[Philmont] Heavy Loads, Big Backpacks, and Physical Preparations

On Sun, 19 Aug 2007 15:01:38 -0500, "Shane Hoffman" <mycales@tx.rr.com> jammed all night, and by sunrise was heard saying:

> I've been a lurker, reader, and submitter on this e-mail list for about 5
> years now, and I still get a kick out of things like this...

> Dave Haynie said "...I began with my gear plus 8kg, and worked my way up to
> 75lbs. for training hikes (up to four miles). On shakedowns, I tried to stay
> at about 60lbs., assuming it was overkill... but on the actual trek, my
> total weight maxxed out at 66lbs... and I was ready for it."
>
> What are you guys carrying to get packs that heavy?

Well, it wasn't entirely planned. A last minute change in our crew had
me carrying 2/3 of a 3-man tent (Troop owned), which was more weight
than I would have liked... if I had brought a single-man tent, we could
have put three others in the 3-man tent. I also had my pack (Gregory
Palisade, 7lbs), a compact camcorder (2.5lbs), guitar (3.5lbs), 6 litres
of water (12lbs... one camelback 100oz, three Nalgenes), the dining fly,
compact air mattress, a few potions and pills, a camping towel, compass,
food, cup, spork, dish, Wenger "Swiss Army" knife, sunglasses, reading
glasses, glasses case, rain cover for pack, a few assorted carabiners
and bungies, that's about it. It adds up, and I knew I could carry it,
from the training.

And of course, I didn't want to make my "luxery items" travel at the
crew's expense. Sleeping bag was a 3-pounder, only because somehow I
forgot my 2 pound down bag... I had tonsilitis the weekend before the
trek, some of the packing was done with a 102F fever.

My clothing itself was pretty minimal... I had two pair of hiking shorts,
1 set legs, three pair socks (Thoro with Coolmax, no inserts, no
blisters), two shirts, a fleece, a rain suit, and sneakers (New Balance
trail running shoes), T-shirt and running singlet for sleepwear. I think
that's about it... nothing I would have left home there.

I'm pretty big, too... I'm 6'1", and around 215 on the trek, and I had
been training for this for six months. I'm not suggesting this is a good
weight for everyone, or that you'd even have use for a guitar :-)
 
> There are methods to decrease total crew pack weights by 10 to 20 pounds per
> person. It just takes the knowledge and discipline to carry these methods
> out.

In other words, you leave stuff home... or get lighter gear. In this
case, I would have loved to replace the heavy tent, but that was last
minute planning I wasn't up to at the last minute.

> I learned more about dropping total crew weight from reading Dr. Bob's
> information that I ever learned in the high adventure classes taken, or in
> the years of Scouting experienced. I just never thought of crew gear that
> way before.

I did see some creative reductions in crew gear along the trail... like
using hiking poles to support the dining fly.
 
> As for personal gear, money does buy you happiness (read "light on my
> back"). Most cannot afford the light weight gear, but even the heavier
> stuff only adds a couple of pounds to the load as long as the packer doesn't
> go overboard packing. You don't need 4 (or even 3) pairs of underwear for a
> Philmont trek. You don't need 3 t-shirts...

You don't NEED underwear :-)
 
> I also suggest to the parents of my younger Scouts to at least look at and
> try on the women's model for any pack they are choosing. I have quite a few
> adult friends (whom are very skinny that I hate) that carry women's packs
> because they fit better. Being a man-sized man, I don't have to worry about
> that...

I was actually closer than I wanted to be on the pack size... the large
Gregory pack fit dandy in February, but 20lbs later in July, I was a bit
afraid of running out of strap, keeping it tight. Nothing I ever saw
coming...
 
> Physical preparations... In 2000, to prepare I carried a 50 pound pack 6
> miles a day, 5 days a week from January to June. I was still tired at
> Philmont. I did the same in 2002 and was tired at Philmont.

I was only significantly tired on the last day... we did around 14 miles,
over the Tooth, all that. I felt quite prepared for everything but being
a bit out of breath for the first two days.
 
> I'll quote David again... "... But there were plenty of folks training
> without any real weight. Not only does that not give you the full
> workout..." I humbly disagree.

> In 2005, I changed my strategy. I became best friends with the
> stair-master. I'd set that baby to my weight plus 50 pounds (to mimic the
> pack weight on my legs), then worked my way up from 20 minutes a day to an
> hour a day at level 8 (about 220 flights of stairs a day). After the
> stairs, I'd do intensive leg weights for about 20 minutes. The only time I
> ever put my pack on was on shakedowns. I never got tired in 2005. That was
> by far the most fit I've ever been.

Well, you're mistaking me... I'm claiming that WHEN you train with the
pack, do it with a full pack. And I think that's important... you body
dynamics change when you wear a pack, and there are lots of muscles
that'll never be touched on the stairmaster. But I do believe in lots of
cross training. I typically did four miles twice a week with the pack,
and mixed exercise (running, cycling, and cross-country ski machine... I
would have put a stairmaster in there for sure, if I had one available),
along with weights... which is my regular workout, just less frequently.

But actually, since Philmont, I've kept up the everyday workout, though
I haven't done the pack training :-). I think the key factor is to work
out every day when you're training. Like anything else (guitar practice,
for example), if you have to do it every day, it never becomes optional.
If you plan on 3 days a week, it's surprisingly easy for that to change to
2, 1, 0, before you know it... you need a part of the day permanently
devoted to such things, or they don't happen (at least, not if you're as
busy as I am in normal life).

> The stair-master worked for me. Dr. Bob says he trudges in the pack to get
> in shape. That works for him. Trudge or sweat. Just get in shape. I've
> found that being in shape is the best example I can give the crew.

Yup. Our crew did pretty well, though I ran into quite a few advisors on
the trail who had NOT taken the time to get into proper shape... they
were the ones also NOT having lots of fun once they got to a camp.
Ideally, the hike is just the start of your day!

-- 
Dave Haynie                                Philmont 2007 Crew 712K1 Trek 8
Troop Advancement Coordinator <advancement@daretowntroop60.com>
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