Everybody has their own hobbies. Some people collect stamps. Some people go on archeological digs looking for dinosaur bones. Some people spend their days curled up with a book.
Some go bungee jumping off 700 foot high suspension bridges into the rocky canyon below.
Have you ever wondered what drives people to extreme hobbies? What inspires them to risk their life for fun? What inspires them to push themselves beyond the boundaries of what we as a society consider to be “sane”?
Perhaps they suffer from a mental disorder. Perhaps they have a no regard for their corporeal lives. Perhaps spitting in the face of death gives their lives relevance. Perhaps they are related to the Kneivel family…
Some may be in agreement with all of the above. Others may understand the argument that passion is what drives people to jump off cliffs.
Passion and Adventure Don’t Disappear Just Because You Get a Little Bit Older
Children envision all sorts of fantastic adventures. They battle giant squid. They climb up tall, dark towers and encounter dragons at the top. They set out on crusades to conquer every unknown terror that crosses their path in their quest for the buried treasures of yore. They always win whatever battle they are engaged in. At the end of the day, they trundle off to dreamland, where even more fantasies await them. They do it all over again the next day.
What are your dreams? Do you still battle dragons? When was the last time you took a sword in hand and parried around your living room, or wielded your shield against a mighty blast of flame that would turn you into a crispy critter if you weren’t quick enough, smart enough, savvy enough, well trained in the art of combat?
The problem is for adults those evil creatures have assumed human faces. There is no longer an imaginary world to live in. We are down on the ground and looking up with barely the energy required to heave ourselves out of our daily routine of duties and responsibilities. Those duties and responsibilities drag us down day after day until it is all a routine. No more adventure awaits us.
There’s no more passion. No one wants to live like that.
Extreme Sports. Not Just For Adrenaline Junkies Anymore
Why is it that fantastic adventures were so much a part of our childhood? It was not just the fun of it or because it gave us an excuse to delay homework for another hour. There was also the adrenaline rush of realizing that someday the bad monster would win. The day may come when we let down our guard a little and let the enemy in. That day a whole village will be looted, pillaged and destroyed because we couldn’t hold back the terrible, vicious beast.
If that wasn’t inspiration enough to get you going, nothing was going to be.
That attitude is what keeps the extreme doer moving ahead. The knowledge that there is always a chance that some day the giant, slimy, ferocious creature will win pushes the warrior on ever harder, ever farther, every faster than ever before. Every time they claim victory over the giant squid, though, is the time they are most alive.
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