Extreme Adventure

Last weekend we lived some extreme adventures vicariously.  Several of us met in Chicago to see the Banff Film Festival World Tour.  It's two evenings of films full of outdoor and extreme adventures along with a few cultural films mixed in.  I quite enjoyed it.  During the day on Saturday we did some tourist stuff like eating at farm-to-table restaurants and going to Millennium Park.  It was a good weekend, and Jenx was our kind host.

We visited an apartment that had roof access with a view of the Trump and Willis (Sears) towers.

"The Bean" - classic Chicago

The videos evoked some contemplation.  Why do people go on extreme adventures?  To feel more alive because they're closer to death?  Because they don't feel alive without some adrenaline?  Do they feel like doing these extreme things will help them understand the meaning of life more?  I also noticed that lots of "epic" trips are two people by themselves doing something extra strenuous that seems beyond what is humanly possible.  I think two people travelling is often a common denominator for strengthening and growing friendships.  I think it probably encourages emotional intimacy.  I think it can also reveal large holes in a relationship if the relationship isn't very strong or is headed in a bad direction to begin with.

Some of the videos were more of a history lesson, but I enjoy a good history lesson when it's presented in such a creative manner.  On a few of those videos I felt like, "that's not for me."  On a few of them I wondered if I would have the stamina (mental and/or physical) to do something like that.  I think I like the idea of doing something really extreme like that, but I also think it's quite possible that when it came down to actually doing it that I might get cold feet.  For one, maybe I'm not willing to risk that much physical pain. Or I'm not willing to take that much risk period.  I also think that I might struggle with feeling like I wasn't doing anything useful with my life if I spent 6 weeks or 6 months doing a crazy extreme adventure.

Are the people doing crazy extreme adventures today the same people that would have lived in the Wild West 200 years ago?  I think they might be.

If you want a preview of some of the things we saw, here are several.  I don't have links here, but we also saw videos about rock climbing, bike riding, kayaking, and a monk who has a orphanage in the Himalayan mountains.

And Then We Swam - a story about two guys rowing across the Indian Ocean for 116 days.  I think this was one of my favorites.  This is the link to the trailer - the actual video is more than 30 minutes long.

Into The Empty Quarter - two guys pull a cart 1000 miles across a desert in the Middle East.  This is the trailer, and the full video is more than 30 minutes long.

Delta Dawn - Documenting a time last year when the Colorado River flowed into the ocean for the first time in more than 20 years.  This is the short version again - the longer version is more than 30 minutes long.

Touch - An awesome 5 minute video of some extreme paragliding.

Afterglow - What's more awesome than ski videos?  Ski videos shot in the dark with the skiers wearing light suits.


P.S.  Uncle Bex said she refused to row across the Indian Ocean with me.  Can you believe that?