Bunny Boots for Boise!
Bunny Boots at Occupy Boise
Occupy Supply, our Boston liaisons and Occupy Boston spent quite a bit of time researching the best American made boot for keeping feet warm in cold weather, and we concurrently arrived at the same conclusion: the Extreme Cold Weather Vapor Boots originally developed by the Navy Clothing and Textile Research Center in Natick, MA USA for use during the Korean War. Better known as Mickey Mouse boots (Type 1) and Bunny Boots (Type II).
Rich of Vets for Peace
We bought a number of Mickey Mouse and Bunny boots to test in Boston, as well as some leather Belleville boots and Wellco mukluks for comparison. But when it looked like Occupy Boston’s days would be numbered, we re-routed them to Boise. (One of the reasons that OccupySupply gear has consistently wound up in the hands of occupiers, rather than landfills, is due to the fact that our network of liaisons across the country keep a close watch on what’s happening with their occupation and are very responsible about re-routing goods when they think they may be better used some place else.)
Last week Katie F., our Boise liaison (and now local TV new celeb) delivered them. She sent along this note:
The boots got here late this afternoon!
They arrived on a very soggy rainy day.
There were 16 pairs of the “moon” type boots sizes 9 (4 pairs), 10 (9 pairs), and 11 (3 pairs), and 2 pairs (size 7.5) of the other thinner type with removable liners.
Towards the end of the photos – you can see a woman camper with a pair on of the 7.5 liner ones – she had had wet sneakers – look at her pants legs.
And Rich, who stays in the Vets for Peace tent – with white moon boots, and then showing the cracked soles in the pair of shoes he had been wearing.
I need to go back in better light.
The guys with the boots on said they were springy.
Katie
Occupy Boise gets Occupy Supply delivery
I was worried that the boots would be too heavy — Mickey Mouse boots weigh 44 oz. each, and the Bunny boots are even heavier at 52 oz. Mickey Mouse boots are for temperatures down to -20:
Still in use in the Extreme Cold Weather Clothing System, these boots were designed for use for temperatures up to from 20 below zero. These boots are genuine U.S. Issue. Originally designed and adopted around the Korean War, these boots offer a unique solution to water evaporation from the feet, the leading cause of frostbite and cold injury in winter. A layer of thick wool and felt is sandwiched between two layers of waterproof rubber, and compressed to make a thin, flexible, and completely watertight insulated barrier, unaffected by outside moisture or sweat moisture from the feet. The high blucher design features a seamless shell design, direct molded sole, and a gusset fused to the main body along its whole length. You would have to step in water that completely covered the top of the boot before any liquid could get in, and even if this happened, the body temperature in the feet would quickly warm the water and prevent frostbite. This boot is designed to be worn with one thick pair of padded-sole socks, to be changed at least once daily, and offers unprecedented cold weather protection. Each pair also features an air pressure release valve, to be opened during high-altitude flight or climbing to allow air pressure between the layers to escape.
Bunny boots are for temperatures down to -60 degrees.
Cracks in Rich's boots
We sent boots to Occupy Erie this weekend, who keep going back to their location at the gazebo despite 7 police raids. We also sent boxes of hand warmers and space blankets and they just received air mattresses that liaison Mark H delivered on Friday.
Many thanks to everyone who has donated to Occupy Supply and kept the supply pipeline flowing. I know the supplies you’ve donated have kept more than one occupation going when the forces urging them to shut down were otherwise overwhelming. What a great way to start the New Year.
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