“Type 2 fun is miserable while it’s happening, but fun in retrospect. It usually begins with the best intentions, and then things get carried away. Riding your bicycle across the country. Doing an ultramarathon. Working out till you puke, and, usually, ice and alpine climbing. ” REI fun scale
When people hear that you like to run long distances, or even hike, go on cross country skis or cycle, the response is often awe. You get to hear that you are hard, tough, resilient,…
…But I feel that the opposite is the case. Without these activities I would never live through these moments of absolute happiness. It’s like any weight has been taken off me, everything is fine. Food tastes better than it ever has, just resting and being still is the ultimate state of being.
It’s a state that you think about when you hear about taking drugs: Free of worries, self doubt and expectations on yourself. I find it amazing that this state can be achieved through sports.
It doesn’t matter if I spent 8 hours dragging a sled behind me through the wintery mountains, running a trail race or hiking in the backcountry.
Unfortunately it’s so hard to explain to someone who never experienced that bliss. Sure, we are all different, maybe it’s not for everyone.
But I just wish for those that I know and love that they would find this feeling. I’m not participating in an ultra to run away from something or punish myself. I don’t go to the mountains to freeze and be miserable – I go there to find this peace that comes from the inside.
That’s how I am, I can’t just fly to a warm country, lie on the beach, have a drink and enjoy it as the best thing ever. I don’t remember ever having taken a holiday without exciting and challenging plans, a race or my computer with some work to do. I need my body and mind to be tired to find this stillness.
That does not make me an adventurer, an athlete or anything special, it’s just a way to feel alive and at one.
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