Outdoor Designs Race Raider - First Look

Outdoor Designs Race Raider - First Look

Price:£270.00

Weight: 1664 grammes including stuff sac (1622 grammes without stuff sac) pegs extra.

Features: Two-person single-skin tent using Gore-Tex Air Permeable fabric, lightweight rip-stop nylon porch, twin-pole design, fully taped seams, laminated nylon waterproof base,secondary mosquito net door, internal pockets, shock quencher elasticated guys. 40x13 cm packed, internal dimensions: W 1400mm x L 2100mm x H 1040mm

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The Concept The OD Race Raider is designed as a simple, ultra-lightweight two-person tent for adventure racers, lightweight backpackers and mountaineers, though the measured weight of just over 1600 grammes was 100 grammes up on the claimed 1500 grammes.

The really interesting bit though, is that it uses Gore's new Air Permeable Gore-Tex single-skin tent/bivvy fabric. It's a new material from Gore that ' allows the exchange of fresh air and exhaust gases' (what you exhale) while remaining totally waterproof.

This is a good thing for a couple of reasons, one is that with old-style single skin Gore-Tex you have to leave a ventilation opening or risk suffocation, which always plays havoc with your climbing and additionally makes things feel very stuffy and claustrophobic when you do seal things up. In extreme cold, claim the manufacturers, this can make a huge difference to warmth. At minus 20 degrees C, they say, a sealed bivvy can be as much as 15 degrees warmer than a vented one. The pay off for mountaineers would be that they could use a lighter sleeping bag in the same conditions.

The other advantage should be that greater breathability makes for more useability in the UK where our damp, warm climate means a lack of temperature / humidity gradient between inside and outside has made single-skin tents pretty useless because of condensation problems.

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Features Like we said, it's basically a simple design. The front pole velcroes into place at the front of the tent - no surprise there then - while the rear sits at the base and prevents the tent roof from sagging onto the occupants. There are two guys at the front and guying points at the side for stability and profile is low and weather cheating.

You get a porch, which OD desribe as 'large', but would be overwhelmed by two people's climbing packs plus a zip-opening inner door with mosquito mesh panel. Oh and there are two small internal pockets taped onto the tent walls on either sideof the entrance.

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In Action We used the Race Raider for a one-person backpack in the Peak. It's acceptably light, but would be even lighter with the weight shared between two. First impressions were that it was quick and easy to put up, especially after we'd borrowed some pegs. It's really just a question of getting the poles in position then pegging out. The tent feels sturdy and stable once up.

Inside it's a generous fit for one person, though you'll not be able to sit up unless you're a real shorty, but would be a snug squeeze for two, so make sure you're good mates or more - we're talking tapered leg-to-leg intimacy here. The porch isn't huge, but it's adequate for storage and cooking if you're disciplined.

As it grew cold and dark, we settled down for the night with a wary eye on condensation. We sealed up the zips completely to see if we'd suffocate, snuggled down and went to sleep. It was a fearsomely cold night and after a few hours the inside of the fabric was both very cold and slightly damp, but not dripping. By three in the morning though, blobs of ice had formed on the inside of the tent. The aluminium pole at the front was dripping with condensation though. On the plus side we were still alive and it didn't feel stuffy inside at all.

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Provisional Verdict

It's early days yet so it might seem that this first report is laced with provisos. Here are the definites: we didn't suffocate or even feel stuffy, the fabric definitely appears to be more breathable than other single-skin tent fabrics we've used and the level of condensation, without venting remember, was acceptable even though there was some.

It was bloody cold in the tent, cold enough for ice to form, so we'd guess minus six C or so, but with two people inside, it might have been warmer. Then again it might just have created more condensation, it's hard to be sure.

We suspect that the fabric may work best in a conventional bivvy bag where the increased vapour permeability might make a real difference and allow you to keep everything battened down and snug. Tents are more problematic simply because the volume of air means that it's harder to create a favourable temperature / humidity gradient between inside and outside the fabric.

As for the tent itself, if you want a lightweight single skin two-person unit then it seems like a reasonable, if slightly cramped design and so far we'd say the fabric is more breathable than other single-skin fabrics we've used. But for, say, an extra 200 grammes each between two people, you could simply use a conventional two-person tent with a fly and have even less condensation. Also sealing the tent didn't seem to create a warmer environment, but that may be down to having one person in a two-person tent.

So, so far then it it seems to be a case of nice fabric, but not sure about the tent or single skin tents' suitability for general UK use in general come to that. Our humid climate is hard on breathability, so we'll be impressed if the Race Raider can handle it. Watch this space...

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Outdoor Designs web site

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