Re[2]: [at-l] 2000-miler, thru-hiking.... was Best Blue Blazes

[jhedrick@erols.com (John Hedrick)]

Weary,

The paid ATC staff does in fact look at each and every application.  After
my thruhike in 2000 I assisted the ATC in putting together the packets to
send out to the applicants.  Each application had been read by one of the
staff and then forwarded with the certificate, 2000 mile rocker, and other
literature for me to package and mail.

I was surprised and disappointed at some of the hikers who claimed the 2000
mile status, yet who I knew personally had skipped many miles of the trail.
Signing the application and claiming the certificate reflects an
individuals' integrity and sense of honor. An individual who falsifies their
accomplishment receives the same patch as other thruhikers and section
hikers who have completed the entire trail.

Web Breaker 2000

----- Original Message -----
From: "Bob C." <ellen@clinic.net>
To: <at-l@backcountry.net>
Sent: Sunday, March 24, 2002 4:42 PM
Subject: Re[2]: [at-l] 2000-miler, thru-hiking.... was Best Blue Blazes


> For what they may be worth, the following are the ATC policies. Note in
> particular that the applications are processed by volunteers, not the ATC
staff.
>
> "The Appalachian Trail Conference officially recognizes those hikers
completing
> the entire Trail, either in one season or in sections through the years.
>
> "2,000-Miler" Definition The ATC confers the designation of "2,000-miler"
on any
> hiker who reports he or she walked the entire length of the Appalachian
Trail.
> We use the term "2,000-miler" as a matter of tradition and convenience -
that's
> the original length of the Trail, and changing the designation each time
the
> length changes would be impractical.
>
> Our recognition policy does:
>
> give equal recognition to thru-hikers and section-hikers,
>
> recognize blue-blazed
> trails or officially required roadwalks as viable substitutes for the
official,
> white-blazed route in the event of an emergency, such as a flood, a forest
fire,
> or an impending storm on an exposed, high-elevation stretch,
>
> and operate on the
> honor system.
>
>  Our recognition policy does not consider: sequence, direction,
> speed, or whether one carries a pack. ATC assumes that those who apply for
> 2,000-miler status have made honest efforts to walk the Appalachian Trail
from
> Katahdin to Springer Mountain.
>
> Where Can I Get a 2,000-Miler Application?
>
>  Download the application from the ATC web site.
>
> On the Trail at Daicey Pond (Baxter State Park, Maine), Walasi-Yi Center
(Neels
> Gap, Georgia) and Amicalola Falls State Park (Georgia).
>
>  From the ATC
> Headquarters Information Center (Harpers Ferry, West Virginia). Come by in
> person, call (304) 535-6331 or email the ATC Information Desk and we will
send
> you an application.
>
> Recognition
>
>  2,000-milers who submit a completed application to ATC will: receive a
> certificate of recognition from the Conference and a 2,000-miler rocker
for an
> A.T. patch (we work with volunteer help to process the applications as
quickly
> as we can, but please allow 12 weeks to receive your packet), have their
name
> added to our official database of 2,000-milers, and receive a one-time
listing
> in our member magazine the Appalachian Trailway News (listing includes
name/
> trailname /city and state, usually in the May/June edition following
application
> submission)."
>
>  Weary
>
>
>
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