I’m sure we can all agree that gym class would have been more fun if we were able to play these sports instead. After all, who wants to be kicking around moth eaten balls. You will gasp, however, when you see the prices of these big-kid sports.
Okay, so maybe our parents wouldn’t be so happy with us jumping out of planes while in school, but imagine what this would have done for our confidence! Racing towards the world, praying that the parachute will open…. or suffer the consequences (on our health insurance). And what if you damage your equipment? Your basic set of gear (including chutes, hardnesses, hooks, rings, suits, helmet, pads, goggles…) will set you back way over $8000. One dive might just set your bank balance back to zero (surely a fate worse than death). Not just a nerve racking hobby, but one of the most expensive as well!
Cheaper Alternative to Sky Diving:
Want to have all the fun of falling from heights while landing safely? Buy a cheap trampoline instead!
High-Stakes Poker
Yes, don’t scoff. With being shown on Sport networks, I think we can officially say sitting down at a table is a sport (try telling that one to your doctor!) Now, of course, we have the buy-ins to enter a tournament, with some reaching as high as $1,000,000. Then add the costs of hotels, flying to and from tournaments, and you have on your hands a very expensive sport indeed!
Cheaper Alternative to High-Stakes Poker:
Buy yourself a cheap poker set, some beers, and have a few friendly games with your friends. We think it’d be a lot more fun than losing a cool $1,000,000
Formula 1 Racing
Ah, the dream of every big boy everywhere. Racing around a track on one of the big circuits; Silverstone, Aintree, or Brands Hatch. Well, if you want to do this as a long-term career, have we got news for you! Spending just $7.210,000 on a formula one car is seen as cheap! And don’t forget all of the money spent putting in as much practice as possible. All in all, you would have to have some pretty deep pockets to be able to do this!
Cheaper Alternative to Formula 1 Racing:
Buy yourself (or a friend) a cheap formula one experience!
Equestrianism
What can we say? Not only do you have to buy a horse, and some of these divas can go for as high as a house, you have to hire the care. Of course once you have the horse, you need the image as well. Or else, really, what’s the point of doing such an expensive sport if you can’t look stunning at the same time?
Cheaper Alternative to Equestrianism:
Buy the budding Equestrian in your life a fun experience riding horses for the day.
Sailing
Sure, we might all dream of just setting sail on the open seas, without a destination in view, but the costs alone would ensure we’d never come back to face those debt collectors. Not only do you have the boat payments to worry about, but you also have to factor in the costs of the expensive boat insurance, as well as all the lessons on sailing you’ll need. What, you thought it’d be just as easy as riding a bike?
Cheaper Alternative to Sailing:
Honestly, we reckon experiencing this expensive sport is more hassle than it’s worth. The cold salt air, no internet… Instead, buy yourself a cheap ship-in-a-bottle kit and enjoy using that instead.
Bobsledding
Ignoring the obvious, you know, that expensive sled, the training, those matching outfits, think about the costs of all of the events you’d have to go to to try and find a team of like minded individuals to join you on a journey of pure, insurance premium upping insanity. Don’t forget, as well, the cost of all the new (thermal) underwear you will probably have to buy from launching yourself down slopes at such high speeds…
Cheaper Alternative to Bobsledding:
Get some friends together and buy yourself a nice red sleigh for the next time the snow comes along.
Hot Air Ballooning
Here’s something I bet you have never thought of before. Where do hot air balloons go when they are not being used? It’s not like the skies are constantly full of them. That’s right, not only do you have to purchase a vehicle which, let’s face it, is fairly impracticable to use to get to work, but you will also have to rent out some very expensive and secure space to store it when you aren’t flying.
Cheaper Alternatives to Hot Air Ballooning:
What do people Hot Air Balloon for? Seeing high up. Get yourself a flying drone with a camera instead. They are cheaper than you think!
Mountaineering
Sure, you can do this sport on the cheap sometimes, but to get to the true ‘heights’ that this sport can offer, you will once again have to fork out on some very expensive equipment, including harnesses, rugged protective clothing, crampons… oh, and there is the cost of hiring an expensive private jet as well. Because the best mountains are those that no one else can reach.
Cheaper Alternatives to Mountaineering:
Look for a cheap tour guide for a hiking spot near you instead. There is probably one closer than you think!
Skiing
Sure, we all know someone who keeps going on and on about their ‘wonderful time in the mountains of Austria’, so you might think this is a very easy sport to get into. But, just like everything else, to be the very best you need the very best. And the very best isn’t just those poles you strap to your feet. To practice those courses you will be doing, you are going to have to pay a very very expensive fee to get a few practice runs on it.
Cheaper Alternatives to Skiing:
Buy yourself a cheap pair of Rollerblades, and find a hill near you! One additional plus: You won’t be getting cold!
Helisking
Oh man, now we come to the big one. For normal skiing, you just need some start-of-the-art skis. For skydiving, you just need to find someone willing to fly you in a general direction. With this sport, no only do you need the most expensive skiing set ever (because really, why else would you go to a untouched mountain), you will also need to enlist the help of someone who owns a helicopter, who will probably know that they can charge you any price and you’ll be willing to pay!
Cheaper Alternatives to Helisking:
Just sit at home with a nice cup of coffee instead!
Bridget Rogers is an independent freelance writer based out of Madison, Wisconsin. Bridget's work can be found on a variety of sources in both online and print media.
