Just Do It... but I'm scared

          So far the hardest thing about my project hasn’t been researching rotational dynamics or getting mountain time; it is simply sitting above the jump, staring at the coping, and just thinking what if this goes wrong, and I end up looking like a Barbie that has been abused for five years.

           In realizing this thought is holding me back, I researched the psychology of BASE jumpers. BASE jumpers jump off the top of ledges and at the last second open their shoot and save themselves from becoming a pancake. Now what is crazier than that?

            Every time a BASE jumper lands successfully, their experience becomes more and more positive. You can increase your courage and humility by participating in activities that have a chance of death or strike fear. When there is a repeated exposure to the fear, like the ledge of great height, the emotion slowly becomes positive. This can ultimately lead people to seek more dangerous thrills. Eventually extreme sportsmen perceive fear as something positive.

            After researching and understanding this concept, I had an epiphany. The rush of endorphins, dopamine, and norepinephrine (your body's natural chemicals that reward you with a good feeling), is something you can get addicted to like drugs! The more you do it, the more you want to do. The rush of safely doing something that could go terribly wrong releases endorphin. Endorphin is 100 times more powerful than morphine.

Now how does this apply to me?

            Based on my research, the more I hit those jumps and land them the more comfortable I will be with accomplishing more difficult things in the air, but it will not be until I actually go throw the spin that I will be able to truly see that I can over come my fear. I guess NIKE is right when they say Just Do It.

            When I get to Whistler, I am going to pick one jump and hit it all week. I am going to know the prep, the takeoff, and the landing like the back of my hand. Then I shall throw the mighty 360.


Brymer, Erik, and Lindsay Oades. "The Psychology of Extreme Sports – Addicts, Not Loonies." POPULAR SOCIAL SCIENCE. POPULAR SOCIAL SCIENCE, 15 Nov. 2012. Web. 11 Mar. 2013.

Colter, Steven. "The Addictive Nature of Adrenaline Sports." Psychology Today. Psychology Today, 15 Mar. 2008. Web. 11 Mar. 2013.

McGrath, Patrick B., Phd. "Do Something That Scares You." Psychology Today. Psychology Today, 12 Feb. 2012. Web. 11 Mar. 2013.