Reviews > Sleep Gear > Pads and Air Mattresses > Insul Mat Womens Max-Lite > Emma Eyeball > Field Report

Field Report – Insul Mat Women’s Edition Max-Lite Long Sleeping Pad

February 23, 2004

Manufacturer: Pacific Outdoor Equipment (P.O.E.)

URL: http://www.pacoutdoor.com

Year of Manufacture: 2004

Listed Weight: 28 ounces (794 grams)

Actual Weight: 27.9 ounces (791 grams)

Dimensions:  20” x 72” x 1.0” (51 cm x 183 cm x 2.54 cm)

Product Description: The Insul Mat max-lite is a coffin-shaped, self-inflating, open-cell foam filled sleeping pad intended specifically for women.  The exterior of the pad is nylon ripstop, with the top portion colored bright green and the underside a steel grey.  The valve is brass, but with a hard plastic screw-cap that is permanently attached.  Please see my Initial Report for a more detailed description of the pads appearance.

Tester:  Colleen Porter

Tester Biography can be found at the end of the report.

Field Information: I have slept on the max-lite four nights so far.  Three of those nights were spent on hard-packed sand in Anza-Borrego State Park, at a popular desert campground, on nights when the temperature never dipped below the 40’s (about 5 C).  The other night was on dirt and grass, in a narrow canyon in the San Mateo Canyon Wilderness where temperatures dropped below freezing.  I slept in the same sleeping bag on all four nights, an approximately 20-degree (-6 C) down bag, and also in the same shelter, a Black Diamond Megamid.

Field Testing:  Admittedly, I haven’t used the max-lite on solid rock, but I am quite surprised at how comfortable it is.  Because it is one inch thick, I expected it to be comparable to a Therm-a-Rest Ultralite pad, which I could never get a solid night of sleep on. 

For the three nights in the desert, the pad was perfect and all that I needed.  I laid down and never gave it another thought.  I am mostly a side sleeper and I never felt my hipbones or shoulders hit the ground.  I was warm and cozy and the only discomforts that ever woke me up were a full bladder and a snoring campmate. 

The sub-freezing night was a slightly different story.  While the pad was still comfortable and offered completely satisfactory cushion, the reduced insulative qualities of the pad made themselves clear.  I could very definitely feel where I was losing heat through the pad and into the cold, cold ground.  Wherever my torso pressed against the pad, I developed cold spots that were uncomfortable enough that I spent most of the night shifting around to regain warmth.  I wore every piece of clothing I had, and while I was in no danger of freezing to death I was distinctly uncomfortable.  It was not the best night of sleep I have ever had. 

Since I am mostly a side-fetal-sleeper, I cannot really judge the effectiveness of the un-pierced Basix foam insulation at the foot of the pad.  However, the less-pierced Dot foam in the hip area is brilliant and in my opinion makes the women’s edition of the max-lite a truly wonderful pad for any woman who wants a lighter one-inch thick pad but is concerned that her hips will poke into the ground. 

The pad is still slow to self-inflate, but after 2 months of storage unrolled and with the valve open, it has shown a marked improvement in inflation time.  No matter how long I leave it alone, it never inflates as fully as I would like it to – I always have to blow it up a bit more, about two full breaths.

As the weather warms up, I am really looking forward to putting the max-lite through some tougher obstacles, such as the Grand Canyon, the Mojave Desert, and my local mountains.  I want to see how well it cushions my hips on solid sandstone and any other challenging terrain I come across.  It has also been pointed out to me that the max-lite may self-inflate more or less efficiently depending on the altitude I am using it at.  I will pay more attention to how quickly the max-lite inflates and then compare that time to my altitude, to see if there is any correlation.  I will also look for any signs of wear as I use the max-lite on additional nights.

Conclusions:  The women’s edition max-lite is a surprisingly comfortable 3-season sleeping pad, but it is not sufficient insulation for temperatures anywhere near freezing.  The less-pierced section of Dot foam in the hip area is a brilliant feature.  If I expect overnight temperatures under 40 degrees (4 C), I will carry a foam pad to increase the max-lite’s insulative value.

Suggestions:  I would very much like to see a ¾ length version of this pad.  The regular “unisex’ version of the max-lite is available in a ¾ length.  The extra insulation at the foot of the pad should be less necessary in the sort of temperatures that the pad is appropriate for, so why not consider doing away with the bottom third of the pad altogether?  Assuming this would actually reduce the weight of the pad by 1/4^th, a ¾ length model could knock 7 ounces (198 g) off of the pad, making it weigh 21 ounces (595 g) instead. 

Tester Name:  Colleen Porter
Age: 29 years
Gender: Female
Height: 5’8” (1.7 m)
Torso Length: 17.5” (44.5 cm)
Weight: ~ 140 lb. (64 kg)
Email:  tarbubble at yahoo dot com
Location: Orange County, CA
Date:  February 23, 2004

Other backpacks used:  Eureka Talon, Eddie Bauer 3400, REI Alpine.

Reviews > Sleep Gear > Pads and Air Mattresses > Insul Mat Womens Max-Lite > Emma Eyeball > Field Report