Go Time Gear Life Tent: Definitive Review (2024)
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This is the Ultimate TopNotch Review Of The Go Time Gear Life Tent Emergency Shelter 2024.
Looking to find out if it’s the best 2 person emergency tent for you?
Great! You’ve come to the right place!
Because we’ve done all the research you need. All you have to do is stick around until the end of this article to learn all there is to know.
What’s in it for you?
I’m glad you asked.
After looking at 43 tube tents in the market and whittling it down to the Top 10 survival tents and shelters, our amazing team of TopNotch testers found this Go time tent the Best 2 Person Tube Tent.
So in this Go Time Gear Life Tent emergency shelter review, you’ll find out:
- How this emergency tube tent with rope could possibly shelter two people (we know you might have a hard time being sold on that)
- Whether this tube tent passed our strenuous tests
- How it measures up to our other top camping tarps and shelters
- We’ve even thrown in some other Go Time Gear that will complement this products
- Lots more…
So – enough with the preamble – let’s get down to the nitty gritty.
Let’s GO! GO! GO!
- Manufacturer: Go Time
- Capacity: 2
- Dimensions: 8’ x 5’
- Material: Mylar
- Weight: 8.7 oz
Bottom Line : Great first responder to a two-person emergency
Pros
- The stuff sack is large enough to pack other items in
- Easy setup
Cons
- Can only accommodate a single person as a blanket/sleeping bag
- Difficult to repack
Our Verdict: Go Time Gear Life Tent Emergency Shelter
The Go Time Gear Life Tent Emergency Shelter is a polyethylene (Mylar) survival tent made to endure the toughest outdoor conditions.
The company, though relatively new kids on the block when it comes to survival gear, have proven themselves to be manufacturers and middle-men for industry-leading emergency preparedness and survival products.
What did we like right off the bat?
We appreciated the tents capacity to shelter 2 persons during an emergency.
Most Tube Tents measure 6.5’ x 3.5’ ft, only enough to fit one average adult male
The Go Time Gear Life measures 8’ x 5’ ft. We did the math and found out that the average male has a shoulder width of 16” in or 1.33’ ft and the average female 14” in or 1.16’ ft. The results clearly show that side by side, two campers can escape the elements under this tube tent with ease.
However for comforts sake, this tube tent can also be the ideal option to shelter an adult and accompanying child in an emergency.
The flexible Mylar material moves with your body to accommodate you. It doesn’t have doors to limit breathable air, and doesn’t complicate things in an emergency – it’s just so easy to set up.
Wait….there’s gotta be a catch right?
Well there is this one thing….
You see, most Mylar tents don’t come with tie outs and pegs to stake down. We had to hold the tent floor down with rocks.
But after trying it out, our body weight did also help hold it down.
The 120-decibel survival whistle was a nice added accessory on the Go Time Gear Life Tent – included to draw the attention you might need in an emergency.
Related: 10 Best Tube Tents
Value For Money
The Go Time Gear LIfe Tent Emergency Shelter sits in the middle of this metric because for what it’s worth, it didn’t live up to expectation in some areas i.e no stakes or tie outs.
(Look on the bright side – less time to set up of course, and more importantly less weight to carry).
Value For Money Rating
But it overcompensated in other areas i.e the spacious interior and large stuff sack.
The latter however, is why it ranked higher than similar products like the Back 40 Emergency Tent and the Bearhard Emergency Tube Tent
For those of you who use this survival tent more than once – you’ll be getting a great return on your investment.
Ease Of Use
We tested this metric during a fun weekend in the sun by bringing together our diverse test group made up of a city slicker, an aspiring survival prepper, and some of my esteemed and experienced colleagues here at TopNotch.
How did they fare with the Go Time Gear Life Tent?
They all passed with flying colors. Even first time campers can set up the Go Time Gear Life Tent in no time.
Ease Of Use Rating
All our tube tents ranking high on this metric have a one configuration set up and just take a paracord and stakes (or not) to secure.
That’s not all…
The high rankers were also selected according to how easy it was to pack away.
You’ll notice we gave top points to tents that came in a stuff sack – making for easy repacking and storage.
However, if there was one thing we could improve in overall tent design and performance, it’s that we wish it came with stakes and tie outs.
Weather Resistance
The Go Time Life Gear Tent faced tough competition from our Top 10 best camping tarps and camping shelters.
The margins are all pretty small, so don’t worry too much.
But that’s what you get when you pit the best in the market against each other.
Weather Resistance Rating
We put the tents under more stress than you would generally expect from an emergency situation.
For example, we used water blasters to mimic torrential rain on the tent surfaces. We also did two person stretch tests.
Wait what about poor weather conditions?
Thought you’d never ask. After testing, the ALPS Mountaineering Tasmanian was clearly the heavy duty performer for all seasons – its waterproof and windproof.
But, after much deliberation with the team, we decided the way to enhance survival in the snow with this gear is to complement it with the Go Time Gear Life Bivy Emergency Sleeping Bag.
And, if you’re ever caught in the snow with no trees to tie your tent off to, you can wrap yourself in the tent or the go time gear life bivy and huddle inside a SAFE snow cave or debris hut.
Durability
After testing the Go Time Gear Life Tent in various weather conditions, we concluded this emergency tube tent with rope was at the top of its game in the first and second round of use – its pretty tear and puncture resistant.
Durability and reusability, as with other tents, decreases after every use and weathering is exacerbated when campers don’t care for them or store them properly.
Durability Rating
We did run into a little bit of trouble when testing this product…
Although this tent is touted for its strong Mylar material, we had to learn the hard way that sharp objects and Mylar tents don’t go well together (a lesson we learnt when we unwittingly set it up over an old campfire covered with leaf-litter with twigs and flints).
So be careful when setting it up
Clear away brush and debris (not to be mistaken with debris hut which is recommended for use if you’re using the life bivy) if you can’t find a flat clean surface to set up camp.
Pack Size
If you’re looking for the smallest pack size, the Back 40 Emergency Tent may be your best bet.
What can you expect to find?
When you open the small package, you will find the 120-decibel survival whistle attached to the drawstrings of the stuff pack.
Pack Size Rating
Open it up and your 20 ft paracord will be the first thing you see.
Below this you’ll find your new tent folded neatly at the bottom.
However, the Go Time Gear Life Tent makes up for not having the most conveniently small-packed size by having a larger than expected stuff sack.
Now that’s handy for extra storage.
Throw one of these into your car or Go Time Gear Backpack and you’re good to go.
Thanks to its bright orange coloring, you’re sure to locate it even though it’s on the small side.
Our Final Verdict: Go Time Gear Life Tent Emergency Shelter
After putting the Go Time Gear Life Tent Emergency Shelter through its paces and charting its performance against our five metrics, we can confidently say that this tent’s pretty cool.
It might not have been the best tube tent overall but it’s still a favorite because we haven’t come across any 2 person shelter quite like it.
We also liked the other Go Time Gear products that are just as small and durable like the Go Time Gear Blizzard Survival Bag and Water Bottle Pouch Hydration Carrier.
Again, stakes and tie outs have their uses and we would have appreciated it in this product.
Conclusion: Go Time Gear Life Tent
Congratulations!
You’ve made it to the end.
Now you know everything there is to know about the Go Time Gear Life Tent Emergency Shelter.
After a series of tests we’ve proven that this emergency shelter is spacious enough for two people. It also gives you the option of storing important gear in there with you.
It passed our all-weather fitness tests. If you’re stuck in the snow, you can also use it as an emergency blanket or better yet, grab yourself the Go Time Life Bivy to go with it.
And you have a better idea of how it matched up to its competitors.
Taking all this into account, we chose the Go Time Gear Life Tent Emergency Shelter as the TopNotch Best Two Person Tent.
And we’ve come to the conclusion that this survival tent is ideal for anyone looking for a durable, 2 person tent that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg.
Now you’re better informed, you can make buy with confidence!
Other Versions
The Go Time Gear Life Tent Emergency Shelter comes in green and orange and both with the same dimensions and functions.
If you want to expand your options in survival gear, you might be interested in Go Time Gear’s Life Bivy Emergency Sleeping Bag.
The dimensions are as follows:
3 x 3 x 5 inches
Weight: 4.1 ounces
Do emergency sleeping bags work?
The Go Time Gear Life Bivy Emergency Sleeping Bag Thermal Bivvy has the same inner reflective material as its counterpart, the Go Time Gear Life Tent. It also comes with a 120-decibel survival whistle.
However, because you wrap yourself inside it, heat has less chance to escape, effectively trapping body heat within the confines of the sleeping bag.
Many have sworn by its effectiveness and so do we.
