· The standard blue foam (modeled after Army sleeping pads): Rugged, tough, indestructible, absolutely dummy proof and the least comfortable of the list. However, they keep sharp things out of your back and at least let you sleep. These are good for boys or if you are in a location you are concerned about durability. You can get these much cheaper at Wal-Mart. http://www.rei.com/product/374053/standard-blue-foam-pad-regular
· Thermarest ridge rest. Tries to make the blue sleep pad more comfortable by softening the foam and adding small ridges. You’ll take a slight hit on durability but get a slightly more comfortable sleeping pad. Still have a dummy-proof sleeping pad that any one can setup and use. http://www.rei.com/product/810386/therm-a-rest-ridgerest-solite-sleeping-pad
· Thermarest Basecamp. This one is my high dollar pad- and the most comfortable one I’ve ever slept on for a sleeping pad. It is a self-inflating pad and reasonably rugged. The existence of a patch kit tells me they can fail, but mine never has. I can tell you that I let my wife sleep on this once and she now prefers sleeping on this instead of the Army cot. At 4lbs, it is also the heaviest and largest pad in the bunch. I’m generally unlikely to carry it on backpacking trips. http://www.rei.com/product/797485/therm-a-rest-basecamp-sleeping-pad [Note – there are several other brands that follow this same self-inflating model with similar specs for less money. I just have a good track record with Thermarest and like their products.
· Thermarest has one level above the basecamp called the luxury pad. I don’t have personal experience with it but it gets great reviews if you’re willing to drop the dough. http://www.rei.com/product/797494/therm-a-rest-luxury-map-sleeping-pad
· My most recent acquisition to my sleeping pad line is the Thermarest Neoair Trekker. It isn’t quite as rugged as the basecamp pad and I have to blow this one up (as opposed to self-inflating) and it is also more expensive that my Basecamp pad and just slightly less comfortable. So why did I get it and decide to keep it? It’s only 16 ozs and rolls up incredibly small. In other words, this is my backpacking sleeping pad. http://www.rei.com/product/810375/therm-a-rest-neoair-trekker-sleeping-pad
Note: contrary to what it may appear, I'm not getting any kickback to endorse REI or Thermarest. REI was a convenient place to list all the thermarest products, and as i explained, I have a good track record with Thermarest and will probably stick with them until given a motive to do otherwise.
