[pct-l] Being Prepared vs Hoping for the Best

[Gail Van Velzer]

I totally agree with Reinhold and Ned.  Many many hikers don't bring what 
they need.  Accidents happen.  The weather doesn't always cooperate.  Trails 
dissintigrate!  I'm all for having what you need, even if it's in small 
amounts.  I'm known for repackaging everything, and I know how many drops an 
eye drop bottle can hold.  People laugh at my miniscule bottles, but I have 
what I need.
Please don't leave the important things behind in the quest to be the 
fastest.
Golly

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Reinhold Metzger" <reinholdmetzger at cox.net>
To: "PCT" <pct-l at backcountry.net>; "Ned Tibbits" 
<ned at mountaineducation.org>; "Ned Tibbits" <ned at mountaineducation.com>; 
<ned at pacificcrestcustombuilders.com>; <Hiker97 at aol.com>
Sent: Wednesday, February 25, 2015 11:14 PM
Subject: [pct-l] Being Prepared vs Hoping for the Best


> Yes Ned,
> Like always, you hit the nail right on the head.
> I observed the same in the years that followed my 2003 "Unsupported"
> JMT Record.
> For 4 years, until it was broken, I kept getting calls from aspiring
> record breakers pumping me with questions about food, water, sleep,
> equipment, pack weight, etc.. etc., etc.
> And, even though they were competing with me for the record, I always
> tried to assist them as much as possible....after all "Backpackers
> are like Brothers".
> Since pack weight is a major factor in speed records everybody was
> gram counting to reduce pack weight to a minimum.
> I did the same thing, making my own pack & tent, cutting the tooth
> brush in half, taking just enough tooth past and counting the number
> of all purpose (toilet) paper sheets for 5 days and a menu consisting
> of high calorie, easy to prepare or eaten on the run food delivering
> 50-60% of the calories burned.....the other 40-50% from body fat.
> Yup,.....UL taken to the extreme.
>
> After 4 years in the USMC Infantry, where hiking is a way of life,
> not a hobby, and the word comfort does not exist, I have learned
> to do without comfort for the sake of UL.
> However, having said that, when I hike with the Scouts, or Karen
> (my wife) I am a "HEAVY  TRUCKER" (55-65lb) so Karen can have the
> comforts she likes...."I TREAT MY WOMEN RIGHT".
> Most of my hiking buddies can't get their wives or girl friends to
> hike with them...they strap'm down like mules and then they wonder
> why they don't like backpacking.
> Poor, long suffering Mrs. Switchback does not hike with Switchback.
> He even makes poor, long suffering Mrs. Switchback cut the grass with
> scissors.
> Some guys just don't seem to know how to treat their women right.
>  On those JMT speed hikes I would deprive myself of all the "comfies".
> However, when setting foot in the wilderness I always have in my
> pack everything I need to survive whatever I think Mother Nature
> might throw at me, including tent, sleeping bag, cold weather gear,
> rain gear, first aid kit, emergency kit, crystal iodine, map and
> compass, flash light, etc., etc.
> I have "thru" hiked the JMT eleven times and probably do not need a
> map or compass to show me the way.
> To me the value of the map and compass is not so much to show the
> way of the trail, but to show me the way out of the wilderness if
> I am lost or injured.
> You may never need the map and compass, but when you do need it,
> you really need it and it is worth its weight in gold.
> It may even save your life.
>
> The one thing I noticed was that many of the record seekers,in my
> opinion, in order to achieve minimum pack weight, were not
> properly prepared and as you said, "hoped for the best".
>
> Without using real names I give you a typical example:
>
> Fred a hardcore hiker/trail runner has been pumping me about the
> JMT for over half an hour.
> Finally I ask Fred a few questions.
> Fred, what kind of tent are you taking?
> Answer...I'm not taking a tent I'm just rolling up in plastic.
>
> Fred, What kind of rain gear are you bringing?
> Answer...A trash bag
>
> Fred, what kind of cold weather gear are you bringing?
> Answer...I may bring a fleece jacket
>
> Fred, What about long pants
> Answer...I'm not bringing long pants
>
> Fred, You have insufficient cold weather gear, it can get very cold
>       in the sierra....your not going to be able to sleep at night.
> Answer...I'm planing to run all night and sleep during the day.
>
> Fred, You don't have a tent, you don't have sufficient rain gear or
>       cold weather gear. What if you get caught in freezing rain or
>       snow?
> Answer...I blow out
>
> Fred, What if you break a leg or get hurt and can't blow out and you
>       are stuck at 12,000 feet in freezing rain or snow without a
>       tent, without sufficient rain gear or cold weather gear.
> Answer...SILENCE...DEADLY SILENCE
>
> Yes Ned, some folks roll the dice and "Hope For The Best".
>
> Listen to Ned Guys....Ned knows what he is talking about.
>
> JMT Reinhold
> The one who treats his women right
> ............................
>
>
> Ned wrote:
>
> Sometimes I am concerned that this quest for the lightest
> pack is causing hikers to do without and "hope for the best," rather than
> being aware of what could and has happened and travel prepared (which may
> mean you carry some stuff that you maybe won't use)...
>
>
>
> Ned Tibbits, Director
> Mountain Education, Inc.
> www.mountaineducation.org
> ned at mountaineducation.or 
> <http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l>
>
>
>
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