 Nerine Shatner Friendly House
This non profit organization is one of the nation's first residential
homes for women recovering from alcohol and substance abuse.
Donate
Here>>>
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Hollywood
Charity
Horse Show
For the past eleven years, William Shatner has spearheaded the HCHS
which features some of the best western reining riders in the country
while simultaneously raising money for charity.
Donate
Here>>>
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William
Shatner also
Supports:
 March
of
Dimes Canada
 The Jewish
National Fund
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| THE NEED FOR SPEED |
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Posted by: Admin on Friday, August 23, 2002 - 10:39 PM
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The need for speed is like the need for breathing, at least for me. I've always liked going fast, especially on skis, motorcycles, or cars when I was younger. But as I've raced through life, I've found new ways to experience that wonderful feeling that only speed can bring.
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 The need for speed is like the need for breathing, at least for me. I've always liked going fast, especially on skis, motorcycles, or cars when I was younger. But as I've raced through life, I've found new ways to experience that wonderful feeling that only speed can bring.
You may be asking right about now, "Why?" Well, skiing as fast as you can tests your body; driving as fast as you can tests your adrenaline; horseback riding as fast as you can exceeds your ability to run fast because you're at one with the horse. All of that is based on thinking fast. The whole thing is a test to see how the body/mind connection is doing. So far so good!
One of the first ways I experienced speed was skiing. Having been raised in Montreal, there was no shortage of snow and opportunities for skiing. I had plenty of time to perfect my methods of flying down the snow. And it did feel like flying. I still love the feeling of being on the mountain, surrounded by nature, having that feeling of lightness and speed. There's really nothing quite like it.
Of course, as I got older, I found other methods of going fast. Cars and motorcycles were next. I still have a love of both, although lately I've taken it one step further with racecar driving. Racecar driving is a mix of driving fast and driving slow. You have to come into the corners fairly slowly, within the limits of adhesion. At precisely the right moment, you have to accelerate - there's a slingshot effect that propels you into the straightaway. It's a skill that's both artistic and technical. It requires a touch and a feel for the road and the trust of the balance of the car and you feel it in your back.
When I fell in love with horses, I found yet another method for experiencing speed. Horses have to be in balance, as everything you do also has to be in balance. The horse has to be squared up and collected. It's a skill that takes a long time to perfect, and it, too, is an art form. As against a car, which is totally under your control, the horse has a mind of its own, which makes the situation uniquely challenging.
Riding a horse contrasts sharply with para motoring and jet skiing, two more speedy activities I've managed to incorporate into my life. They are really an attempt to control the energies of nature sufficiently to propel you in ways that are essentially unnatural. As opposed to a horse, who is working with me to perform an activity, I'm using these machines to exceed the boundaries over my four limbs, which is, I guess, why I find them so compelling. I feel the mind limits us in many ways and it's up to us to broaden those limitations to unknown horizons?for me, speed is one way to do it.
Of course, my latest activity involves speed of a different sort. You guessed it?PAINTBALL!!!! The paintballs will be whizzing by my head at warp speed, not to mention I'll be using my lightening quick reflexes to avoid getting hit. So if you've got the need for speed, too, then join me on August 31 in Joliet, Illinois for what promises to be one heck of a ride.
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