[pct-l] cloud packweight

[KBerger466@aol.com]

Tom: 

I weighed it full, before Dan left, so I know his actuall full packweight (35 
pounds, including food and water. Dan takes a LOT of food). Now that he's 
back, after I got your note, I weighed it empty. It's 3 1/2 pounds on my 
bathroom scale; 3 3/4 on the postal scale. Hard to measure on the postal 
scale because of balancing it (even in a box). I suppose you could take out 
the pad around the stays (and wrap a z-rest there instead), or cut off all 
those plastic loopy things (if you didn't intend to use them).  

I have to admit I only tried the Cloud on my treadmill (This is a sad sad 
state of affairs). But it didn't feel to me as good as my Dana Terraplane, 
which has never ever hurt me. Thing is, I've had some shoulder problems in 
the past (rotator cuff injury) and I've seen people on long trails develop 
shoulder problems from home-made packs. I'm extremely reluctant to switch 
from something that I know works for me. I don't buy this home-made pack 
stuff at all -- for me, that is. I'm of the school that says a 30 pound 
comfortable pack is better to carry than a 20 pound uncomfortable sack. I 
just don't get the Go-lite thing without a hipbelt. I've worn 20 pounds 
without a hipbelt, and it was torture. 

Now, if Dana would only make the Terraplane out of Spectra, I'd be all set. 

It's hard to know who to trust with this stuff. I know I can't rely on Dan 
telling me that something is comfortable, because, as I said, he has no 
nervous system. (He once walked for a day on a bunched up extra sock liner 
that he'd left in a boot and didn't even notice.) And other people ignore 
discomfort as part of the backpacking package.  As Mountain Dave has pointed 
out re blisters, thru-hikers often assume that pain is part of the equation. 
I learned long ago that people will recommend gear just because they happen 
to use it -- they are either loyal to it (sometimes because they paid a lot 
for it), or proud of it (because they made it), or it's the only thing they 
know, or they've gotten used to coping with its limitations. 

I once saw a guy who was so proud of his homemade pack -- even though he was 
getting off the trail due to a frozen shoulder. He swore up and down that the 
pack was perfectly comfortable -- his beloved homemade pack COULDN'T have 
caused the problem. But then, what did? 

I'm willing to keep trying new packs --- but somhow, I always go back to my 
faithful Dana.

Just a few random thoughts. 

Karen Berger


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