Blog : ultra running

“In the Bag”

Nowhere does your equipment dollar buy such a difference as in sleeping bags. You trade dollars for weight. On the high side, you can go incredibly light and small…or pay less and get a heavier bag.

Set a budget range for yourself before you begin looking; that will simplify your decision. For example, if I decide I want the best I can get for under $300; that allows me to rule out the mega-light options on the top and the Girl Scout options on the bottom.

A question you might ask as you choose a price range: will I use this bag again after TPU, and for what purposes? In terms of weather, TPU is light duty; you won’t get rained on and it rarely gets colder than 45° at night. If this bag is only going to see action at TPU, you can get by just fine with a cheaper bag. But if you’re also planning a thru-hike on the Pacific Crest next year or you’re an incurable camper, you’ll be willing to pay more to have a bag that will work in colder climates than Big Bend.

The temperature rating for bags qualifying for TPU is 45° F minimum (7° C). Almost all three-season and summer bags meet that standard. If you don’t see any later cold-season camping in your future, a summer bag might be all you need.

The historical average temperatures for Big Bend Ranch in October range from 45°F at night to 75°F high during the day. (www.myweather2.com). In reality, the high temp each day is usually in the 85°F - 90°F range given the high degree of southern exposure and the night temp is a desert climate so it feels cooler to some. With that all said - it’ll be personal preference but remember you’ll be sleeping inside our teepee tents, which does conserve some warmth at night.

Now… down or synthetic materials? Down is ultralight, compressible (small volume in your pack) and it holds warmth well; on the down side (so to speak)… it clumps up when it gets wet, it’s an animal product and it’s more costly than synthetic.

Synthetic is easier to clean, hypoallergenic, and less expensive, but it is also heavier, bulkier and provides less warmth per ounce. You can read more about the comparisons here.

Now down to the nitty-gritty. After you’ve made your decision about future use of the bag, temperature requirements, materials, and cost range, you can dive into some particular bags.

 

There are some good choices from Europe, where expedition stage races like Marathon des Sables are more common than in the US and manufacturers design specifically for multi-day stage races. WAA, a French company, offers an innovative system, the Ultra Sleeping Jacket, a two-in-one product, down-filled and weighing in at a total of 24 oz. It’s a down jacket that zips onto a half bag. By day, the bag fits into the pocket of the jacket. Fully compressed, the whole rig measures 9”x 8”x 3”. At $400, it leans toward the high end, but the jacket will likely get good use by any runner, even if the lower bag sees limited use.

 

 

 

 

 

Peter Hutchinson Designs (PHD), a British outfit, allows you to custom-build your own bag. This is probably overkill for TPU, but if you have other expeditions in your future, you might take a look. After you choose the base bag rated for temperature, you can add options like a foot zip, mummy hood, fill pattern, and custom length. The cheapest no-frills bag is £276, or about $350. If you are unusually tall, their custom sizes might be worth the price tag.

 

 

 

On the American side, Western Mountaineering’s Everlite down-filled bag packs down to a mere 5”x10”, weighs less than a pound and is rated to 45°. List price is $320, but I saw it on sale for $285. Nice. (But if you like “pretty” in a bag, this one only comes in brown.) The Everlite was the bag of choice for 2016 finishers Eric and Paul Chan.

 

 

 

Sea-to-Summit makes a great three-season bag, the Spark II, that packs down to the size of a grapefruit. It’s rated to 35° and weighs a pound. It’ll run you around $375.

 

 

 

 

 

REI carries some great bags, and you get the extra advantage of in-store advising and getting to touch the product before buying. The REI Helio Down bag sits at the lower end of cost at $140, but it meets the 45° temperature rating, stuffs down to about 9”x7” and weighs 26 oz.

The Marmot Atom (sold by REI) is a down three-season bag rated to 35°, weighing in at 21 oz and costing $289. The Atom’s synthetic cousin would be the Trestles bag, which costs only $100 but weighs nearly 3 pounds.

 

 

 

 

 

The North Face Aleutian 40 is a synthetic bag with a light price tag of $100 and a lighter weight at 2 lbs 3 oz. It stuffs down to 9”x16”.

 

 

 

 

 

More and more fastpackers are looking at sleeping quilts now, rather than bags. A sleeping quilt is lighter, packs down to a smaller volume, allows more freedom of movement for toss-and-turners and is more versatile than a bag. You can cover your torso while leaving legs free, or vice versa, with no zipper issues, making it more agreeable on warmer nights. Most are available with a drawstring at the bottom to close up for foot warmth, but it’s not draft-proof in truly cold weather. The sleep quilt is an approved option for a race like TPU (so long as it has the drawstring or zip function).

 

Enlightened Equipment has down and synthetic versions, with about $100 price difference. I like the freedom to choose your own interior and exterior colors, length, width, and temperature rating. The custom choices require 2-4 weeks lead time.

 

 

 

 

 

You’ll probably want a sleep mat, too. You may not need it for warmth insulation, but it’ll make the rocky ground more sleepable. TPU veteran Cheryl Tulkoff uses a Therm A Rest Neo Air Xtherm which will run you about $150. It weighs just less than a pound and is constructed with over 100 cells, which works well on the rocky terrain that is a feature of Big Bend. The Therm A Rest XLite at $130 weighs a half-pound less, but there may a reason for the link to the video “How to Fix a Leaky Sleeping Pad” on the Amazon page. TPU veteran Eric Chan found that the valve on his XLite leaked over time.

The Klymit Static V is a full-size mat that weighs only 18 oz, costs $55 and is constructed of rugged material that isn’t afraid of rough terrain. Klymit’s Inertia X-Frame takes out bulk and leaves padding only at pressure points (head, shoulders, hips). Pared down to a skeleton, it weighs only 6 oz., stuffs down to the size of a soda can and costs $60 on Amazon.

For 3 more ounces and about the same price, you can get the full-length Inertia X-Frame.

There are ever so many more choices; I’m only scratching the surface for simplicity’s sake. You get the idea: the more you’re willing to pay, the lighter you can go.

Check out your local mountain store, countless outdoor websites or your nearest REI retailer.

If the many choices have you bewildered, contact the Race Director, Chris Herrera. If he doesn’t have the answer, he can steer you to someone who does. Reach him at [email protected] or 432.294.5284.

 

 

 

 

Choosing a pack is a series of trade-offs between utility and weight, with you as the final judge. Below are three important factors to consider as you try on various models.

• Considering that you will carry it for 163 miles during TPU, your pack may be the most consequential decision you make (after deciding to sign up for this crazy adventure!) The lighter your pack is and the more comfortably it fits to your spine, the more you will enjoy the ride.

• How does the pack ride? Frame or frame-less? Weight-transferring hip belt or simple webbing straps? Vest front or padded shoulder straps?

• Size. There is only so small you can go with your pack… you have to be able to carry your sleeping bag, a bare minimum of 14,000 calories of food, incidentals, and water. Past TPU runners have not gone below 20-liter capacity.

Stage racing backpacks: A little more detail…

In a survey of past TPU runners, we found that many packed all the way down to a 20-liter pack. This requires tremendous discipline (or lots of practice), but the advantage of a light, small pack can’t be overemphasized! Bear in mind, however, that if your pack is so full that you have to strap your sleeping bag to the exterior, you’ve just added a bit of bounce to your pack. However, re-packing as you eat some food and complete the 6 stage race can help to overcome this issue.

While everyone’s different, a long-distance rule-of-thumb is that you only carry 10% of your body weight on your back. So a 150-pound man would carry a maximum of 15 pounds. With a week’s food, a sleeping bag, safety gear and the pack itself, this can be a colossally difficult standard, but it’s a good starting point. Food alone might weigh 10-12 pounds at the beginning of the week (more about food in a later post) so finding ways to minimize weight elsewhere is important.

In general, you’re going to want the lightest pack possible that is still functional and offers a certain degree of comfort! The lightest packs have almost no structure: no frame, hip-belt or any way of transferring weight off your shoulders. They are simply bags with straps. Alternatively, you can get an internal frame pack that will transfer up to 70% of the weight to your hips. Something in-between would be a frame-less pack with pods that give form to the pack and thus can transfer some weight off your shoulders.

A hip-belt can relieve your upper body but it adds weight to the pack and can be an additional chafing point, especially with the bounce of running. Frame packs may work better for those planning to mostly hike TPU.

The frame-less packs that mount as vests with wide front panels, hug the body and keep the load closer to your center of gravity, also prevent bouncing and chafing. These bags also have the added feature of water bottle holders in front, making them easier to refill than hydration bladders. Some runners will carry both, with the bladder for backup - but it’s not necessary.

Here are a few representative packs to show you the sort of choices you have:

 

RaidLight Olmo Ultra Raid Desert 20L + 4L Front Pack - Avg price, $179

Especially designed for stage races, the new Ultra Raid Desert 20L bag allows you to take all the necessary equipment with you for races. At 1 lb. 8 oz. ergonomically integrated back and shoulder straps, bottle pockets on vest front, insulated bladder sleeve, multiple small pockets, designed specifically for multi-day events like Trans-Pecos Ultra. This pack remains one of the most common among all TPU participants. Also available in 30L without front pouch.

WAA Ultra Equipment UltraBag 20L+ 4L Pouch (optional) - Avg price, $215

Designed by the experts of ultra-endurance races, the UltraBag was designed and built to meet the needs of the most demanding races like the Marathon des Sables or the most intense multi day FKT attempts. At 1 lb. 5 oz bag only, with optional bottle holders (1.5 oz each) and front pocket (1.5 oz), wide vest-type straps, rectangular shape, 20-liter capacity, designed specifically for Marathon des Sables and now a great option for Trans-Pecos Ultra.

Ultimate Direction Fastpack 20 - Avg price, $115 (Amazon)

Providing all the features and capacity you need and nothing more, the Fastpack 20 is a streamlined pack that will get you there and get it done. At 1 lb. 3 oz. vest front with pockets for water bottles/maps/camera, rear stuff pocket, roll-top closure, water-resistant, 20-liter capacity. This pack was worn by TPU2015 2nd place finisher, and Coach Cheryl Tulkoff.

 

Osprey Talon 22L - Avg price, $75 (Amazon)

With an updated AirScape™ backpanel, a continuous hipbelt wrap for incredible comfort and a suspension system that stabilized loads for dynamic activities, the Talon 22 remains the most versatile day hiking pack ever built. At 1 lb. 7 oz. External sleeve for easy access to hydration bladder, wide hip belt to transfer some weight off shoulders, mesh back panel for cooling. The Tempest 20 is a female-specific alternative to the Talon. Great for those hiking TPU.

-Author Notes: Sheryl Colmer was a volunteer at TPU2016 and now writes about all things Big Bend, stage racing, and TPU!