Do mountain athletes have jobs/normal jobs?

[montavonm]

Hi everyone, currently daydreaming about how to not have to work and climb mountains all day (ha, aren't we all).

Before even asking, I want to emphasize that I am NOT taking shots at anyone who pulls off somehow not working, shift working, sponsorship, etc (quite the opposite actually).

I follow several mountain athlete folks on social media - I don't want to list names - but it looks like they are skiing or hiking nearly every day (uploads from Live and stories). I can't help but wonder, how is this possible? I know some of them are sponsored by some apparel brands, but unless someone is very high profile (i.e Courtney Dauwalter, Jim Wamsley, Jimmy Chin, other big names), I can't imagine sponsorships paying enough to live that lifestyle.

Climbing and skiing are 'technically' no-cost, but add in skis/boots/coat/shoes/helmet/travel/gas/food/etc, it become expensive quickly.

So, respectfully asking - how do these people pull off this lifestyle? Maybe the social media perception skews things, I've read a few blogs of people on here who mentioned that they had to be back from their trip(s) in time for work the next day. Any insight?

[seano]

You're right -- sponsorship won't pay the bills unless you're world-class or Instagram-famous. But once you cover the one-time costs of gear, it can be fairly cheap if you're smart about how you live and travel. Sleep in your car and don't drive all over willy-nilly.

One way to make it work is to do it for a limited time. Lots of young Europeans save up money, then quit their jobs to travel for extended periods before returning to find others. For example, biking from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego takes most people a couple years, but costs very little money per day after buying the flight and gear. Americans generally aren't willing to step away from their careers to do it, though.

Thanks to Covid, flexible remote work is another option. This mostly isn't the kind of overpaid tech-bro work that will buy you a $200k built-out hashtag-vanlife Sprinter (which usually takes too much time), but it can pay for your food and gas while fitting in around the stuff you actually care about.

[climbingcue]

Trust fund kids or bank of mom an dad help out some of the people that are just climbing, hiking and skiing all day. It is a nice life if you can get it, problem is down the road if they don't make the big sponsorship money they are in their 40's with no job skills and no retirement money saved. Their bodies are beat up and warn out. I also wonder what they are doing for healthcare, I would guess most go without it. If you don't own anything then they can not take anything away from you. The people with jobs like you and me end up paying for them with our taxes.

[CaptainSuburbia]

The skiers could have summer jobs. I do and have 4 to 5 months off in the winter.

[griddles]

I'd say it really varies. You can get time on the mountains every day working a 'desk' job from the desk in your hotel. Sign on a bit later, take a long lunch, work the later shift etc. Or work at the bar/restaurant in town that opens at noon or your shift starts at 4pm. Do more irregular non 9-5 jobs. Work lots in the shoulder seasons save up and then kick off for the season of whatever activity.

One other thing depending on who you are following, just because they post everyday doesn't mean that those photos are from that day. Might take a week long trip and have a whole month of 'content' to post.

[daway8]

Quite a few options out there from what I've heard: part time jobs, seasonal jobs, inheritance, work till you get what you need, etc. Takes being more creative than the typical job path.

I do in some ways envy those who can pull that off but am also glad to have a steady job that provides both stability and flexibility. There are advantages and disadvantages of the different ways of living - those who take non-traditional paths are not necessarily free-loaders.

[Bale]

Maybe the social media perception skews things

Bingo! You might find that spending hours a day pimping yourself on social media, risking life and limb to attract sponsors, and turning what was once your passion into a job is not as glamorous as it may appear.
If ya just wanna climb mountains, I’m sure you’ll figure it out.

[SchralpTheGnar]

I don’t post on social media much, but I average about 100 days of “activity” a year with a full time 9-5, a lot of that is local foothills stuff, but then again I wouldn’t call myself a mountain athlete, more like a middle aged man trying to spend as much time outside possible while managing three teenagers and a full time job, ha ha ha ha

[two lunches]

Trust fund kids or bank of mom an dad help out some of the people that are just climbing, hiking and skiing all day. It is a nice life if you can get it, problem is down the road if they don't make the big sponsorship money they are in their 40's with no job skills and no retirement money saved. Their bodies are beat up and warn out. I also wonder what they are doing for healthcare, I would guess most go without it. If you don't own anything then they can not take anything away from you. The people with jobs like you and me end up paying for them with our taxes.

some of them aren't 26 yet and still covered by mom & dad's insurance.

[Jorts]

I follow several mountain athlete folks on social media - I don't want to list names

It’d be a lot cooler if you did.

I have a desk job that provides flexibility - working early mornings and/or into the evenings and/or some time on weekends. I try to get outside everyday for an hour or 2 and occasionally more to destress and get centered. Often solo. Sometimes with partners. I live in the mountains so it isn’t difficult. I don’t post much on instagram but I could easily make it appear as though I was out there ALL THE TIME. Perception is moldable.

[jfm3]

I am 29 and I'm a space scientist at CU. It's full-time job with health insurance and a salary, and I work mostly at home. I train 650+ hours per year, focusing on cross-country ski racing in the winter and mountain running & mountaineering in the summer. I take 1-2 international trips per year (mountaineering in the summer, ski racing in the winter) and go somewhere within Colorado to climb/run/hike ever weekend between the middle of May and end of September. I ski/race every weekend in the winter and do some longer ski trips within the US, and ski 2-3 mornings per week at Eldora, starting at 7 AM and shifting my schedule later on those days. I am exceedingly average as a mountain runner but I'm a sub-elite to elite ski racer.

I don't really have a social life and much of my time at home is spent organizing and planning things for training and traveling (gear cleaning/maintenance, lodging/transportation logistics, cooking for trips, waxing skis in the winter, etc.). I haven't gotten tired of the driving or planning yet, so for me it's a good lifestyle.

[LarryM]

So I wouldn't call myself a mountain athlete, but I am 63 years old, I am active roughly 330 days a year, and logged 562 hours on Strava last year. Mostly running, some hiking, a little Nordic skying. Vertically focused, mostly in the foothills, less time in the high mountains than I would like, but I still get up high a fair amount.

I have a full time job (40 hours a week, albeit I work from home & it's not overly demanding) & other activities (partner, friends, family, reading and I recently started auditioning for community theatre & learning to sing - though the latter two activities may end up encroaching on the outdoor activities a little). How I manage it:

-early rising to get in a run before work pretty much every weekday;
-set aside a large part of one day every weekend for a longer run;
-plan vacations which include significant opportunities for running / hiking (my partner isn't a trail runner but she is fit & we enjoy hiking together - she'll also sleep in while I go for an early run).
-and just a certain amount of discipline - which actually isn't my strong point - but habit can eventually substitute for discipline.