Chris Hinds: Fast doesn’t mean uncomfortable
Chris won the Great British Divide, so knows a thing or two about sleeping out.
What’s the chief thing you look for when choosing kit?
If it comes down to a decision between comfort and weight I’ll usually choose comfort over the extra grams. If you’re racing for days on end, the weight saving of a few grams versus a good night’s sleep just isn’t worth the trade-off for me. The first ultra-race I did, I went for weight savings everywhere: some foil-backed bubble wrap as a sleep mat and a basic Alpkit bivvy bag with no tarp. After wasting hours trying to sleep on an impossibly uncomfortable floor I ended up near hypothermic, and soaked from the rain that had rolled in during the night. Ever since then I’ve always carried a proper blow-up air mat, clamshell bivvy bag and an air pillow. Can’t put a weight on a good night’s sleep
What’s your favourite piece of camping kit?
I really love my Outdoor Research Helium bivvy – it wasn’t a cheap purchase. but you don’t need a tarp which helps offset the cost (a bit). Super-simple design, one pole that creates a hooped space above your head and then a clamshell closure with built-in mosquito net. In a country known for both rain and midges it has become the MVP of my kit list. Only thing is that it doesn’t have any ventilation built in: you’ve got to keep the zip partially open to get fresh air. Didn’t realise this the first time I stayed in it, woke up halfway through the night suffocating in a sealed plastic bag. Hard lesson but one you don’t forget in a hurry!
Advice for a good night’s sleep?
A good feed, preferably a hot one keeps you warmer through the night. This might also just be my justification for eating chocolate in bed though! If you can, keep a dry set of clothes for sleeping in – keeping warm when you’re wet is almost impossible. If you need to dry stuff out, slipping it in between your mat and sleeping bag can help dry things out a bit. Picking locations can make a big difference too; staying under a tree isn’t so great for stargazing. but does tend to stay warmer than somewhere windswept and exposed.
Any unexpected luxury items?
My Big Agnes AXL air pillow is a brilliant addition to the kit list. I read once that putting your shoes under your head makes a great pillow. THIS. IS. A. LIE. Unless you’ve got boa-shaped lumps in your head it’s going to be a smelly, uncomfortable experience. For 45g you can have a proper plush night’s sleep. Also if you happen to snore like me, a pillow might mean that your fellow campers don’t smother you in your sleep.
Favourite camp breakfast?
If I’m racing it’s usually whatever well-travelled snack is closest to hand. If I’m not on the clock though, I absolutely love a good black coffee and porridge while staring out the entrance of my nylon cave. A bag of oats mixed with some Marvel milk powder travels really well – pour some boiling water in and let it sit for a few minutes. Once it’s cooked I’ll have another bag of dried fruit, nuts and dark chocolate that I stir in. Proper posh porridge from a bag!
Any tales of bad camping kit choices?
Foil bubble wrap as a sleeping mat was one of my poorer choices. But the worst by far was down to poor kit set-up rather than poor kit. Pitched my bivvy in the open and left the storm flap up in a torrential rainstorm. I slept like a baby, but then woke up to the feeling of water lapping at the edges of my sleeping mat. The bivvy had sagged with the rain and turned into a funnel that had directed all the rain straight into the bag. It was absolutely swimming, all my food was a soggy lump and my phone had been totally drowned. Turned into an expensive lesson in kit set-up!
