Dana Gleason has designed packs that made the trip to the summit of Mount Everest, but he is particularly proud of those his company makes for the U.S. military.
Those Mystery Ranch NICE 5000 packs are designed for hard going in a war zone.
They can be kicked out of a helicopter hovering 40 feet above ground without suffering damage. The frames automatically adjust to each wearer so that a 60-pound load is hardly noticeable.
Stripped of their pack bags, the frames can carry anything from gasoline cans to a wounded comrade. Fully loaded, they can hold more than 130 pounds.
They’re available to anyone with the $550 to buy one, but as Mystery Ranch co-founder Renee Sippel-Baker describes them, “These packs are bigger than you or I would want to carry in any sane moment.”
That’s what pleases Gleason.
“We are building tools now as opposed to toys,” he said.
And Broomfield-based Senco Cutting & Sewing is helping.
Owners Janet and John Senatore have been doing contract work for Bozeman, Mont.-based Mystery Ranch for the past three years. They’re making frames for backpacks that will be worn by military and special- operations personnel.
“These packs are probably some of the most high-tech, complicated, precise frame packs I have ever worked with, and probably some of the most intricate on the market,” Janet Senatore said. “They are a challenge (to make).”
Mystery Ranch had almost no military contracts in 2002 but now makes almost half its packs for special operations and other military users.
The company manufactured 3,000 pieces last year and expects this year’s output to be about the same.
It first contacted Senco in 2003 after landing a contract for 900 packs that would be used by Navy Seals.
Senco employs 16 people at its 7,000-square-foot factory. The privately held company also makes snowmobile covers, luggage, camera bags and special bags for bicycle messengers.
Senco produces as many as 600 pieces each week and is working on about 200 packs for Mystery Ranch, Senatore said.
More work may be on the way.
Mystery Ranch and CamelBak Products have announced a tentative strategic partnership to design and manufacture pack and hydration systems for the military, special-operations and elite tactical markets.
War-related military contracts are translating into revenue boosts for businesses around the country.
“Sadly, it has been good for business,” said Lacy Causey, director of quality for government programs with Gregory Mountain Products and its parent company, Bianchi International of Temecula, Calif.
Staff writer Tom McGhee can be reached at 303-820-1671 or tmcghee@denverpost.com.
