Mountain Hardwear Sprite 1

[hikerboy4211]

I recently bought the Sprite 1 and have been able use it in cold conditions
(20-30*) and very rainy conditions. It worked great in both, but there were a few minor problems. In the cold conditions the ground was frozen and i wasnt able to get the stakes very far into the ground, and this NOT being a free-standing tent, makes it difficult to set up properly. In the rainy conditions, it worked great and i didnt get wet at all. There is one minor flaw though, the rain fly has a string on the under side that holds the vestibule door up on the rain fly. When the fly was closed that string hung down just far enough to touch the tent and the rain soaked through the fly at that point dampining the string and it eventually started dripping into the tent. It poured all night and i only had a few drops on me in the morning so it wasnt unbearable. If you are over 6ft tall, this tent might make you a little claustrophobic. I do love the area inside the tent to store my pack and stuff. All in all this tent performed well and is a great ultra-light tent

[tcha5782]

Hey Hikerboy,
If you are still checking posts regarding this message, I have a newbie question for you -
I'm finalizing plans to hike the majority of the AT and a few years ago a friend got me the Sprite 1 but I haven't had the chance to use it in the field until now. I just tested it last night at around 40 degrees and didn't need extra layers to stay warm (just the thin liners I'm bringing to sleep in) so I think I'll be fine with any weather I might get.

I've read several reviews saying that people have stayed comfortable in wind and rain, but I'm a bit confused about how to properly set up the tent. First off let me state that I am not sure at all how to secure the tent with guy-out cords or the ones tied to the rainfly. Am I just tying them down to something so that the wind won't blow it away? Also, when I set the tent up last night, there was space between the fly and the ground for drafts to get in. Wouldn't hard rain and/or wind just blow through? Maybe when people refer to staying dry they just mean within reason.

Also, is condensation on the inside of the fly a given? It didn't seem to get inside the tent although the area around my head seemed damp (could just be moisture from my breath collecting). Thanks for any time you can provide.

[Rowdy Yates]

Hey Hikerboy,
If you are still checking posts regarding this message, I have a newbie question for you -
I'm finalizing plans to hike the majority of the AT and a few years ago a friend got me the Sprite 1 but I haven't had the chance to use it in the field until now. I just tested it last night at around 40 degrees and didn't need extra layers to stay warm (just the thin liners I'm bringing to sleep in) so I think I'll be fine with any weather I might get.

I've read several reviews saying that people have stayed comfortable in wind and rain, but I'm a bit confused about how to properly set up the tent. First off let me state that I am not sure at all how to secure the tent with guy-out cords or the ones tied to the rainfly. Am I just tying them down to something so that the wind won't blow it away? Also, when I set the tent up last night, there was space between the fly and the ground for drafts to get in. Wouldn't hard rain and/or wind just blow through? Maybe when people refer to staying dry they just mean within reason.

Also, is condensation on the inside of the fly a given? It didn't seem to get inside the tent although the area around my head seemed damp (could just be moisture from my breath collecting). Thanks for any time you can provide.

If you will go to www.mountainhardwear.com , click on Tents, Then click on Backpacking Tents you can there open the Sprite 1 Tent page and scroll down to Tent Setup PDF and all the instructions with diagrams can be found there. Good luck and enjoy your tent.

[tcha5782]

Thanks Rowdy,
I actually already checked that page out, and I still have the manual from the purchase. It just doesn't seem to address just how draft/rain-proof the tent is meant to be, and although people seem to report that it does well in the field, every time I pitch it there is a gap of a few inches between the ground and the rainfly, which is why I was throwing it out there. Maybe you know - is that just standard for tents and nothing to worry about? I think either way I'm going with what I got - was just curious.
Thanks again

[John Klein]

The gap should help with ventilation.

[Tuckahoe]

Thanks Rowdy,
I actually already checked that page out, and I still have the manual from the purchase. It just doesn't seem to address just how draft/rain-proof the tent is meant to be, and although people seem to report that it does well in the field, every time I pitch it there is a gap of a few inches between the ground and the rainfly, which is why I was throwing it out there. Maybe you know - is that just standard for tents and nothing to worry about? I think either way I'm going with what I got - was just curious.
Thanks again

My hiking partner has the Sprite and is pretty happy with it. It got its first real work out back in October when we camped at the Bears Den in a pretty heavy rain. LOTS OF RAIN. And for Brian there was not a drip of water in the tent and his pack stayed dry in the vestibule.

Now, a gap between the rain fly and the ground is quite alright. With the tain fly properly set up and staked out, it will shed rain water away from the tent without a problem. It will also allow ventilation.

If you look in my photo gallery, there is a picture of Brian the next morning out of his Sprite after the rain.

[Rowdy Yates]

Thanks Rowdy,
I actually already checked that page out, and I still have the manual from the purchase. It just doesn't seem to address just how draft/rain-proof the tent is meant to be, and although people seem to report that it does well in the field, every time I pitch it there is a gap of a few inches between the ground and the rainfly, which is why I was throwing it out there. Maybe you know - is that just standard for tents and nothing to worry about? I think either way I'm going with what I got - was just curious.
Thanks again

There are very few of the backpacking tents, if any, that has the rain fly tight against the ground. The inch or so is to allow ventilation and yet keep the water away from the occupant. I have this tent and have had no problems with it.

[tcha5782]

Thanks everybody! I am super excited to start my thru-hike this Friday and I am sure the Sprite will work out just fine.