Nunatak ARC A.T and Skaha Plus

Congrats, the skaha plus is a very nice piece and I'm envious of the arc at. Which bike races are you talking about, I've got one I'm doing … it would be righteous to say hi?
I'm sorry that you've got the cycling and sul disease together. But it appears you're spousal unit is addicted too.
Did a time trial Sat. in which a lot of nw people show with all their new eyecandy, ya know sometimes ya gotta just put your head down and peddle cuz it'll make you crazy.

I'll be doing two little known events. One is in June called the Grand Loop (360 miles). The other will be the equivelent of fast packing the Colorado Trail by bike.

There's smoke coming off my search engine and the calender is spread …. .

Did you find the links? If you need details there's a link to both "race" sites on my blog under my profile.

Last scouting trip out on the Paradox I was SUL and the people riding with me were amazed.

We are a pair of very sick cyclists, I enjoyed your blog and found the links.
You'll notice I do not have a blog where I post my times, this is possibly caused by the slowness in which I tend to finish.
I took a couple of long mtn bike trips last year that were sul and intend to do more this year between and after the event season.

Fun is the most important thing, not speed. There is no other reason to do things this hard :)

The Grand Loop will test all my skills I've developed thus far and I will be going SUL, maybe sub 4. My ThinLight pad just arrived today. I cannot wait to try the new setup all together. Nunatak, Thinlight and Montbell UL bivy. Should be warmer than my current Montbell #7 alpine although that bag was a steal at $100! I'm going for pack, water and food for 5days in a GoLite Ion (1600cubic inches).

Christopher, I think my wife was at the Cherry Creek Reservoir at the same time as your time trial. She mentioned a "race" and that she was lapped at least once by some of the riders. She was on a mountain bike doing a recreational ride. We ride at the reservoir frequently. I'm the cycling merit badge counselor and we are often there with the scouts. I just got a NightLight, a SitLight, and a 1/4 inch ThinLight. Please tell me you're not sleeping on a 1/4 inch ThinLight :o, I'll feel like a wimp. The SitLight positioned under the small of my back, or side above my hips, seems to make a big difference in hip comfort. I'm still experimenting with the pads. I'm enjoying your blog, thanks!

Actually it was a 1/8" thinlight :)

I've been using just a 3/8" blue pad cut down to 26" with a taper at the bottom for a while now. It's fine although I used my 32" version last trip and liked the extra length.

On my multiday races I think I'll be bringing just a 1/8" thinlight cut to a similar size (32" long with a taper at the end). I might also bring a very short section of the 3/8" pad for my hips and as a sit pad before I crawl in my bag but that's easily the first thing thrown out if space in the pack becomes an issue. I'm young and am tired so I really just care about being warm. After that sleep comes easily. The quilt should make a big difference in that area too as I've found I'm quite hot right after getting off and riding but after a couple hours I finally cool down and get all the way in the bag/bivy.

Edit: Using a partially inflated platy as a pillow is luxury! :D

Well thank goodness they don't have a 1/16th inch pad. Now I not only envy you for the arc at there is the fact you can sleep on a 1/8th inch pad during a race.

Well the arc AT has arrived and it is beautiful. I will post pictures soon. It weighs in at 250g in a M/L (60") version with 2 straps and the tags. The Skaha Plus has not arrived yet however so I haven't got to test the system. Hopefully it will arrive very shortly…

Chris

excellent, i look forward to hearing more about your adventures with the Arc AT. i'm going to sew a copy of it for my 5-year-old son (and it won't hurt that it can be dual-purposed for Mama or Daddy), except i'll probably bump it down to a 30 degree bag. good luck!

Can't wait to see the picture of your new Arc. I am very curious about both the Nunatak top bags and Jacks R Better quilts.

Sigh. Still waiting on the Skaha. Does not appear I will have it for a test this weekend.

Overnight delivery of a loaner skaha plus is scheduled to arrive any minute now. My red quantum skaha is not yet ready but Tom loaned me his for the trip. I appreciate that effort on his part to make sure I had what I needed since I ordered the AT/Skaha plus combo specifically so I'd have it in time for this adventure.

Pictures tonight if it all arrives as scheduled.

Yes, Nunatak rocks. They are definitely a cottage concern that should be patronized by the UL community. Now if they only provided scholarships for those who can't afford their goods!

Can you post some pictures for all of us to see the ARC A.T. and Skaha Plus?

Thanks!

I would but I still don't have my Skaha yet. I had a loaner but it's on it's way back to nunatak. Hopefully my Skaha plus will arrive soon and I can get more indepth in my review.

Chris

Itsa here. Just showed up today at lunch. Looooong wait but it appears worth it. It's quite puffy and warm for 12.26 oz. I got 1oz(+?) overfill plus the pocket as I intend to use it in the winter as well. I suppose I have the Cocoon hoody to save 2.75oz when I don't need as much warmth.

It's going to get quite a test. I'm thru biking the Colorado Trail in 10 days with just the Skaha Plus, Arc AT and my Montbell bivy. I'm off to go find an appropriately sized stuff sack for all 3 after work that can strap to my handlebars and get a couple more 2+ L Platy's for my resupply. Liquid diet for the trip as I am going as fast as possible and no stove so we'll see how that works.

Pictures tonight finally! The red Quantum fabric is stunning and my wife said the jacket is even a bit stylish! Haha. As long as it's warm…

Finally got to sleep a few nights in the setup as I ordered it (no loaner). Rated to 40degF? Easily with my setup. Both nights it was lows in the mid 40s and I didn't even have the hood up. Standing around in just shorts in the morning with the jacket was fun and I stayed plenty warm. On the top of Quandary Peak we didn't even need the jackets! It was very calm winds which is quite atypical of my 14er experience but definitely enjoyable.

The Skaha with 1oz overfill and the pocket is luxury and the 60" Arc AT makes it easy to sleep on my side or stomach. My wife looked at the Skaha Plus with envy knowing that come winter she will steal it and make me wear the Cocoon hoody instead. She slept in a MB #7 alpine with the cocoon hoody on but not the MB hood up. She doesn't like using sleeping bag hoods so I'm going to get her a hoodless bag or quilt and a nice balaclava to add to a hooded jacket to push the temperatures. I was quite pleased to leave her 600 fill 15deg bag at home for the first time and not have a wifesicle! She definitely sleeps 10-15deg colder than me which makes me hesitant to try a 2 person bag or quilt like the new FF one. It does look sweet though.

So far I really like my arc AT and quilts in general. In fact I'm thinking about getting a Arc Expedition for me so that my wife can use the WM -25 bag on our winter trips. I only own that one for races that require a specific rating (ie arrowhead 135) or futher big mountains.

What a great Summer set-up. Post your total weight, por favore.

In fact, a Summerwight 1/2 bag in the Cocoon series should be something BMW should consider. So we could have a total synthetic version of this.

Christopher,
Good to know the setup is working great. Still waiting on my Arc AT, but it should be here in another week or so. Plan on using it with a Half Sleeve Montbell Inner and a pair of arm warmers.
How far up does your 60" AT go on you @ 5'11". Just trying to gauge what mine will be at.
Steve

Skaha Plus – 12.26 oz
Arc AT Med/Long – 8.78 oz

The Skaha has 2oz extra features to it between the overfill and the pocket. I'm okay with the weight though because I intend to use it in the winter and to boost other bags in the future. The pocket is very very nice IMO. I also have the cocoon hoody if I really need to shave a couple oz at the expense of warmth. The Skaha Plus how I ordered it is *really* warm. Blows my cocoon and Micropuffs out of the water. You could drop a little weight with lighter cord and cordlocks too but I haven't got around to it yet.

The length of the 60" arc AT is maybe 3-4" below my armpits when wearing the skaha plus but it creeps down a little futher in the night sometimes. I'm glad I didn't get a standard medium at 5'11". If I get an arc edge in the future I would make sure it's long enough. It's harder to "cheat" on length with a quilt vs a std bag.

If I wanted the lightest setup I would have gotten an arc edge with no jacket. I wanted a very versatile setup though so the sub 9oz arc AT in my quiver is very worth it. I don't know how many times I've found the bag/jacket combo to be much more enjoyable than "just" an ultralight bag.