[pct-l] PCT-L - Most Common Causes of Thru-Dropout

Wed Sep 21 13:09:51 CDT 2011

Well put, Charles!

"Just remember, Be Careful out there!"

Ned Tibbits, Director
Mountain Education
South Lake Tahoe, Ca. 96150
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    http://www.mountaineducation.org
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Charles Doersch" <charles.doersch at gmail.com>
To: "Jeff Judd" <frotiss_lupus at yahoo.com>
Cc: "PCT listserve" <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Wednesday, September 21, 2011 10:59 AM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] PCT-L - Most Common Causes of Thru-Dropout

> My family and I are thru-hiking the PCT next year -- and we've also been
> testing gear, hiking long miles, backpacking more, etc. We live in 
> Colorado
> and we hike and have hiked aplenty, but the PCT (we've come to realize) is 
> a
> paradigm shift from what we've done before.
>
> We've done long-distance, long-term expeditions abroad for years, and what
> we've experienced there seems to jive with what we've been reading in the
> trail journals this year and last for PCT thru-hikers. The will to finish
> appears to be paramount.
>
> Aside from the catastrophic injury that really requires quitting the 
> trail,
> it seems to me that folks who stop their thru-hike have one way or the 
> other
> "seen the elephant" (that 19th century term for being overwhelmed by the
> difficulty [physical/emotional/psychological] of an expedition and their
> will to continue fails.] Of course, we'll all know exceptions -- I'm not
> saying this is true for everyone -- but it seems to be a pattern that's
> recognizable. I have read of thru-hikers with torn cartilage in their knee
> being told by the doctor in a trail town (looking at the x-rays), "Nope,
> you're done. You can't continue." And that hiker found a way to continue,
> and completed it. Others quit for much less grievous pains. I've read 
> other
> journals where someone quit because of shin splints -- while other
> thru-hikers had repeated bouts of shin splints and continued and finished.
> Some quit because of relationship or family issues -- others continue
> despite relationship or family issues.
>
> On every expedition I've launched myself on, I've discovered that there 
> are
> always "sufficient" excuses to quit that can build up in our brains & 
> hearts
> as we slog along ... Yogi has good advice in her book about what to do 
> when
> you feel like quitting. The PCT isn't for everyone, I can understand that.
> But I keep reading about everyone from office workers to athletes, the
> experienced to the novice, from the young to the elderly crossing the 
> finish
> line successfully. And I read as well about those who fail: office workers
> to athletes, the experienced to the novice, from the young to the elderly.
>
> The veterans of the PCT, I'm sure, will weigh in on this.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Charles & the gang.
>
>
>
> On Wed, Sep 21, 2011 at 11:18 AM, Jeff Judd <frotiss_lupus at yahoo.com> 
> wrote:
>
>> Quick background - my wife and I are planning on thru-hiking in 2013.
>> We're currently gathering and testing gear as well as increasing our hike
>> mileage and frequency.  My wife just got a different/better job which 
>> will
>> allow us to hike together much more frequently as we ramp up our 
>> training.
>> Very excited to get this journey underway.  I've wanted to hike the PCT 
>> ever
>> since I first heard about it as a wee Cub Scout.  Albeit that was only 13
>> years ago.
>>
>>
>> As we watched the 2010 class DVD that Tortoise mailed us, (Thank you!) I
>> was reminded of the Nat Geo special on the PCT where it showed the thrus
>> gathered at kickoff and stated "only half will make it..." dun dun dun! 
>> The
>> numbers commonly tossed around are roughly 300 attempt per year with 
>> ~half
>> finishing.  Which begs the question, how do I avoid being one of those 
>> that
>> do not make it?  I
>>
>>
>> My understanding based upon lurking on this list since last November is
>> that the most common cause of dropout is lack of funds or injury.  My 
>> wife
>> and I are setting aside money already and planning our finances etc for 
>> us
>> to be gone up to six month, so I don't expect the financials to cause us 
>> to
>> drop out.  We're not particularly big party animals, and as neither of us
>> drink alcohol it sounds like we'll save a fortune on beer in town 
>> compared
>> to the average thru.  Which leaves the possibility of injury knocking us
>> out.  Are the hike ending injuries typically things that can be avoided 
>> by
>> proper conditioning and training (repetitive motion injuries etc?) or are
>> they more likely to be unfortunate events like falling and breaking an
>> ankle?
>>
>> tl;dr - In your experiences what are the most common injuries and causes 
>> of
>> hiker dropout?  What can we do to avoid these pitfalls?  Any particular
>> training we should consider beyond hiking, hiking, and more hiking?
>>
>> Any points for consideration will be greatly appreciated.
>>
>>
>> PS It was amazing how many of the locations I recognized in the 2010 
>> class
>> DVD as the famous sites along the PCT.  Hiker oasis, third gate, Painted
>> Lady, Forrester, Eagle Rock, Muir Hut, Warner Springs, Mt Shasta etc etc.
>> Places I've never been before.  It was only then that I realized how much 
>> I
>> obsess over the trail looking at maps and pictures and reading journals.
>> Suffice it to say my wife was sufficiently weirded out by the whole 
>> thing.
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