Allow me to attempt to dispel some of the negativity towards Cloud Chasers here. Please don't pass judgement on all of us with a single stroke of your brush. It's quite offensive to be honest.
To start, I'm a grown, married father of two. I'm 32 years old, but yes... I look like I'm in my 20's. I'm Asian, I can't help that...
Let me tell you my story and hopefully some of you take the time to read and understand at least one cloud chaser's perspective.
I started smoking at the age of 14, but unlike many, I didn't do it because all of the "cool" kids were doing it. I got my interest from seeing my father smoke. I thought it was the coolest thing, to be able to exhale smoke. So one day I finally decided to borrow a cancer stick from him. It was all downhill from there. I was one of those smokers that took long drags. I liked to get as much smoke as I could without losing my consciousness. I liked doing O's and french kiss inhales. I liked to play with the smoke on the exhale a lot. Slowly to make it look misty or faster to make it spread. You can consider this a mental addiction of mine. Well, that addiction/fascination with exhaling smoke led me to another very bad substance that cost me almost 3 years of my life and health. All because that substance produced huge, dense clouds.
So along comes vaping. Tried my first cig-a-like and was not satisfied with it. Did I get the nicotine? Sure. Did I get the physical act of smoking? Certainly. But the vapor off those just did not suffice. Then a few years later, along comes my friend with this cig-a-like on steroids. It had variable voltage! BAM. I was instantly hooked. Then I discovered the world of cloud chasing. I IMMEDIATELY jumped right into it. Started soaking in as much information as I could, particularly about battery safety. The rest is history.
So what is cloud chasing to me? It's about satisfaction. Enough satisfaction to never get me to touch another cigarette or drug again. I wish with all my heart that vaping, as it exists today, was an option when I was 14. I can almost guarantee that I would have vaped and never got into cigs or that drug.
Do I like to compete? Yes I do. It's so fun to make videos and compete with other chasers. Do some take it too seriously? Well, that is just the nature of the beast. It happens in almost every other facet of hobbies.
So please, try and understand what it is about for some of us before you pass judgment. Isn't that what we are all fighting against when it comes to the non-smokers? How silly do you think you look to them puffing on these battery tubes? We have other alternatives for nicotine delivery. When it comes down to it, vaping isn't a necessity. But it works and works phenomenally. Ask yourself why for a second... it's because of the physical aspect of it all. You get the tactile feel and you get the vapor. For me, clouds takes that same idea one step further. The physical aspect of blowing a huge cloud satisfies me to no end. I don't just do it on video or at meets. I do it when I'm all alone. I get pure satisfaction from it and that is how I stay off the bad stuff.
By the way, cloud chasers are pushing the limits. They are the ones who helped me a great deal when it comes to safety and education. They are the ones that come up with great builds that any resistance vaper can use. And arguably, it's the cloud chasers that cause the best mechanicals to be designed.
I was at VapeBash representing Cloud Chasers Inc. Me and a friend started it. It has now led us to a great opportunity with Metro Vapers. We have been doing our best to educate vapers on battery safety and safe building practices. We aren't the type to just tell a new vaper to jump right into sub-ohming. And despite the name, we help all types of vapers.
Feel free to take a hit from my setup next time you see me. The flavor, throat hit, and vapor is outstanding. I'll also always have a Tiger coil setup handy
Thanks for you time. Long read, I know... but I have to tell my story when I can. We aren't all bad ya know?