What phobias do you have?

Swaye said:

UW_Doog_Bot said:

creepycoug said:

None. I'm fearless.

So, I'm not a complete sociopath and have a rational mind that tells me things are bad ideas buuuut

I have an autistic disconnect from my feelings that gives me a real fearlessness.

Cliff jumping in Mejico, Big wave surfing in Hawaii, Cutting lanes on a motorcycle at a 100mph+, Venomous snake training in Africa, White water rescue, etc. I've got a long list of high risk activities that I've said, "Fuck it, looks fun". @Dennis_DeYoung can tell me if that qualifies as fast strategy.

The most extreme example of this I can think of was my first run of Boulder Drop on the Sky at 10,000+ CFS. I was sitting at the top of the rapid on some rocks scouting my lines, completely calm and collected, thinking through my turns, moves, and angles. Low and behold, my wetsuit starts getting warm from me pissing and I think to myself, "Huh, I must be scared right now." but otherwise I wouldn't have been able to tell you that I felt any different from any other run.

I've also come close enough to drowning to make peace with dying more than a handful of times. You'd think that would give me some fear of the water but if anything, it made me less so.

TLDR feelings to robots are only superficial application software.

I was watching that documentary Free Solo several months ago - legit AF if you haven't seen it and are into rock climbing, human endurance, or just plain crazy ass shit - and in one part they stuck the dude in an MRI chamber and tested his brains reaction to fear stressors. Doctor at the end is explaining the results and she basically says "you exhibit no response to the stimuli unlike 99.9% of the population." Which seems very obvious when the dude then attempts to climb up a 3200 foot sheer granite wall with no fucking rope. Jesus. Anyway, the point here is some people do not have a normally functioning "fear" center in the brain, and it allows these people to do some amazing and crazy shit.

I can tell you this. I have landed on aircraft carriers, in storms, at night. If you have never done something like that, let me fucking tell you, it is asshole clenching white knuckle scary. I also used to do a bunch of semi hardcore rock climbing in my early to mid 20's, and have ridden motorcycles fast for years (including dirt bike racing in my teens). Plus all the crazy off road shit I do in Jeeps that I am surprised hasn't killed me. So, much like you I have done some serious adrenaline sports. The difference might be I actually feel the fear. My fear center of the brain is fucking pumping overtime. So, I had to learn to control it, and calm it. I wish, like the dude in Free Solo, it just wasn't there. But I am probably still alive because it is. That and luck.