United States Deep Caving Team, Inc.

Dear Tom... we would like to take this opportunity to thank Hennessy Hammock for being a corporate sponsor of the US Deep Caving Team's 2003 and 2004 Sistema Cheve Expeditions.

Briefly, in 2003, the team was able, during the course of the 3 month expedition, to reach a depth of -1,484 meters in Cueva Cheve at a distance of 9.3 kilometers from the nearest entrance. The depth represents the deepest cave in the Western Hemisphere and the 9th deepest in the world. The traverse distance, however, establishes the present limit of exploration in Cueva Cheve as the most remote point humans have ever reached inside the planet. The fact that 450 meters of underwater tunnels - beginning at the -1,362 meter level - must be negotiated to reach this point places it as one of the most remote points humans have ever reached inside the planet.

We made extensive use of the Hennessy Ultralight hammocks on both expeditions. To cut weight we stripped out the insect netting (no bugs underground!) and left the rain flies on the surface (no rain underground unless you are under a waterfall). That allowed us to pack the hammock inside a 1 liter Nalgene wide mouth bottle, which made them highly transportable and kept them dry for when we were ready to crash for the night...In 2003 the hammocks were used by the advance rigging team, which kept them moving forward into the cave in one movement...I would recommend these hammocks to anyone doing expeditionary work. They are tough, lightweight, and compact. And they are surprisingly comfortable..

For more info, go to www.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/caverace