At sunset tonight, Demetri Coupounas, the president and co-founder of GoLite, with the weight of a small person strapped to his back, will set out to hike the Appalachian Trail. For 40 days and 40 nights, Coup will take the classic American pilgrimage-with no re-supply-as an elaborate field test of GoLite’s products. While 127 pounds (eight of them are chocolate!) is, to most, not a particularly light cargo, his journey is meant to affirm the company’s core values-that the outdoors is a lot more fun once you take a load off. He’s commemorating the 10th anniversary of GoLite, which he founded with his wife and late father, while hoping that by the end of his trip, on April 30, he will have broken the current 620-mile World Alpine Style Backpacking Distance record by at least a couple hundred miles.

How far are you going to walk?

One of my favorite maxims is that “in real adventure, the outcome is unknown.” I have maps for about 1100 miles. And it’d be a shame to carry a bunch of maps many hundreds of miles and then not use them. Still, I’d settle for 621 miles without much regret. I want to find out just how far I can go in 40 days. Since the AT is 2176 miles long, I won’t have to worry about running out of trail!

Why not just re-supply?

I like keeping the hike as untamed as possible. Every single one of my workdays has a schedule; every single one of my hikedays doesn’t. Alpine style thru-hiking also rededicates me to the core mission of GoLite. I will experience a maximum load of 127 pounds and a minimum load of 15 pounds. Guess which end of the spectrum is more fun?

What’s in the pack?

I have less than a 15-pound base load-equipment and clothing that will be with me the entire time. The other 112+ pounds is food and other “consumables.”

Anything unusual?

A GoLite Shangri-La 2-person shelter because my food will take up as much space as a 2nd person the first few nights. Also, I want to be able to accommodate any visitors I might get.

2 pairs of shoes because you shouldn’t count on more than 400-500 miles per pair.

A GoLite Ultra 20* Bag Top, basically a 2nd sleeping bag to keep my food from freezing at night.

A Blackberry and recharger because while, technically, electrons can be thought of as a re-supply, this isn’t to aid my hike but just to allow me to communicate with my mother, my wife, and my office.

3 different kinds of lubrication with different mechanics of delivery because different parts of the body respond better to each and it takes a stick to reach the most important place.

What pack are you using?

An off-the-shelf GoLite Odyssey, Men’s, Medium, Crimson. GoLite because we make the best backpacks to carry such a monster load-I am biased because I designed them all. Odyssey because it is our biggest and plushest with the suspension, volume, and features I need, and nothing more. Men’s because I suffer from testosterone poisoning. Medium because I am bigger side-to-side and front-to-back then I am up-and-down. Crimson because our Sales Manager Kevin Volz told me it looks better on me than “Tempest.”

What will be the first thing you do when you get home?

First I’ll give my wife a big kiss. Then I’ll shower. Twice.

-Claire Napier Galofaro