A stranger's comment about my tent stakes changed my setup routine

Last fall at a site near Asheville, a guy watched me hammer in cheap stakes and said, 'those will fold the first gust, grab some MSR Groundhogs.' I ignored him until my fly ripped loose at 2 AM, so I replaced all 12 stakes and now I check soil type before pitching. Has anyone else had a casual piece of feedback from a random camper actually fix a recurring problem for them?

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julia_lee18d ago

so did you end up checking soil type every time you camp now or just when you're somewhere unknown? cause honestly that's the part that gets me, like how much does it actually change your setup time. because i've had similar shit happen where someone says something random and i'm like nah whatever, then it bites me later and i'm kicking myself for not listening. but i also wonder if it was just a bad spot that night or if the groundhog thing is genuinely worth the hype for most people. like did you notice a difference in how fast you pitch now or is it more about peace of mind. i'm asking cause i still use the cheap ones and i'm too stubborn to swap until something actually breaks on me again.