Bat Ray tested

“I wonder if I got the last one BC. Start the bidding! ;o)

Who knows, I may never use this. I just hate to pass up a bargain. It looks interesting though.”

“I can see it now, the next TT outing, there will be 20 batrays, and 1 lone Ozark Trail Biodome.”

“Yes and my Nallo2 which I will pitch 2 inches from Buddha's BatRay so he can share the inevitable 2 AM critter tent stomping.”

“Hey Pennsy, I ordered mine around midnight on Sun 12-1. I might have gotten the last one then since Big Coop posted they were sold out 8-9 hrs later. I received an email telling me it shipped today. To bad I won't have it for TC2. We could set up a Bat Ray Only Section”

“Or a Bat Ray auction section Ewker. ;o)

I won't be there though. Do me a favor and keep everyone awake at night for my sake, ok?”

“Got my $47 teal Bat Ray today. I don't mind the color at all. Easier on the eyes than my bright yellow tent. This thing looks pretty cool, and roomy.”

“Anybody use the Bat Ray in snow? I'm tempted to try it out this weekend in the Catskills (NY).

Anybody but me ever going to post again on this thread? ;o)”

“Hey Pennsy, how come you got yours before mine came? Must have something to do with living in the middle of nowhere. Gonna try mine out in the snow this weekend -
assuming it's here by then. We're due for 6-8" tomorrow. Be nice if the temps got above 10, but it doesn't look likely. Don't think I'll need the bug screen for a few months.”

“I suppose we'll be trying ours out in the snow soon. It's either the Batray or the trekker tarp, don't own a tent. Let us know how it works please!”

“Pennsy, from what I hear about Towndawg no one will even come close to his snoring.

Sorry you can't make this trip, let me know how your Bat Ray works out”

“I think y'all are waitin' for Batman to come out of the closet and use the Bat Ray on you! Oh Bruce......”

“I used the Bat Ray this past weekend in the Catskills (NY). It was winter conditions with temps in the teens and at least a foot of snow on the ground.

It's pretty easy to set-up. Most of the set-up time was for ice axing holes for the many tie-outs. There was plenty of room for me and all my gear. With no floor, I like the fact that I could have cooked inside it if the weather got nasty.

I weighed it before the trip on a digital scale and it came in at 3lbs 7ounces, including tie-outs, stakes, poles, and stuff sack. Next time I use it I will use a trekking pole in place of the main pole and bring the weight to 3lbs or a tad under.”

“The bat ray sure is nice. Glad to hear it worked well, in winter no less.”

“Under "Warning! Please Read, in the instruction manual, it states:

"Never place your stove, hibachi, campfire, or other heat source in or near your tent."

Damned lawyers.

How did it handle in the snow pennsy? Were you happy with it?

I finally received mine today!”

“Does it say that in the Bat Ray manual? I thought that was one of the features of a floorless tent.

But yeah BB, I liked it. Setting it up in the snow was no problem. It took a bit of effort to get all the stakes in the ground, but no big deal.

It helped that I set it up where someone else camped the night before. Otherwise I would have stamped an area down with snowshoes. I need to get a larger ground sheet because of the extra room.

The front door is mesh which could bring weather into play if the wind was right (or wrong). However, there is probably enough room to slide towards the other end to avoid it.

Hey, for 47 smackeroos, ya can't beat it. Thanks for the heads up on this puppy Birch and Sass!

Btw - how's the knee big guy?”

“It sold out before I could get it.”

“I think Ewker and myself got the last 2. I didn't see it anywhere on the Mountain Hardwear site so it must be closed out.”

“I've always been leery of tarps & floorless tents in the catskills where there are poisonous snakes (in the warmer weather). The Adirondacks don't have hardly any snakes, with the exception of the hudson & champlain valley. The no-see-ums & mayflys will eat you alive, but you can learn to dance the Adirondack shuffle.”

“...and to think Mountain Hardware discontinued this item. I wonder if Backpacker Mag's less-than-perfect article had anything to do with it?

btw - I have first dibs on Buddha Bear's Bat Ray if'n he finds he's too tall and it's too small for him. lol”

“Pennsy - How are those tent stakes that came with it? They look fairly heavy duty, but I haven't time take mine out and set it up, yet. Just arrived on saturday morning. My hiking stick's a little tall but think I can adapt it to leave their pole at home.”

“Steiny, those stakes kick all forms of @ss! I'd like a dozen more. Ya can't bend them. They go into the ground easy.”

“btw, you can buy more @ REI, they're sold individually...I think they're $1.59 each.”

“Mine finally showed up yesterday. At least I hope that is what is in that large box. I have a trip coming up next weekend so I want to set mine up before then. I do need to get a ground cloth but I just can't seem to find any tyvek laying around. I may have to make a midnight run and rip it off a house....lol”

“What Sass said Steiny. They are light also, about the same as the no-bendiums I got from Campmor.

I'm also thinking you could do without a main pole period if a tree is handy. Something to try out next time.

Ewk - I doubt you'd be the first to pirate tyvek off a house. ;0)”

“I'm sure mine is sitting at home on my front steps as we speak... but I'm stuck 7 hours away from home for work so I can't even set it up for fun. :-(

Looking forward to getting some use out of it.”

“I had been looking for the optional floor for the Bat Ray 2 since I was not having any luck on finding any Tyvek. Well today I received a call from a company that I had called a couple of days ago and they said they found one. So I ordered it today and should have it in a few days.
If anyone is interested I got it from Summit Hut 1-800-499-8696. I don't know if they have can find anymore or not but if you want one it might be worth the call.”

“Ewker, did you find out the weight on it? I'm glad you found one.”

“Sass, I didn't even bother to ask about the weight. I was suprised that the guy even called me back.

BTW a friend of mine called me this morning and told me he found a piece of Tyvek 8' x 10' that he is going to let me have.

Oh well, I can fix up the Tyvek like HPM did his and use the Bat Ray floor as a ground cloth. Lots of options now and still have my tent to use.”

“In case someone wants tyvek they sell it for $2 per linear foot on the Dancing Light Gear. This should be the address trailquest.net/store”

“hey arky, i was in your neck od the woods yesterday man i though about ya but i couldn't remember where you worked....”

“Headin' out tomorrow to snowshoe about 6 miles of the trail I maintain. I'll do a little trimming and cuttin' up blowdowns, and then I'm gonna spend the night by the river in my virgin Bat Ray. About 3' of snow on the ground, temps are s'posed to be 5-10, clear skies. We'll see if the stakes that came with it are any good in packed snow and how warm I stay. I'll let y'all know how the night was.”

“Dang...tarpin in 3' of snow, with a virgin to boot. You may need a dog to keep you warm...and if you bring one, don't forget some of that delicious pudding. 8)”

“Pudding's coming - dog's not. He's being replaced by a member of the opposite sex. We'll be warm ;)”

“oooLALA! Steiny's gonna snuggle.”

“Guess what's back?

Back again.

Bat Ray's back.

Tell a friend.”

“$48”

“Gee, I should buy another one! It's a pretty sweet set-up, especially at that price.”

“Buddha, have you used yours yet. I am taking mine to Fl this weekend to use for the first time.”

“Yeah. I used it for 2 days in the snow at Hoist Lakes in December. It held up well, but was a little cold. You should be OK in FLA., especially since you got the optional floor.”

“There was only one (1) left.”

“i just bought one. thanks for the heads up.”

“Don't get your hopes up Wolfman...I'm definitly not.

When I ordered, the lady said there was only 1 of them for sale...just one. I asked her to find out if it had been sold yet and was told she had no way of knowing. So I ordered it anyways not knowing if someone had already gotten it (which I wouldn't doubt is the case). I plan to call tommorrow as the saleswoman told me to call back in 24 hours to see if my order had gone through...if it didn't then someone else got it.”

“Well, whoever gets the batray is gonna be pleased...maybe you two can have joint custody?”

“I got mine a couple of weeks ago. Killer for 48 bucks. They only had one when I ordered mine, a return I guess. Used it last weekend and was very impressed with the quality and ease of set-up. Need to find or make me a groudsheet. My footprint for the Jetstream tent works pretty good. Bit small though. Did have some condensation, but not real bad. Cool set-up.”

“Guess who's order was processed and shipped out today?
:)”

“Buddur, congrats! Welcome to wonderful world of the batray.When do you get to test it?”

“I'll get to test it when there's NO snow on the ground.

Looking at the STP site this morning I found these MH canyon pants for $29 and wish I'd've seen them the day I ordered...cause I'd have a pair to wear with my new shelter. lol”

“Dang! Those Canyon Pants are already gone in my size...boy was that fast.”

“I've got one of the Bat Rays that STP sold that I've decided that I don't want. I paid 48 bucks plus shipping for it, and for $50 I'll pay shipping. It will include everything it came with, and it's been set up twice for a total of about two hours; once in my living room, and once in my back yard. It's a great tent/tarp, but just not for me. I also have a'99 Clip Flashlight w/ Fastback footprint that I'll sell for $110 shipped, and a '98 Dana Design Glacier, medium size, that I'll sell for $125 shipped. I've bought new stuff, and need to (according to my wife) sell some of my old gear.”

“Yo Rooster...
Check with Wolfman's Brother to see if his STP Batray came through. Cause when I ordered, they told me they had 0ne (1) left and the next day I confirmed that I got it, whereas Wolfman posted just after me saying he ordered one too...and I wonder if he got his (know what I mean).”