Since we bought a Movelite drive away awning for a son and daughter-out-law a couple of years ago, we've often discussed the merits of owning a lightweight awning for touring. Our Clairval awning is first rate and quite easy to put up but it takes up a lot of space in the car and could become a pain if necessary to take down and store in the wet weather.
Therefore, totally inspired by a number of folk on here who have adapted tents and drive-away awnings to fit their Eribas, we decided to give it a go. When it came to selecting a suitable donor tent, we were spoilt for choice for we have a garage full of them. We decided on the Gelert as it was the smallest of our range and probably the easiest to erect.
However, unlike other parts of the UK over the past 5 days, our valley has been constantly producing drinking water to quench the UK public's thirst. Therefore we had to resort to measuring, cutting and stitching in the sitting room without the benefit of offering the tent up to the Eriba. The big problem is that the dimensions of the curved tent are not compatible with the side configuration of the Eriba so the tent had to transform it's shape from hoop to larger square to fit the van. This involved cutting the tent in half and entirely reshaping the back end. After much discussion, disagreement and arguing, the awning was ready to trial on Sunday.
Today, there was a short spell of fine weather so we gave it it's first fitting. Very much a work in progress with a number of tensioning poles and shaping poles needing to be cut to length but all in all, it went together very well. Also because we were worried about the weather we didn't fully peg it out.
Main observations were that it is far bigger than we imagined so our main concern is whether we will get a pitch big enough to accommodate it. It's 4 metres deep. Plenty of light and space however and a removable front with integral door and a large up and over side door. .

The donor tent :- Gelert.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

Today's Work in Progress :- Gelert-1.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte) Gelert-2.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

The rear square section needs a bit more work but we are pleased that the dip in the roof where it connects to the van does look as if it will drain water off. .
What we like about this tent is that it has an internal adjustable horizontal bracing pole down each side and when they are fitted it takes out any sag in the hooped material.
We also like the fact that the whole front can be unzipped and moved one bay in. We'll only probably need it for one year as after next year we will likely reduce the amount of touring we do in favour of finding a nice sunny spot in France and staying put for longer.
Randa

Ah but when it's completed it will be a Prince amongst awnings.... (we hope )
Randa