There Are Pandas, and Then There Are Pandas.
And this isn't either of them! The Pandas we're talking about here, are watches, not bears. And what got me thinking about them (again) was a link posted this morning by @cm.rook who pointed a few of us to the very attractive (and not terribly priced) Yema "Rallygraph" Panda which, in it's most traditional arrangement, looks like the one on the left, but can also be had in the version on the right: The model on the left is a true Panda, while the model on the right is called a reverse Panda. The reason for that distinction is clear--Panda bears, only come in the first arrangement. Now at this point, everyone should be thinking about the most well-know Panda, The Rolex Panda, which is actually a Daytona, and among Rolex Daytonas, the most famous of which is the Paul Newman Daytona, which was famous first, because it was Paul's, and second because it sold at auction for $17.8 million (US Dollars). The story of that auction is well-known so I'll only...
Nov 8, 2019
True, there are plenty of ultralight pads on the market, but they were designed to appeal to the consumer at the point of purchase. Why do you think most pads come in a rainbow of bright colors? That's a marketing decision. No, we wanted something that would blend into the natural environment, so you can stealth camp a bit easier. We wanted darker colors that would dry faster in the sun, because you're more likely using a tarp, bivy or tarptent and you might have a little condensation in the morning. That's cool - we got you covered. We avoided noisy or shiny fabric or big logos (and truth be told, next time around we'll probably make the logos even smaller). We wanted to make the best pad for your wilderness adventure, not the display stand at REI.
Going light doesn't need to mean being uncomfortable, at least not any more. Like many here, I've experimented with a silly number of sleeping pad configurations over the last 15 years, often using my pack and extra clothing to augment my pad, usually making adjustments throughout the night. However, in talking with a number of you, we all came to the same conclusion that a simpler setup is now more preferred to a slightly lighter, but more finicky, setup. We decided to make the pad full length (72") so you don't have to bother with uncomfortable legs, and sized to be comfortable at 20" wide and a luxurious 2.5" thick. The pad tapers to 17" at the bottom to save a bit of weight, which still provides plenty of surface area for your feet. We also made sure the air valve sticks out to the side, not up like it does on some Klymit pads, so you don't feel it under your right shoulder. Finally, utilizing Klymit's patented "V" pattern eliminated the drawbacks of vertical air chambers.
- Static V Ultra Light - 11.9 oz, 1.3 R-value, in stealth green top with dark charcoal bottom
- Insulated Static V Ultra Light - 16.9 oz, 4.4 R-value, in dark charcoal top and bottom
- Pillow X Ultra Light - 1.7 oz, in stealth green
These products are exclusively on Massdrop. The first drop was August 2016 and the next one will be in November. Be sure to visit the drop page to request the pad and read the Specs: https://www.massdrop.com/buy/massdrop-x-klymit-static-v-ultralightBe sure to check out the reviews of the Static V Ultra Light:
Will Rietveld: http://ultralightinsights.blogspot.com/2016/07/gear-review-klymitmassdrop-static-v.html
John Abela: https://hikelighter.com/2016/07/27/massdrop-klymit-static-v-ultra-light/