Cold Weather Pads

Cold weather tip: Do not takn an air mattress in frigid temps if the pad has any type of metal valve.  Moisture causes the valve to freeze and then you can't re-inflate once the initial warm air compresses.  This should be obvious, but for me it wasn't.  I guess it is all in the small things and thus why we go push ourselves into more difficult and challenging environments.

On the cold weather pad front, I am excited to see that Thermarest has continued to evolve their NeoAir line of pads to include a winter version, the XTherm.  This pad has an R value up in the 5's making it one of the lightest and smallest packing winter pads around.  Compared to a Downmat Exped bag, this is pretty good for a fraction of the weight and most definitely a smaller packed size.  For winter cycling and back country touring, this extra space in your pack or bags is a huge bonus.