Cerebral Palsy Will Not Stop Steve Wampler from Climbing El Capitan
May 1, 2010 by Luc
Filed under Blog Posts
Have you heard about Steve Wampler? In September, he plans to become the first person with cerebral palsy to climb Yosemite’s El Capitan, a vertical granite rock twice the height of the Empire State Building. Because of Steve’s condition, he will rely solely on upper body strength to reach the top. The ascent will take six days, with about 20,000 pull downs and the help of two skilled climbers.
Photo Courtesy of Steve Wampler
One of the amazing things about Steve is that he’s climbing for something much greater than personal achievement. He is climbing to raise funds for his wilderness camps for kids with disabilities. He is so inspiring that he’s even gotten the attention of Ellen DeGeneres and Will Ferrell.
To read the whole story behind Steve’s climbing endeavor, his foundation, and an interesting personal anecdote about how he met his wife check out this uplifting article by Jenny Inglee.
I did actually here about Steve Wampler before. I saw a video about him on YouTube a while ago. It shows him training for his El Capitan climb. And wow, did he develop muscles in his arms! He’ll need them because he can’t rely on his legs. Talking about determination! And such a wonderful cause he is raising money for. I’d love to see some of the kids with disabilities that benefit from his foundation have fun in the wilderness. Here is his the link to his YouTube video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btZ_m0lREnc&feature=related