Many people were surprised last week to learn that Alan Eustace had successfully outdone Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner by setting a new world record for high-altitude skydiving with his death-defying jump from the edge of the stratosphere.

    Even more surprising? Eustace, who leaped from a balloon more than 25 miles above the earth and fell at more than 800 miles per hour, isn’t your typical daredevil. In fact, he’s a 57-year old computer scientist who also happens to be Google’s senior vice president of knowledge.

    Kudos to Eustace –who is more than a decade Baumgartner’s senior – for taking some time off from his day job to tackle such a heart-racing feat. Of course, it occurred to us that Eustace’s side-project was probably a bit expensive, as far as hobbies go. No one has said how much the feat cost Eustace, who spent several years preparing with a small team of scientists and engineers and who very well could have received outside funding. After all, Eustace needed a specially-designed spacesuit with a life-support system as well as a special parachute and helium balloon. (Baumgartner’s balloon reportedly cost about $70,000, though his jump was sponsored by Red Bull.)

    In other words, it’s the kind of sport only a reasonably wealthy executive (or, in Baumgartner’s case, a corporate-sponsored daredevil) would likely take up. Here’s a look at a five other expensive sports for only the most affluent of athletes, and some of the top executives who love them.

    Heli-skiing

    上周，许多人非常惊讶地获悉，艾伦•尤斯塔斯无畏地从平流层上一跃而下，成功超越了奥地利跳伞运动员菲利克斯•鲍姆加特纳创造的高空跳伞世界纪录。

    更让人惊讶的是，从超过25英里（约合40,234米）高的热气球上跳下，下落速度超过800英里（约合1,287千米）每小时的尤斯塔斯，并不是你想象中的四肢发达，头脑简单。现年57岁的他是一位计算机科学家，碰巧也是谷歌公司（Google）工程与研究事务高级副总裁。

    尤斯塔斯比鲍姆加特纳年长十多岁。他从日常工作中抽出时间，挑战一项如此惊心动魄的壮举，这的确令人惊叹。当然，在我们看来，尤斯塔斯的这个业余爱好可不便宜。没有人透露尤斯塔斯为这次跳伞花了多少钱，实际上，他与一个由科学家和工程师组成的团队为这次行动做了好几年的准备，还可能得到了一些外来的赞助。毕竟，尤斯塔斯需要一套配有维生系统的特制宇航服，还有特制降落伞和氦气球。【据说鲍姆加特纳在气球上就花了7万美元，尽管他的跳伞得到了红牛公司（Red Bull）的赞助。】

    换句话说，这种运动只有身价不菲的高管才负担得起（或者就像鲍姆加特纳这样，某位由公司赞助的勇敢者）。接下来我们看看只有有钱人才玩得起的其他五项昂贵的体育运动，以及都有哪些高管喜欢这些运动。

    直升机滑雪

    Skiing is already a sport for the wealthy, what with the equipment and lift passes likely to run you a pretty penny. Tossing a helicopter into the mix just seems extravagant (it always does). But heli-skiing is gaining in popularity despite day-long excursions often costing around $1,000 per person. The idea is relatively simple: A chopper flies you to a not-so-accessible part of a mountain, where you're dropped onto some of the freshest snow imaginable for a few very pricey runs. Russian billionaire and Brooklyn Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov apparently enjoys the sport as does the original extreme billionaire, Virgin Group founder Richard Branson.

    Actually, speaking of Sir Richard . . .

    Kite-surfing (and, pretty much every other Richard Branson hobby)

    滑雪已经成为一项富人的运动，因为滑雪装备和吊椅都要花很大一笔钱。再加上直升机就显得更加奢侈了（只要有直升机出现，那绝对够奢侈）。尽管直升机滑雪需要一天的路途奔波，花费达到每人约1,000美元，但这项运动却日渐流行。直升机滑雪的理念相对简单：让直升机载你飞到一片人迹罕至的山区，在那儿你可以踏着新雪来几次超级昂贵的滑行。俄罗斯亿万富翁，布鲁克林篮网队（Brooklyn Nets）老板米哈伊尔•普罗霍洛夫，以及特立独行的亿万富翁，维珍集团（Virgin Group）创始人理查德•布兰森，都对这项运动情有独钟。

    实际上，说起理查德爵士……

    风筝冲浪（以及理查德•布兰森爱好的其它所有运动）

    Virgin's Sir Richard Branson has long-held the reputation of a man who enjoys life in the fast lane. That's what happens when you sky dive regularly and attempt to cross the Pacific Ocean in a hot-air balloon. (Branson had even hinted that he wanted to break Baumgartner's record one day by jumping out of the private spacecraft his company is developing.) But, in recent years, Branson has set his sights on breaking records in the extreme sport of kite-surfing, which involves riding a board (like a surfboard or wakeboard) while holding onto a wind-propelled parachute. Two years ago, Branson set a record by becoming the oldest person to kite-surf across the English Channel – a feat he achieved after his son set a record for the fastest kite-surf across that body of water.

    Competitive Sailing

    维珍集团的理查德•布兰森爵士多年来以追求刺激体验而闻名。他时不时来次高空跳伞，或者在热气球上横渡太平洋。（布兰森甚至暗示，总有一天他要从公司研发的私人宇宙飞船上跳下来，打破鲍姆加特纳的纪录。）但近几年来，布兰森的兴趣是要做风筝冲浪这项极端运动的纪录刷新者。风筝冲浪指的是踩着滑板（冲浪板或滑水板），抓着风力驱动的降落伞冲浪。两年前，布兰森创造了一项纪录，成为年龄最大的利用风筝冲浪横渡英吉利海峡的人——在他儿子创下利用风筝冲浪最快横渡这片水域的纪录之后，他完成了这一壮举。

    航船比赛

    Larry Ellison is best known for founding business software company Oracle, but the billionaire's current obsession is likely planning the defense of the America's Cup. The high-stakes yacht race only happens every few years, but Ellison's Oracle Team USA brought home the world's oldest international sporting trophy last year. Ellison has not confirmed how much he spent on the 2013 race, but the runner-up, Emirates Team New Zealand, reportedly shelled out roughly $100 million. And, among Ellison's competition for the next America's Cup, in 2017, will be PatrizioBertelli, the CEO of Prada. The fashion house has already committed more than $60 million to the challenge.

    Formula 1 racing

    拉里•埃里森最著名的伟业当然是创立了商用软件公司甲骨文（Oracle）。但这位亿万富翁目前关注的可能是捍卫美洲杯帆船赛（America's Cup）冠军。这项高风险的帆船赛每隔几年才有一次，而埃里森的美国甲骨文队（Oracle Team USA）去年为美国赢得了这项最古老国际运动赛事的桂冠。埃里森并未透露2013年的赛事究竟花了多少钱，但据说获得亚军的新西兰酋长队（Emirates Team New Zealand）投入了大约1亿美元。参与2017年下一届美洲杯赛事的除了埃里森以外，还有普拉达公司（Prada）首席执行官帕吉欧•贝尔特利。这家时尚品牌宣布将投资6,000万美元参与角逐。

    F1赛车

    Fast cars seem to be a constant when you're discussing the free-time exploits of the rich and famous. Racing enthusiasts among the billionaire set include Formula 1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone, the aforementioned Sir Branson, and even the new guy on the wealthy executive block, GoPro founder (and Fortune40 Under 40 member) Nick Woodman. Formula One racing is not a sport for the casual driver, though. Before you even have to worry about renting out a race course, you need to get your hands on a car, which can cost millions of dollars each.

    Equestrian sports

    谈到富人和名人的业余兴趣，赛车似乎是一个永恒的选择。热爱赛车的百万富翁包括F1首席执行官伯尼•埃克莱斯顿，前文提过的布兰森先生，甚至还有新生代富豪高管，GoPro公司创始人（《财富》40位40岁以下商界精英之一）尼克•伍德曼。然而，F1赛车不是随便哪位驾驶员都能参加的，你需要拥有一辆赛车，那就得花费数百万美元。

    马术运动

    Jerry Seinfeld isn't the only person who thinks ponies are expensive. Equestrian sports – whether it's dressage, racing, or polo – are always costly because acquiring, stabling, and caring for horses is a huge expense on its own before you add the training and materials needed to participate in any kind of sporting event. That being the case, equestrianism seems to be a popular sport for billionaires' daughters. Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg's daughter, Georgina, is a professional rider and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates reportedly spent almost $1 million recently to encourage his own daughter's love of the sport.

    认为小马太贵的不止杰瑞•宋飞一人。马术运动——无论是盛装舞步、赛马还是马球——都十分昂贵，因为光是购买和护理小马及马厩设备就是一笔很大的开销，随后你还要训练，并准备参加马术赛事的其他材料。这种情况下，马术似乎成为了富翁女儿之间流行的运动。前纽约市市长迈克尔•布隆伯格的女儿乔治娜就是一名专业骑手。据说微软（Microsoft）联合创始人比尔•盖茨最近也花了近100万美元来培养女儿对这项运动的兴趣。（财富中文网）

    译者：严匡正