Omm 2012

[Hank]

Chevin - thanks for that. The clothing info is very helpful.
I suppose I'd like to know how you get your sack down to 3.2kg...

3kg and 10l sacks are pretty extreme, even on the Elite class. I got everything in a 15l sack for a couple of solo MMs, but it resembled one of those "snakes in a can" tricks when I opened it at mid-camp, and I expended a significant amout of energy on the morning of day 2 pummeling everything back in. I now use a 20l sack which weighs virtually the same and makes life easier.

Solid fuel blocks is a great shout. Much lighter and smaller (and cheaper) than gas and stove, and it's not like you don't have a few extra minutes in camp to wait for your water to boil. Spending a bomb on a light tent makes a massive difference. You can get a Terra Nova sub 700g job for maybe £300. Lightweight sleeping bag makes a big difference too. Beyond that it's how light your clothing and food are, and how much of each you need to take to survive (or be comfortable, but I'm guessing you're a survival kinda guy).

Another tip from my previous OMM partner is rather than taking dry socks for day 2, simply cook day 1's socks in the morning. It looks and smells a little odd, but he tells me they sure are toasty. I tend to go with wet, cold socks.

What course you doing? Hopefully see you there.

[Mark L]

Thanks Hank, great response.
Just dug my old Terra Nova tent and my "lightweight" sleeping bag out of the garage. Tent - 1550g. Call it 800g each.
Sleeping bag 800g.
I was thinking along the lines of solid fuel so thanks for confirming that.
If I remember correctly my kit for the Lakes 100 including food, clothes, headtorch, waterproofs etc came in at around 4kg so I suppose being optimistic we're talking 5 - 6kg for the OMM unless I go out and splurge a load of dosh. We're doing the B course and we're not out to be particularly competitive so I reckon what we've got will suffice.

I like the sock tip - but I find that toasting socks make them a bit crisp!

One more question - what to sleep on - air bed, Karrimat or bubble wrap?

Yeah, hopefully see you there. If not, come the Lakeland 100 I might be one of the endless stream of 50ers who tell you that you're awesome.

[ba-ba]

1.5kg for a tent is pretty jurassic - 1KG or below is standard for most Terra Novas now.
My sleeping bag is c.800g. Top guys will be carrying 300g ones, but I'm too much of a skinflint to shell out for one at the moment. I also enjoy being warm.
Big Bubbled bubblewrap feels amazing and warm after a day on the hill - although only carry enough to go to your bum. The laminated map will provide enough insulation for your feet.

[karen nash]

Mark- my terra nova laser ( not even competition version) is under 1kg
PHD sleeping bag under 500g (silk liner ads 100g and I WISH i had tajen it a couple of weeks ago in alps)
Get my sack to under or around 5kg even less (without water) for MM even solo
Now use Neo Air as bed- my hips and knees appreciate it and the extra weight is minimal compared to the comfort and extra insulation, so can use lighter sleeping bag further into autumn
Have not used the solid fuel - did experiment with foil trays one year- and would never do it again!

[Toreador]

Mark- my terra nova laser ( not even competition version) is under 1kg

Did you have to cut bits off to get down to that weight? Mine is about 1.2kg.

Though I still sometimes take my Laser Large (1.6kg) instead - if the weather's foul then it's hard to stay dry in a tent that's meant for 1, and a good night's sleep can be better than the slight advantage gained by shedding 400g.
It's not that long since a 2kg tent was at the cutting edge of lightweight kit!

[Hank]

Karen, definitely give the solid fuel a bash. I still use a pan, but I use it with an 11g titanium tripod that holds the fuel block (cost about £8). It folds in on itself so takes up virtually no space when packed. You can ditch the stove altogether and just use rocks to put your pan on and put your fuel block on a square of foil. This method has passed kit checks at both the OMM and LAMM! If you're using solid fuel I recommend a sheet of foil to use as a wind-break.

Mark, for a sleeping mat I use this stuff: http://www.screwfix.com/p/radiator-r...FcYMfAodai0AMA

It's super light (from memory about 70g for a 4m length). It's basically foil-backed foam. Take 4m in a roll and you can double it over to get 10mm thick, 2m long mat. The foil means it keeps ground moisture out and provides mega insulation. The roll itself can be lashed to the outside of your pack if space inside is an issue. And it's cheap as chips.

That's stove, fuel and sleeping mat for about 100g weight and change out of a twenty pound note.

[MarkL]

Hank, Karen, Toreador, Ba-ba and all - thanks for your very helpful tips. When I occasionally manage to elevate myself to have a serious query on this forum it usually pays off big time!

Foil backed foam, titanium tripod, jurassic tent, "lightweight" sleeping bag, toasted socks it is then!

[Tahr]

Talking about MM equipment, on the minimum equipment listfor the OMM is a survival bag, Iwanted to take my RAB Gortex Bivi bag, does anybody know if this would be OKinstead of the plastic survival bag?

Many thanks

Tahr

[Toreador]

Talking about MM equipment, on the minimum equipment listfor the OMM is a survival bag, Iwanted to take my RAB Gortex Bivi bag, does anybody know if this would be OK instead of the plastic survival bag?

Don't see why not, it's more substantial (and heavy) than the minimum requirement. But if in doubt, email Jen, she usually replies pretty quickly.

[drmorris]

I have an old, orange, heavyweight 'survival bag' which I must have had since... ages.
Seen similar for sale now 'Highlander' type brands. Heavy, but you'd be glad of it if you needed it.

There are much lighter, light gauge polythene ones available - I have been lent one - which I assume would pass the kit check.

Planning on running with one of each in our team

Also available in foil