I reckon a good few of us have reckoned we can do better than the
big gear companies, but OUTDOORSmagic regular Morph has taken things
a stage further and come up with his own super-lightweight
170-gramme tarp using high-tech fabrics and construction
techniques.
It all began with a quest to lighten his pack. 'I just loathed
hauling loads of gear around in a big sack,' he says. 'I found it
just wasn't enjoyable and I couldn't cover the distances I wanted
to. I was also starting to suffer from knee problems.
'By lightening my load I reckoned I could cover more ground, enjoy
the journey a lot more and save my knees from destruction. So the
quest for the ultimate in light weight began.'
He started off with a Big Agnes SL1 tent but inspired by
lightpackers in the States, shifted his focus onto tarps - simple
sheets of fabric that can be adapted into a shelter using cords and
poles.
Going Lighter
Morph soon realised that many of the tarps available were
unnecessarily heavy by dint of using relatively weighty
silicone-coated rip-stop. His first tarps used a lighter
silicone-coated rip-stop along with Dyneema cord and titanium pegs,
but even the fine 0.5 oz Spinnaker fabric eventually became a
limiting factor.
That's when he turned his attention to Cuben Fibre, at 18 grammes
per square metre it's around half the weight of the Spinnaker he was
using before, but still strong enough to make a reliable shelter.
Cuben Fibre was developed for lightweight sails and is a cunning
laminate of different fibres which has been heated and pressurised in
an autoclave to produce an ultra-light waterproof, strong and
stretch-resistant material. Its main drawback is that it's very
expensive stuff.
It's not just the fabric though. Morph's 'White Moth' prototype
uses bonded construction backed up with stitching in critical areas
and with reinforced tie-out points carefully orientated to maximise
strength.
The end result is a full-sized tarp that weighs just 170 grammes
and can provide shelter for two adults. Stitching is confined to the
triple-bonded central seam and the eight tie-out points. Morph also
has a 'mini tarp' weighing in at just 60 grammes measuring 5' x 4.5'
compared to the 8' x 7.5' White Moth.
Of course tarps are always going to be a step too minimalist for
many walkers even with global warming, but next on the agenda is a
fully-fledged tent that Morph believes should weigh approximately 500
grammes, which is around half the weight of currently available
options.
Too Light?
'Tarping in the UK is probably not as uncomfortable as people
might believe,' says Morph.
Midges are the only nuisance. Pitching the tarp is an enjoyable
event - requires a little thought, if it's not too windy pitch
it high, a shelter you can stand under! In poor weather pitch low
- keeps you dry and sheltered. You also get a real sense of
being outdoors. Perfect - it's what it's all about!'
If you want to know more, drop Morph, real name Wayne, an
e-mail.
morph
