[pct-l] SPOT messenger vs McMurdo PLB
Edward Anderson
mendoridered at yahoo.com
Mon Mar 28 10:44:40 CDT 2011
Paul,
Re: "I met a thru rider who said he aimed to do 100 miles a day!!"
I'm sure that that inexperienced fool didn't get far. Where did you meet him?
Had he even started? Having ridden most of the PCT, I can only recall a few
places where you could possibly ride that far in one day (without a pack). And
,if you tried it you would most likely be putting your horse at serious risk.
That attitude is a recipe for trouble. There are many obstacles on the PCT that
are easy to get past for hikers (if you ask them later they usually don't even
remember them). But they will delay an equestrian. I came upon hundreds of down
trees. I had to cut at least three dozen. One, 15" in diameter, took me well
over an hour with my 14" saw. I made my wedges out of wood. In Washington, in
the 15 miles north of Cascade Locks alone, I had to cut nine trees to get
through. (I didn't take the shortcut through Stevenson as most hikers
do) Sometimes, if there was no obvious and easy way to get past trees or
boulders, I had to discover, and often clear, a detour. Some detours took an
hour or more. One, south of Fobes Saddle, took a day and a half. That was
because there were many, many, down trees - far to many to cut. No way, anyone
could average 100 miles a day.
As for riding 100 miles in a day, I have done that many times on Arabian horses.
My sport, beginning 27 years ago (a year after I discovered horses) is endurance
racing. Most of my 46,000 + miles ridden have been related to endurance. I have
ridden well over 100 50 and 100 mile races and have won 30. In that sport there
is strict veterinary control to protect the horses. Your horse is checked
before, during, and after a race. Performance-enhancing drugs are not allowed.
In a 100 mile race there are typically six vet checks during the race. Horses
are pulled if they become lame or if there are metabolic problems. After a race,
at the post ride check, horses will be pulled (no completion) if they are not
considered by the vets "fit to continue". This is true even if your horse was
first to finish. A very highly coveted award in the endurance sport is "Best
Condition". The BC award goes to the horse, finishing in the top 10, that is
judged (very critically) by the veterinary staff to be in the best condition.
Taking good care of your horse is of paramount importance. I am proud to have
won 19 BC awards for several different horses. I continued the same approach
while on the PCT. Primo was never injured nor suffered any kind of metabolic
problem. I only averaged 17 miles per day. The longest day was 30 miles - and
that was too far. Anyone trying to average much farther than 30 miles, (the
horse carrying a pack) would definitely have problems in that the horse would
not have enough time to graze, would sweat a lot, and might not get enough
water. He would lose weight and become dehydrated.
If you are interested in reading what I wrote for the Long Riders Guild on the
subject of advice to equestrians who would want to ride on the PCT go to:
thelongridersguild.com/advice/pct
MendoRider
________________________________
From: Paul Robison <paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com>
To: Edward Anderson <mendoridered at yahoo.com>
Cc: Hillery Schwirtlich <hillery.schwirtlich at gmail.com>; "pct-l at backcountry.net"
<pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Sun, March 27, 2011 2:40:26 PM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] SPOT messenger vs McMurdo PLB
I met a thru rider who said he aimed to do 100 miles a day!! He even had tw=
o horses to he could rest one (that his brother drove to him).
I know nothing of riding... But I also love a good zero on level ground by a=
nice creek.
Sent from my iPod
On 2011-03-27, at 5:02 PM, Edward Anderson <mendoridered at yahoo.com> wrote:
Paul,
>Riding the trail is a lot different from hiking it. I usually took my 0 days
>near the trail - since I lived on the trail between those places where I had
>driven ahead and parked my rig. (Couldn't hitch into town with my horse even if
>I wanted to.) My 0 days were places where Primo had plenty of graze and good
>water. I could just relax and take a shower. I brought a solar-heated shower -
>which also provided the convenience of gravity-fed running water from a faucet
>right in camp.
>
>
>This summer, if all goes well and the snow melts enough, I am riding the
>Sierra SOBO from Sierra City.
>I have planned seven resupply locations near the trail and will camp at most
>after retreiving my caches.
>
>MendoRider
>
>
>
>
________________________________
From: Paul Robison <paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com>
>To: Hillary Schwirtlich <hillary.schwirtlich at gmail.com>
>Cc: Edward Anderson <mendoridered at yahoo.com>; "pct-l at backcountry.net"
><pct-l at backcountry.net>; "enyapjr at comcast.net" <enyapjr at comcast.net>
>Sent: Sun, March 27, 2011 1:34:05 PM
>Subject: Re: [pct-l] SPOT messenger vs McMurdo PLB
>
>Hillary,
>The spot is 100$. And sub. Is 99$
>
>A traditional PLB is about 500$... So I thought spot was amazingly cheap for
>what it does.
>
>I certainly wouldn't say they are 'really expensive'. If 100$ is a stretch for
>you; youre in for a hard thru hike. That's less than the cost of one zero.
>
>Just talked to two couples I hiked with last year and both spent over 16,000 ...
>That sufficiently scared me... I'm even considering skipping Warner springs.
>
>Sent from my iPod
>
>On 2011-03-27, at 3:36 PM, Hillary Schwirtlich <hillary.schwirtlich at gmail.com>
>wrote:
>
>> I think this comes back to the central question of heavy trucking vs light
>> vs ultralight hiking: how do you mitigate risk? It's a question that doesn't
>> just have to do with weight though. If you are concerned about being
>> prepared for everything, you're going to bring more options for bailing
>> yourself out of sticky situations.
>>
>> I don't have a SPOT and I don't plan on getting one. That's because they're
>> really expensive and they aren't something I think is 100% necessary for my
>> style of hiking. Partly because I'm almost never alone, I rarely stray off
>> trail, and I always have a map. In other words, I'm usually as prepared as I
>> think I can be, I have enough experience to know how to deal with most
>> common backcountry situations (i.e. cold, wet weather, etc), and I'm not
>> like the guy was in 127 Hours - I see the need for human companionship and
>> letting someone know where I'm going.
>>
>> What happened to your friend's uncle was definitely unexpected and very sad.
>> But that was also a very rare case. Maybe it's foolhardy of me to say that I
>> doubt I will be having a heart attack soon (I'm 23, female, have always been
>> active and eaten well, and have no family history of heart problems). But I
>> feel that the risk of that or something else like it happening to me, where
>> I don't have someone who can go hike for help, is small enough not to
>> warrant needing a SPOT. Just like the likelihood of me developing an
>> allergic reaction to a bee sting on the trail when I've never had an
>> allergic reaction to one before is possible, but unlikely, and so I'm not
>> going to go get a prescription for an EpiPen just in case.
>>
>> That being said, I don't think you're over prepared if you do decide to get
>> a SPOT device or something like it. I can see that having that extra safety
>> would make someone feel much more comfortable, especially if they spent a
>> lot of time alone. But I certainly don't think that you're a terrible person
>> for not having one. If everyone who every went hiking absolutely needed a
>> signaling device, 1. people wouldn't have gone hiking until the last however
>> many years since those signaling devices were invented, and 2. only people
>> who could afford the device would experience outdoor sports. And I'm all for
>> as many people as possible exploring and appreciating the natural world.
>>
>> I guess it's also a question of HYOH. :)
>>
>> On Sun, Mar 27, 2011 at 12:00 PM, Edward Anderson
>><mendoridered at yahoo.com>wrote:
>>
>>> Jim,
>>> I always advise people to "expect the unexpected"- and try to be prepared
>>> for
>>> it. Trees can fall unexpectedly, for no obvious reason - even on a nice day
>>> with
>>> little or no breeze. Boulders can come down, starting slides, as snow and
>>> ice melt from high above the trail. Anyone who has spent a lot of time,
>>> hiking,
>>> climbing, and riding, in the back country, as I have, has experienced the
>>> unexpected. You don't have to be taking foolish risks to have the
>>> unexpected happen. While I lived in Mendocino an uncle of a close friend
>>> tragically died while hiking in the Yola Bolies alone. He was a healthy
>>> and fit
>>> guy and knew the area well. He died of a Cardiac Arrest. he had no way
>>> of summoning help. This happened about 15 years ago. If he had along a way
>>> of
>>> summoning help he might have survived. Now that the technology has become
>>> available I hold that it is foolish not to take advantage of it. It might
>>> be the
>>> life of someone else that you save.
>>>
>>> MendoRider
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ________________________________
>>> From: "enyapjr at comcast.net" <enyapjr at comcast.net>
>>> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
>>> Sent: Sun, March 27, 2011 11:12:17 AM
>>> Subject: [pct-l] SPOT messenger vs McMurdo PLB
>>>
>>>> ...only a fool would not bring one, or some other reliable rescue
>>> signaling
>>>> device.
>>>
>>> Sorry, MendoRider, but I definitely have to disagree with that statement!
>>> With a moderate amount of experience, sufficient or adequate gear for the
>>> conditions
>>> expected or possible, and the common sense to know when to hunker down or
>>> bail
>>> out or
>>>
>>> not try something too 'extreme' - one wouldn't have any need for
>>> "rescue"...
>>> Not having a SPOT or PLB does not necessarily mean that one is stupid or a
>>> fool!
>>>
>>>> The successful TV program "I Shouldn't be Alive" would not exist if all
>>> of
>>>> those
>>>>
>>>> people had had a way of calling for rescue.
>>>
>>> And how did many of those people get into such 'situations' that they
>>> needed
>>> 'rescue'?
>>> Sometimes it's the opposite - one goes ahead and does something one
>>> normally
>>> wouldn't
>>> because they do have a rescue device with them... Plus ask some SAR folks
>>> what
>>> they
>>> honestly think of these rescue devices - too many times that 'rescue'
>>> button is
>>> pushed
>>> without THINKING over the situation first - or developing skills needed
>>> ahead of
>>> time...
>>> The most important piece of 'gear' one carries? - the gray matter in one's
>>> skull
>>> - it's
>>> seems amazing that so many people nowadays don't use it (but makes for
>>> "successful TV"
>>> programs, however)...
>>>
>>> There's also another 'popular' TV program - "A 1,000 Ways to Die"; and
>>> let's not
>>> forget
>>> about the annual "Darwin Awards", either... I doubt a rescue device would
>>> have
>>> helped
>>> the majority of those people...
>>>
>>> What was my 'rescue device' carried many years ago (before 'electronics') &
>>> never once
>>>
>>> used as such - the mirror in my small sighting compass...
>>> All that said - I'll probably carry a SPOT - but as a COMMUNICATION device,
>>> NOT
>>> as a
>>>
>>> 'rescue' device... It will be for the family & friends 'peace of mind',
>>> and for
>>> me in
>>> the sense of 'sharing' my trek with them daily...
>>> YMMV, HYOH, ad infinitum etceteras......
>>>
>>> Happy trails!!!
>>> Jim (PITA)
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