[pct-l] quick question on my hiking performance

[Scott Williams]

This year, thirteen of us did just that Dianne.  When we got to Idyllwild in
early May, there was still a lot of snow in the San Jacinto, and search and
rescue had just come off the mtn on a rescue and asked folks to consider
tackling the deserts first as they felt it was still quite dangerous on
Fuller Ridge and Apache Peak.  We jumped forward to the Agua Dulce (thank
you Donna and Jeff for your early hospitality) and hiked to Walker pass, and
then returned to  the San Jacinto two weeks later.  It was great to do the
deserts in the cool of early May.  Many other hikers who I met later up
trail had chosen to walk the roads around these two obstacles after giving
them a try and feeling they were just too dangerous.  As May and June were
so unseasonably cold this year on the entire West Coast, there was very
little melt off during our 2 weeks away, and although we were able to make
it over Apache and Fuller, it was ice axes and crampons, and lots of time
hunting for trail, and I should mention, lots of fun as well.  In hindsight,
the icy conditions and precipitous drops on those two ridges, (here is where
Cliff Hanger got her name if I'm not mistaken, and it's a great story) were
much more dangerous than the 4 weeks of passes in the High Sierra, where the
snow was a lot more forgiving when we came through.  The rivers were the
great danger in the Sierra.

I totally agree with you that no one should speed down trails unless that is
what they've trained to do.  Trying to push beyond ones limits is the surest
way to injury, and was a common thread in most of the overuse injuries I
heard of or helped with.  Finding a pace that is really yours and that
allows you to use those long summer days, is the way to go.  Even if it
sounds slower than you think it aught to, over the many hours of a day, day
after day, the miles just add up.

Shroomer





n Wed, Oct 27, 2010 at 6:17 AM, Diane Soini of Santa Barbara Hikes <
diane at santabarbarahikes.com> wrote:

>
> On Oct 26, 2010, at 10:22 PM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:
> > it could be said that I need to
> > pick up a pace a bit to try to get to a 20 mpd range
>
> If by piking up the pace you mean walking faster, you really don't
> want to do that. Unless you really are lollygagging about, trying to
> walk faster could lead to an injury because you will be overstriding
> or pushing yourself in a way that could tear a muscle or give you a
> stress fracture.
>
> My pace actually went down on the PCT. I walked at a comfortable pace
> that I could maintain all day. A few times I would be in a hurry and
> would push myself to walk faster. It rarely ended up increasing my
> mileage or speed.
>
> Ray Jardine has an interesting chart in his book illustrating the
> fallacy of trying to make up for slow walking up hill with faster
> walking down hill. He shows that on a trail with no hills, at a
> moderate pace, you can get 10 miles in in a fraction of the time
> compared to if you walk slowly up the hills and then race down them.
> Adding speed doesn't really work. Your context is slightly different
> in that you want to add speed over the entire distance, but you may
> find it hard to keep it up for the entire day, so the result would
> probably be similar. Not much gain.
>
> Also, if you are the one who was considering starting March 1, it may
> be pushing the earliness a bit. There is not just snow on the trail
> but dangerous, precipitous drops. People die regularly on Mt. San
> Jancito and on Baden Powell. If you do start this early, be prepared
> for very slow going and difficult, if not treacherous conditions. An
> alternative would be to hike from the border to Highway 74 and then
> do the desert walk across the Mojave to Tehachapi after that. Then
> return to Highway 74 and continue on. Still be prepared for difficult
> conditions because the snow lingers through May in the San Jacinto
> range. In 2008 it snowed during the entire Memorial Day weekend just
> when I was about to hit Baden Powell. Remember, the mountains of So
> Cal do get above 10,000 feet.
>
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