[pct-l] Let's pull it together people...

[carlito at gmail.com (Carl Siechert)]

On 4/28/05, Mike Saenz <msaenz@mve-architects.com> wrote:
> Absolutely! This discussion (IMHO) has so far been the most relevant,
> important, thought-provoking and widely-participated, discussion I've
> seen on this List. I haven't yawned yet while reading the various
> posts...

Same here.

> In an attempt to maintain organization, the following are the ideas
> raised to address the issue that I've heard so far. They are in no
> <snip>
> Did I miss any? Or are there any more to consider?

Excellent compilation, Mike, and it pretty well matches what the
organizers have been discussing and considering. (There's one other
initiative toward mitigating the clumping effect, which is not on your
list. This year, for the first time, we sent a letter to businesses
and post offices along the route a few months ago. These letters were
intended to alert the recipients to the impending wave, and to
encourage them to stock up on supplies needed by thru hikers. We plan
to send followup letters to solicit their feedback.)

Expect some of these ideas to be implemented before next year's
kickoff. Perhaps most significantly, we'll try to set appropriate
expectations for thru hikers and others who are affected by letting
them know that, despite any other efforts to minimize the effect,
there will be a wave of hikers centered around the kickoff date. They
can then choose to be a part of it or take steps (literally!) to avoid
it.

Keep in mind too that much of this discussion is based on
perceptions--and everyone's is different. For example, in another
thread, a 2004 hiker who liked some of the social aspects of the trail
reported seeing 30+ hikers at the Mt. Laguna PO, and someone else
characterized this as "post offices were swamped." While this is
obviously a high number of people for that post office, not everyone
considers this to be a bad thing--nor particularly unusual. You can go
to the main post office in Pasadena (or any other big city) almost any
time and find 30 people in line. And unlike the 30 hikers at Mt.
Laguna, these aren't people that I'm particularly interested in
hanging around or chatting with!

Bottom line? We're going to change what we can, do a better job of
informing people, and live with the things we can't change.

Cheers,
Carl
ADZPCTKO Webmaster and co-conspirator