It’s finally summer and Quirk Heaven is going to the beach, yaaaaaai! But going to the beach comes with some 1st world problems, like the sun being too hot to bare – in my case having an umbrella is more important than making sure I got my beach towel. Or the sand getting between your (butt)cheeks, or the chaise-long coming between you and your face/neck/breast/belly. Or the annoying case of beer turning into tea. Add to that sand or dirt in your picnic salad and you’re going to literally grind your teeth. Or the nasty kids running around, sometimes even stepping over your towel and leaving a trail of watery sand (at least I hope it’s water) – by the way, I never trust going into a public pool saturated with kids, there’s no such thing as swimming diaper!

If you live in a busy city, you know what a hot day means: everybody wants to get out, whether to the park or the nearest beach or pool. The biggest challenge of all is finding the right spot where you can set camp: not so close to the noisy group listening to loud reggaeton via low-fi speakers, or to the family with 2 exploded toddlers running around, or to the salami lovers in the back… Oh ok, I guess the place next to that couple who’d better get a room or at least a tent should do today. If only there wasn’t so much sand sticking to my SPF ready body…  This quirky mat turns the beach towel into an oasis.

Developed by the military to support helicopter landings and minimize sand dispersal, the CGear mat consists of 2 layers: the upper layer acts like a net and sifts down the coming sand through the funnel shaped orifices while the second layer blocks the sand from underneath to come back to the surface. Sounds ideal, right? In theory it is an awesome beach towel but the Angel  has some useful points to take into account before buying one.

Currently there are 3 versions available: the beach rug (quicksand mat), the sand free mat (for camping) and the R.V.. Prices start at €45.

• Can be used on the beach as well as camping. The mat and the R.V. even have iron rings built in to secure it in place
• The CGear quicksand mat comes in 6 colors:

• Sizes and weight for the CGear sand free mat: the shape is square with side length of 1,83 m (S), 2,44 m (M),  3,86 m (L) and 5,33 m (XL). It weights between  1,43 kg to 5,33 kg, which makes it quite heavy to carry
• Although it is said the material doesn’t get hot from the sand and in the sun, the texture feels scratchy and not very comfortable. Some people prefer to lay a towel over it, which of course is not sand proof
• The coarser and rougher the sand, the less sifts through, therefore bigger particles and shells will obviously remain
• Wet sand doesn’t get through and even dry sand requires some shaking to get it out from in between the 2 layers. To keep your car and other belongings sand free after usage it’s better to wrap the mat separately
• Some users report the metal loops being prone to rust

Our verdict: the CGear sand free mat/rug earns a place in Quirk Heaven, however you shouldn’t take the advertising too literally: the sand doesn’t disappear completely, it’s not as easy as it looks, it might require some more shaking and rubbing and it definitely doesn’t look to fancy. Also 84% of buyers gave it a clear thumbs up