Dragonboat Racing to Wingsuit Flying: How Sajid Chougle does it all
Meet Sajid Chougle, a passionate adventurer- Sky Diving and Wingsuit Flying are his jam!
He was one of the speakers at ‘Advensure Stories’, a meetup of adventurers that we had recently conducted. He’s been an adrenaline junkie for more than a decade now.
So we decided to speak with the man himself about the story so far!
ON HOW IT ALL BEGAN
Sajid hopped onto the adventure wagon back in 2005, when he was selected to participate in a show by NatGeo called “MISSION UDAAN”. He got through the first few levels. And this was the start of it.
Soon after, he headed to the USA for higher studies. He made sure he kept active there- running and cycling. Interestingly, he also began participating in DRAGONBOAT RACING.
Sajid mingled with adventure enthusiasts and heard about skydiving and that you could get a solo license. This struck a chord.
THE FIRST SKYDIVE
Sajid’s very first Skydive was in a location close to Santa Barbara in California. It was a Tandem jump from a height of…
…18000 feet(!!!)
They actually needed supplemental oxygen in the plane to make sure they didn’t pass out! So being in a completely new medium and having no option but to open the parachute and fly felt LIBERATING.
MEMORABLE EXPERIENCES
Sajid says he can’t really pinpoint one, since he’s had so many over the years.
Off the top of his head, he recalls his mountaineering course in Darjeeling and Sikkim, where he climbed an 18000 feet tall peak. He also remembers ice climbing, his road trip through Costa Rica and living in tree houses there.
Just a month back, he had tried BASE JUMPING in Norway, to honour the memory of a friend he had lost.
“On the edge nothing matters, your past, your future, it’s all in limbo. The only thing that matters is the present, the point where mind and body are one!”
NORTH EUROPEAN ADVENTURES
Sajid visited Scandinavia, Norway and Sweden, from mid-June until mid- July. His purpose was to learn the safe way to BASE jump off of the highest cliffs in the world- 3000+ feet.
In Norway, he was part of an adventure festival called the ‘EXTREME SPORTS WEEK’ in a city called Voss. The festival saw participation from athletes and volunteers from all over the world.
While in Sweden, he went skydiving with Swedish and other international skydivers in the southern coast. For Sajid, every single day proved to be a memorable experience. He met a lot of interesting people. He says the people out there turned out to be pretty outgoing. They make the most of the weather during the summer and enjoy a lot of adventure sports- hiking, climbing, skydiving, sailing, rafting, kayaking and whatever else fascinates them.
MONEY MONEY MONEY
Things were obviously much easier while he was working full-time and making his moolah in dollars. But he gave this up in order to pursue his passion more actively.
So he works for about 6–8 months in a year, and thankfully, his clients are understanding. And while on adventures, he makes sure he is on super-saver mode. He carries his tent along to avoid hotels and eats only local, inexpensive food.
In Norway, he even tried DUMPSTER DIVING. Because the weather is relatively cool, the food doesn’t turn bad. Apparently, a lot of adventurers do this in order to save money.
SHIFT IN PERSPECTIVE
In India, everything is defined in steps and has a framework- studies, work, family, getting a car, house. While Sajid says he doesn’t disagree with this system, he isn’t particularly interested in it.
He says he’d rather spend time exploring new places, sports and cultures. This includes not just his biggest passion- aerial adventures- but others as well- rock climbing, mountaineering, and others.
His family doesn’t particularly approve, but he has found his priorities, for the moment at least! His work being in the creative field, those few months of exploring help him recharge his batteries and come back with better ideas.
Also, adventure sports is a huge contributor to physical and mental fitness. This, he feels, is highly required, every time he looks at people around him working a tiring routine and never taking out the time to take care of themselves.
He thinks everyone should give adventure sports a try because it challenges and changes your thinking. It helps you overcome your fears.
“Life is too short. If you just contemplate on the negative aspects of doing something, you’ll never do it and only end up remaining stagnant”
