[pct-l] Photon II, Tumpline for back problems

["Joanne Lennox" <goforth@cio.net>]

These are basically afterthoughts

I would like to thank Sly and Jon for putting me on to the PHoton II.  This
little jewel is amazing.  I ordered the orange one and than compared it to
my new minimag solitaire (one AAA battery).  The orange photon II is not
quite as bright but it is better in my opinion, the Photon II lights up a
bigger area and goes farther, Mainly it illuminates more evenly  - you
don't have either a black spot in the middle or a  small spot of light
there as with the Solitaire which has a focusing lens. Whereas the
Solitaire battery lasts two hours, the Photon II lasts 124 hours!
(batteries can be replaced, the bulb has a life time guarantee).   And it
weights nothing.

Somebody mentioned trying to backpack with a back problem.  I recently got
an old article by Yvon Chouinard (was in his catalog in l981), who had a
neck injury and developed a back problem subsequently.  And he began using
a tumpline, both to help carry his pack and to help exercise his back
muscles. His back problem was relieved for 3 months after his first
expedition using it a lot.   There is also a second article done by the
Load Bearing Team Leader of the U> S> Army Natick Research and Development
and Engineering Center.  They found that some African women that they
studied could carry up to 20% of their body weight with their head and a
tumpline WITHOUT ANY ADDED ENERGY EXPEDITURE ( they studied rats, horse and
other humans and found that the energy expended varied directly with the
weight of the load.)

Without a frame or a really functional hip strap, I am finding that my left
shoulder strap seems to pinch a nerve in my left shoulder, and so far the
tumpline is the only thing that gives any relief.  I am still only using it
5-10 minutes at a time, but it makes a real difference.

Goforth
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