Electric Vehicle - Tent & Mattress

It's unlikely we will ever own an electric vehicle (EV).  It's not that I have something against EV's.  Rather it's the maths.  Let me explain.

There are approximately 15 million light vehicles (cars, vans, utes, etc) in Australia with approximately one million new light vehicles sold every year.  Last year 3.6% of new light vehicle sales were EV's with the rest being ICE (Internal Combustion Engines [petrol/diesel])

If the government were to legislate all new light vehicles had to be EV's then it would take 15 years for all the ICE vehicles to be replaced.  That's assuming the world could produce one million EV's for Australia.  I doubt they could produce half that number which would mean 30 years to replace the ICE vehicles.

Now consider that in Australia SUV's 4WD and Ute's are very popular.  Currently there are almost no EV's in these categories.  If you look at the traffic on weekends and holidays you will notice the high number of light vehicles towing boats, trailer, camper trailer and caravans.  The capacity of batteries in current EV's reduces very quickly when towing.  Moreover it's going the be a long time before (if ever) there are charging stations in remote parts of Australia.  ICE vehicles will still be in demand.

In 15 years I'll be 87 (or dead).  Moreover at 87 I'll probably no longer be driving.  Perhaps I'll be riding Jan's eTrike  

However I recognise the number of EV's will gradually increase and the number of ICE vehicles commensurately reduce.  Therefore it's possible the value of our 4WD will actually increase as the years pass and 4WD ICE vehicles become difficult to source. 

Tent & Mattress 

Jan and I went shopping this morning.  After several days of research I was seeking to buy a suitable tent and mattress for the Taiwan trip.  Both need to be functional, light and cheap.

We already own two self inflating mattresses.  Neither is suitable for the Taiwan trip as the don't pack down to a small size.  I'd decided I needed an air mattress.  It also needed to be reasonably thick as my old hips and shoulders don't like the hardness of the ground.  Boating-Camping-Fishing (BCF) had a 'Wanderer' air mattress 95mm thick which weighed 1.25kg and packed down quite small.

We then travelled to 'Anaconda' and looked at tents.  I want a 'free standing' tent.  One were pegs and guy ropes aren't essential in erecting it.  This is because some campsites only allow tents to be erected on a concrete base.  I might also want to 'freedom camp' under a veranda or small pagoda.  After some searching I opted for a "Kakadu II" weighing 2.55kg which was on sale for $99.

Don't be fooled by the waterproof looking black stuff sack containing the tent.  Holding the bag to the light I could see tiny holes in the base.

Not too hard to erect.  I'll need to do it a few more times to improve my technique.  Being green in colour may make it less visible should I need to freedom camp.  The steel pegs are rubbish!  I'll take some of my existing heavier duty pegs.

Online instructions stated the mattress needed to be inflated using a pump.  Instead I 'huffed and puffed' which worked.

Plenty of room inside the tent which also has a vestibule where I could store some gear.  I'll use my gear bag as a pillow.  I can probably secure the bike to a nearby tree or post using my security cable and the battery can go inside the tent. 

Both the tent and mattress bags are small enough to fit into the trailer.

Hopefully a cheap but effective solution. 

I'm not going to take a stove and cooking gear as food outlets are abundant in Taiwan.