Trail Name

So you might be wondering what is behind the name Honey Badger.  Honey Badger is the trail name that I hike under.  Trail names are a part of the long distance hiking community’s tradition.  It is a representation of the new you as the worries of the 9-5 world fade away.  The trail name is unique to each person and is the name everyone will know you by.  Names such as Timber because someone saw you knock down a tree, Crash because you are always falling, Billy Goat because you can climb anything, No rush well because you’re in no rush. You get the point.  So how did I get the name Honey Badger?

First you have to know a little about the honey badger.  The honey badger, Mellivora capensis is small carnivorous animal, native to Africa.  It stands at only 9-11 inches and weighs only 11-35 pounds.  Despite the honey badgers small size it has a reputation for being, pound for pound, Africa’s most fearless animal.  It has even been documented that the honey badger will fight off a lion when it is threatened.  Given its tenacious nature the honey badger has also been known to endure thousands of bee stings just to enjoy the hives sweet honey.    The Guinness Book of Records has even classified the honey badger as the “most fearless animal in the world”.

Standing at about 5 foot nothing, I have had to fight my way through life in many ways just as the honey badger has.  Well maybe not getting stung by thousands of bees or fighting off lions.  Rather, fighting off the negative connotation that is often placed on being a short male in the United States society. Everything from being bullied as a child, women saying they would never date a guy shorter than them to even having to fight my way into the Marine Corps because I didn’t meet their height standard.  I have always had to fight harder to achieve my goals as well as prove that with enough heart anything is possible.  This was the case in 2001 when I tried to join the United States Marine Corps after September 11, 2001.  Initially they had told me no because I didn’t meet their height standards.  Well this answer was not good enough for me and I was determined.  After much persuasion I was given an opportunity in which I made the most of.  Whenever I had the chance I fought harder, ran faster, and was more squared away than the next.  Because of my tenacity, I had a very successful career in the Marine Corps, earning multiple awards and promoting to the rank of Sergeant in just three years.  Like the honey badger, I had to fight hard to earn my place.  It isn’t about how big or small you are, but rather what’s in your heart.  If you want something sometimes you have to be as tenacious as the honey badger.  Therefore that is how I got the name Honey Badger.

Remember life is an adventure, waiting to be had.  You must be willing to get out there and live it.