[pct-l] Trail names
giniajim
jplynch at crosslink.net
Wed Dec 22 13:54:45 CST 2010
I second the motion.. :)
----- Original Message -----
From: John Casterline
To: Melissa Rexilius
Cc: pct-l at backcountry.net
Sent: Wednesday, December 22, 2010 2:53 PM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Trail names
I started this name thing and I am ready to put it to bed.
On Wed, Dec 22, 2010 at 1:35 PM, Melissa Rexilius <
melissa.rexilius at hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> Hey my trail name is T.Rex... and I swear I had it first... Sarah Palin
> said dinosaurs were here like only 4,000 years ago.
>
> Melissa RexiliusT.Rex
>
>
>
> From: pct-l-request at backcountry.net
> Subject: Pct-L Digest, Vol 36, Issue 30
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2010 12:00:02 -0600
>
> Send Pct-L mailing list submissions to
> pct-l at backcountry.net
>
> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
> pct-l-request at backcountry.net
>
> You can reach the person managing the list at
> pct-l-owner at backcountry.net
>
> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
> than "Re: Contents of Pct-L digest..."
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: moodyjj at comcast.net
> CC: Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To: amuddler2 at gmail.com
> Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2010 02:36:16 +0000
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Crampons
>
>
>
> I used Kahtoolas (sp?) through the Sierra this past year and they were
> sufficient for when I needed extra traction. Don't remember the weight and
> I'm too lazy to go get them, find the postal scale, weigh them, and report
> back. I do know they're a lot lighter than real ice-wall-climbing crampons.
>
>
>
> Mango
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Mike Yanasak" <amuddler2 at gmail.com>
> To: Pct-L at backcountry.net
> Sent: Tuesday, December 21, 2010 9:32:18 PM
> Subject: [pct-l] Crampons
>
> There have been many discussions re the carrying of ice axes for those
> snowy
> passes, but I haven't noticed anyone mentioning crampons. I have a set of
> steel ones which weigh in at 2 lbs 9 ox. the pair(!). I dread the thought
> of hauling an ice axe, but especially those heavy crampons. They do work
> quite well though. I have a set of phony little instep crampons as well...
> Amuddler
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: nitnoid1 at yahoo.com
> To: amuddler2 at gmail.com; Pct-L at backcountry.net
> Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2010 18:36:43 -0800
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Crampons
>
> Try Kathoola Microspikes instead. Lighter and they offer full foot
> coverage
> with their mini-spikes.
>
>
> The Incredible Bulk
>
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Mike Yanasak <amuddler2 at gmail.com>
> To: Pct-L at backcountry.net
> Sent: Tue, December 21, 2010 6:32:18 PM
> Subject: [pct-l] Crampons
>
> There have been many discussions re the carrying of ice axes for those
> snowy
> passes, but I haven't noticed anyone mentioning crampons. I have a set of
> steel ones which weigh in at 2 lbs 9 ox. the pair(!). I dread the thought
> of hauling an ice axe, but especially those heavy crampons. They do work
> quite well though. I have a set of phony little instep crampons as well...
> Amuddler
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>
>
>
>
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: jolson at olc.edu
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2010 19:38:46 -0700
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Rain Jacket
>
> I've tried lots of options, including a precip, which didn't keep me
> dry. I've finally accepted the fact I'm going to get wet - both from
> sweat and from inundation from without. If someone has a piece of
> raingear that has kept them "DRY" speak up. I don't think it exists.
>
> So, I've decided to use a silnylon poncho - 6 oz or so. I can wrap it
> around my body and with a billed hat, fight off the worst squalls, for a
> while at least. Or when it's an all day sprinkle, i can loosen it all
> and let my body "breathe".
>
> the key is polypro/some sort of fleece next to the skin that can get wet
> but if protected from the wind, doesn't getlet me get cold.
>
> Just my opinion.
>
> Jeffrey Olson, loving the green and wet of northern california after the
> dun brown of South Dakota...
> Santa Rosa...
>
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: jamesfmiller at hotmail.com
> To: jolson at olc.edu; pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2010 18:49:19 -0800
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Rain Jacket
>
>
> I use ponchos for the reasons you state
>
> > Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2010 19:38:46 -0700
> > From: jolson at olc.edu
> > To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> > Subject: Re: [pct-l] Rain Jacket
> >
> > I've tried lots of options, including a precip, which didn't keep me
> > dry. I've finally accepted the fact I'm going to get wet - both from
> > sweat and from inundation from without. If someone has a piece of
> > raingear that has kept them "DRY" speak up. I don't think it exists.
> >
> > So, I've decided to use a silnylon poncho - 6 oz or so. I can wrap it
> > around my body and with a billed hat, fight off the worst squalls, for a
> > while at least. Or when it's an all day sprinkle, i can loosen it all
> > and let my body "breathe".
> >
> > the key is polypro/some sort of fleece next to the skin that can get wet
> > but if protected from the wind, doesn't getlet me get cold.
> >
> > Just my opinion.
> >
> > Jeffrey Olson, loving the green and wet of northern california after the
> > dun brown of South Dakota...
> > Santa Rosa...
> > _______________________________________________
> > Pct-L mailing list
> > Pct-L at backcountry.net
> > To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> > http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
> >
> > List Archives:
> > http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: jplynch at crosslink.net
> To: jamesfmiller at hotmail.com; jolson at olc.edu; pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2010 21:52:48 -0500
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Rain Jacket
>
> I've purchased a Packa, but haven't had a chance to really wring it out
> yet... just tried it in a light rain and it seemed to do fine.
> ymmv
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: James F. Miller
> To: jolson at olc.edu ; pct-l
> Sent: Tuesday, December 21, 2010 9:49 PM
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Rain Jacket
>
>
>
> I use ponchos for the reasons you state
>
> > Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2010 19:38:46 -0700
> > From: jolson at olc.edu
> > To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> > Subject: Re: [pct-l] Rain Jacket
> >
> > I've tried lots of options, including a precip, which didn't keep me
> > dry. I've finally accepted the fact I'm going to get wet - both from
> > sweat and from inundation from without. If someone has a piece of
> > raingear that has kept them "DRY" speak up. I don't think it exists.
> >
> > So, I've decided to use a silnylon poncho - 6 oz or so. I can wrap it
> > around my body and with a billed hat, fight off the worst squalls, for a
> > while at least. Or when it's an all day sprinkle, i can loosen it all
> > and let my body "breathe".
> >
> > the key is polypro/some sort of fleece next to the skin that can get wet
> > but if protected from the wind, doesn't getlet me get cold.
> >
> > Just my opinion.
> >
> > Jeffrey Olson, loving the green and wet of northern california after the
> > dun brown of South Dakota...
> > Santa Rosa...
> > _______________________________________________
> > Pct-L mailing list
> > Pct-L at backcountry.net
> > To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> > http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
> >
> > List Archives:
> > http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: aslive at sbcglobal.net
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2010 06:46:39 -0800
> Subject: [pct-l] Deep snow pack
>
> This according to Yahoo this morning 6:30 AM PST:
>
> "Water content in the snow pack in California's mountains was at 197
> percent of normal and 169 percent of the average measurement for April 1 —
> traditionally the date when the snow's water content is at its peak, said
> Ted Thomas, spokesman for the California Department of Water Resources."
>
> We don't know how much will melt or how much more will come between now and
> the end of the season, but as of now it looks like it could be a late start
> date this year. Eskimos not withstanding.
>
> Shepherd
>
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: diane at santabarbarahikes.com
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2010 20:30:28 -0800
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Rain Jacket
>
> Things I've noticed about rain gear:
> - Nothing keeps me dry.
> - Probably the most effective thing I've ever used is an umbrella.
> Unfortunately, it's almost worthless when the trail is overgrown and
> you push your way through wet plants (basically most of Washington is
> like this). Umbrellas expect the rain to come from above, not from
> all around you, so if the rain is a mist, the umbrella isn't much help.
> - Wet silnylon rain pants feel the same as wet legs. Silnylon pants
> get hot so if you keep your hiking pants on, they get wet from sweat.
> Wear shorts instead and it's like having wet legs anyway.
> - Rain chaps don't let you sit down when it's raining. Rain pants
> that aren't seam sealed are worthless when riding a motorcycle, but
> might work to let you sit briefly on the trail.
> - Anything that is actually waterproof gets so wet on the inside you
> can't stay dry. The only thing truly waterproof clothing is good for
> is riding my motorcycle.
> - People from the PNW seemed more comfortable letting themselves get
> wet.
> - Seemed it was more important to make sure I kept warm than dry, and
> that I had something dry to sleep in. Maybe this is the secret the
> PNW natives understood.
> - Some people just put up their tents and waited it out when it
> rained. This works in So Cal but you'll never make it through
> Washington.
>
> If I had it to do all over again, I think I would bring the same
> crappy rain gear: a cheap plastic poncho, an umbrella and rain chaps.
>
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: pmags at yahoo.com
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2010 07:50:03 -0800
> Subject: [pct-l] Trail Names
>
> Have a hard to pronounce last name, your friends will call you Dom(enic)
> Mags
> and your son will be called Steve Mags
> in his guard unit.
>
> Many years later, your grandson will be a bum for a good chunk of his 20s
> and
> 30s
> and walk the long trails with the same nickname that his friends call him.
>
> (and his brothers are called Joey Mags and Steve Mags as well. Really close
> friends call this same hiking bum Paulie Mags.
>
> But, Paul Mags threatens to bodily harm any non-Easter coasters who call
> him
> "Paulie Mags" :) ).
>
> But, that trail name method does not work for everyone...
>
>
>
>
> ----------------------------
> Paul "Mags" Magnanti
> http://www.pmags.com
> http://www.twitter.com/pmagsco
> http://www.facebook.com/pmags
> -------------------------------
> The true harvest of my life is intangible.... a little stardust
> caught, a portion of the rainbow I have clutched
> --Thoreau
>
>
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: homelessontherange at yahoo.com
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net; paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com
> Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2010 08:27:15 -0800
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Thru hikers for 2011...by date
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Paul,
>
> You may be trying to be funny, but you just come across as rude.
>
> Thousands of people have completed thru hikes of long distance trails while
> using trail names. Many of these trail names are obvious, common, and
> simple. When I thru hiked the AT in 2008, I met plenty of people with
> duplicated trail names. I personally don't know anybody who has used the
> trail names "Pack Rat" and "Spill." They are both fairly obvious trail names
> and fitting descriptions of habits that Rachel and I have demonstrated while
> doing long distance walks.
>
> "Pack Rat" may be "a well known and popular accomplished hiker," but I
> don't know him. I searched Trail Journals and found one listing for a
> "Packrat" (one word) who hiked the AT in 2004. I didn't find any listings
> for anybody named "Spill." I am not "pretending" to be a guy I never met who
> hiked the AT in 2004. I don't even know if this is the hiker to whom you
> refer.
>
> Your list of people who plan to attempt a PCT thru hike in 2011 doesn't
> include anyone else with the Trail Names "Pack Rat" or "Spill." Do you know
> of anyone else who plans to hike the PCT with these names in 2011?
>
> Like birth names, trail names don't have to be unique names that nobody has
> ever used before. I'm not the only person who has ever been named Gary. That
> doesn't mean I'm "pretending" to be somebody else named Gary. You're not the
> only person who has ever been named Paul. How would somebody even know if
> they've come up with a unique, totally original trail name? Is there some
> searchable registry of evry trail name any hiker has ever used? Is there a
> specific list of prohibitted trail names that have been officially reserved
> for "well known and popular accomplished hikers?"
>
> Your 2011 PCT list includes people who have chosen obvious, common trail
> names like "Blue Moon," "Sunshine," "Spider," "Echo," "Topsy Turvy," and
> "Goodness." I'm sure that other hikers must have used these trail names
> before. Did you tell all of these people that they can't use these trail
> names? You have two Dans and two Mikes listed. Which Dan and which Mike are
> imposters posing as the other Dan and Mike? You have other PCT hikers listed
> with unoriginal, deceptive names like "Karen," "James," "Pete," "Ryan,"
> "Steven," "Lisa," "Rick," "Scott," "Kevin," "Dennis," and "Sarah." I'm
> pretty sure that other people with these names have gone hiking somewhere,
> sometime previously. Have you officially denied these folks the authority to
> use these names while hiking and labelled them imposters?
>
> I don't really care what name I use on the PCT, or if I use a trail name at
> all. I have used the nickname/trail name "Thought Criminal" in various
> contexts since 2002, but I would prefer to use a less political, more
> light-hearted name on the PCT. Rachel and I had extensive discussions about
> possible new trail names while hiking the Glacier NP section of the CDT with
> a friend whom I met on the CDT in New Mexico's Chihuahuan Desert. It's taken
> a lot of discussion for us to come to mutually agreeable trail names.
>
> Other trail names I considered have been keeping "Thought Criminal," just
> going by my birth name, or choosing Winston Smith, Ecotopian, Sequoia (to
> Rachel's Redwood), Green, Crestone, Peakbagger, 13er, Alien, Dissident, or
> Swingman (my nickname from high school).
>
> If you want to have a real discussion about trail names, let's move that
> discussion to the "Trail Names" thread, please.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Gary (insert trail name here)
>
> --- On Tue, 12/21/10, Paul Robison <paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>
> From: Paul Robison <paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com>
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Thru hikers for 2011...by date
> To: "Gary Swing" <homelessontherange at yahoo.com>, pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Tuesday, December 21, 2010, 4:23 PM
>
>
>
>
>
>
> well Pack Rat is a well known and popular accomplished hiker.
>
> ...i suppose we could make an exception.
>
> i went ahead and added you to the list as 'imposter pack rat' and "spill"
>
> have a good day,
> ~Paul
>
> (i hope you sense the intended joking sarcasm here... doesn't always come
> through on paper)
>
>
>
>
>
> From: Gary Swing <homelessontherange at yahoo.com>
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net; Paul Robison <paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com>
> Sent: Tue, December 21, 2010 12:12:17 PM
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Thru hikers for 2011...by date
>
>
>
>
>
> Paul,
>
> We regret to inform you that frankly we don't give a damn what you think.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Pack Rat and Spill
>
> --- On Tue, 12/21/10, Paul Robison <paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>
> From: Paul Robison <paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com>
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Thru hikers for 2011...by date
> To: "Gary Swing" <homelessontherange at yahoo.com>, pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Tuesday, December 21, 2010, 5:54 AM
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Your application for trail names has been regretfully
>
> declined
>
> name "Pack Rat" is already in use
> names "Spill" is already in use
>
> for further information please contact the admin
>
> this is an automated message
>
>
>
>
>
> From: Gary Swing <homelessontherange at yahoo.com>
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Sent: Mon, December 20, 2010 12:49:18 PM
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Thru hikers for 2011...by date
>
> My girlfriend (Rachel) and I plan to attempt a northbound thru hike of the
> PCT in 2011, starting with ADZPCTKO, which is scheduled to take place April
> 29-May 1.
>
> I was "Thought Criminal" on the AT in 2008 and the Colorado Trail in 2009.
> Rachel proposes to call me "Pack Rat" on the PCT in 2011. She was "Red" on
> the AT. I propose to call her "Spill" on the PCT.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Gary Swing
>
> Partner, Rachel Terry
> --- On Mon, 12/20/10, Paul Robison <paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>
> From: Paul Robison <paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com>
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Thru hikers for 2011...by date
> To: "Rick Wiggins" <moosewig at yahoo.com>, pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Monday, December 20, 2010, 5:24 AM
>
>
> k i added new entries and sorted by date to let you see who's going to be
> near
> you:
>
>
>
> James B (blue moon – march)
> Mike Schaffer (April 8)
> Holly Eggleston ( early / mid april)
> Pete and Karen Peterson (Early-Mid April)
> Ryan Hull (early – mid april)
> Ramblin' Rose (aja) and Emily (mid april)
> Steven dvsteven (flying tortoise) (mid april)
> Duncan Webb (Spider) (April 17)
> Outpost and Echo (April 17)
> Ron Dye (burning daylight), (April 17)
> Colin and topsy Turvy (mid-late april)
> Joyce L (mid-late April)
> Lisa Freathy (mid – late april)
> Matthias Kodym/Austria (mid/late April)
> Rick Wiggins (mid – late april)
> Scott G ; flip-flop (mid to late april)
> Kevin ( start 4/20 )
> Dennis osbourne - Sunshine (april 22)
> Whitnee Goode (late april, after 23’rd)
> jim and Dona (april 24)
> Alexander asai (late april)
> Bryan Cox < late April>
> Jen N (late april)
> Gregory Wilson and his brother (last week april)
> Dan K (April 27)
> Sarah howard (ko)
> Toby Maxwell (may 8-12)
> Prizm and Goodness (mid may)
> Dale P (late may)
> Christa Wellman (late may)
> Dale P (late may)
> Dan Engleman (end of may)
> Siesta Steve (UK, Idyllwild may 23)
> Lyndsey (lollygag) SOBO (june/july)
>
>
>
> no dates for the following ppl...
>
>
> Jonathon derecourt (jono) and his wife
> Joshua pinedo ( JP) … questionable…?
> Karl Jorgenson, Jorgy
> Kylie skidmore (skids)
> Liechty, David and Rachel
> Mike chapman
> Neil P
> Robert Henry
>
> Goodluck all and i'll see you out there !~!~
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: sauntrer at gmail.com
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2010 10:38:04 -0500
> Subject: [pct-l] FS Six Moons Lunar solo
>
> I've got a six moons lunar solo, great condition, very little use, standard
> floor, no stakes or stuff sack. Asking $150 including priority shipping.
> Paypal payment.
>
> Sent from my iPod
>
>
> --Forwarded Message Attachment--
> From: homelessontherange at yahoo.com
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2010 09:49:22 -0800
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Trail Names
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> In response to my first post on this forum (different thread), I have had a
> dispute with someone who labels me an "impostor" for proposing to use the
> trail name "Pack Rat" on the PCT in 2011. My girlfriend, Rachel, wants to
> use the trail name "Spill," which is also apparently not unique and
> original. Rachel and I had extensive discussions this summer about possible
> new trail names while we hiked the Glacier NP section of the CDT with a
> friend. It's taken a lot of discussion for us to come to mutually agreeable
> trail names, until we settled on "Pack Rat" and "Spill."
>
> (Brief aside -- for the Glacier hike we named our friend "Bob McGuire"
> because he asked Rachel if I'd told her about his "barbed wire" incident in
> New Mexico. She thought he said "Bob McGuire" and asked who "Bob McGuire"
> was.)
>
> Thousands of people have completed thru hikes of long distance trails while
> using trail names. Many of these trail names are obvious, common, and
> simple. When I thru hiked the AT in 2008, I met plenty of people with
> duplicated trail names. I personally don't know anybody who has used the
> trail names "Pack Rat" or "Spill." They are both fairly obvious trail names
> and fitting descriptions of habits that Rachel and I have demonstrated while
> doing long distance walks.
>
> "Pack Rat" may be "a well known and popular accomplished hiker," but I
> don't know him. I searched Trail Journals and found one listing for a
> "Packrat" (one word) who hiked the AT in 2004 and the Long Trail in 2005. I
> didn't find any listings for anybody named "Spill." I am not "pretending" to
> be a guy I never met who hiked the AT in 2004.
>
> Like birth names, trail names don't have to be unique names that nobody has
> ever used before. I'm not the only person who has ever been named Gary. That
> doesn't mean I'm "pretending" to be somebody else named Gary. How would
> somebody even know if they've come up with a unique, totally original trail
> name? Is there some searchable registry of every trail name any hiker has
> ever used? Is there a specific list of prohibited trail names that have been
> officially reserved for "well known and popular accomplished hikers?"
>
> I don't really care what name I use on the PCT, or if I use a trail name at
> all. Like anyone else, I don't want to be stuck with a dumb name like
> "Halitosis" or "Stinky Feet." However, my girlfriend *insists* that we both
> must have trail names, and wants us to start out on the PCT with them.
>
> Here are some pros and cons of trail names that I've considered:
>
> Thought Criminal: I used this trail name on the AT in 2008, the Colorado
> Trail and in the Chihuahuan Desert in 2009, and on the CDT between Canada
> and Butte in 2010. I have used this as a nickname in various contexts since
> 2002 -- on mountaineering forums, for a personal website that I had from
> 2003 to 2009, on a personal profile that I had for five years, and for a
> "Thought Criminal Test" that I wrote. The term is taken from George Orwell's
> dystopian novel "1984" about a totalitarian society in which anyone who
> thinks for oneself is branded a "Thought Criminal." On the AT, I found that
> most people didn't get the reference; the name was too long and people
> shortened it to "TC;" and I often had to spell out the word "Thought" when I
> met people who couldn't understand my pronunciation of the word. I prefer to
> replace this name on the PCT in favor of something less political and more
> light-hearted. I don't want to feel that I must live up to this name.
>
> Pack Rat: Rachel and my friend Barrett ("Bob McGuire") have made fun of my
> tendency to pick up and carry useless and generally unwanted items and carry
> them long distances before eventually using them, sending them home, or
> leaving them somewhere else. I tend to do this particularly with hiker
> boxes, picking up something nobody else wants and carrying it a long way
> until I eventually leave it in another hiker box, or consuming it (if it's
> food) when I have nothing else left to eat. Also, I do promotional work for
> the Colorado Ballet, sometimes in costume. I wear a rat costume for
> promotions of "The Nutcracker." Drawbacks: "Pack Rat" is a common,
> unoriginal name. It has been objected that a "well known and popular
> accomplished hiker" uses the name Pack Rat.
>
> Alien: Expresses my deep feelings of alienation from American society. I
> was also amused by the "No Alien" stickers I saw posted on the Colorado
> Trail. I wrote a satirical commentary about this. In 2010, Denver (where I
> live) had a local initiative on the ballot to create an "Extra-Terrestrial
> Affairs Commission" to study evidence of alleged extra-terrestrial
> visitation on Earth. I wrote some satirical commentaries about this proposal
> and used an "Extraterrestrial Affairs" themed costume for Halloween.
> Drawback: Folks might assume that I'm a UFO buff, which I'm not.
>
> Peakbagger: My hobby from 1990 to 2007 was climbing Colorado's 637
> mountains over 13,000 feet. Drawback: I don't plan to divert from the PCT to
> bag peaks, except for Whitney and Muir.
>
> 13er: See Peakbagger.
>
> Winston Smith: Lead character from George Orwell's novel "1984." The
> original "Thought Criminal." Less obvious trail name than "Thought
> Criminal," sounds like a real name. Most people probably wouldn't get the
> reference.
>
> Crestone: The name of my favorite Colorado 14ers (Crestone Peak and
> Crestone Needle).
>
> Green: I was a Green Party candidate for Congress in 2010. Rachel was "Red"
> on the AT in 2008. Could be part of a "couples' name -- except Rachel
> doesn't want to be "Red" again.
>
> Sequoia: I have a Specialized Sequoia road bike. Rachel briefly considered
> being "Redwood" on the PCT before rejecting it. Possible couples' name.
>
> Ecotopian: Obscure literary reference to Ernest Callenbach's novel
> "Ecotopia" in which northern California, Oregon, and Washington secede from
> the United States to build a new society based on principles of ecological
> sustainability. Seems appropriate to me since we'll be walking the length of
> "Ecotopia." Drawbacks: Most people won't get the reference, and it's too
> many syllables.
>
> Swingman: This was my nickname in high school, but I haven't used it since
> 1985. Doesn't seem meaningful to me anymore.
>
> Rachel used the name "Red" on the AT. We met in North Carolina and walked
> to Maine together. Red was her nickname from trail crew in the White
> Mountains (NH) for her hair color. I thought it was a boring, unoriginal
> name, so I tried to give her a different name. She rejected my proposals. I
> suggested "Lumber Jill" because she was a competitive Lumberjack. I later
> proposed "Redblaze" because she kept falling and blazing the trail with her
> own blood. For our Glacier National Park hike, I proposed to name her
> "Pandemic" because she works in a medical laboratory at a hospital. At the
> time, the people in her lab were playing a fantasy game called "Pandemic" in
> which they try to design a highly contagious disease capable of wiping out
> the entire human race. On the AT, we also debated the idea of calling
> ourselves "Misery" and "Company" -- with some uncertainty as to who would
> get which name. For the PCT, she considered switching to "Redwood" with me
> as
> "Sequoia." I proposed the name "Spill" for her on the PCT because she
> always seem to spill her food, and often spills herself as well. She tumbled
> down a rock stairway on the AT. Another time, she tripped over her own feet,
> stumbled a few paces, and fell on the only stickerbush in the area.
>
> So... in non-conclusion, I don't really care what name I use on the PCT, as
> long as it's not "Halitosis" or "Stinky Feet." Rachel thinks we should stick
> with "Pack Rat" and "Spill" -- even though other people have used those
> names.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Gary
>
>
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>
--
John Caster____
lungcancerhike.org
_______________________________________________
Pct-L mailing list
Pct-L at backcountry.net
To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
List Archives:
http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
More information about the Pct-L
mailing list