Gerry Outdoors | Our Heritage

Gerry Cunningham was a young inventor at heart. By 1947, he redesigned the Carabiner. He was working to solve a gate weakness problem and began forging them out of steel in his home workshop, “putting $5.00 worth of labor into each one, and then selling them for $1.50.” His triangular “biner” style also gained widespread popularity circulation as a keychain.

Invention of the Drawstring
Clamp / Cordlock

Gerry Cunningham invented the barrel shaped, spring-loaded Drawstring Clamp. He used it to keep a rucksack closed instead of tying it. The now famous, “Cordlock”, is probably Gerry’s greatest achievement to the outdoor market. It was later patented. The Cordlock is very present today on outerwear and camping gear drawstrings.

By 1960, GERRY was making a full line of ski and down jackets. Gerry’s Down Sweater was one of the first lightweight down jackets that was produced by any company. It is widely recognized as the inspiration for the modern lightweight down quilted jacket that is so popular today.

Gerry’s Teardrop Backpack, invented in 1967, was the first modern nylon backpack in existence.

And in 1968, after 30 years of working on his “Controlled Weight Distribution” Backpack, he finally got it to his perfection. The weight is evenly distributed in the backpack, so there is no strain.

Famous Writings & Booklets

Gerry Cunningham published books on outdoor life that were very influential. One of his most famous writings, “Leave No Trace Camping”, focused upon a “Take only photographs, leave only footprints” philosophy. He also published a booklet on “How to Keep Warm”, stressing the need of “Layering”, which of course is still accepted and observed in today’s world, by everyone. In 1976, he published a book, “Lightweight Camping and How to Make It”, which is still in print today. The book has helped thousands of people to enjoy the wilderness as inexpensively as possible and has been a dependable guide to evaluation and choosing outdoor equipment.

National Sporting Goods
Hall of Fame

For being an industry pioneer in the invention and manufacture of lightweight, durable clothing and backpacking equipment, Gerry Cunningham was elected as the 38th member of the National Sporting Goods Hall of Fame. NSGA membership consists of retailers/dealers/wholesalers, manufacturers/sales agents and industry associates in the sporting goods industry.