so, this could have been titled the "getting older" thread... I have a really sore "tennis" elbow. I'm wondering what experience you elders have with irritating elbows by using trekking poles. Mine don't collapse (poles, that is, not elbows...) and I would hate to take off for a few days and end up having to awkwardly strap my "long" poles to my pack. And while I'm whining, I've got the same (new) issue with sciatic pain. It is quiet now, but does long distance walking tend to aggravate sciatic nerve/ pain?