About Adventure and Risk

We’re living in a world where every day more and more people are seeking for adventures. Why? As human beings, we were nomads for tens of thousands years. We were fighting for food, for not being killed by predators and natural disasters. We were walking for days to reach some clean water. Now we are living in cities, traveling by cars; if we need some food we just have to open the fridge. In a few centuries our society evolved so fast and now the only way to experience emotions similar to the ones we were used to is to practice some kind of adventure activities.

I find that this is great. Just the fact to spend some time in the outdoors, looking at the wonderful of nature, could alone make everyone’s life better. We’re always in rush sometimes without even think about what we are doing, and we often forget to take a break and just look at how beautiful is this world. So I’m really happy that more and more people are doing outdoor activities. But please, don’t call them adventures.

Today, millions of climbers are training on indoor walls and maybe climbing at crags on the week end; some are traveling to South Africa or Australia to go bouldering, kids and adults are going to adventure parks where they climb rope ladders, cross tibetan bridges, jump from a dam attached to a long elastic. They what to test their courage, to experience the thrill, reach the limit. But without any real risk and with any insurance possible. Today is possible to climb Mount Everest without even be able to climb. Of course you need to be fit, but you have fixed ropes, beaten paths, camps ready for you. That’s not adventure, that’s tourism. It’s far more adventurous to go exploring a 2000mt peak without trails and external help.

I’m trying to live my life in the most adventurous way I can. And adventure for me goes hand in hand with the concept of exposure. If you’re climbing on a crag near home your exposure is really low, but if you put that same pitch in the middle of a wall where you’re alone, you’re way more exposed. Exposure means that any accident’s consequence is greater. If you broke your leg on a ski slope you’ll have fast rescue, but if you’re skiing a remote couloir in the middle of the Alps that’s a bigger problem.
This doesn’t mean that I’m taking unnecessary risks, but once I accept one, I am fully responsible of my actions and I accept their consequences. I think this is the highest freedom we can experience.