[at-l] ATCk thru-hikers

[rhymworm@pop.mindspring.com (Robert Rubin)]

>At 11:15 AM 3/23/01 -0500, rhymworm@mindspring.com wrote:
>The question: Are you suggesting that the claim was accepted because the
>Scouts were Jewish and Mr. Talone convinced the ATC that this was the
>politically correct thing to do? That it was a way to atone for ATC's past
>wrongs against Jews? That probably sounds confrontational in print. I don't
>mean it that way. I'm truly trying to understand the reasoning for ATC's
>acceptance of such a belated and unsupported report of an alleged thru. If
>so, I find that hard to accept as justification.
>
>Saunterer

No, I'm not suggesting that. I was just passing along some of Ed Talone's
arguments about why there might have been little contemporary
acknowledgment of the Scouts by organized hiking (and Scouting) groups, if
the boys indeed did what the surviving member said they did.

The reasons for listing the Scouts with others who reported completing the
trail were given in Brian King's response to David Donaldson's original
letter to the magazine. I'm sure the issue of religion had nothing to do
with it.

What the ATC Board did, however, was officially note that the Scouts' hike
was unverified, and that it appears in the list along with other unverified
hikes, including all those since 1973. Earl's hike, on the other hand, WAS
verified. So Earl's was the first thru-hike to be reported, and is the
earliest verified thru-hike. The Board's action pretty much guarantees that
there will never be any official ATC attempt to verify claims of earlier
thru-hikes. I think that pretty well secures his legacy as the "first
thru-hiker," list or no list. It also explains why his accomplishment
continues to be recognized by the conference in publications such as the
ATC Web site and the recent 75-anniversary history.

It has been argued passionately that others "discovered" America before
Columbus, but the reality is that there is no federal Leif Erikson Day
holiday. Columbus was the one with the legacy. Columbus is de man.
Likewise, Earl's legacy in Trail history is secure. He de man.

--Rhymin' Worm (speaking for his own self only)