AT Horizon v. Adrenalin Campers?

[alia176]

I don't have much to add so I'll just share some experiences in the past:

I have a six year old and the three of us can hang out inside the large tent provided by the Kamparoo (similar to the KK/Adrenalin). Someone on Expo has a neat bunk bed setup for his Kamparoo for his two kids that works out nicely. Being stuck inside a RTT during inclement weather would be more confining IMHO. Basically, y'all are sitting on a mattress, waiting out the weather event. In an Adrenanlin type of trailer, everyone can move around, stand up, cook, or whatever else. In the past, we've cooked inside the tent due to the sideways rain raging outside.

The first time we met up with Spressomon in DV, the arctic cold front made the temps VERY cold when the sun went down. There we were six adults and one two year old enjoying the heat from a Mr. Buddy heater inside our Kamparoo. That heater has been replaced with an Espar unit and the whole cabin is nice and toasty before we get up in the morning. Momma sleeps in while the daughter and I get ready to go out and make breakfast. The Adrenalin unit is much nicer than mine with extra room attachments so I bet it'd very comfortable as a base camp.

Between the under bed storage and the tongue box on the Adrenalin, I bet your storage is rather large.

 

[kevint]

Alia176

Interested in hearing more about your heater. Pictures?

I'm the guy with the bunks.

 

[phillyd2]

Alia176

I'm the guy with the bunks.

Then we need pictures of that too

 

[spressomon]

I don't have much to add so I'll just share some experiences in the past:

I have a six year old and the three of us can hang out inside the large tent provided by the Kamparoo (similar to the KK/Adrenalin). Someone on Expo has a neat bunk bed setup for his Kamparoo for his two kids that works out nicely. Being stuck inside a RTT during inclement weather would be more confining IMHO. Basically, y'all are sitting on a mattress, waiting out the weather event. In an Adrenanlin type of trailer, everyone can move around, stand up, cook, or whatever else. In the past, we've cooked inside the tent due to the sideways rain raging outside.

The first time we met up with Spressomon in DV, the arctic cold front made the temps VERY cold when the sun went down. There we were six adults and one two year old enjoying the heat from a Mr. Buddy heater inside our Kamparoo. That heater has been replaced with an Espar unit and the whole cabin is nice and toasty before we get up in the morning. Momma sleeps in while the daughter and I get ready to go out and make breakfast. The Adrenalin unit is much nicer than mine with extra room attachments so I bet it'd very comfortable as a base camp.

Between the under bed storage and the tongue box on the Adrenalin, I bet your storage is rather large.

There was a great reason the 6+1/2 of us were in your Kamparoo: We couldn't fit in my then AT Horizon.

That event was the turning point for me and the initiative to move up to the next level.

 

[kevint]

Then we need pictures of that too

Here you go . . .

http://www.expeditionportal.com/for...paroo-Trans-Continental?p=1116631#post1116631

 

[24HOURSOFNEVADA]

I've had a Tentrax, AT Chaser and a Kimberly. The Kimberly was out of this world cool and pretty much the only one the wife really enjoyed camping in. She endured the others. She still speaks of the KK, when all four of us camp out of the Four Wheel Camper. The kitchen and the floor space were awesome.

 

[jonharis]

Just was refered to this thread by Ace Brown (Thanks Ace). I've been pretty busy with life and not on Expo for a while. I wanted to give some thoughts on my experiences with both trailers. Spressomon's post above about the KK and Adrenalin are spot on.

When My wife and I started looking at trailers i was 100% sold on an AT horizon. The setup had everything I wanted and very little that I didn't. I had seen many in action and was very impressed with their capability and capacity. I liked the idea of sleeping off the ground and being able to leave camp set up while we were out and about for the day. We have always been more base campers, camping in one location for at least 2 nights. I never wanted a RTT because of the weight on the roof, the inability to park in my garage and the hassle of putting it away each night and the hassle of having to put it away every day even when base camping.

We found out we were having twins and all of the desire to get a horizon or any other RTT trailer went out the window. The height was a primary concern as was the sleeping capacity. We briefly talked about getting a SoCAL Krawler AND putting a RTT on top of it but the idea of sleeping that separate from the kiddos and not having room to stand up was not appealing.

Enter the Adrenalin. I was set on buying a KK after looking at several at Cruise Moab but finding one that was for sale and in the condition I nneded for the price I could justify was not happening. i truly stumbled upon Adrenalin in an unrelated discussion with a relative and the rest was history. The thread linked earlier and in my sig pretty much sums everything up but I'll give a few observations here.

Capability: The Adrenalin does better off-road than my expectations, which were quite high. It's been through the San Rafael Swell (Black Dragon Canyon) through the north half of the Kokopelli, to Adam's Lake on the Flat Tops in Colorado and to many local hangouts that I've never seen trailers before. It tracks incredibly well never straying more than a tire width (usually less than half) behind my truck, it is arguably much more stable on side hill than an AT. I have seen many threads of flopped AT's and other military style campers. I think I would flop my truck before the camper. Where it lacks is approach angle. I have augered the hitch in to dips and holes many times and can see it getting hung up on extreme angles. Also, don't plan on taking it down tight switchbacks. i wouldn't hesitate taking it on Engineer Pass or Imogene for example but Black Bear and Poughkeepsie are not going to happen. If you travel in tight vegetation you may have issues as well. Here might be a sticking point for some. Due to the way it opens etc you could not fit larger than 33" tires under the trailer and even that is pushing it. You can match the hubs/wheels to suit but tire size will be limited. You can go much bigger with an AT.

Useability. The video in my thread shows how fast it sets up. tear down is about 5-7 minutes. Adding the extra rooms take about half an hour each. The bed is larger than queen and the floor space approximates king sized. My daughters pack-n-plays fit nicely with much room to spare for walking around, changing and the dog. They will be moving up to bunk cots this spring. There is ~8' of head room. You can in fact stand up on the bed. Water is 20 gallons, plenty for me for a long weekend, and storage is arguabily pretty hard to beat. The trailer is relatively light both loaded and unloaded (weights are in my thread) and pulls great behind my truck. The lighting and running water, and kitchen are all top notch and have been absolutely reliable. For labor day weekend I had 6 adults, 4 children and 3 dogs stay in my camper. We stayed in the main body and the others stayed in the annex. The kitchen remained open. That versatility is pretty nice.

In conclusion I would say if we didn't have kids we would have ended up with an AT or Krawler or similar. With kids it wasn't even a question. The AT will have an edge on severe terrain but the Adrenalin/KK will hold it's own on what I would consider 5-6 rated trails and lower.

A true test will come in march for me when I take my camper from Blanding over Elk Ridge, Beef Basin, Lockhart basin, Chicken Corners, White Wash and into the San Rafael Swell on a 10 day trip. Lockhart will be the toughest and I have no illusions that i won't damage the trailer but I think with care and extra eyeballs it will do OK. I'll post up details in the other thread then.

 

[jonharis]

I think the next step should be to visit overland expo to get hands on with some of these trailers. But you are right that the redesigned kitchen is amazing, at least form what I can see.

Absolutely! Being able to touch and see them yourself is worth a lot. IIRC all of the manufacturers discussed as well as several others were on display last year.

Also regarding heat. The ability to heat was one of my biggest concerns as I wanted to extend my season and the family's comfort. The Mr. Buddy is serving us well also and will raise the internal temp by about 40 degrees F. I do plan on plumbing in a heater eventually but not for a year or two. Having floor space for the Mr. Buddy is very nice. (note it only runs while we are awake). It was worth every penny to be able to get dressed and get the family dressed at 65-70 degrees. makes for a good morning.

 

[phillyd2]

Thanks Jonathan. It was actually from your posts that I stumbled upon Adrenalin I have a few questions but will post in your thread so we can have one central discussion on these campers.