Episode #366 - Matt Hengst (Masochist)
Mighty Blue On The Appalachian Trail: The Ultimate Mid-Life Crisis
Steve Adams
4.8 • 599 Ratings
🗓️ 23 March 2023
⏱️ 94 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Matthew Hengst, or Masochist, is today's guest. He is one of those guys who has managed to parlay his passion for hiking into pretty much a full-time gig. He's got an extensive outdoor resumé, but it is his 2021 thru-hike of the Eastern Continental Trail that we focus on today.
On the trail, Matthew edited videos before getting out of camp, and his whole attitude is one of calm enjoyment in solitude.
You can follow him on his YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/FirstChurchofTheMasochistHikes, or his Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/mattonamtn. He also has a website that encompasses all of his varied outdoor adventures. You can find that at http://www.firstchurchofthemasochist.com/.
Two of our Class of 23 members check in today. Ron Ward will be setting out on March 23 from Springer and is, as you'd expect, raring to go. He shares with us that he's hiking for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) and has a fund raising page here. Check it out if his cause speaks to you. https://www2.jdrf.org/site/TR;jsessionid=00000000.app30108b?px=3424783&fr_id=8890&pg=personal&NONCE_TOKEN=29FF65E0FAFBA5F2BA2DE60BADE3B502
Mark Carpenter started three weeks ago and is having an absolute blast, encountering cold wet weather but smiling through.
Doctor Lynne concludes her part in the show for the time being, when she talks to us about the way in which lightning impacts hikers and the medical points we all need to know. Lynne is such a blessing to the show and we've really loved having her input for the past few months. Remember, you can get all her notes through this link. https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1CJ5llgK7FUnbKnbtbWlsP6v_4dNentVa?usp=sharing.
If you'd like to find out more about "Then The Hail Came," check out George's website at https://georgesteffanos.webador.com/. You can also find George's book on Amazon at this link. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09QFG4ZR6.
If you like what we're doing on the Hiking Radio Network, and want to see our shows continue, please consider supporting us with either a one-off or monthly donation. You'll find the donate button on each Hiking Radio Network page at https://www.hikingradionetwork.com.
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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 |
| 0:05.3 | about hikers for everybody. Mighty Blue on the Appalachian Trail, the ultimate midlife crisis, |
| 0:23.9 | joins Stephen his guests every week as he staggers from Georgia to Maine. |
| 0:33.1 | Hey guys, good to be back with you all again. |
| 0:35.5 | You're listening to Mighty Blue on the Appalachian Trail, the ultimate midlife crisis. I'm your host, Marty Blue, or Steve Adams, and we speak |
| 0:42.6 | with hikers, normally 80 hikers, though this week's guest Matthew Hanks, who goes by the awesome |
| 0:48.0 | trail name of Massagist, has hiked so many trails in the past few years that it's almost |
| 0:52.4 | impossible to keep up with him. He did the 80 in 2021, but he did it somewhat differently, beginning his hike at Key West, |
| 1:00.3 | taking in the Florida Trail, the Bin Hodi, the Bent McKay, and maybe one other, |
| 1:05.3 | before he got to the top of Springham Mountain. |
| 1:07.6 | He was actually hiking the Eastern Continental Trail and, well, he worked out, |
| 1:12.2 | as has several more of my recent guests, how to make hiking a pretty much a full-time gig. |
| 1:17.8 | It's got an incredibly supportive girlfriend who hikes with him when she can, but otherwise, |
| 1:22.1 | has to work. Matthew will be on in the moment. After Matthew, we're catching up again with two of our |
| 1:27.4 | Mighty Blue Class of 23. Ron Ward has been putting in a bunch of shakedown miles and finalising his |
| 1:32.6 | gear, when Mark Carpenter, who we had on three weeks ago, just as he was about to set out, |
| 1:38.2 | is back with how things have gone with him so far. Then Dr. Lin's series comes to an end, with some |
| 1:44.0 | advice about dealing with lightning |
| 1:45.5 | on the trail. Finally today, we've got a couple of more days from Chapter 15 of Then the Hail |
| 1:51.2 | came with George racing towards home in Connecticut for a few days off the trail. So we've got a lot |
| 1:56.6 | to get to. Let's meet Matthew Hanks or Massagist. Well, today we've got a guy who is really |
| 2:05.2 | comfortable in the backcountry. This is Matthew Hanks or Massacist. Hey, Matthew, thanks for coming on |
... |
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