[pct-l] Walker Pass Milkshakes

[hiker97 at aol.com]

The Ruck milkshakes got me thinking.  What is a really good milkshake?  What would be the perfect Walker Pass Ruck (June 3-6) milkshake?  I like the chocolate malt milkshakes best.
 
The key is the combination of fresh products and an experienced hand.  Real ice cream, milk, chocolate syrup, and malt must be carefully controlled.  Any imbalance and the shake will go from great to okay to yuck.
 
The best I have ever had was in Evansville, Ind. (born there) down by the Ohio River.  They were called Frosty's.  This was over 50 years ago.  These were a perfect blend of thickness, flavor, and coldness.  They had a neat texture of soft thickness --- you could just barely suck it up through a straw or easily use a long plastic spoon for a large dab.  Nice.  
 
The temperature is important too.  It has to have a sharp coldness to it.  A coldness that you know if you eat it too fast, you will get a headache.  The right coldness makes the whole shake memorable.  It sets the tone for the shake.  It makes other imperfections smaller and less noticeable if this is perfect.
 
Again, the balance of ingredients is critical.  If the malt is too much, then the shake takes on a raw edge to it with to much malt flavor.  This not good.  The malt should be just enough to let you know it is there, but not enough to be the major shake factor.  It blends into the background.  It is like a cloud.  You know it is there, but you cannot grab a hold of it.
 
Shake making is an art form.  Only world-class shake artist know how to do this.  But the results are staggering.  You know afterwards that you have just had something special.  You try to make your mind remember this experience.  You try to set a hike benchmark or journal entry to make note of this magical experience.  You daydream about it on hard parts of the trail.  It comes back into your conciseness when things get tough out there.  It motivates you along the trail just when you need it the most.  This is the magic of a great shake.  
 
Two shakes that I find acceptable are at Sonic Drive-ins and the Dairy Queen Blizzard.  The Blizzard should be made with vanilla ice cream and not chocolate ice cream.  Too much chocolate and the shake becomes over powering with chocolate flavor.  There must be a careful balance of all ingredients.  One ingredient should not overwhelm the other parts.
 
Yes, the Walker Pass Ruck is shaping up to be one to remember --- King Ruck.  An event of biblical proportions.  Everyone is welcome who loves hiking and wants to support the section and thru-hikers.
 
Drooling to get there,
 
Switchback the Trail Pirate
 
PS: Seriously, I understand those who do not want us to go overboard with sweets at the Ruck.  I cannot have any shakes or pastries at the Ruck for medical reasons.  But hikers burning 4000-5000 calories per day can.  Even banging along the trail, I cannot have hardly any sweets.  So, everyone make their own decisions and pick and choose from the Ruck buffet.  I try to stick to organic quality foods everyday in non-trail "real" life  My breakfast almost everyday is organic cereal with unsweetened almond milk.  My lunch is a fruit plate with tuna salad at the country club.  I try to drink only purified water.