I'm a casual climber and despite some people might not believe me, I'm extremely afraid of heights. I don't intend to start doing ice climbing nor to become a professional of some sort, but I'm very motivated to always try something different, a new route, a harder move, a new technique. I completely understand the frustration some folks might have: "why on earth would someone risk their lives for something like this?". I also don't plan to understand how anyone's mind works (the one's who climb nor the one's who don't).
But to be honest, this is not something I do to prove anything to anyone. It's something I do for myself! When I'm putting myself on a rock, it's like it makes the world completely disappear and the only thing that matters is me and the route I'm taking on that moment. It doesn't matter how my day was, what challenges I'm facing, how my job is, how my personal life is. It clears my mind completely and it's like I have a reset for a couple of minutes. And the feeling you get after reaching the peek of something hard is simply indescribable. It's a constant challenge against yourself and it's an addictive feeling. So my guess is that they are so addicted to this feeling that the moment they see a challenge this big, they only see the reward. Of course they plan for the challenges, but they are only thinking of the satisfaction, happiness, excitement, and energy that achieving this would grant them.
I also feel horror, dread, and fascination when I'm reading stories like this. However, I believe that the fact that they try this with all the hard work and training someone can possibly do during years, is what makes us go forward as a society. This counts for many different areas, if it weren't for the people who risk their lives to achieve something great, we would not be where we are today. I admire them so much and I cannot even think of myself taking on a challenge this big.
I'm a casual climber and despite some people might not believe me, I'm extremely afraid of heights. I don't intend to start doing ice climbing nor to become a professional of some sort, but I'm very motivated to always try something different, a new route, a harder move, a new technique. I completely understand the frustration some folks might have: "why on earth would someone risk their lives for something like this?". I also don't plan to understand how anyone's mind works (the one's who climb nor the one's who don't).
But to be honest, this is not something I do to prove anything to anyone. It's something I do for myself! When I'm putting myself on a rock, it's like it makes the world completely disappear and the only thing that matters is me and the route I'm taking on that moment. It doesn't matter how my day was, what challenges I'm facing, how my job is, how my personal life is. It clears my mind completely and it's like I have a reset for a couple of minutes. And the feeling you get after reaching the peek of something hard is simply indescribable. It's a constant challenge against yourself and it's an addictive feeling. So my guess is that they are so addicted to this feeling that the moment they see a challenge this big, they only see the reward. Of course they plan for the challenges, but they are only thinking of the satisfaction, happiness, excitement, and energy that achieving this would grant them.
I also feel horror, dread, and fascination when I'm reading stories like this. However, I believe that the fact that they try this with all the hard work and training someone can possibly do during years, is what makes us go forward as a society. This counts for many different areas, if it weren't for the people who risk their lives to achieve something great, we would not be where we are today. I admire them so much and I cannot even think of myself taking on a challenge this big.