It's a good thing I stocked up on a new TT StratoSpire and Alpacka Yukon Yak in December. I bet I can make it through January and maybe February without buying gear now. Sometime before spring I'm going to need a paddle for my raft though.

Does gear ordered in 2011, but not yet received count :)

I made it to 01.05.12, I think I completed the first ever YoYo of the twelve step program for UL gear junkies.

Craig, I take this approach with technology purchases. I'll agonize and research for months over parts for a computer, dial in a perfect system for my budget and needs buy it and then turn my back completely on the developments of the computing world until my computer becomes a detriment to my productivity (usually 5 years). Same with photography equipment.

Unfortunately I'm only about 2 years into backpacking and gearing up for it. Luckily I've just squeezed my 3 season AZ kit (ie Fall, Winter, Spring haha) to just under 10 lbs and I'm finding that every time I go into REI or browse backcountry of the gear forums that I get excited over gear but then decide there really isn't anything I want to buy, that I'm rather happy with my setup and would rather just use it more.

I've also been lucky enough to inherit (rather steal from my mom) a quality sewing machine so for 2012 I think my primary goal is to CREATE more gear instead of buying it. I still have a lot of friends who are interested in backpacking but not experienced at all and have no gear so I like to have an abundance of loaner gear on hand for group outings.

All said, I do agree that the aim is noble even though personally I have an issue with dogmatic rules (but that's hypocritical since I gave up drinking for a year on a whim and stuck with it purely out of dogmatic pride!).

I am just glad that I bought a replacement LT4 pole last year. With that I now have an intact set of gear. It funny that this will be easy for me because I get ZERO joy out of even the thought of new gear. In fact the whole process stresses me out. Now, could I get my Burn to work the R2R2R trip? Hmmm.

i have all the gear i need, i simply need time. a look at the calendar shows that my weekends from now until March are all taken with things. luckily this coming weekend is a backpacking weekend!

My wife has committed me to no new gear in 2012. Does that count?

It counts, but admitting it makes you get a punch in your man-card. One more and you lose it.

Old Proverb= " He who listens to wife has chance to remain a man"

Heresy! Sacrilege! What is wrong with you people??

New gear pieces are coming out all the time -- lighter, swifter, meaner -- all to help you get out more and enjoy!! Have you guys (and gals) checked out the latest shelters? Packs? Apparels? Shoes? And don't forget the really cool sleeping pads from Thermarest!!

Ben.
The Gear Enabler.

Ben 2 World lives!

He's alive!

Well somebody has to keep the cottage industry afloat. Since I haven't purchased any new gear in the last 3 years, I'm going to make up for it this year.

More cuben, more carbon fiber, new fabrics, woo hoo!

Ben,

Apparently you missed the stagnation article. So save your money for airline tickets :)

BTW, where are you; still in some exotic 3rd world country or back home?

@ Ben. Hello stranger. Hope you are enjoying your world adventure. Give me a shout if you pass near Scotland. :)

We need you back on the forum to stop the heavyweights taking over. Who needs an enabler to ship me UL normal store gear? Ryan is suffering from middle age spread. ;)

Looking at my annual budget, gear is not the problem. I spend far more on mortgage, utilities, food, gas for my work commute, college fund, and clothes for my growing girls. So it seems I can do a lot more in the fight against rampant consumerism by cutting back on spending related to normal daily life. Some of this stuff is unfortunately non-negotiable. So my pledge for 2012 is "No new clothes!".

They're not holes in my boxers, they're ventilation. And as for the kids, what's the point in buying new shoes if they'll just outgrow them in 6 months.

As for gear, if I need something to facilitate a planned adventure (that packraft I've been saving for over the last 6 months so that I can island hop across SE Alaska comes to mind), I think I'll go for it. I don't spend that much on myself these days, and there are worse things I could be putting my money towards.

Howdy Travis, Nick and Mike:

I just finished my two-month travel to Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and Brunei -- hosteling, not hiking. But I did manage a few day hikes (no mean feat in the humid tropics), and saw some really cool tree-swinging antics by a pair of orangutans, and had my trail blocked momentarily by one ill-tempered, 4ft. monitor lizard (the thing hissed at me when I tried to get it to move).

I am now in exotic Vancouver, Canada, visiting my folks for a few days, and will be back home (LA) next week.

Can't wait to check out the new gear... and y'all should do the same. :)

Have I blown it already, not even one month into it?

I'm currently purging some gear I don't want anymore; selling a shelter, selling some shoes, donating other stuff to some students I have...

....and trying to sell/trade a jacket for a different one.

Now, I'm really only getting rid of one used jacket I didn't like so much to replace it with another used jacket I like much better...so...

...or is this beginning to sound like the old religious sham of being granted a temporary marriage to a prostitute, having your fun, and then having the marriage annulled to *technically* avoid sex out of wedlock?

Am I hopeless?

"...or is this beginning to sound like the old religious sham of being granted a temporary marriage to a prostitute, having your fun, and then having the marriage annulled to *technically* avoid sex out of wedlock?"

Does Douglas Ide have to come up in every thread?!?!

"Does Douglas Ide have to come up in every thread?!?!"

Actually, Steven, she's the one who had it annulled...... Sure was a fun five minutes though!

Craig,
In this, I think the principle is more important than the execution. Memories are more important than possessions. Get what you need to create the memories. Don't buy what you don't need. I think your posting history is consistent with this principle. Trading used jackets doesn't invalidate it.