What are the odds!

[Cherokee Bill]

Yes I can read, it's says Class of 2007 only But there is no other place to post this question
I am a 59 yo/m and yes I still have to work for a living. I work for a LARGE company and like most, once we retire they take away ALL medical benefits. Even you young folks must be aware of the high COST of medical insurance, especially if you are my age.
Sooooo, I can not get Medicare/Medicade till the age of 66, HENCE, the year 2013.
I have been hiking the "AT" every chance I get and my DREAM is to do a "Thru-hike" before I leave this world! My health at present is ABOVE average.
What do you fell my chances are of completing a Thru-Hike at "66"

[Lone Wolf]

Your chances are better than the 20 somethings.

[Bloodroot]

It's been done by much older!

[Cherokee Bill]

My first reply and it's "positive".

[neighbor dave]

hiked it last year without insurance! haven't had insurance since i was 17 y.o.
gitter done!!

[Bloodroot]

Or get that short-term insurance for like six months. I know someone who did it and it only cost a couple hundred.

[Bloodroot]

Or get that short-term insurance for like six months. I know someone who did it and it only cost a couple hundred.

catastrope insurance...thats it

[Lone Wolf]

My first reply and it's "positive".

I'm the most positive and optimistic sumbeotch on here and by God you'll make it!

[Blissful]

Your chances are better than the 20 somethings.

I'll take that too - !

[Appalachian Tater]

Your chances are better than the 20 somethings.

Yup. Yes. Right. I agree.

[DawnTreader]

keep yourself fit, and your chances are as good as the rest of ours!! Good luck and have a blast...I don't have insurance right now either, so I know what your going through...

[mweinstone]

when a ship sinks and hundreds of men go to the sharks,.. the older last longest. its not how strong and young you are. if it were, the old would die first. no. the main survival skill needed in sharks and the AT are calm confidence and the knowladge of how much there is to live for. while youngins on the trail are stressing out ,.. you'll be calm and cucumberlike. im not all in with you only cause i will need to hear more fire when you speak of the beloved trail. say you wanna hike so much it hurts and ill listen. be warned. the support of matthewski means success. those not into pain,.. need not apply.

[Kerosene]

Someone only needs insurance to cover events that they would not be able to cover out-of-pocket at the time of an event, or would financially bankrupt them. If you're healthy enough to consider thru-hiking the AT, then you are likely to be in the top 10-20% of 60-somethings in terms of fitness and health, so the odds of a catastrophic illness are much lower.

That said, you have a higher chance of heart attack and stroke, and your bones are a little more likely to break. You can mitigate the liklihood of the former by taking a low daily dose of aspirin. Being older, you are a little less likely to take undue risks, but your sense of balance and core strength won't be those of a 20-year old either. The good thing is that setting broken bones will *only* cost you a few thousand dollars out-of-pocket.

I truly believe that you're just as likely to get seriously injured while backpacking the AT as you are driving around town every day and eating poorly. The safe, and I believe intelligent and socially conscious, thing to do, regardless of what you're doing, would be to have sufficient insurance (with a very high deductible) to cover unforeseen catastrophes. While this still costs you the premium, it gets a lot more reasonable the higher the deductible, the healthier you and your ancestors have been, and the shorter the period of coverage.

[LostInSpace]

A hiker's greatest risk (all ages included) is theirself ... making an unsound decision that causes them to fall ... twisting, spraining, severely bruising, or breaking something. Falls are supposedly the number one cause of backcountry injury.

[fiddlehead]

It's more head than heel! It's good to have no doubt. You can do it!

[Birddog]

Mind over matter. If you wait until the "right time" the "time" will never be "right". BD

[bfitz]

Don't let the insurance lapse...it's expensive, but if you have it now you can keep it going indefinitely with cobra and beyond...just bite the bullet and pay...

[mrc237]

All you need is time and money and at 66 you should have plenty of both!