Ping

One of my pet peeves is when these city slickers out on the trail with very expensive technical clothing and gear look down on others because they didn't spend $1500 on their kit. Said city slickers maybe take a couple of vacations a year and otherwise hike once a month. Nonetheless, they took classes at an REI and read some books and now believe they are hot shot hikers.

For a number of years I hiked in the Ping brand golf hat above that I bought at a course in Tennessee one time when I forgot to bring a hat. I sunburn easily so I picked up whatever was available in the pro shop. That became my sweaty, outdoor hat. Many hiking friends and strangers on the trail ridiculed it, as if wearing a golf hat while hiking was some type of bumbling mistake indicating a lack of experience.

I've been hiking since I was 3 or 4 years old. I grew up in the country, roaming where there were neither trails nor roads, wading through creeks and thickets, pulling off the cockleburs and scraping off the mud with sticks. I taught myself to track and stalk.

No, city hiker, your Arc'teryx thousand dollar jacket does not indicate superiority of experience or fitness. It just means that you are an unusually foolish person who judges a book by its cover. That hat accompanied me on dozens of outdoor expeditions and was perfectly functional for hiking, as anyone who spent their entire life hiking and exploring the outdoors could tell you.

I finally had to get rid of it, but I don't regret wearing it on hikes. You don't need the correct name brand for adventure.

Poseurs.