Do you live in a large city? Wonder what it’s like for people who live in places like Boulder, Colorado; Chamonix, France; Wellington, New Zealand or Anchorage, Alaska? Extreme activities in your backyard?
I live in Boston. Sure, we’ve got the White Mountains not too far away, and some pretty nice biking trails right outside of the city, but Boston certainly isn’t extreme.
So are you like me, living out an urban existence, working a full-time job and yearning for the next adventure? What can you do? Here are your options.
1. Get creative and extreme-ify your surroundings.
You don’t have to climb mountains or jump out perfectly good airplanes to get a proper dose of adrenaline. What about some urban climbing? Or train surfing? Many opportunities arise as you start to rethink your landscape. Stairs become jump pads, buildings become scalable and nooks and crannies become epic parkour territory.
It’s all about perspective, I guess.
2. Get outside (of the city, I mean).
Most of the cities you find around the world will have outdoor opportunities within a half-day’s drive. If you don’t own a car you can always rent one that’s big enough to fit your purpose. If you’ve got your own equipment, you can throw it into a car, which fits bikes, bags as well as snowboards. But if you don’t, many outfitters will rent you gear. I’m talking about skiing, snowboarding or ice climbing in the winter, and mountain biking, kayaking or cycling in the summer. Very easy to rent the necessary gear and apparel, folks.
3. Become an armchair adrenaline junkie.
Sometimes, all you’ve got is a TV, laptop screen or mobile phone. I get it. You’re sick, or recuperating, or lack funding, or scared – no worries! You can still get amped up with the right content. From amateur GoPro to award-winning films out of production houses like Sender Films, there are plenty of options. That’s what Nerve Rush is for, of course. We’ll curate the best clips and post ’em right here.
photo via andrew c mace
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