Extreme sports - why?

nicklouse

walkingbootweather wrote:

Extreme sports - why?

Why not.

walkingbootweather

nicklouse wrote:

walkingbootweather wrote:

Extreme sports - why?

Why not.

I like being able to walk and ride my bike unaided. I like to eat solid foods and not have to drink through a straw. I like to cuddle my kids and make love to my wife. I don't much like pain.

Why would I risk any of these when I can get a 'rush' by cheating on the self service till at Tesco (allegedly).

rick_chasey

walkingbootweather wrote:

Why would I risk any of these when I can get a 'rush' by cheating on the self service till at Tesco (allegedly).

Speaking of rushes from the mundane, I get huge kicks from successful queue skipping. The less it's noticed, the better.

NGale

Personally can't get into bungee jumping or other such nonsense. But it comes down to adrenaline rushes and feeling alive even at the brink of possible death (daft I know).

The biggest adrenaline rushes for me come from going out training with the cadets on ranges where we can do blank firing (don't worry we don't give kids real bullets unless on indoor ranges under VERY strict controls!), from going out cycling and from kayaking.

We all get out senses of being and excitement in different ways. For the cousin in law his method is dropping into a lake from a helicopter in a kayak...I personally think he's mental (so does his girlfriend!) but it works for him!

daviesee

Rick Chasey wrote:

[Speaking of rushes from the mundane, I get huge kicks from successful queue skipping. The less it's noticed, the better.

Oooooh! So un-British. My wife learned queue jumping in Italy a few years ago and prefected it in Paris, going straight in the door of Notre Dame when hundreds were queing.
Not a rush but what tickles me is when 2 counters are open but everyone joins the one with the queue, making it even longer. Stange behaviour.

Wallace1492

walkingbootweather wrote:

A bungee jumper for instance puts themselves more at the mercy of others, and risks death or permanent disability if equipment fails, or if operator gets it wrong.

Maybe I’m just getting old?

The same could be said of getting on an aeroplane, train, bus or even being driven in a car. You are at the mercy of others getting it right. Cycling into work, I am at the mercy of the truck driver getting it right and not left hooking me. Every day there are situations we are not in control of our own destiny.

Doing something like bungee gives one hell of a thrill, however, you kinda wonder what the H&S is like in Zambia. Well I know, as I went white water rafting below the bridge that the jumper's cord broke, and I don't think I would be doing a bungee there!

Incidentally, most extreme I have heard about is Banzai Skydiving where the participant throws parachute out of plane, waits a while then dives out after it in order to catch it and use it to land. World record is apprantly 50 seconds.... :shock:

mtb-idle

King Jeffers wrote:

So you can belong to the Jimmy 3 sh*te club... You know those people! Whatever you have done they have always done something better also known as bragging rights.

a.k.a. the character 'Topper' in Dilbert

JaiRo

Pure adrenalin.

Im an acrophobiac and have felt an awesome rush when I did a sky dive and bungee, absolutely felt mad and nothing has matched the feeling. Also competed in MMA and Muay Thai fights too, pre fight nerves, anxiety, then adrenalin when in the ring, awesome.

Nothing Ive ever bought or done (well probably except when I lost my virginity lol ) has come close to these activities.

These moments will definitely be in the flash before my eyes before I die.

walkingbootweather

JaiRo wrote:

These moments will definitely be in the flash before my eyes before I die.

Especially if you a plunging to your death at the time.

UndercoverElephant

I went bungee jumping on my stag night, the London types may remember the place, it was just next to Chelsea Bridge. At the time it was the highest, fixed bungee in the world. The first jump I did was the standard, raised up on a crane and jumping off thing. It was by far the scariest thing I've ever done, every last bit of your survival instincts are screaming for you not to do it. I bottled falling off forwards, but was able to do it backwards so I didn't have to see how high up I was. Didn't enjoy that at all, to be honest. Best thing I can say is that now I've done it, I never have to again.

After which, I did the reverse bungee, where they chain you to the ground, stretch the bungee and then quick release you. That one *was* fun, just like flying. But I still don't have to do it again.

essex-commuter

UndercoverElephant wrote:

they chain you to the ground, stretch the bungee and then quick release you.

I presume there is a bit more to this, otherwise surely you would come back to earth with a slight bump, no? :shock:

walkingbootweather

UE - the human catapult

Kieran_Burns

Ahem:

http://youtu.be/tymkiTVOciY

and the very first time I flew in my life was when I jumped out with a parachute. That was nuts... I was in this teeny tiny high wing plane (space for 4 to sit on the floor and shuffle to the door) so I'm looking out the window all amazed at this great new sensation; and then I jumped out.

Kieran_Burns

essex-commuter wrote:

UndercoverElephant wrote:

they chain you to the ground, stretch the bungee and then quick release you.

I presume there is a bit more to this, otherwise surely you would come back to earth with a slight bump, no? :shock:

The rope is attached at the top.... pulled down, clipped to you and SPOING!!!!!!

essex-commuter

Kieran_Burns wrote:

essex-commuter wrote:

UndercoverElephant wrote:

they chain you to the ground, stretch the bungee and then quick release you.

I presume there is a bit more to this, otherwise surely you would come back to earth with a slight bump, no? :shock:

The rope is attached at the top.... pulled down, clipped to you and SPOING!!!!!!

Doh, I see! Cool video!

SimonAH

For a really extreme sport try bungee climbing! This is where the rope is attached to the base of the cliff and you have to see how high you can climb before it rips you off the wall to be dashed amongst the boulders at the bottom.

walkingbootweather

Mrs WBW has expressed a desire to have a go at an extreme sport. I have thought long and hard, but think I may have come up with the very thing.....

iPete

This won't answer your questions but it is none the less awesome.

Nitro Circus Movie Trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxTuEC8RMzE

Initialised

Peat wrote:

Law of probabilities suggests that you are several times safer on a bungee cord than you are driving to work.

Only difference is, one is exciting, one is tedious.

Only if you let it become tedious and don't get arrested.