Blog
Because we love it.
Written by: Sami Hawkins
February 26, 2016
By nature, humans desire to have control over their surroundings. We harness energy from the elements to use for our development and gain. However, there is a beauty in feeling the elements in all of their power. As an extreme sport athlete, you get to truly experience the forces of nature. As a whitewater kayaker you get a little something extra.
When skiing and mountain biking, you envelop the meaning of gravity. That unrelenting pull back down to earth. The varying interaction between ski and snow, tire and dirt. Those elements are, for the most part, sedentary. unchanging. If you scouted out your line ten minutes ago, you can be almost certain that the conditions are the same when you drop into that perfect send. There is a element of control that allows you to progress incredibly quickly in these types of sports.
Whitewater is different. The river is a living, breathing, creature. It undulates, swells, and changes its mind on a regular basis. One second a feature can be a giant glassy green mountain, reaching to the sky and providing an opening to gently pass through. The next second, that same mountain turns its head to peer down at the unfortunate soul begging for passage, and comes crashing down to the trough in a white rage.
There is an element of uncertainty that is unmatched, when floating into a rapid. To navigate proficiently through a river, you need to make decisions in a millisecond. If plan A is inept, you better have plan B on deck and ready to fire in an instant. That is the thrill. And it is not meant for everyone.
Extreme sports are just silly. We in a piece of plastic and float through a gravity enforced maze of rock and water. Or strap planks to our feet to go as fast as possible down a frozen mountain. We do them because it grounds us in the present. Nothing else matters but what is happening in that moment when you drop into your line, until you reach the bottom with a shit eating grin plastered onto your face. Thats when you know how silly it is, you are aware of what the consequences are, and the skill it takes to style it. Thats what draws us to these sports. And we will do it time and time again. Because we love it.