Metolius Boss Hogg Review

Likes
The foam is not so hard that you have to brace yourself on a fall but thick enough to take high falls relatively confidently. For some reason both the Metolius Stomp and Boss Hogg are listed as 4 inches thick on the Metolius web site. By our measurements, the Stomp is 3.5 inches thick and the Hogg is 4.6 inches. It is a big difference and the Boss Hogg inspires a LOT more confidence on big falls. At the same time the edges are relatively soft when compared to the Mad Rock Mad Pad, which makes it less likely you will roll an ankle if you land on the edge.

This pad's outer fabric has durable Hypalon (burly rubber stuff) reinforced corners and smooth shaped, easy-to-use aluminum buckles and an upholstery top. The upholstery is great to hang out on and wipe your shoes on. It does collect sticks and dirt more than any other pad, but we don't see this as a big deal. The Boss Hogg is second only to the Voodoo Highball 4000 pad for "lounge around" comfort. This is the only pad we tested with an "angled hybrid" hinge, which is getting closer to a best of both worlds design combining a traditional taco style and a hinge style. It has a satisfying rubber handle in the middle of the hinge for grabbing and dragging around to problems of all the handles we tested, this was the most comfortable to grab. It is relatively fast to close up because it requires mating only one piece of Velcro and one buckle. The bottom seals up completely, which keeps small stuff from falling out. It also comes with an extra stash pocket.

Dislikes
The shoulder and waist belts are comfortable but not completely secure. The waist belt fell off one time because it is just "looped" at the attachment point. While the closure system works great for small items, it failed to hold big backpacks. If you like to cram a bunch of bulky stuff into your pad, you may be disappointed. The foam starts out at a perfect stiffness but over time it gets a little soft. It doesn't soften as fast as the Black Diamond Drop Zone but softens much faster than the Organic Simple Pad or Mad Rock Mad Pad. This makes it less inspiring for highballs on uneven terrain after six months of heavy use. That said, we like stiff pads for high problems and many people may find the way this foam softens up to be perfect.

Best Application
This is ideal for lower, small to medium sized problems on flat terrain. The hybrid angled hinge is not ideal on super rock landing areas as at coastal bouldering areas.

Value
This is the most expensive hinged pad we tested. It has a ton of features to justify that price - if those features are important to you and you love the foam (many people did). Because this is a widely carried product, you can usually find this crash pad on sale.