mossytrail
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`I was never good at sports growing up, and therefore never liked them. The Germans have a word: funktions----. It refers to the fact that people usually like and enjoy what they are good at, and dislike what they are not good at.
However, later in my life, I did find a sport I could like. Partly because it develops skills that apply outside its arena: underwater hockey. The adrenaline rish comes not just from the fury of competition -- although if you have ever seen underwater hockey players, you know they are fierce in competition; it is like watching a feeding frenzy in an aquarium. But since underwater hockey is (obviously) played underwater, there is also the feeling of physical danger -- you hold your breath while submerged, so your lungs have that "give me air!" sensation.
How long can you go between breaths? The longer you can stay down, the better you play, since the lead puck stays on the pool floor. When you need a breath, better pass the puck off to a newly-submerged teammate, otherwise the other team is sure to get it. I knew a guy who was so competitive, he would stay down sometimes until the blue came in around his lips. And at my first tournament, I came out of the pool at the end of one match, and had to lie on the deck until I got my breath back -- I think I was slightly hypoxic.
How do these skills apply outside the hockey pool? Simple: you wear fins, mask, and snorkel. I enjoy snorkeling as an activity in its own right, and playing underwater hockey keeps me in condition and develops my skills for snorkeling in general.
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