ECOTAT

ECOTAT SLEEPING BAG HISTORY

First, I am going to give you the history of the Ecotat multipurpose shelter and poncho.

In 1987 I believe a young fellow Ron Asher designed and made the product he called an “Ecotat Freedom Shelter”. He patented this item and he tried to sell it to the army unsuccessfully.

About 1990 a retired colonel Dick Haislip from the USMC bought the company and proceeded to sell 3000 to the USMC Force Recon. He needed a sleeping bag to go with the shelters and he called me.

Dick designed the bag and bought some quilted material and made a bag which he sent to me with the pattern.

We made several thousand shelters and bags for the USMC and the US Army. The Army has the shelters installed on all of their aircraft and according to Dick those planes can not leave the ground unless there is one per crew member.

Dick received national stock numbers for the shelter and the sleeping bags.

I no longer make the shelters because the military chose to no longer have any interest in them. An interesting fact about Ron is the fact that he was never in the military, but he created what I believe is the best single person bivi that can be issued to a soldier going into the field. To make one or two every now and then is costly.

But I have continued to make sleeping bags for different temperatures because it is a multipurpose or multifunctional product. Its primary function of course is as a sleeping bag in the traditional use on the ground on a ground pad. It can also be used with a hammock. It can go around the hammock eliminating the need for an under quilt. And its final use is as a poncho. All of these configurations can be seen on the website. Aside from the color of the fabrics used these “Freedom shelter sleeping bags “ conform to all of the original specifications the meet the national stock numbers.

Maybe one day an influential member of the military will rediscover them. Having served in the military I believe the sleeping bag designed by the Colonel is the best designed sleeping bag there is for the military. It also has a place in the civilian market where people want to travel light with lightweight jackets.

The Freedom shelter sleeping bag is one more product I did not create, but I am more than happy to be making it.