Register

This Pilot-Author Lives His Life In Motion

Airplanes, dirt bikes, and snowboards help keep his life moving, just how he likes it.

Ben Younger's body is often in motion, and it often stays in motion. [Photo courtesy: Ben Younger]
Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • Humans possess an innate, evolutionary drive for movement across diverse environments, including the sky, often undertaken purely for the joy and challenge it presents.
  • The author exemplifies this drive through experiences like dirt biking and complex cross-country general aviation flights, finding deep satisfaction in the physical and mental engagement of continuous motion.
  • General aviation, in particular, intensifies this quest for movement, demanding honed skills, adaptability, and providing a profound sense of accomplishment beyond simple transportation.
  • The article celebrates the cultivated skills that enable a life dedicated to precise, coordinated motion across various pursuits, fostering a strong sense of gratitude.
See a mistake? Contact us.

Through the air, over the ground, across the water. Gravel, dirt, grass, asphalt, snow, and ice. Short distances. Long distances. A body in motion tends to stay in motion. I am that body.

There is an essential truth about human beings and movement. It’s in our genes. We were made for motion. We have figured out a way to move in all environments where most of our neighbors on this planet excel in only one. A penguin can walk, but it isn’t pretty. A human can outpace a horse over the distance of a marathon. Dissatisfied with terrestrial bonds, we refused to stay in our lane and took to the skies—something our bodies are still millennia behind in terms of evolution. Go get your instrument ticket if you’d like to see just how much. Half the things you learn are how easily our internal systems are fooled. Somatogravic and vestibular illusions will turn your own body against you in the clouds. Forcing your insurrect limbs to do your mind’s bidding can be-come a battle at times. Here, our reach well exceeds our grasp from an evolutionary perspective. Still we move. Dangers be damned. Whatever pleasure center in our brains is triggered by movement, it is a powerful region.

Ben Younger

Ben Younger is a TV and film writer/director, avid motorcyclist and surfer—but it’s being a pilot that he treats as a second profession. Find him on Instagram @thisisbenyounger.

Ready to Sell Your Aircraft?

List your airplane on AircraftForSale.com and reach qualified buyers.

List Your Aircraft
AircraftForSale Logo | FLYING Logo
Pilot in aircraft
Sign-up for newsletters & special offers!

Get the latest stories & special offers delivered directly to your inbox.

SUBSCRIBE