WindOnHisNose
BENEFACTOR
Lino Lakes MN (MY18)
One of the things I learned at New Holstein on my first trip there many moons ago was the importance of a good tent. While having had many years of backpacking I knew the importance of weight, but I almost always pitched the tent in the woods, where the wind doesn't usually cause much stress. Not so in camping at a wide open airport. It seems that each and every year we experience at least one line of thunderstorms with very high winds and driving rain. Several years ago one of you folks convinced me to go from my North Face tent to Big Agnes, and I followed the suggestion, as well as the advice from Wild Bill Rusk (who served as the officiant at our wedding)..."If you want your wife to enjoy camping, get a tent in which she can be comfortable", so I purchased the Taj Mahal, so to speak, from Big Agnes. The Big House 4. We have enjoyed that tent and I found myself swapping out my North Face low profile tent for first a two person tent, then a three person tent, both from Big Agnes. I have appreciated the worksmanship and attention to detail of their product.
However...
This summer the Mother of All Thunderstorms hit us at New Holstein and our Big Agnes Big House 4 tent didn't do well. I hunkered down inside the tent when the storm hit but was quite dismayed to find that the tent collapsed to the point that I had water coming in and I had to hold the tent upright for 20 minutes until the wind subsided. The next morning I examined the tent and found that virtually each of the three main tent poles were substantially bent. Thanks to Lou and the team of experts there at New Holstein we were able to straighten out the tubes somewhat by using a slide tube that he had for repairing/straightening the tube.
I left a message for the folks at Big Agnes that I would like to purchase replacement poles for the tent and was informed that I could not purchase replacement poles, but rather my only option was to send in the damaged poles for repair. As one who appreciates tube and fabric, I am aware that once a tube is bent, regardless of the composition, there exists a certain weakness that can lead to bad outcomes. I have just sent a message to Big Agnes to see if they might be willing to at least offer the option of repair vs replacement. While I understand the desire to fix, rather than replace, things in general, I don't want to find myself in the same New Holstein predicament again.
I just wanted to give you folks a heads up regarding the Big Agnes policy as you consider options should you need to purchase a tent. This policy is a deal breaker for me, and I would encourage looking at different options.
Randy
However...
This summer the Mother of All Thunderstorms hit us at New Holstein and our Big Agnes Big House 4 tent didn't do well. I hunkered down inside the tent when the storm hit but was quite dismayed to find that the tent collapsed to the point that I had water coming in and I had to hold the tent upright for 20 minutes until the wind subsided. The next morning I examined the tent and found that virtually each of the three main tent poles were substantially bent. Thanks to Lou and the team of experts there at New Holstein we were able to straighten out the tubes somewhat by using a slide tube that he had for repairing/straightening the tube.
I left a message for the folks at Big Agnes that I would like to purchase replacement poles for the tent and was informed that I could not purchase replacement poles, but rather my only option was to send in the damaged poles for repair. As one who appreciates tube and fabric, I am aware that once a tube is bent, regardless of the composition, there exists a certain weakness that can lead to bad outcomes. I have just sent a message to Big Agnes to see if they might be willing to at least offer the option of repair vs replacement. While I understand the desire to fix, rather than replace, things in general, I don't want to find myself in the same New Holstein predicament again.
I just wanted to give you folks a heads up regarding the Big Agnes policy as you consider options should you need to purchase a tent. This policy is a deal breaker for me, and I would encourage looking at different options.
Randy