I had my first extended backpacking experience last year while out on the Appalachian trail for about a month. In researching gear I had heard about this item but wound up going with a Big Agnes sleeping bag & airpad system. I found that I didn't like being stuck to the confines of a form-fitting sleeping bag and like being able to move around when I sleep. Midway through my trip I began to covet this piece of gear greatly, and wanted to order one but they were out of stock for what seemed to be forever. I noticed they were available again the other week and promptly ordered one.
Attached to the outside of my Mystery Ranch bag that I use for pretty much everything (I will get an ultralight bag soon I promise), the pad is about equal in size to a Thermarest Z-lite pad. Gossamer gear says 9-13oz on these, and mine weighs in at precisely 10oz on my postal scale.
Heres the pad unrolled. If you were to lay on it in this fashion, it's dimensions are 20" by 60" and 1/2" thick. add 2oz for the 2 section thermarest sit pad and also an additional 10" of length if you use it as a head or foot extender.
But wait, it gets better. Now it's 40"x60"x1/4" and wide enough for one hiker to really sprawl out or even for two hikers to both use, who could each potentially use 2/3 length Neo-Air pads at an additional 9oz each with a nice boost in R-value. Or I can use it in a hammock. And it's a huge nice comfy space to hang out ontop of inside any sort of shelter.
Here it is with my Sea to Summit reactor sleeping bag liner. A very versatile bit of gear itself that is probably worthy of its own post. Adds 10 degrees to another sleeping bag or quilt, stretches every which way, and you can see-through it like no-see-um mesh, so it excels as a multi-use bugnet.
Summer pad for 1 or 2 people
3-season use for 1 with variable comfort/insulation
4-season use for 1 or 2 with additional airpad.
Good underlayer for an insulated air pad. Protect from punctures + boost R-value
Makes for a great Floor in 1/2 person shelters.
