Seven Summers On: How a Windy Weekend Led Andrew O'Malley to TentBox

Andrew O'Malley wasn't planning to buy a roof tent. He was just trying to get a ground tent up in the wind. It was meant to be a quick, easy weekend away with his daughter – pitch up, relax, and watch the world go by.

The wind had other ideas.

Poles bent, guy ropes fought back, and what should have been an easy start to the weekend turned into a battle before the chairs were even out of the boot.

"Trying to put a ground tent up in the wind is horrendous," Andrew says, and anyone who's wrestled canvas in a gale knows exactly what he means. That windy weekend seven years ago was enough to send him looking for something better, and that’s when he discovered TentBox.

Finding TentBox

When Andrew began his search, roof tents were still pretty uncommon - the kind of thing you’d expect to see more on a 4x4 in the wilderness than on someone’s drive. 

"I did a little more research and came across TentBox," he says. "Them being a British company sold me straight away, and the fact it looked cool. I saved up some money and bought one, and never looked back. Best investment I've ever made."

Andrew had been wary of taking the jump and buying his first roof tent, but his concerns were quickly put at ease when he took his first TentBoxing trip. 

"Those worries were soon thrown out when it arrived and I used it for the first time. Money well spent and a very good quality product."

"It just made me want to get out more and go camping"

For Andrew, the real change has been in how often he gets outdoors.

"It didn't necessarily change the trips we went on," he says, "it just allowed us to go for longer trips without the worry of our little tent blowing down in the wind while we were out for the day. We started going on more frequent trips too, just because it's easier to set up and put down. It made me want to get out more and go camping."

His TentBox has been catching the eye of fellow campers, too. 

"So much warmer than sleeping on the ground," he says. "It's a head turner. Every campsite I go on, I always get looks and compliments about my setup."

Where it's taken them

Andrew doesn't keep a bucket list – he goes wherever takes his fancy. He and his daughter are big into wildlife and photography, so that's usually what decides where they head. "We've been to Wales numerous times and the Lake District a lot," he says, "and we've even camped on the Isle of Skye – other than the annoying midges, it was perfect."

"We just love being outdoors, and it doesn't matter if it's an hour away or five hours away," he says. "We always enjoy it."

Andrew's advice for anyone on the fence

Ask Andrew what he'd tell someone considering joining the TentBox family, and he's got a straight answer:

"If you're on the fence about buying one, my advice is: you only live once. Go out and buy it, go on those adventures."

It's not advice he gives lightly. "It's allowed me and my daughter to make so many memories over the last seven summers, something I'd never have got from owning a ground tent, because I despised setting it up," he says. "The TentBox has pushed us to adventure more, and the places we've been and the things we've seen up and down the country. Those things are priceless."

Build your own setup

Andrew's kit has grown a little every year – a warm sleeping bag, a French press for that first coffee of the day, a boot kitchen he put together himself so meals happen without hauling out a bulky table. 

If you're starting to build your own, our accessories range covers most of what he describes – including the KitchenBox, which offers the same slide-out, hassle-free setup as the one he built himself.