captain
Contributor
Is there a point where safety and enjoyment of the experience reach a point of diminished return of enjoyment because of the emphasis on safety.
I have been riding motorcycles for over 30 years. If not required by law I do not generally wear a helmet. The enjoyment of riding is the experience of the environment, the wind in my face and what little hair I have left. If I have to enclose myself in a helmet, leather jacket and other protective equipment on a 95 degree day I would just as soon ride in a car. I lose the enjoyment by trying to be safe. My state has gone back and forth with the helmet law over the last 30 years and I have found that I have ridden less in the periods the law was in effect. I plan my bike trips taking into consideration what states do are do not have helmet laws.
In a car I always wear a seat belt, I feel naked without one but it doesn't distract from the enjoyment of the drive.
I approach diving the same way. If I don't need a BC to make the dive easier or more enjoyable I don't wear one. I dive solo, I do not think it makes the dive more dangerous but it changes my approach to how I conduct the dive. I do not carry redundancy to the extreme. Usually the only redundancy I carry is cutting tools of various types. I consider the snorkel a piece of safety gear on open ocean dives and will carry one if I feel the need to. I weigh the risk and adjust accordingly, that also means that I may choose to not make the dive at all.
I don't have a death wish but in the process of enjoying life, not just existing life, risks are a part of it. The only regrets are the things not done. I would rather have done something and have it turn out badly than to have not done it because there was the possibility it could turn out badly.
Maybe my additude comes from the fact that I lived at a time when there were no seat belts not just no seat belt laws, helmets were for race car drivers and there was no diving instruction other than the book that came with the tank and regulator. For me they are the good old days.
I have been riding motorcycles for over 30 years. If not required by law I do not generally wear a helmet. The enjoyment of riding is the experience of the environment, the wind in my face and what little hair I have left. If I have to enclose myself in a helmet, leather jacket and other protective equipment on a 95 degree day I would just as soon ride in a car. I lose the enjoyment by trying to be safe. My state has gone back and forth with the helmet law over the last 30 years and I have found that I have ridden less in the periods the law was in effect. I plan my bike trips taking into consideration what states do are do not have helmet laws.
In a car I always wear a seat belt, I feel naked without one but it doesn't distract from the enjoyment of the drive.
I approach diving the same way. If I don't need a BC to make the dive easier or more enjoyable I don't wear one. I dive solo, I do not think it makes the dive more dangerous but it changes my approach to how I conduct the dive. I do not carry redundancy to the extreme. Usually the only redundancy I carry is cutting tools of various types. I consider the snorkel a piece of safety gear on open ocean dives and will carry one if I feel the need to. I weigh the risk and adjust accordingly, that also means that I may choose to not make the dive at all.
I don't have a death wish but in the process of enjoying life, not just existing life, risks are a part of it. The only regrets are the things not done. I would rather have done something and have it turn out badly than to have not done it because there was the possibility it could turn out badly.
Maybe my additude comes from the fact that I lived at a time when there were no seat belts not just no seat belt laws, helmets were for race car drivers and there was no diving instruction other than the book that came with the tank and regulator. For me they are the good old days.