Here is
a very interesting article on how the armed forces are exploring endurance sports as ways to land new recruits; it brought a lot of thoughts to mind. It explains how "by targeting endurance athletes, SEAL commanders know they are recruiting young men who have tested some of their physical and mental limits." I particularly like how the recruiter is a
participant in the event, and not just standing behind a table handing out brochures; instant credibility in my eyes and I'm sure in the eyes of the youths. Speaking of youths, one problem I see with this is that many endurance athletes are not the target age for military recruiting . . . it takes years of training for people to build up their conditioning and discover that they like the longer distances etc. I'd estimate that our
adventure races, for example, only include a handful of participants under the age of 25.
I know many in adventure racing who trace their roots through the military (Mojo of
Team HRAdventure, for example, was some kind of swimming ninja for the marines) and it seems like one recipe for success in endurance sports is having a military background. It's certainly not the only recipe and doesn't guarantee success, but it is a common pattern.
The armed forces have a culture of athleticism that makes finding time to be physically active
much easier than it is for many civilians; in fact, it's a required part of the day for the majority of the military! For those of us not in the military, it's just a bit harder to balance the rest of your life with your exercise schedule . . . but that's a totally different topic . . .
Thanks to
Scott Dunlap's Trail Running blog for pointing me in the direction of the article.