Becoming a Wiggy's Bag Owner in the Weirdest Way Possible

Dear Wiggy’s Enthusiasts,

This is the story of how I became a Wiggy’s bag owner in the weirdest way imaginable.

Recently I was in the geographic middle-of-nowhere desert with my metal detector and got an unlikely beep. Under the beep lay a sealed plastic bucket. Later I discovered six more scattered about. Together they formed someone’s idea of a survival kit.

One bucket had a Wiggy’s Lamilite Insulated sleeping bag in it. I pulled the bag out into the first fresh air it’d known in 20 years. I was surprised. The bag looked new. Shiny zippers, fabric pitch black and unfaded. Other things I pulled out of other buckets hadn’t fared so well. A Camelbak Mule, for example, had completely disintegrated into rot and dust.

The sleeping bag’s smell is the only thing that left plenty to be desired. When I pulled it loose it unleashed a savagely pungent musk that knocked me ass backward with my eyes watering and my throat gagged shut. But I’d learned from opening other buckets that everything stinks after being buried 20 years. Even newspapers.

Yes, one bucket was stuffed with newspapers. With dates. That’s how I know how about long the Wiggy’s bag was buried: twenty years.

I write this because if I made Wiggy’s sleeping bags (or was a longtime customer) I’d want to read it. I’d be intrigued a Wiggy’s bag found its way into a survival kit buried in the middle-of-nowhere. And that it’d been found 20-years later no worse for wear.

I'd be as proud as you deserve to be.

Jerry, thanks for answering the phone the other day. I appreciate and accept your offer to swap this bag for another. I think your idea to display it for customers to check out is a good one. The bag is powerful testimony to how indestructible your creations are, in case anyone remains doubtful. Just don’t invite people to sniff it.

Ryan W

One thing I now know about my sleeping bags is that you can bury them for 20 years or maybe more and they come back alive. 

I suspect this bag came from the Navy SEAL base since they started buying them in1993 when I first made them. Since the year of burial was 2000 maybe the person who buried the bag was worried the world would end back then.

OTHER TESTIMONIALS; I never tire of publishing them. 

1. Amazing Bag

   Bought my Wiggy’s bag back in 1999 when I moved to northern Alaska. Best purchase ever!! Used on many camping trips and always nice and toasty inside. Great product and so needed in these elements.

   – Lisa

2. Wiggy,

   In the fall of 2019, I stopped by your shop and I purchased several yards of your insulated window covering material. Using this material, I made window covers for my van. They have worked great. I sewed a layer of light black fabric on one side to provide a privacy shield. Because of the way that I designed the cover for the windshield, it is difficult to install. So, I am thinking of making another version of the windshield cover. In my original design, I used suction cups to fasten the cover directly to the windshield. My new thought is to have the cover hang from the ceiling of the van to the dashboard about 6 inches away from the windshield. My question is as follows. In order to be effective, do you think that the cover needs to be attached to the windshield or is it sufficient for the cover to isolate the windshield from the rest of the van with a relatively “airtight” seal?

   If you will indulge me, I want to take a moment to share my great admiration for you and your products.

   I have been buying your products since around 1992. My first purchases were sleeping bags which I bought from Aerostitch. My wife, daughter and I were doing a lot of motorcycle camping and your sleeping bags were perfect and have served us well. Our motorcycle camping days are behind us but we still have (and use) the sleeping bags that we bought 28 years ago. Since then, I have purchased many other items from you and have been pleased with them all! Multiple sleeping bags, multiple boots, multiple socks, multiple jackets, long underwear, the list goes on. Whether camping, hiking or now sailing on my boat in Alaska, they have kept me, my family, and my guests warm, dry, and comfortable. My daughter loves her Ducksback vest and wore one of my older Lamilite Sweaters as a coat during her pregnancy. I have since bought her one of her own (it fits her better) and have purchased a Baby Bunting for my grandson.

   Clearly, I am a fan of the stuff that you build. I talk up your products every chance I get, even to my friend who used to work for OR. I have been meaning to thank you for years for making such great products. And, to thank you for sticking with a tried and true solution instead of making changes simply for the sake of change. How refreshing. By the way, I am known as a Wiggy’s fanatic to my family.

   Sincerely

   Tom Nicol