At the beginning of Fatally Flawed, Verna van Schaik asks if divers who push the limits--in her case diving deep within caves--have some sort of psychological need to do something like this, a drive that can lead to their deaths. I was very interested in that question when I read the book, and I was thus disappointed when she did not actually explore that question beyond a minimum and instead focused on simple autobiography.
The question is on my mind again, and I would like to explore it. I have been tossing a lot of thoughts around in my head which I plan to introduce one by one in the thread. I myself have never pushed the limits of anything. Although I am a technical diver, I have not done any dives that are anywhere close to the established limits of that sport. My deepest dives are not much past 300 feet. I have never gone off an established line in a cave. When someone asked me about my most death-defying moment in scuba, I thought for a while and decided it was the time I was suffocating while trying on a too-tight hooded vest. If there is some kind of drive to extend the limits of human endeavor, I don't know what it feels like.
I am intrigued by the scuba pioneers who pushed the limits. Some of them, people like Brett Gilliam, are still around to talk about it. Others, people like Sheck Exley and David Shaw, are not. I know some people who may be possessed of this drive, at least to some degree. Maybe all technical divers have it to some degree. I don't know.
So I am creating this thread to allow people to put forth some thoughts. I am especially interested in those who really know people like that. It does not have to be diving. I assume any activity in which it is possible to push limits have participants who are pushing them. I originally thought of writing an article in which a put forth some of my thinking in a logical presentation, but I decided I really don't have my thoughts formed enough to do that. I figured it would be better to start a cooperative effort at exploring this idea.
The question is on my mind again, and I would like to explore it. I have been tossing a lot of thoughts around in my head which I plan to introduce one by one in the thread. I myself have never pushed the limits of anything. Although I am a technical diver, I have not done any dives that are anywhere close to the established limits of that sport. My deepest dives are not much past 300 feet. I have never gone off an established line in a cave. When someone asked me about my most death-defying moment in scuba, I thought for a while and decided it was the time I was suffocating while trying on a too-tight hooded vest. If there is some kind of drive to extend the limits of human endeavor, I don't know what it feels like.
I am intrigued by the scuba pioneers who pushed the limits. Some of them, people like Brett Gilliam, are still around to talk about it. Others, people like Sheck Exley and David Shaw, are not. I know some people who may be possessed of this drive, at least to some degree. Maybe all technical divers have it to some degree. I don't know.
So I am creating this thread to allow people to put forth some thoughts. I am especially interested in those who really know people like that. It does not have to be diving. I assume any activity in which it is possible to push limits have participants who are pushing them. I originally thought of writing an article in which a put forth some of my thinking in a logical presentation, but I decided I really don't have my thoughts formed enough to do that. I figured it would be better to start a cooperative effort at exploring this idea.