362-pound Oregon hiker rescued on Appalachian Trail - The Oregonian - OregonLive.com

[general]

this happens more than one might think, really pisses search and rescue people off. at least they didn't have to tote him out on a litter. a note to future rescues, when they get you out of the woods, at least take a free ride to the hospital to be checked out. that way the search and rescue folks feel that they have done a good thing, and they can go home without knowing that there was nothing wrong, just tired.

[taildragger]

It's all good Clyde. We(men especially)joke about it more than we should. Probably a fear defense.

Didn't mean to contribute to minimizing the dangers and warning signs. Education is good.

Is that in regards to hiking or viagra

[orangebug]

We had another thread within the past two days of a hiker who suffered sudden fatigue and loss of muscle control while climbing a hill with a partner. That hiker rested and made their way out to the end of their trail.

That hiker asked for opinions and advice on how to procede with this event. A number of minor illnesses were posited (hypoglycemia and others) but with the common thread suggesting real world medical evaluation.

This thread has consisted of a news story and deliberately poor photograph about a morbidly obese hiker who was found by others, would/could not move further, and received evacuation while refusing medical care. Something seems odd that someone who would/could not evacuate himself would be able to ambulate the village of Hot Springs with relative ease. A nice spin on this is to suggest that a nice training exercise has occurred. Another opinion would suggest that this was an underprepared hiker who demanded a bailout at taxpayer's/volunteer's expense.

If another hiker chooses to worry about Internet bloggers second guessing a request for help under different circumstances (not morbidly obese, prepared for hiking, experiencing symptoms suggesting systemic disease, unable to self evacuate, etc.), then consequences will befall to that hiker who is unable to resolve that problem. Probably 98%+ of Whiteblaze readers understand the tacit assumption of self responsibility for choosing to participate in our sport.

We have no way of knowing if this man has that awareness. As he has wisely elected not to be easily identified, I hope he has gotten something out of his 15 minutes of fame. I can't imagine that he has succeeded at avoiding some embarrassment from this event.

[woodsy]

Occasionally, a heavier than normal(or even real heavy) person needs rescuing out there in the hinterlands. They sometimes go out on their own but usually get there with some coaching from friends or relatives, then can't make it back.
As this short media story shows, the rescue people thought it through well enough to consider having a mule for the job if all else failed.
I posted a rescue story some time ago about a heavy guy(only 250lbs) that broke his leg or ankle on a mountaintop in the Maine wintertime about 2,000 ' up. The rescue personell thought they would carry him out but after trying to litter carry him gave up
due to rugged and steep terrain. They hunkered down for the night with him and built a fire etc..
Next day was cloudy and they waited for clearing which came about noon along with a Air National Guard chopper to pluck him outta there.
Whats that got to do with any of this incident with the 362 lb. guy?
Not much other than s*** happens.

[weary]

Years ago, rangers in Baxter Park used to tell of the guy they carried off the summit of Katahdin on a stretcher, only to get up at the bottom, get into his car and drive away!

[Skidsteer]

Years ago, rangers in Baxter Park used to tell of the guy they carried off the summit of Katahdin on a stretcher, only to get up at the bottom, get into his car and drive away!

Well, a little rest does wonders!

[Lone Wolf]

if you kiss enuf ass at katahdin the director will call in a chopper. just depends who you are

[trailblazer30577]

Weary stated:

Years ago, rangers in Baxter Park used to tell of the guy they carried off the summit of Katahdin on a stretcher, only to get up at the bottom, get into his car and drive away!

It is possible that this individual suffered from a fear based trauma disorder. Either his experience in getting to the top, or some other real or fantasized emotional trauma could have caused him to freeze. Once the fear was eliminated, the ability to resume life returned.

[WhiteBlaze]

362-pound Oregon hiker rescued on Appalachian Trail The Oregonian - OregonLive.com, OR - 18 minutes ago (AP) — A 362-pound hiker from Oregon became ill while hiking the Appalachian Trail and had to be rescued. Greeneville Emergency and Rescue Squad member ...

More...

[Ramble~On]

I'm glad to hear that he's okay.
I hope that if I ever need help while out hiking the local news doesn't tell everyone how much I weigh as if my weight is more of a story than the fact I needed to be extracted. I hope that when I'm 62 I am still able to hike.
This guy is 62 years old and heavy but he was out hiking on the AT..not at home lounging on the couch.

[NICKTHEGREEK]

Bet that donkey was rooting for the ATV to make it in and out with this guy. Shame to kill a perfectly good beast because someone got in over his head and was too "tired".

[Hooch]

Weary stated:



It is possible that this individual suffered from a fear based trauma disorder. Either his experience in getting to the top, or some other real or fantasized emotional trauma could have caused him to freeze. Once the fear was eliminated, the ability to resume life returned.

Hopefully, you're willing to concede that statement is complete speculation and nothing else.

[orangebug]

I suspect that his comment "it is possible" lets us know that it was only a humble opinion.

[MOWGLI]

Bet that donkey was rooting for the ATV to make it in and out with this guy. Shame to kill a perfectly good beast because someone got in over his head and was too "tired".

I saw some great big fat dude with a badge and a cowboy hat on the JMT riding a horse. I guess he was a sheriff. All the other horses in the group had their heads held high. The poor horse that this fat bastard was riding on looked like it was about to drop. I felt like telling him to get off and walk. That it'd do the horse AND him some good.

[mudhead]

And I made the erection joke.

Good of you to fess up. You seem to be a stand up guy.

[earlyriser26]

This guy is giving all us very fat hikers a bad name. I'll be out doing a section hike in VA next week and when I do the first 2,000 ft climb it will take awhile, but I won't have to be rescued unless I have to hospitalized. Getting rescued because you are tired? Come on.

[Frolicking Dinosaurs]

I've gotten too tired to go on several times, but I wouldn't think of having a rescue team come out for that. I allow extra time on hikes and simply rest / have a snack until I can go on - and I always carry a poncho / tarp and two emergency blankets so I could spend the night - not in comfort, but also not in danger.

The idea of anyone being driven 1.7 miles to a road just because his lard-arse was tired just burns my also lard-arsed buttons. That is not what rescue personnel are in place to do. If I were injured too badly to walk out or having the symptoms of a cardio-vascular event or experiencing other serious illness, then I would call them.

[earlyriser26]

If you are bad enough to get rescued, you better be headed for medical treatment and not the nearest bar!

[SGT Rock]

Otherwise it is just a bail-out.

[Gray Blazer]

Another symptom is the need to get a ride in to Hot Springs.

You mean infarction.

If you have an erection lasting more than 4 hours and are not on a medication to get it that way, do not go to the ER or call your doctor. Put it to good use.

I was gonna mention this in the No Such Thing as a Wargy thread. Do they say that about the 4 hour thing so all the guys say yeah now you're talkin' and run out and get some??