https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/comments/1ib4rog/what_hobbies_do_people_do_that_seem_insane/
created by Joe_arth_noragrets on 27/01/2025 at 09:51 UTC
105 upvotes, 75 top-level comments (showing 25)
I was just watching a video of someone falling unconscious while free diving which got me thinking; what hobbies do other people do which you just can’t get your head around? Caving is another one which seems insane to me.
Comment by AutoModerator at 27/01/2025 at 09:51 UTC
1 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Please help us by reporting comments that break these rules.
1: /message/compose/?to=/r/AskUK
Comment by RodLUFC at 27/01/2025 at 10:06 UTC
280 upvotes, 9 direct replies
Underwater cave diving. Sick, sick bastards
Comment by Harrry-Otter at 27/01/2025 at 10:00 UTC
383 upvotes, 6 direct replies
Dog shows.
I’m not a dog person but I can at least see why people would have one. Spending a lifetime crossbreeding horrifically inbred abominations of the flesh in search of the canine Kwisatz Haderach sounds unhinged though.
Comment by imminentmailing463 at 27/01/2025 at 09:57 UTC
154 upvotes, 6 direct replies
I know someone who is into ultramarathons, iron man triathlons, 24 hour runs and all that sort of caper. Quite often, their holidays are used to travel somewhere to do some kind of intense physical endurance test somewhere.
I enjoy running, but that's absolutely insane to me. Especially doing it as a 'holiday'.
Comment by burkamurka at 27/01/2025 at 10:43 UTC
76 upvotes, 2 direct replies
Arguing with strangers on the Internet
Comment by urloverdreea at 27/01/2025 at 10:26 UTC
56 upvotes, 3 direct replies
Competitive eating, trying to eat as much as food as possible in short time I think its unhealthy
Comment by Obvious-Water569 at 27/01/2025 at 10:10 UTC
60 upvotes, 3 direct replies
Totally agree with you on caving.
I have several nightmares a month that involve being underground and the chamber I'm in caves in.
Seeing videos of people squeezing into gaps barely big enough for their bodies makes me physically sweat.
I suppose the only hobbies I'd call insane are ones with a high chance of permanent injury or death. I paint little plastic army men so I'm not about to judge anyone else's hobby.
Comment by CiderDrinker2 at 27/01/2025 at 11:39 UTC*
77 upvotes, 5 direct replies
Some people seem to have lives that must be so comfortable, so safe, so free from any real stress or danger, that they need 'extreme' hobbies to get the rush of being alive.
I've worked in international development in places like Sudan, Iraq, Myanmar and Ukraine. I've been shot at, been in the midst of military coups, and had a gun to my head. I don't need excitement. I want safe, boring, hobbies. That's why play with model railways, and let others get on with caving, or free diving, or jumping out of aircraft.
Comment by Accurate_Prompt_8800 at 27/01/2025 at 10:02 UTC*
94 upvotes, 11 direct replies
I run every single day, around 100-140km a week come rain or shine, and even when I’m travelling. My streak has been going for over a year now. I’m not sure how crazy it is but I’ve had many people express wonder at it!
Comment by WVA1999 at 27/01/2025 at 10:16 UTC
14 upvotes, 3 direct replies
Free diving, majestic and terrifying in equal measure.
Comment by BackgroundGate3 at 27/01/2025 at 10:30 UTC
13 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Taxidermy is not for me.
Comment by MountainMuffin1980 at 27/01/2025 at 09:53 UTC
26 upvotes, 2 direct replies
I can absolutely see the appeal of caving. For me I'd find it fun and fascinating to traverse through open tunnels and caverns. but what i would absolutely the fuck not do, even though I am not claustrophobic, is squeeze through gaps and openings that are barely wide enough for me.
Deep, dark, murky ocean is an absolute fuck off as well.
Comment by Deviant-Oreo at 27/01/2025 at 10:23 UTC*
21 upvotes, 2 direct replies
It seems stupid but when I tell my family I go for night walks through the forest alone - they consider it insane.
But is that simply because they're city folk as we all live in London?
Where I live it's rather easy for me to get outside the M25 as I do drive.
Edit: For anyone curious, it's super fine to do - all I'd reccomend is that you do visit your walk/trail during the day to be familiar with it prior to the night walk as you'll be relying on memory and area knowledge and general sense of direction.
It's super safe because the chances are you're the only one on the trail and other night walkers I've come across on the (very) rare occasion have been super friendly.
Bring a lantern or a red light headlamp and message someone close your location for good measure and you're good~
Comment by LordEmostache at 27/01/2025 at 10:32 UTC
25 upvotes, 2 direct replies
Hobby-Horsing
Comment by farmerpip at 27/01/2025 at 12:29 UTC
10 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Free solo climbing, as in Alex Honnald climbing doc "FreeSolo", if you haven't seen it well worth a watch.
Comment by SpudFire at 27/01/2025 at 10:48 UTC
10 upvotes, 5 direct replies
Scuba diving. I know somebody that does it, he's got instructor qualifications and travels all over the world to do it. I get that it must be really cool exploring an old shipwreck or whatever, but just thinking about something going wrong with the breathing equipment or the mask leaking when you're far below the surface freaks me out. I'll stick to snorkelling.
Comment by tmstms at 27/01/2025 at 10:08 UTC
27 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I used to do rock and ice climbing and mountaineering- it's easy for me to see the appeal, but I also lost quite a few friends and acquaintances over the years and was lucky myself, so that correates with your example.
Showing cats- often massive drives of 200 miles each way, and a boring day to follow- all to win some rosettes, and some bags of food and litter if you are lucky...
Comment by ThePineappleSeahorse at 27/01/2025 at 09:56 UTC
15 upvotes, 3 direct replies
Definitely caving. Really though anything that involves heights or enclosed spaces. Oh and Tough Mudder. It sounds utterly miserable to the point of madochism.
Comment by TisOnlyTemp at 27/01/2025 at 10:37 UTC
6 upvotes, 1 direct replies
For me caving. I've done it myself and it was horrid. Pitch black, insanely cramped and narrow spaces, getting stuck and only being able to move with others help. Underwater segments etc. No thanks, never again. I've seen the horror stories and after experiencing a very basic level of caving I'm never doing it again. I've had the experience, but I'd rather keep it a memory and have my life.
Comment by Sea-Still5427 at 27/01/2025 at 12:02 UTC
7 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Parkour. It's a broken neck waiting to happen.
Comment by Serious_Escape_5438 at 27/01/2025 at 14:54 UTC
7 upvotes, 2 direct replies
Cold water swimming, just can't see the appeal in getting freezing cold for a few minutes.
Comment by PuddingBrat at 27/01/2025 at 10:52 UTC
5 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I actually loved caving. I was so anxious and *reeeeally* didn't want to do it, but ended up leading the group. It was a fun little puzzle to figure out which ways to contort my body to fit through smaller and smaller squeezes. But this was at Cheddar Gorge, at a tourist experience with an experienced guide, and where the safe routes were well-known.
That being said - never the fuck again.
Also, have y'all seen The Descent?
Comment by Captain_Kruch at 27/01/2025 at 16:25 UTC*
5 upvotes, 2 direct replies
Danger tourism. Why would you pay to fly somewhere where you could potentially be mugged/robbed/raped/murdered/taken hostage etc?
Comment by mmmkarmabacon at 27/01/2025 at 10:11 UTC*
26 upvotes, 5 direct replies
I've been caving quite a few times and the appeal comes from going somewhere totally nuts for like, 6 hours, then popping up, tired and hungry but totally energised, and having the best shower of your life. The caves can be really beautiful, too. The squeezes that I have been through are only a very small part, and I absolutely won't go through any sumps. Getting a bit wedged in a small gap and having to wriggle free is one thing, getting something stuck on the way through a sump and drowning is another.
To be honest I am always baffled by how popular football is. It's a never-ending quest to kick a ball from one side of a field to another. People get paid millions for it, and thousands of people go to watch, with millions more watching it on TV. Grown men cry rare tears because the wrong millionaire kicked a ball into a net. It's just bizarre. I recognise I'm the strange one here though.
Comment by Basso_69 at 27/01/2025 at 11:58 UTC
10 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Bull running. Enough said.