“The Golden Age of a sport is when the most innovation in technique and equipment occurs, and I’ve been fortunate to have lived and participated in the Golden Age of many an outdoor sport: spearfishing, falconry, fly fishing, whitewater kayaking, telemark and backcountry skiing, ice climbing, and Yosemite big-wall climbing.”
– Yvon Chouinard, Some Stories: Lessons from the Edge of Business and Sport
__________
“You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
in any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.”
– Dr. Seuss, Oh, The Places You’ll Go!
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I’m too late to be part of a golden age of seemingly anything: the world has been explored and exploited; sports have been professionalised and commercialised.
Where are the golden opportunities?
I maintain that I am part of the golden age of walking.
Dr. Seuss is right — you can always take yourself somewhere.
Because walking requires no equipment.
No special technique.
No secret knowledge.
Walking does not invite affectation or hipster-ish exclusivity.
It is an open club whose only requirement is to get out of the house.
There is no showing off nor competitive first walks.
It’s simply about experiencing the world anew each and every time.
Celebrating freedom of movement.
A modest adventure that rewards consistency.
A bit like writing.
Conversations With Quotations 