I am not a beautiful an unique snowflake. Heck, I'm not even a snowflake. But what I am is an outdoorsman. I might even say that I am the most important kind of outdoorsman. I will never bag a first ascent of any massive boulder. I won't be the man who summits Everest or McKinely or even Timpanogos. But what I will do is keep the outdoor industry alive.
There are quite a number of us outdoorspeople who couldn't really be considered "hard-core". We don't really focus on any one sport and perfect it. We don't spend all of our time outside (forgive us. we have classes and other hobbies...like D&D?). But we do spend money. Every one of us spends lots of money on what we proudly call our favorite pastimes. They may not occupy the majority of our time, but they do fill the majority of our dreams.
We are the people who spend all winter in the gym and get ecstatic when we finally send an 11c. What? Its only in the gym? And its only a top rope? Big deal. It's a freaking 11c.
We are the people who have Fuji and Giant and Trek bicycles locked away in our garages. These bikes of ours love the summer. After all, its the only time they see the sun. We certainly aren't going to be riding bikes in cold weather. That's just silly.
We are the people with posters of Chris Sharma, Greg Minnaar, Lance Armstrong, and John Muir (he has posters?) hanging on our walls. These are our heroes. We revere them and their dedication to outdoor pursuits. We would never want to be them, but we sure would like to imagine what it would be like.
We are the people who have tents, stoves, camp chairs, water filters, tarps, bike racks, climbing ropes, carburetor cleaner, backpacks, hydration bladders, hiking boots, and all the rest of the plethora of gear one can use outdoors.
Its not that we don't want to spend more time outside. Its just that in addition to climbing or biking, we have other things to value. We value higher education. We value family. We value a well rounded existence. So we spend what time we can engaged in the outdoor pastimes we so deeply enjoy. And we have fallen into a sort of symbiotic relationship with the more dedicated pursuers of our passions. We watch videos of nine-fingered Tommy Caldwell sending the most absurd lines on El Cap. Or we watch Tyler Klassen bomb down mountains with seeming disregard for gravity. And these movies makes us happy. They fill us with anticipation for our next adventure. Admittedly, my "El Cap" is called Black Rose. But still...I am willing to pay money to support the professionals so that they can live the life I can't justify living.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that even though we will never be that good at whatever it is we're doing, that's okay. Its okay to climb your entire life and never even look at a 12c. Its okay to never bike of anything higher than 18 inches. Its okay because we still love it. We get the same excitement on our 10c ascent that pros get on their 14d. And you know what the best part is? Anyone, at any skill level, can get excited when someone breaks a new personal record. I get just as excited for Sharma to bag another 15b as he would get to help me climb a 11a. If you ask me, this is the real reason we love these sports. Sure, its great to be outside, pushing our bodies to their respective limits. But what really makes it so wonderful is the community. Everyone rooting for everyone else. So lets try to remember, next time a spraylord is regaling you with tales of his many FA's, that most of us are really cool. Most of us don't care how good you are, as long as you are pushing youself. And that's what makes us awesome.
