Episode #261 - Ray Kroebl (Sparky)

Mighty Blue On The Appalachian Trail: The Ultimate Mid-Life Crisis

Steve Adams

Sports, Wilderness

4.8 • 599 Ratings

🗓️ 11 March 2021

⏱️ 79 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

I hadn't noticed how many of my fellow members of the Class of 2019 I'd had on the show until I spoke with Ray Kroebl, or Sparky. Ray is Swiss and, while we never met on the trail, we did hike just a few days apart. He started four days before me and ended five days before I did. And it was feeling such a kindred spirit with Ray that made me aware of how many of my fellow hikers on that trip were similarly kindred spirits. When you share time in such a visceral society, we bond.

Ray is from Switzerland, so we spoke about his logistical challenges of getting onto the trail, as well as the enjoyment that he derived from literally every day that he spent on the trail.

You can follow more of Ray's experiences through his Instagram account at https://www.instagram.com/rkroebl/.

Also this week, ATC's Brendan Mysliwiec, who is the Director of Federal Policy and Legislation and runs advocacy and federal government relations for ATC. He shares some fascinating insights into the sort of work with which the ATC is involved, dealing with an incoming administration.

Then, Katie Westling got on the phone to me and shared those first few days of being on the trail. As you'll hear, Katie had a somewhat more comfortable time than most!! If you'd like to see more of Katie's hike, remember to visit her YouTube page at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChEDoHA8w7RgCgs8MxuiIxA

Finally, in Walking The Appalachian Trail, by Larry Luxenburg, we're introduced to the cult of Garveyism!! Fascinating.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	You are listening to the Hiking Radio Network, where we talk the walk with shows by hikers
0:08.0	about hikers for everybody.
0:28.1	Mighty Blue on the Appalachian Trail, the ultimate midlife crisis, joined Stephen his guests every week as he staggers from Georgia to Maine.
0:36.5	Hey everybody, it's lovely to have you back with me on the podcast. You are listening to
0:41.5	Mighty Blue on the Appalachian Trail, the ultimate midlife crisis, and I'm your current host,
0:47.0	Steve Adams, or the aforementioned Mighty Blue. I'll say current host because, as I told you
0:52.1	recently, I'm taking a little bit of time away from the weekly show and concentrating on something else for the summer.
0:57.8	Yet I'll still be on every week as I follow our intrepid featured hiker Katie Wessling or Phoenix as she heads north.
1:04.2	I will also be hosting one of my shows every month.
1:07.3	The rest of the time, Ryan Hopkins, or JR, will be hosting the show and bringing his unique slant with him.
1:13.5	We're going to chat about his plans next week, so watch out for that.
1:17.1	Our main guest this week is Ray Crobber, or Sparky.
1:21.0	And I realised during my interview with Ray, I featured quite a few of the class of 2019 members,
1:25.7	and subconsciously, I guess I'm drawn to them.
1:28.8	I suppose we're linked and kindred spirits. We shared that 2,200 mile path for six months and
1:34.6	even though some of us never met, our lives were intertwined. As you're going to hear from Ray,
1:39.8	he had the time of his life. He's going to be on in a moment. After Ray, our ATC chat is with Brendan
1:47.5	Misliviotz, or he's something they say it. As you're here, I totally botch it when I introduce him,
1:54.9	but he was very gracious about it. Brendan lives in Washington and is effectively ATC's lobbyist.
2:01.2	He's a fascinating bloke and I'm sure you get a lot out of his appearance on the show.
2:05.5	After Brendan, we hear from Katie Westling or Phoenix as she shares with us her first thoughts actually out on the trail.
2:12.6	Katie started on Monday morning and we spoke on Wednesday so it's a pretty fresh update.
	...

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