u/NoYard9022

My kids moved out and the house got quiet. Hiking went from something we did as a family to just mine. I noticed a shift pretty quickly. Younger guys on the trail used to offer help. Now they offer advice. Had a twenty-something stop me near Quandary last month to tell me my poles were too short. They weren't. He just wanted to say something. Another one asked if I was lost. On a marked trail. With a pack. In July. I've been hiking Colorado for twenty years. Not my first summit. Not my last.

Talked to a woman at the trailhead last week. Late forties like me. Same stories. We both laughed about it, but it gets old. Wondering if others have noticed this change. The gear questions are different now too. Used to be "where did you get that." Now it's "are you sure that's appropriate." Maybe I just notice it more. Maybe it's always been there.

I work as a physical therapist. I see injuries all day. Every time I watch a Smash match I keep thinking about the recovery timeline for half these moves. Falcon Punch alone would end a career. That much rotational force on a knee planted wrong. Torn meniscus minimum. Probably worse. Donkey Kong carrying people and jumping. His back is done. Total disc replacement by age 35. Bowser dropping from the top of the screen onto his shell. I get that he's a turtle but the compression on impact would shatter bone. Real creatures do not tank that. The one that really gets me is Samus. Wearing that much weight and doing a screw attack rotation. Cervical spine would not hold. You're looking at fusion surgery and months of rehab just to turn your head again. I went hiking last weekend near Red Rocks and my knees felt it for two days. And I just walked. These fighters are doing aerial combos and landing full force. Who do you think has the worst realistic injury in this game.