If you thought the weather was going to be bad in France/US, spare a thought for the UK

[Lehaut]

At least according to the BBC weather site yesterday.

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/cars/news/bbc-says-uk-about-to-be-hit-by-hurricane-as-weather-site-goes-wrong/ar-AA1s0yhE?cvid=9e36cbf0b1bb424f859af2c49b357cbc&ei=10

[Harnser]

Their weather news is about as accurate as the rest of the news they broadcast.

Meteo France is also suffering from computeritis weatherinsis as their forecasts are now done by AI instead of real live people who might be capable of spotting bloopers before it going live.

[menthe]

didn't know they are using AI.  But I have noticed that the forecasts are increasingly inaccurate.  This does make a difference to us, Nordic walkers, as I for one do not go out in the rain.  It's not that I am scared of a bit of a soaking, it is that Nordic sticks, like golf clubs are difficult to grasp when wet...

[Lehaut]

21 hours ago, menthe said:

Nordic sticks

I have a question over the people who go on these walks which you may be able to answer!  The NOISE!

We do use sticks on coastal/mountain walks, but not round town.  We were out on Thursday when a party of Nordic walkers went past with their sticks smacking down on the newly renovated hard surface path. Clack, clack, clack, all shouting to be heard over the noise their stick ends make on the path.  We have rubber feet on ours that we take off for ice walking.  Indeed some coastal paths and islands try to ban hard ends because of the erosion problems they cause.

My question is, do these walkers not hear the noise they make, do they not care or is it part of the "get out of the way we are coming through"  attitude often displayed when troupes of the walkers take up the whole path?

Not that I am suggesting this is what you do menthe...

[menthe]

Lehaut, I would suggest that they are not "real" nordic walkers.  We too have removable rubber ends and they go on on tarmac and other hard surfaces and get taken off on soft ground.

The reason is that in Nordic walking, you need to push the sticks into the ground and use them to help propel yourself forward.  Nordic walking is quite different from "ordinary" walking.  Different poles, different techniques.

Also it is comparatively rare to have big walking "parties".  Groups are relatively small, no very large groups and we tend to avoid roads and hard surfaces because, well, you can't use the technique properly if you don't have fairly flat, wide, soft tracks.

Lots about nordic walking on the internet.  If you remember Cendrillon from our forum, she it was who introduced me to it and encouraged me to take a couple of lessons from a professional.  Have been doing it ever since though I also walk with "ordinary" walkers and then I don't use my sticks.

[Harnser]

It's amazing how something as simple as walking gets more complicated and now needs a training course!

[Harnser]

And the US recent hurricane warnings were overhyped - it was cited as a category 3, as soon as it made landfall it was a relatively mild Cat 1.

[menthe]

Except, Harnser, nordic walking is a bit of a misnomer as it's not JUST about walking.

It is more of an exercise, using all the major muscle groups of the body and many of the minor ones.  It was "invented" by a Scandinavian skier to keep fit in the summer months when there is no  skiing to be had.

It isn't even important to be able to walk long distances.  In Germany, where they are very keen on physical exercise, the poles could be prescribed by doctors and many people recovering from different conditions take it up to recuperate their bodies and minds.

Of course, you don't need a training course as such!  But, if you want to take the maximum advantage out of it, you ARE better off being shown the technique.  Say you want to learn to play the piano, you could, if you are persistent, teach yourself to read music and pick out the keys on a keyboard but you'd never make as much progress or learn more of the subtleties of piano-playing if you don't have lessons from a good teacher.

[Lehaut]

Continuing the topic of "accurate" forecasts.  I plant trees in Kenya using the MSN weather website.  Today it looks like the sea will reach far, far inland, according to their severe weather warnings.  Hopefully the waves don't reach us on the 5th floor!