The Trail is Like . . . . (part of a continuing series of comparisons)

Here's a comparison I wouldn't have thought of by myself.

Sarah Kaufman, a Washington Post Staff Writer, wrote (in a Saturday, July 3, 2004; Page C01 article titled "Blood, Sweat And Gears; The Heroes Ride Cycles Instead of Steeds But the Tour de France Is an Epic Saga") of the month-long bicycle race:

"Like completing the Appalachian Trail or running the Iditarod, riding in the Tour is at once very simple and richly metaphoric. It is heavy on steak, light on sizzle. It is exquisite self-flagellation, whose redemption comes in a commingling of anguish and glory."

Gotta like that! "Very simple and richly metaphoric ... heavy on steak [that's the part this vegetarian wouldn't have thought of], light on sizzle ... exquisite self-flagellation" -- sounds like the hiking I know and love.

She also says the Tour -- and by backward extension, a thru-hike on the Trail -- is "decidedly medieval". And that "traversing mountains and misery in equal measure and adhering to a code of honor that governs everything from bathroom breaks to what to do if your key rival crashes (wait politely for him to get back on the bike, of course), the Tour resembles nothing so much as a heroic quest from the days of King Arthur."

Well, that sounds like the Trail I know, too. (Except for the bike part ... though probably most of us have seen bicyclers on the Trail somewhere.)

After that point, however, the analogy breaks down for me. Ms. Kaufman continues: "Sure, most of the competitors are anorexic-looking, hollow-cheeked fellows with wan white chests and baby-smooth legs, wearing flashy Spandex and oversize insectoid sunglasses. To many, they may look more like large crop pests than warrior princes."

Can't say I've seen too many hikers who look quite like that.