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ToyYoda
06-01-2008, 23:33
http://barefootted.com/2007/08/mt-whitney-summitted-barefoot.html

I know for myself, I am a huge fan of stepping on and/or getting jabbed in the feet with rocks or other sharp possibly painful objects.

Appalachian Tater
06-02-2008, 00:08
http://barefootted.com/2007/08/mt-whitney-summitted-barefoot.html

I know for myself, I am a huge fan of stepping on and/or getting jabbed in the feet with rocks or other sharp possibly painful objects.

There have been many A.T. barefoot thru-hikers. There are pics of the Barefoot Sisters here, and then there is the Tyvek guy.

Wags
06-02-2008, 01:30
i call them retards

santa
06-02-2008, 01:42
i call them retards

i call them badass's.:cool:

camojack
06-02-2008, 03:34
One thing is certain...they've (http://www.barefoothikers.org/barefoot-sisters.html) got tough feet. :-?

Lone Wolf
06-02-2008, 06:02
stunt hikers

Mrs Baggins
06-02-2008, 07:02
There have been many A.T. barefoot thru-hikers. There are pics of the Barefoot Sisters here, and then there is the Tyvek guy.

The Bare Foot Sisters are featured in Lynn Weldon's "How To Hike The AT" Video. But they wouldn't allow their faces to be filmed - only their bare feet and up to about their knees. Why??? If they're so proud of what they did (and if they really did do it) then why not show themselves in total? They're not "bad asses" - it was a stupid and dangerous stunt.

NorthCountryWoods
06-02-2008, 07:10
The Bare Foot Sisters are featured in Lynn Weldon's "How To Hike The AT" Video. But they wouldn't allow their faces to be filmed - only their bare feet and up to about their knees. Why??? If they're so proud of what they did (and if they really did do it) then why not show themselves in total? They're not "bad asses" - it was a stupid and dangerous stunt.

Whoa...you have an anti-barefoot fetish or somethin?

MOWGLI
06-02-2008, 07:18
Whoa...you have an anti-barefoot fetish or somethin?

Maybe she was thinking that a certain 17 year old hiker might try it, and she got scared. :p

Personally, meeting Isis & Jackrabbit on the trail was one of the most memorable incidents of my hike.

fiddlehead
06-02-2008, 07:29
Yeah, i was very pleased to have met them also. They proved there's really not much that you really need to hike. I've met people who hike without knives, stoves, sleeping bags, raingear, maps, compass, underwear, flashlights, socks, sleeping pads, even packs.
I see nothing wrong with proving sheep wrong.

Jason of the Woods
06-02-2008, 07:32
Trail Ninjas....

Newb
06-02-2008, 07:46
I bet all these barefoot hikers have hookworm.

Seeker
06-02-2008, 08:24
my mom (now 72) was born and raised in south america. she only wore shoes to church in winter... she was barefoot the rest of the time growing up, including a 4-5 mile oneway trip to school (truth-i've walked it.) she started wearing shoes on a regular basis in her 20s... we had a long gravel driveway in upstate new york... she walked it without shoes or pain... the soles of her feet were (and still are) about 1/8'' thick callous... her toes all point naturally forward, and none of them are twisted or bent inward from years of wearing 'fashionable' footwear...

it's no stunt, and was fairly common in the southern US until after ww2... i have friends in their 70s who remember 'shoes' as being only for sundays.

oh, and mom's not wormy either...

Shiraz-mataz
06-02-2008, 08:41
Some people would call thru-hikers crazy - who the heck would want to hike for five or six months! Anything can be deemed "crazy" or irresponsible, it all depends on your perspective. Hiking barefoot is not really all that different. It challenges conventional wisdom and can actually prove to be a positive experience. I just did a 40 mile section of the SNP last week and managed to hike about 7 or 8 miles of it barefoot. I admire Isis, Jackrabbit and Tyvek for their sticktuitiveness because the AT is very challenging to do without shoes. Those peskey three inch rocks are killers!

Wags
06-02-2008, 09:32
i bet PA was a fun section for them. as was anytime it rained or was cold. idiotic and like LW said, a stunt

Panzer1
06-02-2008, 09:37
There are advantages of going barefoot:
1) you get blisters from boots not walking barefoot.
2) its cooler in the summer because your walking on cool ground and boots make your feet hot.
3) less weight on your feet. Remember the old saying that each pound on your feet is like 10 on your back.

Walking barefoot isn't for everyone. Unless your have walked barefoot since birth don't try it on the trail.
You will still need some kind of foot gear in order to enter stores, ect.
You will also need footgear if there is snow deep enough to go over the top of your foot.

Panzer

Fat Man Walking
06-02-2008, 09:41
HYOH :sun

Lone Wolf
06-02-2008, 09:48
i bet PA was a fun section for them. as was anytime it rained or was cold. idiotic and like LW said, a stunt

they didn't always hike barefoot

jesse
06-02-2008, 10:07
There have been many A.T. barefoot thru-hikers. There are pics of the Barefoot Sisters here, and then there is the Tyvek guy.


I'd say a few.

MOWGLI
06-02-2008, 10:12
I spent most summers running around barefoot as a kid. I like hiking barefoot sometimes. It's hardly a stunt. Reminds me of good times from my childhood.

Looks like we have a lot of tenderfoots out there. ;)

Newb
06-02-2008, 10:59
does nobody listen? If you run around barefoot you place yourself directly in the lifecycle chart of the hookworm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hookworm

MOWGLI
06-02-2008, 11:09
does nobody listen? If you run around barefoot you place yourself directly in the lifecycle chart of the hookworm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hookworm

And the worms ate into his brain...

kanga
06-02-2008, 13:23
does nobody listen? If you run around barefoot you place yourself directly in the lifecycle chart of the hookworm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hookworm

kinda makes you wonder how homo sapiens survived all those thousands of years without footwear...

Newb
06-02-2008, 13:45
kinda makes you wonder how homo sapiens survived all those thousands of years without footwear...

The ice-man they found frozen in the Alps had worms. so there.

kanga
06-02-2008, 13:48
The ice-man they found frozen in the Alps had worms. so there.

yes, God forbid we all get worms. those things'll kill you!

Odd Thomas
06-02-2008, 14:31
yes, God forbid we all get worms. those things'll kill you!

They might make your allergies go away.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/82632.php

T-Dubs
06-02-2008, 14:32
i call them badass's.:cool:

http://www.modernforager.com/blog/2008/05/28/you-walk-wrong-and-your-shoes-are-to-blame/

A short article from ModernForager about this subject. The article tells about a trip to the Red River Gorge to try out these:

http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/

I should contact this person to see if they ever post here. (Anyone know?)

I know that with my old-man's-foot-hurting plantar fasciitis, going barefoot around the house/yard makes my feet feel much better. I'm willing to give anything a try.

Tom

DesertMTB
06-02-2008, 14:43
i call them retards


I call 'em damn hippies

Whoa Bear
06-02-2008, 15:05
The ice-man they found frozen in the Alps had worms. so there.

Wasn't he also wearing shoes? I'm pretty sure that people have been wearing some type of basic footwear for at least 10,000 years. Especially those living in northern climates.

bjj4287
06-02-2008, 16:35
The Bare Foot Sisters are featured in Lynn Weldon's "How To Hike The AT" Video. But they wouldn't allow their faces to be filmed - only their bare feet and up to about their knees. Why??? If they're so proud of what they did (and if they really did do it) then why not show themselves in total? They're not "bad asses" - it was a stupid and dangerous stunt.

wow....

jesse
06-02-2008, 17:11
Wasn't he also wearing shoes? I'm pretty sure that people have been wearing some type of basic footwear for at least 10,000 years. Especially those living in northern climates.

yep. got proof right here.

file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Jesse/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-2.jpgfile:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Jesse/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-3.jpgfile:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Jesse/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-4.jpghttp://www.art.com/asp/sp-asp/_/PD--13024367/SP--A/IGID--2176599/Raquel_Welch.htm?sOrig=CAT&sOrigID=5287&ui=5409419655BB48B78F766872F916662A

jesse
06-02-2008, 17:14
That did not work. try this

http://www.art.com/asp/sp-asp/_/PD--13024367/SP--A/IGID--2176599/Raquel_Welch.htm?sOrig=CAT&sOrigID=5287&ui=5409419655BB48B78F766872F916662A

whitefoot_hp
06-02-2008, 17:21
The Bare Foot Sisters are featured in Lynn Weldon's "How To Hike The AT" Video. But they wouldn't allow their faces to be filmed - only their bare feet and up to about their knees. Why??? If they're so proud of what they did (and if they really did do it) then why not show themselves in total? They're not "bad asses" - it was a stupid and dangerous stunt.
perhaps they dont want to be hounded by a bunch of random people. why is it so dangerous to hike barefoot? modern society has sold its delusion to you rather well.

Lone Wolf
06-02-2008, 17:27
perhaps they dont want to be hounded by a bunch of random people. why is it so dangerous to hike barefoot? modern society has sold its delusion to you rather well.

oh brother :rolleyes:

NICKTHEGREEK
06-02-2008, 17:33
Whoa...you have an anti-barefoot fetish or somethin?
Goes against the wrap a tail and nibble toes fetish often seen here

NICKTHEGREEK
06-02-2008, 17:37
There are advantages of going barefoot:
1) you get blisters from boots not walking barefoot.
2) its cooler in the summer because your walking on cool ground and boots make your feet hot.
3) less weight on your feet. Remember the old saying that each pound on your feet is like 10 on your back.

Walking barefoot isn't for everyone. Unless your have walked barefoot since birth don't try it on the trail.
You will still need some kind of foot gear in order to enter stores, ect.
You will also need footgear if there is snow deep enough to go over the top of your foot.

Panzer
2) Ever been to the beach?? You didn't say AT hiking only

Appalachian Tater
06-02-2008, 17:46
You will still need some kind of foot gear in order to enter stores, ect. Maybe not; if your feet get dirty enough, it will look like you're wearing shoes.

veteran
06-02-2008, 21:30
Wasn't he also wearing shoes? I'm pretty sure that people have been wearing some type of basic footwear for at least 10,000 years. Especially those living in northern climates.

The Icemans Shoes (http://ecommerce.iceman.it/catalog/catalogDetailImg.aspx?productId=98&categoryID=5)

TheChamp
06-03-2008, 01:07
The stupidest thing is you guys are actually talking about it and I'm reading you talk about it.

camojack
06-03-2008, 01:46
I went barefoot a lot as a child. I've also hiked for miles barefoot in Hawaii...as an adult. :eek:
(At least, legally an adult... :D)

ToyYoda
06-03-2008, 12:09
The stupidest thing is you guys are actually talking about it and I'm reading you talk about it.

Damn. Fooled again.

These are pretty neat, id buy a pair if they werent 90 bucks!!!!

http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/products_flow.cfm

absurdly priced IMO.. they would be nice for kayaking though.

StepChld
06-03-2008, 12:15
2) Ever been to the beach?? You didn't say AT hiking onlyWhen I was a kid, as soon as school was out, we were barefoot and I lived in a fairly large city. The beginning of the summer we usta have contests to see who could stay on the asphalt street the longest. By the end of the summer we could walk across it with no problem, even when the asphalt was bubbling from the sun's heat. We also could ride our bikes without shoes by that time...and we had those pedals that have the little spikes on them to keep your shoe from sliding off. Yep, your body adapts...I couldn't do any of that all now...to many pair of shoes since then and I have lil' girl feet now, tender as the day they were born.:p

Besides why are we concerned if someone is doing it as a "stunt' or simply b/c they enjoy it. Iffin you don't like it, don't do it. Iffin you do like it, then do it. Problem solved.:-?

p.s. never had worms either, and I swam in a stagnant creek often.(without shoes!:eek:)

StubbleJumper
06-03-2008, 13:08
Hmmm... I stepped on a yellow-jackets' nest last July. I was stung 8 times, mostly on my ankles. Not sure that I'd want to try that with bare feet...

sloopjonboswell
06-03-2008, 23:05
saw dirtnap hike out of newfound gap barefoot. 6-8 inches of snow. looked cold.

Wise Old Owl
06-04-2008, 00:40
While you read all the posts in this thead I will leave a little gem for all of you to think about. Recently there was a non reality race across the Outback back before 2000. Some of the participants on a trek similar to the length of the AT used skills from PCT & AT and did not understand the heat factor on their feet, that the sand would have. They competed against a bushman or traditional Aborigine, who trumped them with bear feet and home made sandal for the hottest parts of the journey.

Whoa Bear
06-04-2008, 09:32
While you read all the posts in this thead I will leave a little gem for all of you to think about. Recently there was a non reality race across the Outback back before 2000. Some of the participants on a trek similar to the length of the AT used skills from PCT & AT and did not understand the heat factor on their feet, that the sand would have. They competed against a bushman or traditional Aborigine, who trumped them with bear feet and home made sandal for the hottest parts of the journey.

I would hope to god that the Aborigine thumped them. You have a group that have adapted to the environment over thousands of years going up against a group from northern hemisphere. An interesting comparison would be to see how the two groups faired on a AT or PCT where cold and wet are the biggest concerns.

Rockhound
06-04-2008, 12:41
the only way i can count to 20 is if im barefoot. 21 if im naked

theinfamousj
06-04-2008, 15:40
I used to enjoy summers because it meant time away from shoes. As it is, now that I'm a school marm myself, I wear closed toed shoes from December to March 1 and wear flip-flops at all other times. I like the thin flip flops because they provide me the greatest feeling of being barefoot while also being appropriate.

My high school students think that I'm nuts for wearing open toed shoes in March ("It is still cold.") but they wear shorts and short sleeve shirts in the same conditions.

I can and have hiked barefoot with no ill effects. I did get a plantar wart this year, my first ever, over the three winter months of closed-toed shoes.

No worms. I've been tested/checked. My feet have callouses that I'm happy to have. On that note, I could use a few more based on some blisters that I seem to routinely develop. My toes are all straight.

To those hiking the entire AT barefoot, more power to ya! One thought on why the barefoot sisters may not wish their identity to be coupled with their feet is, at least in NC, that if you are on government land you are required to wear shoes. I learned this when I was in high school at a state owned boarding school. Our dorms were government property and except for being in bed, we were required to have slippers at a minimum, and failure to heed this policy was met with punishment.

JAK
06-04-2008, 16:00
I remember going all summer without wearing sneakers.
Of course I weighed under 80 pounds back then.
Huge difference in pounds per square inch. ;)

kanga
06-04-2008, 16:20
i'm barefoot all the time. i walk down our 1/2 mile gravel driveway to get the mail. (uphill both ways, in the snow). it's really not that big of a deal.
maybe i'm wormy, though, and just don't know it yet.

Marta
06-04-2008, 16:36
maybe i'm wormy, though, and just don't know it yet.

It's okay to be wormy--it helps one stay fashionably thin.

kanga
06-04-2008, 16:38
It's okay to be wormy--it helps one stay fashionably thin.

oohh! so THAT's how one does it. i guess i'm not wormy then.;)

warraghiyagey
06-04-2008, 16:41
i guess i'm not wormy then.;)

Worse things in life than not having to expain that you've got worms.;)

kanga
06-04-2008, 16:42
Worse things in life than not having to expain that you've got worms.;)
true that. for instance, i've never had to explain why my bananas not dancing...:D

Chache
06-04-2008, 16:56
http://barefootted.com/2007/08/mt-whitney-summitted-barefoot.html

I know for myself, I am a huge fan of stepping on and/or getting jabbed in the feet with rocks or other sharp possibly painful objects.
I met this guy. I hiked Whitney about 2 years ago. It took me 17 hours up and back in one day. This guy did it in 7 hours. I talked with him at the Portal café at the bottom of the trail. I thought he was in his mid twenty's. He told me he was 44. The guy is in incredible shape.

ToyYoda
06-04-2008, 19:21
I met this guy. I hiked Whitney about 2 years ago. It took me 17 hours up and back in one day. This guy did it in 7 hours. I talked with him at the Portal café at the bottom of the trail. I thought he was in his mid twenty's. He told me he was 44. The guy is in incredible shape.

I'll have to find it again, but theres a video he has on youtube of him doing training drills, running up and down a hill of broken granite boulders or something to that effect.. dude was hauling ass. one slip and you're going to the hospital and something is broken, but he was rolling up and down it.

ToyYoda
06-04-2008, 19:24
Here we go... dude is nuts, I love it. I want to meet him, but only if hes not wearing shoes.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=-ZDzY3v9V9Y

looks like at :40 he almost takes a dive.