Watching some MAS*H reruns, the question came to me: How do our soldiers (then or now) survive sleeping on cots? Granted, the image from TV maybe incorrect, but I am sure our boys don’t get the Perfect Sleeper mattresses, either! While they are young and healthy, just how well do their backs hold out? (And, what about in General Washington’s day?)
Give me some back talk! 
Dude, Cots are a luxary. Last place I stayed had us on plywood!! Plywood is much cheaper than matresses apparantly…
My back never seemed to bother me. I guess when one is that tired, anything seems comfortable. We’d spend a couple nights out in the forest, sleeping on the ground, and we’d actually look forward to coming home to our beds and plywood. The ground was much more comfortable, but there is something about coming in from the field that made that wood appealing!