Mt Washington Sleeping Pad - Report #1 and #2 (combined)

Upon returning from my trip to Peru yesterday (May 22, 2001), I 
found a package from Paramount Outfitters on my doorstep.  The 
box was very smashed on one end (probably squished down about 5 
inches).  Inside the box was the Mt Washington Sleeping Pad in 
fine condition.  The box was much longer than the pad and the 
pad had not received any damage (not sure it would be easy to 
hurt a foam pad anyway).  

The sleeping pad is red (I expected blue since the pic on the
website has a blue pad) and comes with two straps to keep it in 
rolled position.  Attached to one of the straps is a hangtag which 
talks about how the pad is safe for the environment, but it 
doesn't say which side of the pad to sleep on.  I assume the 
egg crate side, but I'm not sure.  

The pad weighs 8.7oz with the straps and 7.2oz without the straps.
The pad is about 60" long, which is longer than a 3/4 pad but shorter 
than full length pad.  The length seems to be a nice compromise for 
my height (5'9").  The pad is thinner than I had imagined it.
The curl at the end of the pad from being rolled up didn't 
completely disappear after leaving the pad out for about 4 hours.

I did a little in-home testing of the pad during my bouldering
session yesterday.  I laid the pad out on my cold concrete
garage floor and used the pad while stretching.  Having just
spent the past 24 hours travelling by bus, taxi, and airplane and
having just finished a bouldering session, I was pretty tired.  I
actually fell asleep on the pad for a while (20 minutes?).  It 
seemed pretty comfortable, but the concrete floor might have 
sufficed in my tired state!

I also brought out my ridgerest out for a quick comparison.  I
tried both pads out side by side and didn't notice much difference
between the two.  The Ridgerest may have felt slightly more plush, 
but it was hard to tell.  One of the concerns I have regarding
the Mt Washington pad is that it will "pack out" after repeated
use.  Time will only tell if this is true (I'll report on this
concern in my 6 month report).

I plan to do an initial field test of the pad this weekend.  I'll
either use the pad while backpacking or car camping.  If I use 
the pad for backpacking, I'll try the pad for sleeping as well 
as a frame for my frameless pack.  If I go car camping,
the pad will only be tested as a sleeping pad, but I should be
able to compare the pad to some of my other pads during the same 
trip. I also plan to test the pad several more occasions while 
backpacking over the next few months.

Brad Baker