My fly creek lasted a whole 15 backpacking trips before the pole hub at the pinnacle of the tent broke while setting it up and Big Agnes warranty just stopped responding hahah. Oh and the pole clip broke, needed to be replaced, and it got random little micro-tears in the tent body. Never buying their garbage again. I went back to Tarptent and Six Moon Designs.
I’ve been to many festivals over the years - so it varies.
I often retire an older tent to become my festival tent. One that i don’t care if someone falls on it.
I do like room - so a 4-person tent for 2 people is nice. But I don’t keep much gear in my tent at festivals - so it’s really just my sleeping pad / bag / pillow, maybe a few clothes.
I don’t like taking my XL lux car camping tent - because there isn’t always room for that.
It’s hot when I go often - so a hook to hang a fan is nice. But really - at sunrise I’m probably getting up and going under the shade canopy.
If rain is in the forecast- I may even bring one of my nicer tents to make sure I’m dry.
All that said - a MSR Mutha Hubba is my current festival tent. I also have an older Big Agnes Fly Creek that’s still in working order.
Looking at the poles will tell you quite a bit about sturdiness. The Freelite 1 uses DAC NFL 8.7mm poles with a forked design. So one end of the tent has essentially 2 archs of 8.7mm while the other end has a single arch of 8.7mm.
That would be comparable in sturdiness to other tents that also use a forked arch of 8.7mm, such as Big Agnes Fly Creek and Tiger Wall, and Nemo Hornet.
Tents that use essentially dual arches of 8.7mm at both ends are going to be sturdier, like X-Dome 1+ but also BA Copper Spur, MSR Hubba, and many others. Easton Carbon 3.9 is very similar to DAC 8.7 mm in sturdiness. Then both brands of tent pole makers make numerous stiffer options but with higher weights that would likely put the tent over your 1 kg goal.
Their Fly Creek tents are pretty light and pretty good (my brother has owned one for years and I've had one for about a year). Not absolute game changing, but certainly quality products at UL weights (if you want a semi-freestanding tent). You won't get one for $200, though.
I'm pretty happy with my Big Agnes Fly Creek. Technically semi-free standing since it has a pole but requires 2 stakes (or a workaround with a trekking pole) for a proper pitch. Just over 2lbs. They have a DCF/carbon fiber pole version that is discontinued but on clearance at REI (price is still eye-watering but it's there) that is right at 1 lb.
anabranch_glitch
