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Re: Boots

I would agree with Ray Jardine's conclusions except for one point which you
didn't mention.  Running shoes will not protect you from an ankle injury the
way hiking boots will.  I have mis-stepped many times while on the trail and
rolled my foot putting strain on my ankle, but I never suffered an ankle
injury.  This may not have been the case if I was wearing my running shoes
and I would hate to have to continue a hike with a sprained ankle.  I wear my
running shoes for ankle conditioning prior to the hike.  I'm sure reducing
weight on the feet increases speed just as reducing pack weight increases
speed, since one pound on the feet is equivalent to six pounds on the back.

Hood Ornament
GA>ME '93>'05

In a message dated 96-03-27 20:33:09 EST, Jeffrey_Martin@compuware.com
(Jeffrey Martin) writes:

>Speaking of boots...
>
>Has anyone read the "Footwear" chapter of Ray Jardine's "PCT Handbook"?  He
>outlines his position for advocating the use of running shoes instead of
>hiking boots while backpacking.  From what I understand of his point of
view,
>running shoes allow your foot to work the way it was designed to work.  Your
>foot and ankle can yield to the trail giving you a better feel for what is
>beneath you.  Hiking boots remove that closeness, locking your ankle into
>place.  Mr Jardine says boots contribute to a weakening of the ankle and
sets
>up the situation for an injury to occur.  He also describes the benefits of
>having less weight to accelerate with each step which reduces the amount of
>energy expended per mile and increases the number of miles one can travel
>each day.  (This is my paraphrased interpretation of his view.)
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