Achieving the Victory. Reading

1 Read the text Tired of your quiet routine? How about leaving your computer games behind and taking up an extreme sport? Take to the skies with skydiving or hit the hills with mountain biking! As a matter of choice, you might try something more urban, such as climbing the external wall of a city block. There were times when such dangerous activities were reserved for adrenaline junkies, but in the last ten years, a huge trend towards thrill-seeking pastimes has grown into a whole industry to satisfy our desire for new and exciting sensations. Thrill seekers can now pay to be set on fire, just like stuntmen, and there’s even a service in New York which offers the chance to experience being kidnapped. So, why are people so attracted to risk? 23-year-old Jerome, trainee surgeon by day and urban climber by night, says: “The world today is so dull with lots of rules and regulations governing everything we do. I just feel a need to break out at times.” He admits that he is actually quite afraid of heights, although he really enjoys the fear sensation. “I like the adrenaline rush – the racing heart, the butterflies in my stomach – that is what makes you feel alive.” Some daredevils are even braver – they’ve invented wingsuit flying: a sport in which you throw yourself into the air wearing an aerodynamic suit. Also, there’s base jumping, in which people jump from tall structures such as buildings or bridges with a parachute. Some such acts are illegal. Dan Witchalls had been skydiving for years when he decided to take up base jumping. He has jumped off The Shard – London’s 310 meter-high skyscraper – four times. He says: “Base jumping is scarier than jumping out of a plane. In a plane, there is no perception of height, but when you are standing on the edge of the building you can see people and cars – it makes it very real. The exhilaration you feel is totally indescribable. The sense of achievement you have after you’ve got through the experience takes over the risks.” Psychologists say the push to take risks has been passed down to us from our prehistoric ancestors for whom it was essential to take risks for survival. Our modern life presents us with very few dangers, but instinct still remains in some people, who are considered to have a type T personality. They are constantly seeking thrill, crave new and exciting experiences and don’t like routine. One may wonder if these extreme activities are as dangerous as people believe. According to Oxford professor Martin Bates and his research into risk-taking, people often miscalculate risks. He says there are risks, but provided you’ve got the right equipment, they are no greater than in many of the more mainstream sports, such as motor racing or ice skating. People aren’t so worried about the risks involved in these sports because they are familiar with them. However, when it comes to less common activities, they imagine the risks to be higher. 2 Read the text and decide which statements are TRUE and which ones are FALSE TRUE Jerome’s desire to take risks is a reaction against a society that in his opinion has become too safe. People with type T personalities find ordinary life boring. According to Martin Bates, people often worry more about things they don’t have much experience of. FALSE For Dan, the best part of cliff-jumping is the amazing feeling you get as you fall through the air. Nowadays fewer people are taking up extreme sports than in the past. According to psychologists, people used to do dangerous things for pleasure in prehistoric times. 3 Find words or expressions in the text and match them to their synonyms people, doing dangerous things for excitement and to impress others daredevils risk-taker stuntman feelings sensations addicted to thrill-seeking adrenaline junkies a motive a push strong feelings of excitement adrenaline rush euphoria exhilaration traditional sports mainstream sports to desire strongly to crave excitement take over run away break out 4 Find sentences in the text and write them down 3 sentences in the Present Perfect Tense 1 sentence in the Present Perfect Continuous Tense 5 Answer the following questions 1. Do you know any extreme sports or activities? 2. What is the difference between extreme and dangerous activities? 3. Why do you think people take the risk of doing extreme activities? 4. Do you like taking a risk? 5. Have you ever tried any extreme activity? 6. Do you know any type T personality? 7. Which sports or activities would you recommend for teenagers?