Man Fails to Complete Hiking's Grand Sla m

“Since Jan. 1, Brian Robinson has hiked the Appalachian Trail, Continental Divide Trail and Pacific Crest Trail.

The question that immediately comes to mind: What about the North Country Trail?

Unless he decides to change his plans and walk really quickly, he will leave the dream of a hiking grand slam unfulfilled.

Personally, I'm very disappointed.”

“On the contrary, he is accomplishing exactly what he set out to accomplish, and it is an outstanding feat of endurance and commitment.

You may well be the only one who considers it a failure.

(Actually, I don't really think you consider it a failure...I am guessing that you are just making a point about the North Country Trail. Tell me about your trail, I don't think I've ever heard of it...)

Peace,

Fritz”

“Sorry, Fritz. Just taking a completely positive story and adding that special, Reformed Lurker, negative twist.

Oh, and the North Country Trail runs from New York State to North Dakota. It's about half built, but it still has more miles currently than the Appalachian Trail.”

“That's what I figured, RL...I'm just still too new to have everyone figured out.

Will the NCT eventually go all the way to the Pacific, or is ND the ultimate terminus?”

“Has anyone thru-hiked the NCT yet? The length and location make me think it will be a bit difficult to do the whole NCT in one year.”

“LOL, RL, Fritz figured you out pretty quick didn't he??

I had never heard of the trail before either...will do a search and find out more.”

“One of the oldest segments runs 96 miles through the Allegheny National Forest in W PA.”

“You seem to know a lot about the Allegheny Nat'l Forest, Buddur. Are you ever going to have a TT group hike there?”

“HogonIce, yes it has been done in one season, once. It was a woman named Carolyn Hoffman.

Chech it out at:

”

“Dag NABIT! Birch threw away my link cheat sheet! So you'll have to cut and paste: http://northcountrytrail.org

Sorry”

“Wait, I found it!

The North Country Trail”

“I'm such a linkin' loser. What would I do without you Radagast?”

“I'm rooting for the guy.”

“Click HERE to read about Brian's exploits. He is under 256 miles from completion of his goal.”

“Doh!

Click HERE to read about Brian's exploits. He is under 256 miles from completion of his goal.”

“I posted on this about a month ago... he's about to complete what's known as hiking's Triple Crown.”

“

Hiker Achieves 'Triple Crown'

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Story Filed: Saturday, October 27, 2001 9:30 PM EDT



THE APPALACHIAN TRAIL, Maine (AP) -- For 10 months, he started walking at sunup and didn't stop until nightfall.

On Saturday, ``Flyin''' Brian Robinson became the first person to hike each of the three U.S. National Scenic Trails in a calendar year when he reached the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail atop Maine's highest peak.

He averaged about 30 miles a day since setting out Jan. 1, destined to complete the Pacific Crest Trail in the West, the Continental Divide Trail in the Rockies, and the Appalachian, which runs from Georgia to Maine.

With a handful of well-wishers in tow, Robinson finished the 2,168-mile Appalachian on Saturday atop mile-high Mount Katahdin.

``This is the toughest five miles,'' Robinson said after reaching the snowy, wind-swept summit around 11 a.m.

Tackling hiking's ``Triple Crown'' -- 7,400 miles through 22 states -- took Robinson through hip-deep snow, scorching heat and more than 1 million feet of upward climb.

To save precious time, he ate while he walked: Snickers bars, peanut butter, anything calorie-rich. Nary a pound was shed from his 6-foot-1, 155-pound frame.

Seven pairs of running shoes later, he looked no worse for the wear Saturday, save a bushy black beard he last trimmed in April.

What nearly got him, he said, was the isolation. Since he never slowed down and barely stopped, no one could keep up long enough to make good company.

``I'm celebrating in my own way and a lot of that is internal and spiritual,'' he said at the end, where he had prepared for an anticlimactic ending.

``And yet I was quite exhilarated,'' he said.

Only two dozen people have achieved hiking's Triple Crown in their lifetimes. In 1999, two men became the first to hike two of the trails in a single year.

Robinson hiked the Pacific Crest -- 2,645-miles from Mexico to Canada -- in 84 days and six hours, averaging better than 31 miles a day before covering 2,588 miles of the Continental Divide, which has no fixed route over much of its length.

Robinson, 40, of San Jose, Calif., is on a leave of absence from his job as a systems engineer for Compaq. He saved $10,000 for the venture, which he dreamed up three years ago after completing the Pacific Crest for the first time.

Jeffrey Schaffer of Napa, Calif., author of Pacific Crest Trail guidebooks, said last month that Robinson's accomplishment would be ``the greatest feat of endurance on any of the trails.''

``I think it's comparable to trying to climb the highest peaks on all seven continents in a single year,'' added Karen Berger of Bronxville, N.Y., author of ``Hiking the Triple Crown.''

``I've quit saying what can and can't be done on the trails,'' she said. ``Humans are amazing.''



On the Net:

Robinson: http://royrobinson.homestead.com/



Copyright © 2001 Associated Press Information Services, all rights reserved.”

“Congrats!!

What are you doing, Violin?? Trying to get banned?? Or move up on the Top 20 Most Hated List???

GIVE US A CLICKABLE LINK, dammit!

lol”

“I can't even imagine something like that. One week is plenty long for me! It couldn't have been very enjoyable; there'd be no time for enjoying the sights and smelling the flowers along the way. It strikes me as somewhat ridiculous, but I do admire the mental fortitude and drive needed to accomplish something like that.”

“did Brian change his trail name from Never-B to Flyin?”

“Averaging 30 miles a day? That's flyin in my book. And all on candy bars!”

“That's still an inhuman accomplishment. He's a stud!”

“I always considered the outdoors was something to be enjoyed, not conquered.

To each his own.”

“Oh, and lizs, here's your clickable link.”

“If you read his journal, you'll find that he did get a lot out of the hike. He was very open to the beauty around him. Some long distance hikers, I do really wonder, but Brian is a very nice guy who did enjoy the trail - his eyes and heart were open. Like you, I originally thought that this quest was one of conquest, but now I think it was more one of self-challenge. He wanted the biggest challenge he could think of. For most of us, that is one trail. He wanted more. But then, he showed he was capable of more.”

“An incredible physical achievement for sure and I agree to grant him "stud" status. One side of me wants to say 'what's the point?' and to argue that it goes against all the principles of what hiking is supposed to be all about. However, ask someone for thru-hiking advice and most likely you'll hear "hike your own hike" and that's just what he did. So I'll just slap him on the back and say "nice job man."”

“Thirty miles a day. Dang!”

“Can you imagine what the 'splash down effect' will be for him? I've hear of people coming home from doing the PCT and sleeping in their tent in the back yard for a month because they don't feel comfortable in the house. This guy was a computer wonk for Compaq. Can you imagine how backwards he'll seam AFTER the hike?

Must have been one wild year!”

“I read he was eatting 6000 calories a day! Whole chickens and cheesecakes (YUM) when he sat down in a restaurant!”

“...and a 57 1/2 hour bus trip! Ouch!”

“57 1/2 hours on a freaking bus??!!
After what he just did I'd have walked home!”

“Well he could have taken the NCT half way back home anyways (grin)”

“In 300 days of hiking he ate 900 snickers bars.

I respect and admire the dude. I could never do that even if I had the time or money,I'd go nuts without having someone to yammer to. My trailname would be " that weird mummbling bald guy".

The NCT is/will be over 4000 miles. I did 8 of it this wknd, 3992 to go.”

“Didn't do the Santa Fe, Chisholm, Oregon, California, Pikes Peak..............”