Great Outdoors Is ‘Great Escape’ During Coronavirus Crisis

 

From VOA Learning¹ English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.

In 2020, many people in the United States found an escape by going out into nature and open places. Hiking trails, parks and other outdoor spaces were very busy with people searching for fresh air during coronavirus health crisis² restrictions³.

People, who were staying at home and whose gyms were closed, took their exercise to the "Great Outdoors." Sports such as hiking, biking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, camping, tennis, and golf all became more popular.

In 2021, that seems to be continuing. People are still finding⁴ ways to play outdoors within coronavirus restrictions and stay-at-home guidelines⁵.

The Outdoor Foundation⁶ is part of the Outdoor Industry Association⁷, a trade group. It released⁸ numbers comparing Americans' outdoor activities in 2019 and 2020. The group said 8.1 million more Americans went hiking, 7.9 million more went camping and 3.4 million more people went freshwater fishing in 2020 than in the year before.

In 2020, the foundation's research also found a 52.9 percent increase in outdoor activity for most age groups and all income levels.

"It's both heartening and a little bit mind-blowing to think how things are going this year," said Richard Hodges. He is the director at White Pine Touring in Park City, Utah.

Cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing has become much more popular. It is skiing that is done over the countryside instead of down a mountain.

"Every single day of the week is like a weekend day," said Hodges. The park in Utah where he works⁹ has about 20 kilometers of paths. He said there seems to be a "limitless interest right now in cross-country skiing."

"It's been really fun — a lot of work, but really fun. All we're doing is trying to get people outside to go play in the snow."

Hiking

The popularity¹⁰ of some outdoor sports comes as no surprise to Sandra Marra. She is the president and business chief of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. It is a non-profit organization that helps keep up the Appalachian Trail in the Eastern United States.

More hikers have been walking along the Appalachian Trail since the beginning of the health crisis. The trail is about 3,540 kilometers long and goes through 14 states. It gets more than 3 million visitors each year.

Marra told the Associated Press that many people, who never really exercised outdoors, found easy-to-use trails and spaces near their homes. However, she warns people not to do too much.

"...We're finding a lot of people are out there not prepared for just how rugged¹¹ this trail is. It's not a walk on the bike trail in the middle of the city," she said.

She also warns to be careful when going out for a long nature walk. She suggests hikers study weather reports and information about wildlife in the area. They should wear the right clothes for the right weather. And they should also bring supplies and maps.

Golf

Golf remains¹² popular as well. The U.S. National Golf Foundation said that Americans played almost 502 million rounds of golf in 2020. The number of golfers in the U.S. increased by half a million in 2020 to 24.8 million, the group found.

The sport also grew around the world. Golf Australia said golfing has increased up to 15 percent since the restrictions went into effect. Already popular in Sweden, the number of golf rounds played increased 42 percent. And Golf Olivar de la Hinojosa in Spain had an increase of 30 percent.

Ana Fernández de Diego is a Spanish professional golfer and teaches the sport. She said the level of growth in the sport has not been seen before.

"Golf is one of the things that people can do without any risks now," she said.

Tennis

Tennis is also more popular. The United States Tennis Association, or USTA, said that in 2020 there was nearly three million first-time players. In all, more than 21.6 million Americans played the game on tennis courts last year.

Mike Dowse is chief of the USTA. He said on its website that many people see "tennis as the ideal¹³ social-distancing sport."

From hiking to tennis and golf to cold weather sports – businesses are happy to the see the outdoor exercising activities get more popular.

Marra, of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, also sees it as a great thing for the environment. With more people using the outdoors, it may be more likely they will take care of it.

"This is the new future for us," she said. "The new reality."

Words in This Story

trail –n. a simple path through a forest, field or natural area

gym (gymnasium) –n. a room or building that has equipment and space for sports activities and exercise

income –n. money from work, investment¹⁴ or business

heartening –adj. something that causes people to feel happier or more hopeful

mind-blowing –adj. very confusing, exciting or shocking¹⁵

rugged –adj. having a rough, uneven¹⁶ surface

ideal –adj. exactly right for a purpose

1 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

2 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

3 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

4 finding   

n.发现，发现物；调查的结果

参考例句：

• The finding makes some sense.该发现具有一定的意义。
• That's an encouraging finding.这是一个鼓舞人心的发现。

5 guidelines   

n.指导方针，准则

参考例句：

• The government has drawn up guidelines on the treatment of the mentally ill. 政府制订了对待精神病人的指导方针。
• Planners seem a little uncomfortable with the current government guidelines. 规划师似乎不太接受现行的政府指道方针。

6 foundation   

n.[pl.]地基；基础；基金会；建立，创办

参考例句：

• The foundation of the university took place 600 years ago.这所大学是600年前创办的。
• The Foundation gives money to help artists.那家基金会捐款帮助艺术家。

7 association   

n.联盟，协会，社团；交往，联合；联想

参考例句：

• Our long association with your company has brought great benefits.我方和贵公司的长期合作带来了巨大的利益。
• I broke away from the association ten years ago.我10年前就脱离了那个团体。

8 released   

v.释放( release的过去式和过去分词 )；放开；发布；发行

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• With hindsight it is easy to say they should not have released him. 事后才说他们本不应该释放他，这倒容易。

9 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

10 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

11 rugged   

adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的

参考例句：

• Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。
• The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。

12 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

13 ideal   

adj.理想的，完美的；空想的，观念的；n.理想

参考例句：

• The weather at the seaside was ideal—bright and breezy.海边的天气最宜人，风和日丽的。
• They promised to be faithful to their ideal for ever. 他们保证永远忠于自己的理想。

14 investment   

n.投资，投资额；(时间、精力等的)投入

参考例句：

• It took two years before I recouped my investment.我用了两年时间才收回投资。
• The success of the project pivots on investment from abroad.这个工程的成功主要依靠外来投资。

15 shocking   

adj.令人气愤的；令人震惊的

参考例句：

• His attitude was shocking to her.他的态度令她感到震惊。
• Such behaviour is really shocking.这种行为真不像话。

16 uneven   

adj.不平坦的，不规则的，不均匀的

参考例句：

• The sidewalk is very uneven—be careful where you walk.这人行道凹凸不平—走路时请小心。
• The country was noted for its uneven distribution of land resources.这个国家以土地资源分布不均匀出名。