Adventure physical activities in the wild: the relations between the adventurous life style and rural way of life for the improvement of life´s quality

Abstract

Sports and tourism in rural environment are options of leisure that are on the increase in the western world nowadays. to identify how the demands for adventure tourism and rural tourism interchange among themselves, it has been analyzes the profile of followeres of adventure physical activities in the wild (AFAN) in the rural areas of Paraná state. Four AFAN´s have been selected, two followers of air acivities (Gliding, parachuting) and two terrestrial ones (mountain bike and hiking). The study shows that for the activities studied, previous training is not a practice, neither there is the presence of hypertrophic bodies. Considering then the playful aspect of these activities, it can be note that the AFAN´s are closer to the tourist hedonism comparing to those traditional urban sports. Therefore, it has been recommended the implementation of projects for rural tourism associated to AFGAN´s for the bettering of life´s quality, in a multidisciplinary effort among physical education and tourism professionals.