Week 2

This week has been interesting. On Monday, I had surgery on my knee, so no more outdoor adventures. I was out of it for a few days. This week I watched two movies, Free Solo and Meru. I highly recommend both. Free Solo, I watched with my family. At one point in the film, Alex Honnold is getting ready to climb. I could tell that my family was all scared and excited for him, but he decides to turn around. At that moment, I think I heard everyone in my family release their breath. I just found it crazy how the fear and excitement of these extreme sports is there even second hand.

I did not do much towards my second and third goals of creating hands-on assignments. However, my first goal was to answer the questions: What is the impact of extreme sport participation on an individual’s relationship with others? How do individuals face danger and possible death? How do adventurers develop the mindset to succeed? How does the death of colleagues and friends affect those who survive? I found that the discussions my family had after watching the movie touched on some of these questions, primarily because of the interview of the family members of Alex Honnold in Free Solo.

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