Mountain Hardwear SuperMega UL2

Width is 36" at the foot end. It looks like a sweet solo shelter for sure.

How do they call that a 2 person shelter if it is only 36" at the foot?

"How do that call that a 2 person shelter if it is only 36" at the foot?"

Marketing?

Maybe the 2 people are supposed to sleep stacked on top of one another? That could get interesting!

Oh come one guys. You could easily get two Uelis in there.

On an almost more serious note, could'a swore I watched a setup video of this tent but can't find it now.

"Oh come one guys. You could easily get two Uelis in there."

LOL!

I'm not surprised it's Mountain Hardware. Look at the way the walls taper in at the foot. That makes the floor bigger on paper, but the actual usable space appears to be MUCH less.

I just noticed that there’s an official 1 person model now. Mountain Hardwear SuperMegaUL 1. This has to be the worst name ever.

•Industry leading DAC Featherlight™ NSL poles
•Super lightweight fabrics designed in every aspect to be as lightweight as possible but to still deliver solid protection from the elements.
•Guaranteed watertight construction with fully taped fly, taped perimeter seam, welded corners and welded guy clip anchors.
•One Dry entry vestibule for added storage and convenience.
•Truly free standing light weight geometry and design.
•Welded zipper flap construction is lighter and drier than a sewn flap
•Mesh pockets for interior storage
•Super-light buckles and webbing reduce tent weight

Capacity1
Minimum Weight1 lb. 13 oz. / 807 g.
Packed Weight2 lb. 3 oz. / 0.98 kg.

Materials:
Tent Floor 30D Nylon Ripstop 2000 mm Ether Type PU/SIL FR
Poles Paleria ‘DAC Featherlight™ NSL
Canopy 15D Poly Knit Mesh
Fly 10D Nylon 800-1200mm PU

Measurements:
Floor Area 16 sq. ft. / 1.5 m2
Number of Doors 1
Number of Poles 2
Number of Vestibules 1
Interior Height 33″ / 84 cm
Packed Diameter 5 in / 13 cm
Packed Length 19 in / 48 cm
Pitch Light Weight 1 lb. 6 oz. / 631 g.

The Tarptent Moment and esp. the TT Notch both weigh even less and have more room.

The Notch can be used W/ fly only or inner tent only.

Apples to apples required. The Notch is a trekking pole supported tent and the Moment is single walled. Neither are freestanding. Well the Moment is but requires another pole and then loses the weight advantage. Don't get me wrong, the tarp tents are better designed but the comparison you provided seems out of place.

Having said that, this new MH tent is 81" long with sloped ends. Nice try but no cigar.

"This has to be the worst name ever."

I would have preferred they put a "duty" somewhere in there. "Super Duty" just works.

The width at the door will be 56", which makes it perfect for a solo tent with plenty of room for my pack or dog when she's with me. Granted I have to be careful with her as the 30D floor is pretty thin. 7 Nights in it last summer, and only one 1/8" tear next to the door thanks to a wayward trekking pole.

Set Up Video's:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgleIz7tWsA&playnext=1&list=PLC8A71A5A32861D91&feature=results_video

Yeah, super duty would have been much cooler. Super, mega, ultra…sounds like a bad infomercial.

…or a Costa Rican grocery store…

MH makes decent sleeping bags and clothing, but for some reason doesn't seem to know the first thing about how to make good tents. They will snag a few buyers with these, mostly due to the light weight and "freestanding" buzz; but after some experience with the tents, buyers will move on to something else.

Next weeks BPL article.

I seem to read everything in the forum first that I need to know.

why do shelters always seem to get shorter in length for the single person models? I don't shrink when I'm by myself… actually, I have no idea if I do or not, as nobody is around to tell me.

If I were looking for a lightweight free-standing double walled shelter (which I doubt I ever will, but who knows) I'd lean toward the LL Bean Microlight. If I were spending the type of money the MH requires, I might just get an Unna…

Has anyone thru-hiked with either the one or the two person?

Can anyone speak to their experience using them in the rain, snow, or in high winds?

I was looking into a rainbow or moment dw but I am able to get a great deal on either the one or two person due to a warranty issue with mountain hardwear.

I have a supermega UL 2. It kept me and my son dry in some hefty rain over night. I actually liked this tent. So simple to pitch, even my first time doing it. The vestibule is a descent size also. It made a great solo shelter, worked fine for my son and I too. I still have it but over the last 2 years or so I have switched to MLD cuben Grace solo/duo tarp. .With bivies. I have used big agnes copper spur and sierra design lightning tents. I eventually sold all of my tents but held on to the super mega Ul 2. It is now my loaner tent since I strictly use the tarps. No one has complained about using it.

Full disclosure, I used to work for Mountain Hardwear.

I took the SuperMegaUL2 to New Zealand and spent 45 or so nights in it. Its a very livable 1 person double wall tent, or a really tight 2/1+dog tent. There's plenty of room at the head, but the foot definitely is limited. Its a little heavy for a through hike, and the end entrance is not entirely convenient, plus its probably more tent than you really need for a fair weather thru hike.

I did have the fly rip on me during a pretty gnarly windstorm that saw 45-50mph gusts and driving rain, but its a very light tent and not designed for that. I've used it on the snow, but never with any kind of snow loading. I'd imagine for its weight it'd do ok, but I'd prefer a tarp at this time.

Again, not a bad tent by any means, and in my opinion one of the better truly freestanding options, but there are a lot of options out there.

T.B.,
Could you indicate where the fly tore? This is the first feedback I've seen on the strength of the low denier nylon (sub 20) when coated and used as a fly. An idea of where the tear occurred would be very useful to know.
Thanks.

"why do shelters always seem to get shorter in length for the single person models? I don't shrink when I'm by myself… actually, I have no idea if I do or not, as nobody is around to tell me."

Ozzy,

Thanks for the laugh. Sorta fits into the "when a tree falls in the woods" category.

Thanks for thoughts.

The tear was along the bottom stitching of the vestibule from the zipper around to the opposite front corner. It made the vestibule virtually unusable.

The primary failure occurred when the wind was buffeting from some pretty serious winds (just outside of mt cook village) for an ultralight tent. I could attribute it partially due to the directly the tent was set up in, and potentially due to the number of nights on the tent, but the fly material is definitely thin and delicate at times, but it did great through significant rain.

A side note, when the fly did rip, I washed it and sent it back to warranty. While it took about 8 weeks for resolution, they ended up just sending a brand new fly. While tremendously slow, I'm pleased they took care of it.