The Story Behind the First All-Disabled Ascent of El Capitan

Rating ****

“Hey Pete! Can you hand me my leg?” These are the first words I heard when watching a clip from the film “The Gimp Monkeys”. This article was based on a film about three climbers who happen to be minus a few limbs, and their route up Yosemite’s El Capitan rock wall. Craig DeMartino lost his right leg after a climbing fall, Jarem Frye had his leg amputated after a battle with bone cancer and finally Pete Davis was born without a right arm. The three met six years ago at the X Games for amputees and they began planning a climbing trip up the most famous piece of granite in the world. They attempted the climb in 2011 but due to Jarem Frye’s weight loss, his leg did not fit properly and it fell off during the climb. They abandoned the idea and attempted the “zodiac” route again this year with success.

This was an enriching article as it was all about ditching day-to-day excuses, and making personal goals a priority. I was inspired by the idea that my performance is all based on what I perceive as hard. These three disabled climbers seem to think missing limbs is a minor inconvenience, whereas a small injury may sometimes discourage me from completing a goal. “The right attitude and one arm will beat the wrong attitude and two arms every time.” –Pete Davis

 “The Gimp Monkeys” won the Exceptional Athlete Award at the Adventure Film Festival this month. I recommend watching the Gimp Monkey Film Clip attached to the article at the link below.

Leonard, Brendan. "The Story Behind the First All-Disabled Ascent of El Cap." Adventure Journal. N.p., 24 Oct. 2012. Web. 25 Oct. 2012. http://www.adventure-journal.com/2012/10/the-story-behind-the-first-all-disabled-ascent-of-el-cap/