why a trekker

Distance Running and High Altitude Trekking Mountaineering

Not a long post this one, its just to make people aware of something that is crystal clear to me.

To start with, let us get to social media – I use it to connect with like minded individuals who appreciate our world and nature like I do. I seek no fame, no appreciation and NEVER any likes! The only reason I share my posts on social media is for people to read them and I hope it helps them. I talk about my experiences, but they are not “selfies” – they are a log of precious thoughts that some may appreciate.

So before we go further, if you guys have bothered to read below the first few lines, then please note, I do not want a “like” to this post. It does not make you any less my friend. It just means your interest is different from mine…and that is perfectly alright! We are all born different, so there should never be any need to acknowledge or applaud a writer or a mountaineer – cos we are very selfish. We do it to experienc ethe world and what it has for us, to pen down our pexeriences. Perhaps for a runner it would be different – the cheering crowds would possibly make him go that few milliseconds faster, but a mountaineer has no point to prove to anyone! So, if you loved what I wrote, message me instead and say you want to experience the magic of nature…likes are irrelevant.

If you have got through the above lines, I thank you (yea I can be difficult at times! ask my wife)

So what do i Find similar between the two?

– A pure distance runner does not care for what people think. He/she breaks his/her own mentally set PBs.

– He/she actively ENCOURAGES others to go beyond their limits and is unselfish. (its rare nowadays in this world of Garmins and Endomondos!)

– He/she loves the world and tries to clean up any garbage/nonsense enroute.

– He/she never really cares abot running conditions – we are made for hardship. We accept that we are fortunate to be able to do what we do 🙂

– He/she NEVER gives up…not if we have a 103 degree fever or a swollen leg. Even if we have to crawl, we WILL.

– He/she is mad/eccentric and is sure we have a licence to go mad, come what may (consequences) at least once a year (that’s balancing practicality as we get older!)

-He/she never thinks age is EVER  a factor. We do our best and believe we can beat anyone! BUT when we get beat, we have the courtesy and the grace to acknowledge, congratulate and befriend the one who beat us, why? cos the man/woman deserves it! We know to fight hard and at the same time RESPECT those who are awesome!

– Whatever group one may form, running is individualistic. That’s the same as mountaineering. The only way for peopel to get together is to have mutual respect and ability and then assist each other. If anything, mountaineering is way less forgiving than distance running!

– Lastly… we NEVER miss a chance to be with nature – why? cos the world as we knew it as a child is no longer the same … and the world we will know in 5 years time, will be as alien as Mars.

 

Runners and Mountaineers never give up. We reach the top – not for ego. Its for pushing ourselves to something we never thought possible… and for seeing such unbelievable sights and have such experiences that we never thought we could have.

The world is a fragile and remarkable place and there are many who would destroy it. We have very little time and lots to do.

From someone who has tasted blood, take it from me… the world looks heavenly from the top – I would easily curl up and breathe my last there, rather than come back to this incredibly callous, dog-eat-dog cauldron of desire that is the modern world.