Homegrown Fun

When I was young, our family and friends experienced the absolute best snowtubing ever. It started with 20 kids and 5 inner tubes at the top of a hill. We took turns for awhile, and then started piling two people on each inner tube. The next thing we knew, there were chains of tubes with colorful arms and legs connecting every which way, with the rest of the 20 throwing themselves on at the last second, caring little as to exact location. We screamed our heads off as we careened down the hill, with laughing people flying off left and right face down into snowbanks. We came up covered in white, laughing at our predicaments. We paid little attention to cold toes and fingers, wet clothes or legs that ached from climbing back up the hill. The next ride—with all its new, creative format, was all that was on our minds.

The next week we drove to a lake and worked hard clearing off a section for ice skating. We cracked the whip, raced, did figure 8s, and shot a hockey puck around for a little while. It was a little bumpy, but the ice pond was something we had made ourselves, and we left feeling satisfied.

The cost for these activities? $0, although of course someone had to own the inner tubes and the skates in the first place.

Professionally prepared fun

Contrast that with the professionally prepared fun that I experienced in Philadelphia. We drove to an approved, safe, sledding location. Yes, Sir, for only $20 per person (with a coupon!) we would get to “tube” for 3 hours on a weeknight.

First, we paid, and then signed the legal waivers which explained the risks involved in tubing, and absolved the establishment of all responsibility in case of injury or death. Then we picked up a tube with a long loop on its pull rope. After waiting in line for 20 minutes, we sat down on our tubes and hooked the loop to a cable that pulled us to the top of the hill, where again we waited patiently for our turns. A list of rules and regulations adorned the fence and the attendant radioed his co-worker for the all-clear signal. Finally, we were seated, ready, pushed, and WOW! What a ride! We spun and screamed all the way down. At the bottom, two more attendants helped us off the tubes and tossed them to the side. We exited, laughing and comparing stories, and headed for the line again. Twenty more minutes of waiting.

A week later we all went ice skating at the local indoor rink. With coupons, it cost about $8 each plus a skate rental of about $2. Around and around we went, counter-clockwise, with striped employees monitoring the behavior for safety’s sake. My own personal enjoyment was lessened by the high decibel rock music which I assume was there to keep people from getting bored or having to make conversation with one another.

What have we lost?

Whenever there is a crowd of people involved in an activity, there must be rules. If half of the people decided to go clockwise on a rink, there would be chaos and injuries. If no one watched for the sledding hill to be cleared, we’d bounce people right into the hospital.

I just wonder what we have lost by going for professionally prepared fun. For one thing, some of us lost the ability to turn right on an ice rink. We lost the sweat and the toil, and a sense of personal responsibility and forgiveness when lawsuits began scaring municipalities and resorts. We lost spontaneity, for activities became cost prohibitive, becoming an occasional treat rather than a regular pastime. We lost creativity and freedom (though that might have been a good idea in some cases.) We also lost the confidence that comes from trying, climbing and going fast without being constantly reminded to “be careful” because we might get hurt. We gained ease, but along with it came boredom and temerity.

Consider the story of my friend, who feared to buy a trampoline lest her children get hurt. She relented, and that summer the kids did fine with the trampoline; but her son broke his arm while running across the lawn and her daughter broke her leg falling off of a bunk bed. “Never mind the trampoline,” she said, “We need to get rid of the lawn and the furniture.” We will never fully control our lives.

Conclusion

Professionally prepared sports can provide a lot of fun and exercise when they are affordable. But exercising with simple and inexpensive winter activities can provide a ton of amusement and memories when done with reasonable care.