Still Scuba Diving ... At The Age Of 91 !

"Age is no barrier when you’re doing something you enjoy and appreciate!"

This is the case of the 91 year-old Norman Lancefield, who considered to be the oldest scuba diver in the UK.

Hitting 91 has not deterred Norman Lancefield from taking on adventures in life. Despite taking up the hobby relatively late – aged 58 in 1978 – Norman has racked up hundreds of dives. His diving career has taken him all over the world including Mexico, Malta, Turkey, and several times to the Red Sea.

Norman has been a member of his dive club for more than 30 years and still attends training sessions at the same school every week. Russ Phillips, training officer at Barry Sub-Aqua Club said: “We have children as young as eight who learn to snorkel and then go on to learn to dive with us and Norman is a terrific inspiration to them. He is a very positive person and a great character".

Scuba diving is accessible to all ages and Norman is proof that age is no barrier when you’re doing something you enjoy.

Do you think you're too old to dive ? Think again !

According to the Diver’s Alert Network (DAN), older divers are defined as those over the age of 50, and in recent decades, these older divers have constituted an increasingly large percentage of the global dive community.

Never Too Old For Longboarding

In my post " Never Too Old For Adventure", I wrote about 67 year old Doris Matyasovich, a competitive MTB ( mountain biking ) racer, and Poul Rasmussen from Denmark, who learned to kiteboard early in his 80's, and many others who, despite their age, keep seeking adventure and new things to try.

Recently, I came across an article in San Francisco Chronicle about Lloyd Kahn, who started longboarding at the age 65 after he borrowed a board from his son's friend.

He finds longboarding, not only fun, but also challenging, both for his body and brain. As he says : "...it's good for the brain to be learning a new skill at my age."

He admits that there's also the element of danger or pain, but safety gear has come a long way and nowadays even older folks can pick up a hobby like longboarding with minimum risk.

Lloyd wants to encourage people who skated when they were young and gave up to get back into it, and I dare you to give it a try if you've never done it before !

Stoked Daily: Never Too Old

... KEEP ON ROCKING !!!

A recent study at the University of California, Los Angeles found that men over the age of 55 who were in the top 25th percentile of muscle mass proportion were 19 percent less likely to die for any reason than guys with the least amount of muscle.

Use the stories of these "7 Old Guys Who Can Kick Your Ass" to see why it's never too late to reach your lifelong fitness goals—and beat out everyone else your age...

24 Things To Do Before You Turn 30

"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream." ~ C. S. Lewis 

It doesn't have to be before 30... Many of the things in the video I did after 30... The important thing - never stop looking for inspiration, something to dream about, something new to try, something to look forward to...

You Are Never Too Old

"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream." ~ C.S Lewis

Never Too Old For Adventure

Never Put An Age Limit On Your Dreams 

Never Too Old For Adventure

...true what they say: " Age Is Nothing But A Number"... Nowadays, there are many seniors who refuse to submit to ageist stereotypes, and continue to inspire younger generations to step out of their comfort zone and try out new things.

Old age clearly hasn’t stopped this cool grandma from living life to the fullest. She's 90 (!!!), and it was her first time zip-lining.

 

What extreme sport/outdoor activity/adventure have you thought about trying, but never did because you thought you were too old to do ?

Celebrate Your 101 Birthday By Going Paragliding !

That's exactly what Mary Hardison from Ogden, Utah did.

It was something Hardison had never done before; in fact, it is something most people don't have the guts to do. But Hardison has learned a thing or two in her 101 years, and that's to have the right attitude about trying new things in life.

Though she did the tandem flight in September 2011, this week she was officially recognized by Guinness World Record as the "Oldest Female to Paraglide Tandem."

She said she was inspired to try paragliding after her son did his first tandem flight...at the age of 75 !

"I don't want my son to do anything I can't do, so I decided to go have fun like he did," Hardison said.

I've dedicated a number of posts to old folks who are living inspiration to our younger generation. Those people, no matter how old they are, try to look for newness in life, learn new skills, visit different places, and are constantly expanding their horizons.

I'm sure that the story of Mary Hardison is not going to be the last one I hear about people doing amazing things ( bofore they die ). And that's why I'm starting a new sub-category that I call "Never Too Old".

I just hope that these great stories will inspire people to try out new things before they turn a century old.

The trick is growing up without growing old...

Never Too Old For Kayaking

Here is another inspiring story from the series " Never Too Old For Adventures"

Whether it's mountain biking, longboarding or even something as extreme as kite boarding, you can get started at any age.

Jacksonville, Florida resident Hortense Morris celebrated her 99th birthday by trying out kayaking for the first time. "It sounds exciting," she said, "and I'll try anything once."

It's a great motto to live by. Before you say "I'm too old/out of shape for this", at least give it a try.

If this story doesn't inspire you to get out and try something new, nothing will.

Never too old for adventures

In my post " Too old for adventure ? " I wrote about Doris Matyasovich, a competitive MTB ( mountain biking ) racer, who started racing at age 45, and continued way into her late 60 ( she was 67 at the time of the article)...

This post on Biking Bis shows amazing stats !:

According to The Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa online survey ( summer 2010), 7% of the RAGBRAI cyclists were 65 or older. The average age of the Adventure Cycling Association's members is the mid-40s, with a spread of ages from the 20s to the 70s and occasionally the 80s. Although the Outdoor Industry Foundation reports that 27% of the bike riders in the US are 45 or older...

OK, we get it, old folks love biking. But what about something more extreme ?

Meet Poul Rasmussen from Denmark. His passion - kiteboarding. And his only ...85 ! He learned to kiteboard early in his 80's and absolutely loved it. He is so passionate about this sport that he can be found kiteboarding in below-freezing weather, and actively encourages other seniors to try it. He states in his interview that "50 - 60 years of age is nothing! Go live your life and I bet that you'll live longer and have more fun."




There aren’t too many 80+ surfer dudes in the world. But since 1940, John Zabotocky has been riding Hawaiian waves in Waikiki, and at 89, he was still a regular beachboy surfer.

It's not unusual to see people skiing or snowboarding in their late 50's , but skateboarding ?
Donna Vano, 56, holds three Guinness World Records as the Oldest Inline Vert Skater in the World, the Most Gold Medals in the USASA in all 5 disciplines, and the Oldest Female Amateur Snowboarder Competing in Pro Tours in the Superpipe. When Donna is not competing, you can find her at home, skating on the 11-foot ramp in her backyard.

Is climbing Everest on your Bucket List ? Don't be discouraged by the danger of climbing this mountain ( and the price you'll have to pay to climb it). The oldest person to have climbed Mount Everest is a Nepalese Sherpa called Min Bahadur Sherchan. He was 76 years and 340 days old when he reached the summit.

Still trying to find courage to take that leap of faith and try skydiving ? Frank Moody was 101 when he did it !



Young adults dominate the thrill seekers, but older people are jumping in as well. Skydiving, hang gliding, rock climbing, mountaineering, bungee jumping, white-water rafting, scuba diving and other extreme sports have all shown huge increases in participation.

Just because your body is starting to make funny noises and your kids have their own kids, it does not mean you are getting old. You still have plenty to do before the nursing home comes to claim you. Just don’t let that term life insurance agent know !

Are there any "extreme adventures" you think you are too old for ? Other than age ( and fear) is there anything else that stops you from trying something adventurous ?

Too old for adventures ?

I am not getting any younger. At the age of 32 , it seems like my life is almost over. Over for ... adventures, "extreme" sports, new activities, seeing new places ( backpacking through Europe ? I don't think so ), getting out of my comfort zone. It's getting harder for my body to recover after intensive work outs, long backpacking trips, hours on the ski slopes...

How often have you wanted to try something "crazy, outrageous, exciting " like whitewater rafting/ kayaking, surfing, sky/scuba diving, bungee jumping ? And what was your excuse ? :
"It's too dangerous "
"You have to be a professional to do that "
"You need to be in great physical shape"
"You need hours/ months/ years of professional training "
"I am too old"

You can't teach an old dog new tricks. Or can you ?


Meet Doris Matyasovich. She is a competitive MTB ( mountain biking ) racer, 2003 DH Masters World Champ, 17-time Masters National XC Champ. And she is only...67 ! She started racing at 45 and has stuck with it for the past 22 years. She raced BMX, XC, downhill, trails, dual slalom, adventure races ( 12 and 24 hours long ! ). Sometimes, she raced women younger than her children, or raced with men her age. She is also, the author of " Don't Tell Me I Can't " - a book about her life in the world of amateur mountain bike racing, and her answer to those who have ever told her she couldn't or shouldn't do something because she was a girl, or because she was too old.

People like Doris, really inspire me. I've read stories about people skiing way into their 80', doing their first skydiving jump at 100 (!), summiting Everest ( Min Bahadur Sherchan from Nepal reached the top of the highest mountain in the world at age 76) , sailing around the world after being retired...

After reading stories like that, you realize that age is just a number. Afterwords, as they say : " You are only as old as you feel ". So, feel/think young! Schedule that rafting trip, learn how to scuba dive, ride a mountain bike, go trekking/backpacking in Nepal ( Europe, South America...), climb a mountain ( doesn't have to be Everest), sail your boat around the world...

You can read the full interview with Doris Matyasovich here.