Rhik Samadder tries something new
After a long lockdown, we all need novelty. Here are some activities you may not have considered
Rhik Samadder tries … mushing: ‘I’ve never known animal joy like it!’
What a ride! The huskies and I were travelling as one – who knew such magical transport existed? More than anything I’ve tried, this experience has stayed with me
Rhik Samadder tries … fencing: ‘Now I’m ready for the zombie apocalypse’
I get to wear a natty white jacket, insectoid mask and hold an épée like a pistol – my inner child could not be happier. En garde!
Rhik Samadder tries … pottery: ‘I’m making a bowl – if it’s hideous, we’ll call it an ashtray’
Working clay is as much meditation as craft, but there is so much to learn, from ram’s head wedging to coiling and glazing. And the results sometimes leave a lot to be desired
Rhik Samadder tries… flower arranging: ‘I’m expanding the art form – and it looks rubbish’
You need to be in the right frame of mind for floristry – but I can’t stop channelling Match of the Day
Rhik Samadder tries … ghost hunting: ‘There are faint children running around in smocks’
I’m exploring a Victorian mansion after dark, with the help of a torch, a Ouija board and a ‘spirit box’. Is there anyone here but the living?
Rhik Samadder tries … wrestling: ‘Although I am in tremendous pain, there is a goofy energy to it’’
A mixed martial artist known as ‘the Hitman’ wants to teach me all about pummelling and anaconda chokes. What could possibly go wrong?
Rhik Samadder tries … abseiling: ‘A family gazes out at me, looking sick on my behalf’
I’m 80 metres up, and my (very) nervous system can’t help but protest. Will I make the jump and take advantage of this terrifying privilege?
Rhik Samadder tries… urban axe throwing: ‘Bullseye! I feel powerful’
When I explore my buried Viking abilities, I realise there is a wild man in all of us. If only I had been competing without a dishwasher-related finger injury
Rhik Samadder tries … clay pigeon shooting: ‘I am a townie holding a little gun, dressed as Rupert Bear’
I have an aversion to guns, but it turns out I love shooting - and I’m actually quite handy at obliterating clay pigeons. Is it rigged? Or am I a natural?
Rhik Samadder tries … track cycling: ‘It’s like being overtaken by lorries on a motorway designed by Escher’
I am clamped into a razor-thin perineum-mashing machine with no brakes. What could possibly go wrong?
Rhik Samadder tries … cocktail making: ‘I make a naked and famous – and feel stirred, not shaken’
I’m not sure I’ll ever look cool behind a bar, but can I learn how to mix a killer cocktail?
Rhik Samadder tries … horseriding: ‘I pretend I am in control. I feel like the Marlboro man’
It should be alarming to be up this high, but it’s weirdly calming. Is it possible I’m forming an emotional bond with Bumble?
Rhik Samadder tries … glassblowing: ‘My tendons are burning – and it’s nothing to do with the glory hole’
The heat is intense, and the craft is tricky to master – but what’s really alarming is that no one acknowledges how rude this looks
Emma Beddington tries … sword-fighting: ‘I have the upper body strength of cooked spaghetti’
The first rule of swordfight club is: don’t die! The second involves aggression – tricky if you’re used to expressing disapproval through quiet tutting and snippy emails
Emma Beddington tries … fell running: ‘It’s like dragging bags of cement uphill – only the bags are my legs’
A run on Ilkley Moor promises panoramic views. But what about the bogs and boulders en route – and my terrifying lack of fitness?
Rhik Samadder tries … silent disco meditation: ‘A man in socks and a bandana is romancing a tree’
A dance-based ‘soul journey’ – in the middle of Clapham Common? While I stream with sweat and onlookers laugh, I can’t stop worrying about what I’m having for dinner
Rhik Samadder tries … backflipping: ‘My shorts are too tight – being upside down doesn’t help’
Inspired by a YouTube video and high on a dose of Olympic spirit, this week the activity is gymnastic. But will the results be fantastic?
Rhik Samadder tries … mindful painting: ‘It dawns on me that I’m a very talented artist’
Keen to unlock your inner creativity? De-stress and unwind? Or merely improve the quality of the gifts you make for friends? Step right this way
Rhik Samadder tries … falconry: ‘Chicken wire stands between me and doom’
Eagles, falcons, vultures, owls – a close encounter with birds of prey is a riveting reminder of the gulf between them and us
Tell us: what activity should Rhik Samadder try next?
Our columnist Rhik Samadder is exploring a new pastime every week. What would you add to the list?
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