Irreverent Warriors is a veterans’ nonprofit that runs Silkies Hikes — group ruck-style hikes held in dozens of US cities, named for the short military-issue PT shorts participants wear. The organizer frames the hike around a symbolic 22 kilometres, covering 4 to 10 miles at a pace of 2 to 3 miles per hour with frequent stops, and many hikers carry a weighted ruck. This is explicitly not an athletic event: the purpose is to break isolation among veterans through humor and camaraderie, as part of the organization’s suicide prevention mission.
The Houston hike is held on Saturday 10 October 2026, starting at 9:30 a.m. and finishing around 4:30 p.m., with an unusually long check-in window running from 7:00 a.m. Although the organizer markets it as Houston, the start point is on East NASA Parkway in Seabrook, roughly 25 miles south-east of the city near Clear Lake and the Johnson Space Center.
Silkies Hikes are for veterans, active duty, National Guard and reservists only; the organizer’s event page states that minors, civilian hikers, pets and strollers are not permitted, with documented service animals the only exception. All participants must e-sign a waiver incorporating the organization’s Code of Conduct. Registration runs on DonorDrive, closing at noon on the day of the hike; the fee is shown at checkout, and anyone who cannot afford it can request a free promo code from . The local coordinator is Ken Hacker at .
Irreverent Warriors is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that organizes Silkies Hikes — group ruck-style hikes held in dozens of US cities. A Silkies Hike is a non-competitive group walk, published by the organizer as covering between 4 and 10 miles at a pace of 2 to 3 miles per hour with frequent stops, framed around a symbolic 22-kilometer figure. Participants wear military-issue silkies, the short nylon PT shorts the organization is named for, typically with boots, and many carry a weighted ruck. Wearing them in public is deliberately conspicuous: the humor and visibility are the point, and the stated purpose is to break isolation among veterans through camaraderie as part of the organization’s suicide prevention mission. Hikes are for veterans, active duty, National Guard and reservists; the organizer’s event pages state that minors, civilian hikers, pets and strollers are not permitted on the hike itself, though civilians are welcome to volunteer, sponsor, donate or meet participants at route stops. All participants must e-sign a waiver incorporating the organization’s Code of Conduct. Registration runs on DonorDrive, and any hiker who cannot afford the fee can request a free promo code from the organizer.
