Sponsored? - Appalachian Trail

imported
#1

I was talking to a '00 thru-hiker and he said that he got $500 worth of REI gear for his thru hike. i was wondering if this is common??

Clong

#2

Sure, all you have to do is ask them.

Ganj

#3

Many different outdoor gear vendors have a certain amount of gear to have tested. Mountain Hardwear is a good one to try.

bearbait

#4

REI employees can get up to $500 in REI-only gear for “Challenge Grants” they apply for. Grants are good for any (trips) that they want to take, thereby promoting REI and REI gear on the trip. The gear is free, but since employees already get such cheap gear in pro deals it is not really that great of a deal. Though every bit helps when funding a thru-hike.

Cross Country

#5

i seem to recall a guy on my 02 thru hike who finagled a free pack out of a rep he met along the trail. i cant remember the manufacturer; might’ve been granite gear or something. He was supposed to be “testing” the pack…

mindlessmariachi

#6

It a manufacturer gives free gear to a thru-hiker, than I think that’s a smart move. When you think about it, most gear is probably marketed to the weekend section hiker. So, let’s say that the majority of backpacking gear gets used at most 8 to 12 nights per year. When a thru-hiker uses it for 5 to 6 months, he is putting 10 years worth of use and wear on the gear in one season. It’s a good test of durablity.

Peaks

#7

An individual could score some serious gear, if they had a gift for gab, from the manufacturers at Trail Days. Thru- hikers really push gear to its limits and the smart manufacturer knows that keeping thrus happy( especially on the hyper-social AT) is good business. I met a lot of weekenders/sections and day hikers on my trip. I really loved to share my equipment sucesses and failures with them. Customer service is especially important to a thru-hiker on a budget. The products that fail due to defects should be replaced immediately. A hiker happy with his experiance with a company tells everyone about it, conversly an unhappy hiker does the same thing, sometimes more antimatedly! :slight_smile:

Yo-YO