Appreciation post for the guy who told me my tent stakes were trash

After 3 camping trips where my tent nearly blew away, a guy at the REI parking lot pointed at my cheap stakes and said "those are just giant paperclips, man." He pointed me to some MSR groundhogs and I haven't had a single issue since. Anyone else have a random stranger save you from bad gear?

2 comments

2 Comments

jason75214h ago

Oh man, those paperclip stakes are the worst. I had a buddy who swore by them because they were lightweight, but he lost his tent in a gust on a beach trip. One thing though, the MSR Groundhogs are great but they're not the absolute best for every soil type. If you're camping in really sandy or loose ground, you still want something wider, like the snow stakes or even those big heavy duty plastic ones. The Groundhogs are perfect for normal dirt and grass though, they hold way better than the cheap wire ones. I just don't want you to think they're magic for every situation. Good on that guy for pointing you in the right direction though, saved you a lot of frustration.

nora18414h ago

Is it weird how sometimes the best advice comes from a total stranger who just calls it like it is? @jason752 makes a good point about the sand, but I figure most people learn that lesson after their tent becomes a kite once or twice anyway.