This question is the actual difference between trail running and all other sports. Cause riding your road bike, day in day out in the rain for weeks on end, is not a freckin’ pleasure. I am out every single day, regardless it is a nordic walkign session, trail running or hiking. I am in the forest, in the mountains, in the nature.
Triathletes, road runners, swimmers, but even mountain bikers are very often not lifelong every day athletes. They have ton of off days, off seasons and non active days. You planned an 8hour bike ride with 2500m of elevation gain. Pouring rain and strong wind gusts ? Are you still going out ? No, cause it can harm you and harm your bike. Do you go out for a hike ? No, cause you don’t have the habit and you even think about next day's performance and it might compromise it, so you take a day off.
I don’t take day offs, ever. If it is a 6 hour easy walk in the rain, hail and wind, to collect some herbs and mushrooms, I dress up well and I am out. Dedicated trail runners are mountain people, mountain lovers, natural forest people seeking the possibilities to discover. To run on new trails every day, to be better in certain skills, like uphill and downhill running, speed-hiking, cornering, snow and sand running and the mixture of all of these. We might use walking poles, snowshoes, camelbaks, we plan ahead aid-stations, we check hiking maps and looking for new adventures every single day.
Every day is an adventure !!!
You know Joss Naylor or Billy Bland , John Lenihan ?
These men are the real examples of being passionate about sport. At the age of 65, would you say on a rainy sunday: - hmm I would do a triathlon now. No ! You would say though: - I would run up on my local mountain just for fun !