Gilroy Foam Sit Pad

Reasonable comfort for the price, half the weight of a Therm-a-Rest Z Seat, at less than 1/10th the cost, so you can double them up.

Even though I am middle-aged, I worry much less about cushion for my tush than I am with simply keeping it dry if I need to sit down on a rock or the ground in the woods, so a small, lightweight, waterproof seating pad is all I really need, but when I see how the price of a Therm-a-Rest Z Seat has now grown out of all proportion to rationality -- $32.95 USD in October 2023 -- my mind simply recoils at the idea of actually purchasing one.

I found the Gilroy pad on Amazon for $2.99 USD with free shipping from China. Of all the similar products on offer, this one had by far and away the lowest price. It comes is several two-tone colors, and I chose the black/orange pad. It’s small, and it’s thin, but at half the weight of the Z Seat, I decided to order a second one, so for a total cost of $6 USD, I have two pads that can either be stacked together or used separately. They are thin, but I’m OK with that. I’ve been testing the first one at home on an unpadded wooden chair, and it provides more comfort than you might think it would, given its thinness. The second one is on its way to me.

The pad itself measures about 15 1/2” x 10 1/2” x 5/8”, if the bumps are taken into account, but the actual foam thickness is only about 5/16”. The weight is about 27 g, or just shy of 1 oz. It is stamped “Jungle Leopard”, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this is the same pad sold under many different brand names. Folding one in half provides significantly more cushioning, but of course may reduce the amount of waterproof protection in will provide. That’s why I ordered a second one.

I’ll give it a solid 3.0 out of 5 stars. It’s serviceable, and more importantly, cheap enough that even two of them together are less than 1/5th the price of the “market leader”. I’d recommend it to anyone who wants to save money or weight.

Background

I have been using Therm-a-Rest sleeping pad products for over 25 years, and actually have been sleeping on them every night for over 6 years.