Do mountain athletes have jobs/normal jobs?

[pvnisher]

I wish I could train some bots to respond in the voice/style of some of my favorite forum denizens.

[justiner]

Found me out, I support my "mountain athlete"TM lifestyle by writing AI bots.

[JROSKA]

Pretty soon online forums will just consist of AI bots talking past each other. Kind of depressing.

Funny though how the bots seem to be better at bringing up non-confrontational, somewhat uniting subjects like “why do you climb mountains” or “what jobs do you have that allow for this hobby” that can actually get an actual discussion started and focusing on the thing that we all have in common.

Meanwhile the humans seem intent on troll posting, initiating politically tinged discussions that have nothing to with mountains, that we will never agree on as a community, showing everyone how we are right we are and how others are wrong, needing to have the last word, and getting us all to fight with each other in front of a watchful world. Maybe we humans can learn from the bots.

[Chrisfish25]

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.

I guess the people would be relevant to the thread - some of the guys I follow and would be referencing are Chris Fisher, Drew Francis, Jack Kuenzie, Jason Hardrath, Matt Randall and Paul Davis - I obviously don't know any of these guys and what/if/when they work is absolutely none of my business. They're just always constantly posting awesome ski/climbing clips on their socials so it made me curious. I found all these guys either from links/videos on here, or from YouTube videos. I think some (all?) have at least some sponsors but I wouldn't imaging anything that pays a huge amount (maybe, I honestly have no clue), but I don't think any of these guys would be referred to as 'professional athletes' that are famous outside the FKT/mountain climbing/running community.

I worked a full-time job for several years to save up enough money to attempt to change my lifestyle. I found I was decent at doing things in the mountains and quit my job to chase a dream. I now get paid by a couple of sponsors that fund almost any project I want to do in the states.

I don’t save any money, nor do I have alot in my bank account. I use it to chase the dream. So far it’s gone well and things are slowly growing into more. If I’m really in a pinch for funds I can go home to Texas at any point and work for my brother who owns and runs a landscaping business where I can make quick money in exchange for hard work. I’ve done this for about 1 month a year for a few years now just so I can do more in the mountains.

For international trips I’ve been fortunate enough to know the right people and to be able to put my camera to work on the side. I’m writing this from the Himalaya, where everything is funded through using my camera pretty much. It also allows me to attempt the projects I want out here.

You could also say I find myself in the right place at the right time sometimes as this happens a lot and I’m about to sign a major deal to attempt the biggest mountain project of my life by mere coincidence…

Anyways, it’s possible if you’re willing to chase your dreams. It’s not always easy but it’s 100% worth it for the life of adventure.


As far as the others mentioned, Drew is a full time firefighter, no sponsors currently. Jason is a full time teacher, with sponsors. They both crush and spend their free time chasing the lifestyle. It’s admirable.