[pct-l] new resource for home-made equipment (was: REI past&present)

[blisterfree at isp01.net (Brett)]

Ron, could you elaborate on the following? Would be curious to know what has
become "old and constricting," in your estimation.

>>As fast as the outdoor industry is changing, so is the nature of
ultralight
hiking. While just a short time ago, many of Ray's original ideas on gear
sounded raw and exciting, today they're sounding old and constricting. I
would even go so far as to say, that while Ray put forth some interesting
ideas on ultralight hiking, even he failed to fully understand the
underlying foundation upon which he was deriving his principals from. This
is very evident in both what he's said and in the gear he produced. <<

What Ray has introduced in his books over the years is a system of hiking
equipment, methods, and associated philosophy that has allowed him to
thru-hike the big trails quickly, easily, and enjoyably, and which has
worked for many others as well, then and now. This system has continued to
evolve over the years, but is also firmly rooted in a number of core
principles that have remained constant, largely because of their
inscrutability.

For instance, I believe Ray and Jenny's base packweight (before food and
water) has dropped from 8.44 lbs to just 4 lbs today, meaning that certain
items have been greatly curtailed or eliminated in favor of a greater
reliance on skills. And yet we continue to see the "ray-way" tarp in the
latest gear list. And we find the net-tent is still recommended for use
whenever insects are in high numbers. Why? Because they perform their
individual tasks extremely well. Granted, they may not be a panacea; when it
comes to outdoor equipment, nothing is. But I have yet to come across, or
come up with (and don't think I haven't tried), a better, more functional,
more "modern" shelter system that excels like the tarp and net-tent while it
also eliminates any of this system's perceived detractions.

Capitalism flourishes and that's great. I take no issue with the core
principle of the system. But I do think there are a lot of good examples of
"bad" capitalism out there. Thankfully the cottage industries aren't
generally among them. What an amazing age we live in, when the little man
with a big idea can reach a large audience, and benefit that audience while
making a living at it. Yet even this type of capitalism has its limitations
for the end user. As always, the underlying premise of this sytem is, "I
don't care to produce these goods myself, so I will let you make them for me
instead, and then pay you for them." How easy for the producer to favor
profit over perfection of product, and how easy for the buyer to be lulled
into a sense of unscrutinized satisfaction.

Granted, small companies such as Six Moon Designs are way ahead by most
accounts. Ultimately, though, it's my strong belief that the more deeply
involved in the "outdoor game" a person becomes, the more he or she stands
to benefit from learning to make their own equipment. We can fashion this
gear to our own exacting standards, to our personal needs, with nothing
superfluous and nothing lacking. And if we crash, we learn rather than burn.
And when we learn, we reach a completely new level in this wilderness thing.
This is a primary theme in the new ray-way tarp book. That the items perform
well is important, certainly; but whether we make a tarp to Ray's
specifications or instead venture out on our own, home-made gear is much
more a part of us than the equivalent commercial items. It is an extension
of ourselves, is an extension of our purpose in traveling the wilderness, as
we walk away from who we were, and toward who we're becoming.

- blisterfree