[pct-l] Gear question?

[Nicholas Fey]

This post may not sit well with a moderator, but still I wish to put it out and 
see what the general feedback is from it. What's the situation with outdoor 
people and their condemnation of brands, I have never heard such a strong stance 
against name brand items until I joined the ultra-running community mail list. 
Then here, reading the archives all the way back to 2008-nearly every gear 
question included numerous subtle comments suggesting that anything which can be 
identified by its brand is absurd or a poor choice. 


 Which leads me to my question of: Is it just that I am misinterpreting a 
persons reply to a gear question or is that honestly on the overall a large 
number of people on here have personal issues with brands? 

By brands I mean like these:
MSR - Any question about stoves lead to saying a home built alcohol stove was 
better
Any backpack brand other than "ULA" (who they are I don't know) is just bulky, 
heavy, and no good
Any tent question lead to that manufactured tents are as above bulky, heavy, and 
no good that a tarp would serve better

Those three are of course just the most consistent items I saw during two years 
worth of traffic. 


In closing please don't take me as Trolling because I ask this in earnest, due 
to my in no more then four years stepping away from everything, for a year to 
hike and enjoy life as Thoreau suggest in "Walden" (I even have 2 acres which I 
may do as he did, and build my living with my own hands).

Nick,

P.S: Great list as I said about the history I read, it certainly gave me pause 
for consideration on numerous items which I would have most likely glossed over 
during any stage of preparation for a thru-hike.