Most of what we seem to consdier choking is us freezing and failing to act, even when we know we need to act. Sometimes, it may because the pressure has caused it so the person cannot decide what to do. I think most of us choke doing some things and not others. How to keep your brain working to think and make decent decisions and to get yourself to act is to me the issue.

For some, when you know there is pressure, when you know the task, you need to be able to both relax and concentrate. For example, say playing baseball with a big game on the line. A batter can deal with the presure by relaxing and concentrating, in the right balance.

For others, repeated exposure to pressure situations conditions us to better deal with it. I think that is what most military training is geared toward. Crank up the pressure in training, and the person will later be able to handle pressure easier. You can do the same thing by training yourself. Create situations and get through them.

Thinking "What if . . . ?," helps. What do you do if a certain pipe breaks in your house? What do you do when the power goes out? What do you do on a ship when the hyraulic cyclinders controlling the rudder blow out all of a sudden. What if when things are great prepare the mind for many what ifs, even those you have not thought of. It can help if you and someone else train each other to do this. One person asks, what if, and the other answers.

Training your mind is also done by simple knowledge. If you know what to do when this piece of equipment breaks, if you know how to get it back on line ASAFP, then when you need to it's easier. If you know what to do with a certain type of injury or scenario, it helps. The closer you know it by rote, the easier to access under pressure. I play golf and have looked at some of the mental aspects of the game. If you can get rid of your conscious mind, as you mkae a gold shot, you'll play great. The conscious mind gets in teh way when you swing, putt, chip, etc., and it makes your shots bad. The unconscious mind is the most efficient and accurate part of our mind. How many of us think about all things our muscles do when we walk? Not many, we simple think, walk, and our brains do it without us being conscious of all the directions our brains are giving. Know things so well that your conscious brain needs to think little, and then get it out of the way, and you won't choke.

And as far as dying, as OBG and benjammin we speaking, I want to go out in a horrific pitch pole of a sailboat that sends me flying and hurts no one else, when I am about 90.