"Hexamid Twin set up on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon in late 2013 in winds gusting to 60mph."
Did you measure the wind speed? What was the constant speed of the wind at that time?
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Altaplex – zpacks now has the ultimate tent
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"Hexamid Twin set up on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon in late 2013 in winds gusting to 60mph."
When you're inside a tent or tarp that does not handle wind well, it will make a 15mph wind seem like a 60mph wind… :)
No objective way to know wind speed without an instrument to measure…
billy
"The Zpacks tents are superb in high wind."
I have a zPacks Hexamid with beak…
I think it's down right scary in high winds…
would not be my choice if I anticipated high winds…
billy
"No objective way to know wind speed without an instrument to measure…"
Ah Billy, if only the National Weather Service recording stations possessed such an exotic instrument.
The Canyon forecast that day was for gusts to 60mph.
I can't find any record for the Canyon itself, but NWS records for Flagstaff airport show max gust 48mph, max sustained wind 36mph.
http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KFLG/2013/10/28/DailyHistory.html
If it's going to be windy I secure the beak with inelastic Dyneema cord, rather than shock cord, which improves matters. I wasn't suggesting that a Hexamid is a silent oasis in gale-force winds. Do you know any tent that is, at any weight? But if you set it up right, a Hexamid is rock solid. When you're certain that your tent is not going to blow away, a bit of noise and vigorous air conditioning is rather easier to bear.
Like some earlier posts, I've been wondering about the 10 stakes Zpacks recommends for the Altaplex. There are 4 main corners plus a front and a rear vestibule corner requiring staking, so I see a 6-stake minimum. At first I thought the other 4 stakes were merely to provide lift to the head, foot, and rear walls, which really shouldn't be too important for a tent with this much height, or for a smaller person. But in Jeff Sims' first photo and several of Joe V's photos it looks like the main role of these 4 stakes & tie-outs might be to hold up three sides of the bathtub floor. Can any Altaplex owners comment on the importance of these 4 stakes? Also, Joe states that it can "be pitched lower to the ground to block more wind, dust, or snow." The Duplex doesn't seem to do well when pitched lower. Have any Altaplex owners played around with lower pitches? Does a lower pitch block wind-blown rain and dust, but cause serious condensation problems?
Any updates from Altaplex owners? I have the same questions as Ron does as well.
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