Do mountain athletes have jobs/normal jobs?

[mtree]

You are a true inspiration for those who want to leave the modern world rat race.

No disagreement.
However, comma, I feel it's important to also realize what a tremendously privileged position it is to be able to even consider leaving the rat race.
We have food in (over) supply. Your house is not in danger of being taken in a war. If you call for police support, armed men will arrive to help you. You can drink water from nearly anywhere with no fear of illness. If you do get sick, you can get treatment.

There's details to complain about, but let's not forget that many of those things come at a cost. Many costs, not borne by you.
Some of those costs, like the affordable goods you use and the digital device you're reading this on, were very likely the result of either child exploration, forced labor, or at the very least, economic and ecological exploitation. The people on the short end of that stick don't have the luxury of a rat race, they literally provide the means through which the rats are able to race.

Just a thought that as we focus on maximizing our enjoyment and recreation, we should also be mindful of those who make it possible, often at the expense of their own.

And now back to your regularly scheduled program.

[cedica]

^^ Believe me, not a single day goes by for me without thinking about the cost and the privilege. But since we are reminiscing here, it is the tenth anniversary of the greatest Super Bowl commercial ever made. Let's take couple of minutes to celebrate the excess and all things and experiences our money can buy.

Is there anything more American than America?

[SkaredShtles]

^^ Believe me, not a single day goes by for me without thinking about the cost and the privilege. But since we are reminiscing here, it is the tenth anniversary of the greatest Super Bowl commercial ever made. Let's take couple of minutes to celebrate the excess and all things and experiences our money can buy.

Is there anything more American than America?

Going all-in on the automobile was probably one of the largest blunders/mistakes the U.S. ever made.

[FireOnTheMountain]

Can we please not delve into the subject of how we LOVE and go to great lengths to destroy the Earth so that s**t is convenient for ourselves?

Just a thought that as we focus on maximizing our enjoyment and recreation, we should also be mindful of those who make it possible, often at the expense of their own.

Fully agree. Hence why you always gotta be grateful for what ya got.

[Monte Meals]

^ "Going all-in on the automobile was probably one of the largest blunders/mistakes the U.S. ever made."

Absolutely Brother !

Pickup Trucks RULE !

[nyker]

^^ Believe me, not a single day goes by for me without thinking about the cost and the privilege. But since we are reminiscing here, it is the tenth anniversary of the greatest Super Bowl commercial ever made. Let's take couple of minutes to celebrate the excess and all things and experiences our money can buy.

Is there anything more American than America?

Going all-in on the automobile was probably one of the largest blunders/mistakes the U.S. ever made.

Why would you say that?

[montanahiker]

^^ Believe me, not a single day goes by for me without thinking about the cost and the privilege. But since we are reminiscing here, it is the tenth anniversary of the greatest Super Bowl commercial ever made. Let's take couple of minutes to celebrate the excess and all things and experiences our money can buy.

Is there anything more American than America?

Going all-in on the automobile was probably one of the largest blunders/mistakes the U.S. ever made.

You're thinking too small. I blame the humans that started cooking food.

[pvnisher]

I'd say that American automotive culture helped dramatically expand production, particularly of rural and manufacturing communities.
If the country had been limited to just city centers and big rail connections I don't think America could have developed as quickly as it did.
However, here we are, sitting on the congested highway of consequences.

[blazintoes]

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?

Are you asking these questions because this is something you want to do and are capable of doing?

What are you currently doing to build your brand? How have you cultivated your social media presence? Have you created engaging content that showcases your achievements and personality? Have you made time to network and connect with others or organizations you admire?

In the past an athlete had to win races to get noticed then sponsored. Nowadays you can brand yourself using Strava and Instagram. Careful not to look like some charlatan climber who only takes good pictures and suffers from terminal uniqueness.

If you stay persistent and continue to improve your performance you can increase your visibility and get noticed.

Become a Strava junkie. Interact with others, join challenges, leave comments and kudos. Share your content on all platforms and tag every one of them. Learn everything about your phone and how you can optimize pictures and videos. Share often.

Be professional. Stay positive and maintain professionalism in all interactions. Be disciplined, reliable, responsive and respectful at all times.

Plan for the long term and what ifs i.e., serious injury and financial independence.

[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?

Are you asking these questions because this is something you want to do and are capable of doing?

What are you currently doing to build your brand? How have you cultivated your social media presence? Have you created engaging content that showcases your achievements and personality? Have you made time to network and connect with others or organizations you admire?

In the past an athlete had to win races to get noticed then sponsored. Nowadays you can brand yourself using Strava and Instagram. Careful not to look like some charlatan climber who only takes good pictures and suffers from terminal uniqueness.

If you stay persistent and continue to improve your performance you can increase your visibility and get noticed.

Become a Strava junkie. Interact with others, join challenges, leave comments and kudos. Share your content on all platforms and tag every one of them. Learn everything about your phone and how you can optimize pictures and videos. Share often.

Be professional. Stay positive and maintain professionalism in all interactions. Be disciplined, reliable, responsive and respectful at all times.

Plan for the long term and what ifs i.e., serious injury and financial independence.

No, not at all. I'm not capable (without an extensive lifestyle change, at least) of doing so, and I have no interest in building up a social media presence. I was just curious as to how some of these guys are able to pull this type of lifestyle off. I follow some folks on social media and watch their stories/posts simply for entertainment purposes. As I sit at my day job, I often find myself daydreaming about living the 'mountain lifestyle' and was curious if the people doing it work, or what kind of work they do.

[blazintoes]

Well good. You’ll fit right in.

In my small sample size of living the dream and climbing with other high performing recreational athletes, each story is impressive and unique. I worked in healthcare for 12 years and I was in a golden handcuffs situation but Covid changed everything. I made more money doing contract work towards the end and had a lot of time off to play. I saved up enough to go on sabbatical for the last two years and climb everything on my tick list. I’m a DINK and am debt free. Now I’m back in school and changing professions so not a lot of time for play.

Get into contract work and travel. Make sure it has a good per diem. You can make a lot of money and live all over the country and climb your brains out.

[kyrawhitworth]

Adding to this discussion with a related question: kids--how?

My husband and are early 30s. Both with demanding in person jobs. He works T-F and I work M-F and it ends up still being a bit over 40hrs a week. We weekend warrior from FoCo so between work, planning hikes, and driving to hikes, and actual hiking we have very little time. It is pretty exhausting to be completely honest but we love it and have been able to maintain a semblance of balance. We try to plan two week-long adventure focused vacations a year that we take time off for as well. I think having a remote job for me would make a lot of the planning and taking care of household duties easier but I'm fortunate to work with great people who are supportive.

One thing that has entered the discussion is the prospect of children. Mountain adventures are very important to both of us and frankly children simply would not fit into our current lifestyle. I am very resistant to give up what I've worked very hard for (and is a large part of my identity and happiness). There would be clear physical limitations on my own body were I to become pregnant and after the thing itself for quite a while making the serious mountain adventures I love so much impossible during that time.

How do you folks with children do it? Did you have to give up the passion for a period of time and then get back into it? A lot of people we know that adventure that have kids either have older kids or one partner is OK watching the kids while the other goes out. (That arrangement wouldn't work for us as we adventure together.)

What did you experience in terms of mountaineering and pregnancy?

Do you have regrets about what you did in terms of mountaineering and having children or mountaineering and not having children?

Happy to chat in private too (insta or text is usually best).