Stephan Whelan said:Public opinion is another thing we need to consider. Whilst it may be true that X sport is more dangerous the Y sport, the public don't see it that way no matter what you say. :head
I good one I heard the other week was about diving with Sharks:
"You have more chance of being killed by a falling coconut than by a shark"
Yet I don't see people flocking to the coast to jump in the water with sharks
And he hits it on the head....I am ridiculously new to this sport. However, I am not new to extreme sports....I have spent the last 8 years of my very short life consumed by skydiving. This site is no different than other sites dedicated to other "fringe" sports. Replace the word fin with parachute, and depth with height, and you've got a skydiving forum.
When people ask skydivers what the most dangerous part of the skydive is, we always reply "The drive home." Its true, but who cares? The general public certainly doesn't see it that way. And lets be honest, if the general public did see our sports as mainstream and not so dangerous, they would lose their appeal to most of us.
So I say, enjoy the shocked looks of your SCUBA peers when you having a drink. Throw the words "calculated risk" out there, and smile. Perhaps you think it is more dangerous to scuba, but it's ok to let them think you are the one with bigger balls.