[at-l] First time with poles plus hiking pants, 804s and cell phone

[Jack.Bulkley@sas.com (Jack Bulkley)]

We are having some wonderful weather here in the NC piedmont - a record high yesterday and almost certainly today too. I am not sure how informative this is, but it hits on several things discussed recently.

I work about 1/2 mile from a state park entrance, so I spent my lunch hour, ok 2 hours, trying out my new Lekis. It wasn't too awkward even at first. My brain does seem to want to start the left foot and the left hand together from a dead stop. I am retraining it. The terrain was mixed with rocky sections and roots nearly everywhere. There are a few wood foot bridges. My lack of skill at precisely placing the poles led me to just carrying the poles on the foot bridges. Otherwise the poles found the gap between the boards almost every time. I was able to move along nicely on the flat sections with the poles but I wasn't gaining any advantage, just getting in some practice. At first the poles seemed rather noisy, but they got quieter as I got smoother. Also I held my hands out slightly wider to keep from bumping my foot or the cell phone in my pocket. Yes, I did carry a cell phone as my only emergency equipment :) I was able to use the poles fairly aggresively going up hill and
for balance going downhill. The sections did not seem long enough to warrant adjusting the pole length. I just kept them a good length for the flat and compensated with arm position for the ups and downs.

By the way I wore REI convertible hiking pants which I should have converted to shorts. My shirt was a Layers, a local company, Thermion t-shirt http://www.layers-outdoor.com/ . I love the shirt and the pants are ok. My feet liked the New Balance AT 804s. No slipping. The support was good but since I was not carrying a pack I will reserve judgement on that. I wore midweight Thorlos but I bought the 804's wearing the Thorlos so they are the right size for them. This pair might be a little big if I wore thin running socks.

I didn't see any wildlife only 2 joggers, 2 dog walkers, and a cowboy. I was mostly alone which seems pretty good for a park that sits between Raleigh and the Research Triangle Park.

Soulfull
Jack.Bulkley@sas.com
Apex, NC