I'm piling on with the group who would not climb a steep rocky trail without poles. The warranty on my knees has expired - using poles for downhill is no longer optional - I need them. I find the extra weight of the poles is not a factor unless you're carrying them in your pack.
This thread advanced my vocabulary with a new word "proprioceptive" and made me think about upgrading my old Komperdale twist locks. Great, my wife loves these perpetual gear upgrades.
I loaned one of my poles to my hiking partner coming down the backside on Whitney. He was one of those guys that didn't believe in them until then. He went on down to Trail Camp without me leaving me with just one pole. When I got to the switchbacks my knees were already feeling it so I collapsed the pole and used it to glissade down the chute in lieu of an ice ax. That was the end of the trail for that pole as it bent and never would open up again. A week later someone got out of control and died glissading down the chute so I felt lucky nothing worse happened.
