028: It’s All Uphill From Here

Today on The First 40 Miles, The Top 5 Tips that will help you make it through the tough uphill climbs. On the SUMMIT Gear Review, we’ll show you a vast improvement to the humble hiking stick. For the Backpack Hack of the Week, noodles noodle everywhere. And we’ll wrap up the show with a little trail wisdom from Mr. Emerson. Show Notes: Episode 028 Opening Girls Camp prep Survival Skills the youth leaders will be teaching: * Know when to use these knots: Square Knot, 2 Half hitches, Bowline * 2 methods of purifying water * How to signal for help (and contact local authorities) * How to identify and prevent camp pollution at water sources * 3 types of emergency shelters * Sever Weather: Lightning, tornado, avalanche, flood * Bedroll or emergency ground bed made of natural materials What will the real survival skills at Girls Camp be? Surviving with under 4 hours of sleep a night… Top 5 Tips for Backpacking Uphill Keep your pace, but shorten your stride * Don’t be tempted to stop on the uphill * Keep steady pace * REMEMBER: Stopped is zero miles per hour. Exertion breath * Breathing is an important part of pain management—or uphill management. * A forceful breath out Try the Rest step * Stand up completely with the leg that you stepped forward with, and let your knee lock briefly * That gives your quadriceps and glutes a chance to rest on each step * Even that split second rest, really helps as you climb the trail Try Trekking Poles * Heather recently tried trekking poles * Study on trekking poles: Muscular and metabolic costs of uphill backpacking: are hiking poles beneficial? * The study says “By redistributing some of the backpack effort, pole use alleviated some stress from the lower extremities and allowed a partial reversal of typical load-bearing strategies.” * http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11128857 (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11128857) M&Ms= Mantra & Music * Mantras: Man versus mountain, one step at a time, I am strong, Whatever doesn’t kill you… * Music: High energy, since your steps will be shorter, you can keep tempo with a faster song SUMMIT Gear Review™: LEKI Micro Vario Carbon Trekking Poles Structure * Carbon Shaft * Foam Grips which are edgeless, and comfortable, so no matter how many miles you go, they’ll feel great * Wrist strap (security strap) made of wicking material and dries quickly * Baskets on bottom are standard trekking baskets (you can remove them and the poles can compress down even more compact. * Purpose of baskets (snowshoe concept) Utility * Super compact, so you won’t be poking people if you put them away in your pack * The push-button release mechanism that slides part of the pole into itself, and the rest pulls apart and folds * Very easy to adjust, using their “Speed Lock”. Flip latch out, adjust to desired length, and flip latch back. Holds securely Mass * Sold as a pair * 14.6 oz for the pair * 110-130cm * (Micro Vario Carbo Lady goes down to 105 cm) * Fold down to just 15.5" Maintenance * Wipe clean before collapsing so grit doesn’t get inside Investment * $200 Trial * Trekking poles made me think more strategically * Felt like jet packs on the trail * Incredibly invaluable on uphill * Not as noticeable on downhill * Put my weight on wrist straps (aka security straps) * Gave me crazy amounts of speed * Any time you are doing a significant amount of elevation gain, bring your trekking poles Backpack Hack of the Week™: Rice Thread Noodles * Rice or Bean Thread Noodles (no hot water needed) * Inexpensive * Can be found at most good sized grocery stores in the Asian aisle * Just need water to rehydrate and soften * Infinite recipe ideas! Challenge: Try these at home, and see if you can come up with a recipe that you can bring on your next trip! Trail Wisdom “Many eyes go through the meadow,