links for 2011-07-04

• Senior surfers on a roll | Malcolm Knox | Life and style | The Guardian
  "..surfing is meant to be about soul, about nature, about communing with the secret language of tides and swells. That's one way of looking at it. Another way of looking at it is as an activity that has the purest addictive properties. It is unbelievably hard to be good at. It is unbelievably hard even to be bad at. As with golf, swimming and running, you suffer so much mental and physical torment as a beginner that you are locked into constant practice to stop slipping back.

  ..If I can ride a shorter, less embarrassing board. If I can stop hyperventilating with exhaustion and panic in big surf. I never wanted to sit in the beautiful, warm ocean and exalt at the sight of a dolphin. I never wanted to meditate and divine life's secrets. I wanted the next step. Before it was too late. Forget that dying happy business."

  I like the way Malcolm Knox articulates the complex nature of deriving pleasure from physical exertion. I may quote him next time I'm asked why I get up so early.

  
  
  (tags: surfing sport fitness mastery enjoyment happiness)