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Originally Posted by Kuan
There ya go! 
I used to climb, rockclimb. There was this guy, Dan Osman, who intentionally took falls off the top of rocks while tied to a rope. He's dead now.
Some of my friends basejump off El Capitan. Never tried it, could never afford a setup.
XC skiing difficult terrain is quite a rush. Some of the trails are about 5ft wide and twisty with trees on either side. That's pretty cool, like singletrack mountain biking but without brakes. |
Did he die due to a fall?
While I love the sensation of free fall, I also love a controlled escape from this. When on an airplane passing through turbulence, I’m the one who will say, “Can we do that again?” In skiing the turn is performed to control speed, potentially regain balance and of course change direction. So skiing is a lot about challenge and control. Taking yourself to the edge and using a developed set of skills is where the thrill is. There is a huge element of self-reliance in the process.
I don’t know if I’d be okay with base jumping or parachuting. It seems such an all or nothing kind of pursuit. I’m sure it would be highly addictive, and obviously a HUGE adrenalin rush, but unlike skiing, free-fall doesn’t seem to require a whole lot of developed skills or muscle control. Not that I’ve done it, but based only on observation it seems about hanging on and living through it. Perhaps there is a large element of letting go involved in this process and a total reliance on pre-determined conditions to permit you to survive?
This is not to suggest a qualitative difference between one type of adrenalin rush and another. But it begs the question of what elements in a challenge or thrill are the most enjoyable or addicting?
BTW, if you want to blow off speed while XC skiing (open heel), how do you do it?