the center, pop the top and BOOM tent is set up. Setting down was an extra 5 min or so trying to fit it in the bag, but it was super easy and reliable. Still have the tent. Going on 17 years at least now with no sign of damage/wear. But I use it 1-2 times a year.
 
Holy hell, I was just looking on the Sail website at tents. How the **** is THIS worth $600, regular price $750?

marmot-38720_9819d-citron__s19__01.jpg


Is this just a "my name brand is better than your name brand" thing like happens with ladies purses or something?

Because it doesn't look that much different than my current $40 WalMart special in that picture.
 
mimico_polak said:
It's one of those old tents from CT that you open up, pull up the center, pop the top and BOOM tent is set up. Setting down was an extra 5 min or so trying to fit it in the bag, but it was super easy and reliable. Still have the tent. Going on 17 years at least now with no sign of damage/wear. But I use it 1-2 times a year.
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Buddy I went to Sturgis last year had one of those...and that's why I mentioned wanting one.

You pay a size and weight penalty for sure (not really an issue on my bike) but as much as I enjoy camping....setting up and breaking down the tent is something I really dislike. And once I'm awake in the morning my mind is set on breaking camp and getting rolling in as short a period of time as is physically possible.

Watching him setup his tent in 10 seconds flat and break it down inside a few minutes was VERY appealing.
 
PrivatePilot said:
Holy hell, I was just looking on the Sail website at tents. How the **** is THIS worth $600, regular price $750?

marmot-38720_9819d-citron__s19__01.jpg


Is this just a "my name brand is better than your name brand" thing like happens with ladies purses or something?

Because it doesn't look that much different than my current $40 WalMart special in that picture.
Click to expand...
You're paying the SAIL premium.
 
mimico_polak said:
You're paying the SAIL premium.
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And how much of a premium is that....25%? 40%?

Even at those numbers it still seems like an insane number for that kind of tent.


RonnieRev said:
I use a cheap CT/Walmart 3 person tent, it packs down small enough to bungee across my seat
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Looks like the exact same one I have. Works well on the bike. But has downsides as I've discussed in other responses - the setup and teardown process isn't super easy.
 
PrivatePilot said:
Buddy I went to Sturgis last year had one of those...and that's why I mentioned wanting one.

You pay a size and weight penalty for sure (not really an issue on my bike) but as much as I enjoy camping....setting up and breaking down the tent is something I really dislike. And once I'm awake in the morning my mind is set on breaking camp and getting rolling in as short a period of time as is physically possible.

Watching him setup his tent in 10 seconds flat and break it down inside a few minutes was VERY appealing.
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Went to the Paris CVMG rally one year and a big wind came up :| several of those tents impacted the chain link fence to the east.
 
Trials said:
Went to the Paris CVMG rally one year and a big wind came up :| several of those tents impacted the chain link fence to the east.
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ANY tent will fly away in the correct conditions, I’m not sure how a self set tent is going to be any different than a traditional tent in that situation.

FWIW if the forecast is for light or no winds I rarely bother to peg down my tent for a one nighter. The weight of my gear and myself inside is going to hold it down just fine.

If it’s going to be stormy, then of course you peg it down.

The key is actually being aware of what’s going on around you. Much like boating on large open bodies of water or making a long fight in a recreational aircraft - you check the forecast to make sure you’re making the right decisions.
 
IMHO it really depends if your adventures are more off- or on-road.
Mine tend to take me more off road.
In 2018 I did my first extended adventure ride riding the COLORADO BACKCOUNTRY DISCOVERY ROUTE. I had Marmot Limelight 2p tent.
This was my bike fully loaded for that trip (the tent is in the orange bag in the back):
20180828-091238[1].jpg

Last year we did the UTAH BACKCOUNTRY DISCOVERY ROUTE and I upgraded to the lighter and smaller packed MSR Hubba Hubba.
For comparison:
20190909-150329[1].jpg

For off road every grams counts IMHO
 
The problem tents are the EZ-Ups at trackdays. I've seen them do a LOT of damage when people don't anchor them properly or at least drop them down when it gets windy.
 
This is what I have, along with the vestibule shown.

Lots and lots of room. If I was on a multiday trip just camping one night at a time I’d take my smaller ultralight one. Big Agnes makes great gear backed up by a great warranty.
 
PrivatePilot said:
ANY tent will fly away in the correct conditions, I’m not sure how a self set tent is going to be any different than a traditional tent in that situation.

FWIW if the forecast is for light or no winds I rarely bother to peg down my tent for a one nighter. The weight of my gear and myself inside is going to hold it down just fine.
Click to expand...
For actual camping I have a Kelty vortex 2 (well actually a sub-brand of Kelty, but a very very similar tent). No need to take it on the the bike. It's bigger, way more fragile and way more expensive than the tarp. If you get it is ridiculous winds (80 km/h plus) it blows down almost flat and then pops up again when the wind drops. The stuff inside and the reduced profile when it goes flat mean it stays in place. I can set it up or tear it down with no light in two minutes.
 
I have a couple of tents now, a Eureka Midori 1 man, packs pretty small. I also have a Kelty 2 man, I like that more as it's a little roomier and more comfortable if you're caught in bad weather. I have 12" shorty aluminum poles for both so they will pack inside my cases.

I use a Hotcore Cooper R7 bag, it packs to about the size of a football and has kept me comfortable in a 1 man tent down to 0c.

I've tried a few mats -- they pretty much all suck if you move at all when you sleep. I splurged on Thermarest 30x77 and finally found a mat that stays under me all night.

The last essential is my stove. I used to carry a tiny titanium stove and gas. I bought my son a Sterno Inferno stove for ice fishing, it's great and I think I'll change over to that for the simplicity and utility -- it comes with a cup that's big enough for coffee and cooking.

I can fit everything but the mat into 1 side case with room for food and a bottle of whiskey.
 
The Last Hunt has a bunch of stuff at 45% off msrp on their site today. Lots and lots of camping mats and some ultralight Helinox furniture too.
 
PrivatePilot said:
Holy hell, I was just looking on the Sail website at tents. How the **** is THIS worth $600, regular price $750?

marmot-38720_9819d-citron__s19__01.jpg


Is this just a "my name brand is better than your name brand" thing like happens with ladies purses or something?

Because it doesn't look that much different than my current $40 WalMart special in that picture.
Click to expand...

So some of these things use different grades of aluminum for the poles, different levels of quality control for the stitching, different grades of nylon for materials etc. But basically you’re right, they aren’t worth that much. I pay more for the Big Agnes stuff but I know there’s a superior warranty on the stuff. I had a cheaper tent way back when and the fly sheet de laminated and became sticky for some reason. Contacted the company and they basically said “tough ****”.
 
Check out MEC/REI's used sections and swapmeets as well.
When travelling by bike, saving ounces in weight with the uber $$$ ultralight tents is a bit wasted.. that equipment is for the fanatics that are hiking hours/days/weeks/months in elevation and distance where it really becomes "somewhat important".

I like my MEC tent, bought it in uni 10 years ago, solid workmanship warranty/repairs.
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