COMMON CLIMBER
  • Editions
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        • Anthology 2020 Sponsors
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  • Themed Editions
    • Adaptive Climbing Edition >
      • Adaptive Climbing Photo Feature: Paradox Sports
      • Climbing with Type 1 Diabetes
      • Advocating for Deaf Climbers: Sonya Wilson
      • Amputations: Leg Prosthesis for Climbing
      • Blind Ambition Builds a World Class Climber: The Story of Jesse Dufton
      • First Paralyzed Ascents: Rand Abbott
      • Mixed Climbing: My Answer to KT Syndrome
      • Paraclimbing Competitions: Althlete Interviews
      • Rock!
      • The Unreasonable Man
    • Belaytionships Edition >
      • Featured Photographer: Charlie OlGrady-Kessner
      • Belaytionships: Maggie and Charlie Odette
      • Zac the Interloper
      • Book Review: Uncoiling the Ropes
      • Belaytionships: Drew-and-Sarah
      • This page has been removed
      • I Am My Father's Son: Layton Bridwell
    • Big Wall Edition >
      • Book Review: Paul Preuss: Lord of the Abyss
      • Featured Photographer: Matt Spohn
      • Grading Commitment
      • Hanging with the Monkeys, and Getting the Monkey Off My Back
      • It Was His Time: Brad Gobright Interview May 2019
      • John Middendorf : A Big Man for a Big Stone
      • Sébastien Berthe Free Climbs the Nose From the Ground Up
      • Shit Happens – Or, Why You Need a Walkie Talkie
    • Developers and Guidebook Authors >
      • Developer - Mitch Lehman
      • Andrew Penny - A Blue Mountaineer
      • Kevin Powell
      • Rock Star Groupie
      • Tony Calderone
    • Exploring Our World >
      • AUSTRALIA - Photographer - Diego Perez
      • AUSTRALIA - Profile - Julie Anderson
      • Book Review - Climbing Rock
      • CHINA - From Yangshuo, to Getu, to Liming
      • FRANCE - Verdon in Winter
      • GREECE - Meteora
      • ITALY - Dolomites
      • MEXICO - La Huasteca
      • SPAIN - Artist - Karmelo Onate
      • UTAH - Maple Canyon: This One Makes You Taller
    • Firsts... and Last >
      • A Tale of Oso Madre
      • Clayton Herrmann - Featured Photographer
      • Rysavy Ridge >
        • The Migrant Pom on Rysavy Ridge
        • Throng of Roland
        • Fast Forward - Rysavy Ridge Revisited
      • The Three Sisters
    • Honoring Diversity >
      • ARTIST: Shawn Lee
      • A Shift on Moonlight Buttress
      • Claiming a Space on the Mountain
      • Colorblind
      • Feature Photographer: Bryan Sillorequez
      • Is Diversity in America Diverse?
      • MOVIE: People of Climbing:
      • Profile - Favia Dubyk
      • The Lineage
    • Joshua Tree >
      • Bouldering: JTree Made Me Do It
      • Improv at JTree: Bad Bolts
      • JTree: Bolting Pressure Cooker
      • Joshua Tree: Heinous Approaches
    • Overcoming Adversity >
      • Acopa Outdoors
      • Anoushe Husain
      • Expanding the Circle
      • Failure is Part of the Price: Rand Abbott Attempts the First Adaptive Lead Ascent of The Nose
      • Overcoming a Brain Tumor: WeighMyRack Founder Interview: Alison Dennis
      • Rising
      • The Mountain Path Book Review
    • Overcoming Boundaries >
      • Photographer - Brook Anderson
      • Profile - Louise Shepherd
      • Profile - Megan Banker
      • Profile - Shawn Axelrod
      • Rock Type 1
      • The Tape Job
    • Women's Edition >
      • Editorial - Women's Edition
      • Climbing is My Art
      • Mt. Logan Solo
      • Photographer - Michelle Ranee Johnson
      • Profile - Caitlin Schokker
  • Writing
    • All Writings (List)
    • Topics >
      • Adaptive Climbing >
        • Adaptive Climbing Edition
        • El Capitan: Enock Glidden
        • Failure is Part of the Price: Rand Abbott Attempts the First Adaptive Lead Ascent of The Nose
        • Quinn Brett Interview
        • My Journey to Adaptive Rock Climbing
        • Planning for Mt. Rainier: Adaptive Climbing
        • Resources - Adaptive Climbing
        • Single Pitch Instructor Adaptive: It's About Climbing Independence
      • Alpine & Ice >
        • A Chamonix Initiation
        • California Still Has Untouched Climbing Wilderness
        • Elusive Ice - A Rare Tasmanian Treat
        • Ice Solo
        • Mt. Ogden Spanking
        • Mt. Whitney Whipping
        • My Common Alpine Epic
        • The Dru Derby >
          • Horses for Courses - The Dru Derby 1971
          • My Dru Derby
          • The North Face of the Dru - Chris Baxter
        • Vertical Ice Climbing in Ontario, Canada, eh?
      • Profiles >
        • Climberisms by Dylan Taylor
        • A - Shawn Axelrod - Overcoming Boundaries
        • B - Megan Banker - Plus-Sized Climbing Advocate
        • B - Wendy Bruere - More Than It Hurts
        • D - Favia Dubyk - American Ninja Warrior
        • F - Debbie Fowler - A N00bie Climber's Story
        • E - Ian Elliot - It's All Up From Here
        • H - Lindsey Hamm - The Hamminator
        • H - Sabine Pratt Hunziker - Little Red Riding Hood
        • M - Marisa Michael - Nutrition for Climbers
        • M - Josie McKee: Training the Mind for Joy
        • P - Dave Parry - Author Grit Blocs
        • S - Caitlin Schokker
        • S - Louise Shepherd - Aussie Legend
        • T - Mia Tucholke - IFMGA Mountain Guide
      • Comics >
        • Master and his Apprentice
        • Totem Pole 2082
      • CoVID and Climbing >
        • COVID Climbing Memes
        • CoVID-19 Remakes Our Lives
        • Dear Memory
        • From Couch to Lifting Couches
        • How to Climb and Avoid the Corona Virus
        • Train the Mind: Mental Toughness Tips for Quaratraining
        • The 5.10 Commandments
        • Trying to Send this Route
      • Equipment (writings) >
        • Aliens!
        • A Rack Retrospective
        • Cam Ranges (+ Big Bros)
        • Carabiner Strength Ratings
        • Climbing Shoes Fit
        • Guide Book Follies
        • Rope Buying 101
        • Shit Happens – Or, Why You Need a Walkie Talkie
        • The One Item to Stockpile
        • Which Way Should I Carry My Trad Rack?
        • Why GriGris Suck
        • 8 Reasons I Carry a Full Rack on Every Trad Climb
      • Facebook Feature >
        • FF: Big Walls
        • FF: Butt Shots
        • FF: Exploring Our World
        • FF: Overcoming Boundaries
        • FF: Trees & Climbing
        • FF: Welcome New Climbers
      • Fiction >
        • GOD
        • Red Curtain: Prologue & Chapter 1 Excerpt
      • Gift Ideas >
        • Climbing Goods
        • Climbing Stocking Stuffers 2021
        • Rock Stack Card Game
        • Safety Gifts 2021
      • Grades, Styles, & Types >
        • Absolutely Hypothetical: Introducing the Graham Scale
        • Bouldering-Falling
        • Bouldering Grade Advancements
        • Grading Climbs at the Gym
        • It's a F-ing Chimney
        • Onsight vs Flash vs Etc...
        • Top 10: Increase the Climbing Grade When...
        • Trad Climbing is for Chicken Sh*#s
        • WTF 5.7?
        • 18 Climber Types: Which Are You?
      • Kids >
        • Family Stages
        • The Guidebook
      • Legends & Tributes >
        • B - John Brailsford Tribute - The Immaculate MOAC
        • A - Bryden Allen
        • B - Joe Brown
        • C - Cutcliffe - The Boy from Bothwell – A Tribute to Max Cutcliffe, an Australian Legend
        • G - Brad Gobright
        • G - Todd Gordon
        • H - Hugh Herr
        • H - Thomas Huber - In Another World - A Personal Climbing Journey
        • J - Saxon Johns
        • M - Tim Macartney-Snape: ​A Legend from Sea to Summit
        • M - John Middendorf
        • S- Paul Seddon - From a Nut to a Harness: A Tribute to Paul Seddon, The Third Troll
        • R - Early to Rock: David Roots
      • Mental-Physical >
        • Climbing Training Series >
          • Climbing Warm-Up: Shoulders & Fingers
          • Improving Hip Mobility
          • Rock Climber Mobility
          • Train the Mind: Mental Toughness Tips for Quaratraining
        • Climbing Through Life
        • A Climb Worth Fighting For
        • Achilles
        • Encouraging Words - At Any Age
        • Everyone Around Me Is Better Than I Am
        • Falling Far Enough
        • Fear, Pride, and Exploration
        • How Auto-Immune Disease Affected My Climbing
        • Lessons from a 30-foot Ground Fall
        • Mastering Joy on Easy Street
        • Mind, Body, and Soul
        • My Demon Has a Name
        • New Year's Resolutions
        • Of Cartoons and Quickdraws
        • Psychological First Aid
        • Push and Pull
        • Sorcerer and the Kidney Stone
        • Take Risks - You'll Remember Them Later
        • The Art of Climbing Without Rock
        • The Devil's Game
        • The Eye
        • The Taste of Climbing
        • 12-Weeks to Onsighting a 5.8
      • Other/Misc >
        • A Day Out With Barnsey
        • A Leap into the Blue Back in the Day
        • Animal Acts Part 1: Things with Wings
        • Animal Acts 2: Things That Slither, Crawl, and Walk
        • Assault on Schurman Rock
        • Christo's Little Bay Rhapsody
        • Climbing, Community, and the U.S. Presidential Election
        • Climbing Drinking Games
        • Climbing Gyms: The Gateway Drug
        • Climbing Hands
        • Climbing in the Bare Essentials
        • Climbing Resolutions
        • Dirtbag Trucker
        • Demented Dirtbag
        • Don't Take Granite for Granite
        • Dorothy, We Aren't on Havana Anymore
        • Guatemalan Worry Dolls Go Climbing
        • GymRhino
        • No Health Insurance Changed How I Climb
        • Snakes and Ladders
        • Starting Over
        • Summit Fever
        • Sydney: Growing Up
        • The Adventure of A Lifetime - So Far
        • The Bane of Northwest Climbing
        • The Hangglider Incident
        • The Pink Tricam
        • Things of Stone and Wood
        • We Were Just Boys
        • Zac the Interloper
      • Places & Climbs >
        • Climbs >
          • Consolation Prize
          • Echo Crack and Cracked Egos
          • Email From Italy
          • Flakes and Shakes: Flake Crack Revisited
          • From Yorkshire to Eternity
          • I Like Fake Cracks (And I Cannot Lie)
          • Lost Boys Meets Hard Boys >
            • The Lost Boys: The Epic First Ascent of Mount Warning's Wollumbin Shield
          • Ozymandias Direct - Fifty Years of Fun and Games
          • The Fourth Bolt of Texas Radio
          • The Matterhorn
          • Thumbing The Nose at Mr. CF Jingus
          • Tiptoeing Through Some Bungles
          • Tombstone Territory
          • Yosemite - What We Came For
        • Location Reviews
        • My Home Crag >
          • Climbing in the Upper Cumberland Valley, Kentucky
          • Copen Hill Climbing Wall
          • Drytooling in the Rain - Wayne's World, WA
          • My Home Crag: Nowra, NSW, Australia
          • New River Gorge, West Virgina
          • The Kenyan Climber
        • Travel Stories >
          • Blue Mountains - Bliss: Climbing in the Blueys
          • Buenos Aires, Argentina Crag
          • Colorado - Calling Pat Ament
          • Coolum Cave - Sendfest 8
          • Desert Special Forces Adventures: Part 1
          • Ecuador - A Nation of Four Worlds
          • Egypt: The Sinai Sampler
          • El Potrero Chico - Riding the Dirty Dog
          • Yosemite: Growing Up
          • Lover's Leap - Zone of Craptitude
          • Moonarie
          • Rio de Janeiro - Classic Climbs Sampler
          • Sintra, Portugal
          • Taghia, Morocco - Hardly Failing
          • Tasmania - Legend of the ‘Unclimbable Cliff’
          • Thailand - Lost and Found: A Mini-Epic in Paradise
          • Vedauwoo, WY
          • What Two Friends Uncovered in Verdon
          • Yosemite - What We Came For
          • 20 World Destinations for Adventurous Climbing
      • Poetry/Prose >
        • A Bard of Yosemite
        • Anti-Social Climbers
        • Sojourn at Dyuritte
        • Finding Poetry
        • Ice is Nice
        • The Space Between
      • Safety and Skills >
        • Bolting and Ground-Fall Potential
        • Euro-Death Knot is NOT
        • Multi-Pitch Tips: Two ATCs
        • Sketchy Anchor Bolts
        • Sliding-X Anchor
        • Three Ways to Use a Stick Clip
        • Top 10: Climbing Best Practices
      • Social, Social Media, & Social Issues >
        • A Delicate Balance - Gariwerd
        • Chossy Trio Renegades
        • Climbing into the Fold
        • Diversity in Climbing is Not a Bandwagon
        • Don't Burn Out
        • From Gortex to Camouflage: The story of climber, Irina Galay and climbing’s responses to the war in Ukraine
        • Fuck "Gumbies" and "Noobs"
        • I Am a Woman: Brie Chartier Shares Her Transition Journey
        • Montana, My Home: Claire Larson
        • My Husband Climbs Stronger than Me
        • Navajo Rising
        • Social Network Rescue
        • Social Pressure, Climbing, and Leave No Trace
        • The Alps Will Have to Wait
        • The First Climbing Gym Union?
  • Marketplace
    • Acopa Outdoors
    • Butora
    • Climbing Addicts Colored Chalk
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    • Elira - No Need to Strip, Just Unzip
    • FIXEhardware
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    • Mystery Ranch
    • Neilico
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    • Tension Climbing
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  • Reviews
    • Book Reviews >
      • Advanced Rock Climbing Book Review
      • Adventures at the Edge of the World
      • Climbing Glass Book Review
      • Climbing Rock: Vertical Explorations Across North America
      • Hangdog Days Book Review
      • HOOKING UP: The Ultimate Big Wall and Aid Climbing Manual
      • Paul Preuss: Lord of the Abyss
      • Red Curtain - Book Review
      • Sydney Climbing - Book Review
      • The Greater Fool - Brad Gobright and the Blinding Shine of Originality
      • The Mountain Path Book Review
      • The Sharp End of Life: A Mother's Story - Book Review
      • Uncoiling the Ropes
      • Valley of Giants
      • Yosemite Bigwalls: The Ultimate Guide Review
    • Equipment/Gear Reviews >
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        • Edelrid Mega Jul
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        • ArcTeryx-FL-365
        • Misty Mountain Cadillac
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        • Sukoa Chalk Bag Review
        • Trango Crag Pack
      • Personal Anchor Systems >
        • Camp-Daisy-Twist
        • Petzl-Dual-Adjust
      • Other Gear Reviews >
        • D4 Delta2P Portaledge
        • Skyhook Stick Clip Review
    • Location Reviews >
      • Australia >
        • Queensland, Australia >
          • Kangaroo Point Photos and Beta
          • Kangaroo Point Review
        • New South Wales Australia >
          • Blue Mountains >
            • Blue Mountains Photos and Beta
            • Blue Mountains Review
          • Nowra >
            • Nowra Review >
              • Nowra Photos and Beta
      • Mexico >
        • Potrero Chico Photos and Beta
        • Potrero Chico Review
      • United States >
        • Climbing Area Check List - U.S. >
          • Climbing Area Check List Part 1: Alabama to California
          • Climbing Area Checklist Part 2: Colorado to Michigan
          • Climbing Area Checklist Part 3: Minnesota to New Mexico
          • Climbing Area Checklist Part 4: New York to Wyoming
        • Arizona >
          • Queen Creek Canyon
        • California >
          • Joshua Tree >
            • Joshua Tree Tips
          • Mount Whitney >
            • Mount Whitney Photos and Beta
        • Idaho
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          • Smith Rock >
            • Smith Rock - Photos and Beta
            • Smith Rock Review
          • Spring Mountain >
            • Spring Mountain Review
            • Spring Mountain - Photos and Beta
          • Trout Creek >
            • Trout Creek Photos and Beta
            • Trout Creek Review
        • Nevada >
          • Gun Club
          • Keyhole Canyon
          • Mt. Charleston, Nevada
          • Red Rock Canyon >
            • Red Rock Canyon Review - Yeahs and Neahs
            • Red Rock Canyon Photos and Beta
        • New Hampshire >
          • North Conway, NH
          • Rumney, NH
        • New York >
          • Gunks Review
        • Utah >
          • Echo Canyon
          • Ferguson Canyon >
            • Ferguson Canyon Photos and Beta
            • Ferguson Canyon Review
          • Ibex >
            • Ibex Photos and Beta
            • Ibex Review
          • Maple Canyon >
            • Maple Canyon, Utah Photos and Beta
            • Maple Canyon Review
          • Moab >
            • Moab - Main - Photos and Beta
            • Moab -Main - Review
          • St. George >
            • St. George - Prophesy Wall- Photos and Beta
            • St. George - Prophesy Wall - Review
        • West Virginia >
          • Seneca Rocks
        • Wyoming >
          • Ten Sleep
  • Photographers & Artists
    • A-F - Photographers and Artists >
      • A- Brook Anderson
      • B - Florian Beyer
      • B - Michael Blowers
      • B - Phillip Booth
      • B - Guillaume Borga
      • B - Michaël Bortoluzzi
      • B - Michael Bretz
      • C - Karen Chan
      • C - Matt Cunningham
      • D - Daga Dygas
      • F - Eric Fallecker
    • G-N - Photographers and Artists >
      • G - Katherine González
      • G - Max Gordon
      • H - Clayton Herrmann
      • J - Michelle Ranee Johnson
      • K - Jethro Kiernan
      • K - Christine Kuebler
      • L - Shawn Lee Illustrator
      • L - LieseLotte P
      • L - Jim Lin
      • M - Lindsey Mathewson
      • M - Alex Messenger
      • N - Tiffany Nardico
    • O-Z- Photographers and Artists >
      • O - Charlie OlGrady-Kessner
      • O - Karmelo Onate
      • O - Camila Ospina
      • P - Diego Perez
      • S - Charlie S.
      • S - Xavi Sanchez - Climbing Comic
      • S - Helmut Schulze
      • S - Bryan Sillorequez
      • S - Stephen Smithburger
      • S - Matt Spohn
      • V - Laura Vallo
      • W - Joel Wilson
      • Z - Eson Zhao
  • JOIN!
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  • About Common Climber
    • Why I Started Common Climber
    • Advisory Board
    • Welcome Dave Barnes!
  • Authors
    • A-F >
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      • B - Alex Barlow
      • B - Dave Barnes >
        • Dave Barnes Extended Bio
      • B - Austin Beck-Doss
      • B - Keith Bell
      • B - Brianna Boney
      • C - Massimo Cappuccio
      • C - Carrot
      • C - Radek Chalupa
      • C - Lyle Closs
      • C - Erin Collins
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      • D - Stefani Dawn
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      • D - Nick Ducker
      • F - Tony Ferrar
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      • H - Grey Hensley
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      • H - Michael Hjorth
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      • L - Kaybe Loughran
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      • M - Tony McKenny
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      • M - Rick Momsen
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      • O - Maggie Odette
    • P-Z >
      • P - Emilie Pellerin
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      • R - Monique Richard
      • R - Juan Rodriguez
      • S - Lor Sabourin
      • S - Jess Sanson
      • S - Jeff Smoot
      • T- Frothy Thomson
      • T - Wil Treasure
      • T - Matt Tredway
      • T - Natalia (Tal) Tune
      • W - Kirby Walke
      • W - Hugh Ward
      • W - Stuart Williams
      • W - Wayne Willoughby
      • W - Lani Wilson
      • W - Dierdre Wolownick
      • Z - Peter Zabrok
  • Videos
  • Climbing Events 2023

The Unreasonable Man

By Wayne Willoughby
​The reasonable man adapts himself to the world, the unreasonable man persists in trying to adapt the world to himself.  Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man." 

​-- George Bernard Shaw.  
In August of 1953, I contracted Paralytic Polio.  My first surgeries related to the Polio took place before I was two.  Many surgeries followed throughout my childhood, and teen years, and some were more successful than others. 
 
When I was 12 the growth centers were removed from my left leg, which was then three inches longer than the right leg.  The doctor's thinking was my right leg would grow even with the left.  Their calculations were far enough off that my right leg grew 2 inches longer than the left.  So, when I was 19, two and a quarter inches of femur was removed from my right hip, and an 18-inch long rod was inserted through my hip for the next eighteen months.  My first four months of recovery were spent in a body cast, and if my right knee and hip were less than stellar before these procedures, they were far more compromised now. 
 
Another result of all of this, I was further affected by something that I had already been dealing with for the last decade, Post Polio Syndrome [a gradual weakening of the muscles years after the initial attack by the Polio virus, ed.​].  Though I had no idea exactly what Post Polio Syndrome was, I had been living with the devastating effects that is part of being affected by it for at least ten years. It would be another decade plus until I diagnosed myself with this insidious sequalae, and over two more decades before I actually took steps to address it and make the compromises necessary to simply survive.
 
If things had not been difficult enough already, more serious challenges were waiting to test my mettle.  Resolution and fortitude that I had yet to imagine would be needed to deal with the ill effects of cars that ran into me on my bicycle and motorcycles. The Post Polio Syndrome specialist I saw in San Francisco in '91  - who significantly compromised my ability to use my right arm for some time after his 'exam' -  advised me to stop climbing and exercising. He told me that if I did not plant my butt in a power chair to get around, and follow his other less than sage advice, that in a few years my right arm would atrophy down to nothing and be hanging by my side. 

That arm is now stronger than ever-by doing the exact opposite of what he recommended.  

He was not the only physician I have seen who has injured me. Others have made poor decisions on my behalf that have had, and continue to have far reaching long term negative effects. But what has made my life most challenging, has been the many physical assaults that I have endured, and barely survived.  ​
You are five times as likely to be assaulted if you are disabled, compared to someone who is not.  The assault with the most grave consequences transpired a few months after the appointment with the Post Polio specialist.  That one left me barely able to walk for many years, and caused injuries to my back that continue to plague me. 

Through it all, I have carried with me a sense that I could create good things from all of this.  Though my decades on this earth have been filled with what many would see as one excruciatingly difficult tragedy after another -- soul crushing events that would extinguish the brightest light of hope in the most optimistic of individuals -- at my best, I have chosen to see it all through a far more optimistic lens.

Perhaps it is because near constant challenge is all that I have known. Perhaps, it's because my inner life has been a rich one, no matter how difficult the outer life became.  

Pondering it all isn't something that I do very often, as I am usually far too busy attempting to extricate myself from one difficulty after another.  And, there is a certain amount of denial about the difficulties that must be employed to keep defying societal expectations.  It is difficult to keep from falling down that particular rabbit hole if one stands too close to edge and peers into that void for a protracted period of time. ​

Having projects that maximize my potential in areas that I am capable of excelling in is a big part of what makes my life as full and rich as it is. 

As an oil painter, although I must paint with a tiny number one brush as a concession to my atrophied hands and wrists, and many other physical issues, I am painting my best canvases to date, at age 67. 

​And, though I must use jumars to ascend a rope, and other less than conventional techniques that I employ to gain vertical progress, I climbed my 45th big wall in 2018, a straight push of Zodiac on El Capitan in Yosemite.  ​

​It was my 25th ascent of El Capitan, and half of those ascents have taken place in under 24 hours.  


I have climbed El Cap in every season, and am only missing Feb, having climbed it the other 11 months of the year.  

I have climbed the big stone in major storms, 107 degree heat, and pleasant conditions as well.  
Picture
"Topping out on my first wall with Larry Zulim," Zodiac September, 1990. Photo Credit: Sheldon Wilcox
Picture
Steve Schneider and the author, Wayne Willoughby, on Lurking Fear, El Capitan, Yosemite. The First adaptive ascent of the route was done by Wayne in October 1994. "Steve led and I cleaned all but the two big traverses." Photo Credit: Chris Falkenstein
 
​From the time that I climbed my first wall, an ascent of Zodiac in 1990, I have understood in no uncertain terms that the magic to be found in the rarefied air high off the deck is something that is far more powerful than the things that get in the way of me being there.

​The limitations imposed by these twisted, atrophied limbs, the constant pain and fatigue, and the mean-spirited, ignorant, ableist behavior of many, are formidable obstacles.  As have been the grave injuries that I had to fight back from, again and again, not just to climb again, but to walk.  And then, only with great difficulty, the assistance of my hiking poles, and braces on my feet, knees and wrists. 
Picture
Lurking Fear, El Capitan, Yosemite, CA, December 2014, 20 hour ascent. Photo Credit: Eric Walden.
Picture
Lurking Fear, El Capitan, Yosemite, CA, 2017. A 16 hour, 43 minute ascent. Photo Credit: Kristoffer Wickstrom.

By following this path, not only is there a hugely positive effect that takes place in my own life with every wall that I climb, but the experience is equally as powerful for many of my partners.  And through that process, close friendships have been formed that have stood the test of time over decades, and continue to.  

All of this makes me an exceptionally lucky person, and that knowledge is something that carries me through the difficult days with far less weight on my shoulders than were this not the case.  If not for the desire to continue to climb, paint and write about my experiences, I cannot imagine how I would have found the strength and firmness of purpose to continue-coming back from one major setback after another, every decade since the early 1950's.  

This eagerness, determination and ambition to continue has been reinforced again and again; by those who have told me that they have been inspired by my story.  As well as by those who find it all amusing, and love to ridicule and persecute myself, as well as others with disabilities.  

Persistence, an unwavering belief in my ability, and the desire to find out what is possible for myself, with no small amount of assistance from the best friends that a man could hope to have, has allowed me to defy conventional beliefs and become not only the first adaptive climber to climb El Capitan in a day, but set speed records for able climbers on El Cap, and other big walls. 

My partners and I hold speed records for routes in:
  • Zion, (Dark Side of the Moon) in 16:40 in 2016 with Kristoffer Wickstrom and Karl Kvashay;
  • On the Chief in British Columbia, Canada (The first one day ascent of the Aid Route on the Sheriff's Badge in 2018 with Kieran Brownie and Luke Cormier); And, 
  • on El Capitan, Yosemite, California (Bad Seed in 19:12 with Hans Florine and the late Brian McCray, 1998). 
Picture
Dark Side of the Moon, Zion National Park, Utah, 2016. We set the record on this ascent - 16 hours, 40 minutes.
Picture
Dark Side of the Moon, Zion National Park, Utah, 2016.


​All of these events  only transpired because I believed that accomplishing them was possible, good things could come from having done them, and my partners belief in me and what we were doing.  
 
Though I did manage to climb 4 walls in 2018; it was with my vertebral column very much out of place, and a still healing badly sprained wrist from 2017, which was re-injured in early 2018.  It's weakened state forced me to do all of my ascents that year using mostly one hand and arm and one leg.  And I thought that the approaches, climbs and descents had been difficult with two hands!!  

New injuries in 2019 sent me down a rabbit hole the likes of which I had never seen.  The Post Polio Syndrome that I have dealt with for nearly six decades exploded in ferocity.  Climbing walls was no longer the biggest challenge in my life, surviving each day was.  ​
Picture
Grand Wall, The Chief, Squamish, British Columbia, with Brad Ward. 2011. Photo Credit: Will Stanhope
         
I have never thought of myself as someone who gives up easily. Perseverance and determination have served me well in the past, and they continue to. 
 
As I gradually regained my health, physicality and enthusiasm, I began connecting with friends and making plans for future ascents.

​It took me all of a week to schedule an ascent in the Black Canyon, two ascents of the Chief, and to make plans for not only another El Capitan ascent, but one that would be part of a film I am putting together.  
Picture
Wayne Willoughby and Dave Chewy on Astrodog in the Black Canyon, Colorado, 2016. Photo Credit: Timmy O Neil
Picture
Dave Chewy, Tim O Neil, and the author pulling over the ledge, on Astrodog, Black Canyon, Colorado. Photo Credit: Jack Plantz

Though I was never going to be able to turn back the hands of time and boulder and free climb as I had for a great many years, I would be able to jumar my way up more than a few more walls if I could continue to find dramatic healing, yet again.  The calamitous issues related to my legions of injuries, catching myself as I hit the ground with no small amount of force after having fallen, literally many thousands of times, and the deleterious effects of Post Polio Syndrome, have left my wrists much the worse for wear. Wearing braces on both writsts is essential for protecting them, which not only does not lend itself to free climbing very effectively, additionally it is not a recipe for climbing longevity.

Nor is taking leader falls, or even shorter falls aid climbing, which can have a devastating effect on my knees, ankles and my back. 

I cleaned all but the two traversing pitches on a 1994 ascent of Lurking Fear on El Cap without any issues; until we topped out and I could barely move my right leg.  The result of carrying the rack, all of the shenanigans I was required to do, getting the haul bags unstuck, etc., and overusing the atrophied muscles to such a degree that they needed several days to even begin to recover. 

I knew that I would have to add a lot more muscle to that leg, and to the rest of my body, before I could manage cleaning again, and was I right. By dedicating myself to a rigorous training schedule I managed to make enough progress to clean every pitch on an '07 ascent of Pervertical Sanctuary on the Diamond in RMNP, with my friend Michael Haag.

I had hoped for more of the same, however, the following year I was hit by another car while riding my motorcycle.  The most disastrous of the injuries were to my right foot and knee, which were left much the worse for wear and left me unable to effectively weight that leg any longer, or stem.  Not only was leading anything but very easy pitches behind me, but now, so was cleaning.  

 
Picture
Wayne Willoughby (the author), Brandon Adams, and Kristoffer Wickstrom on a 17 hour 15 minute, one day ascent of The Shortest Straw, El Capitan, Yosemite, California. 2017. Photo Credit: Tom Evans


Constant adaptation has been a recurring theme throughout my life.  

​I began climbing in '77 needing only a pair of shorts, a chalk bag, a swami belt, and a rope. I now use both sit and chest harnesses, with my lower jumar clipped between the two, skateboard knee and elbow pads, with another pad to protect my right hip.  I always wear a helmet additionally, because the last thing that I need is a brain injury! 

I use a speed stirrup for my left foot clipped to my top jumar, a daisy chain girth hitched to my sit harness, also clipped to the top jug, with my right leg hanging below me, unless I am able to lean on my right knee pad when the angle of the rock is suitable.

I  have climbed Zodiac on El Cap eight times so far, and on each of those ascents I mantled over the top.  I often use free climbing tricks to manage my position and gain vertical progress when not jumaring free hanging pitches.  On one ascent of the Chief I did free moves all of the way up a 5.8 pitch moving my jumars up as I went. 

Picture
The Chief, University Wall, Squamish, British Columbia, Jon Rigg, Chris Trull, and Wayne Willoughby. 2018
Picture
Rappelling in the dark with Chris Trull. University Wall, The Chief, Squamish, British Columbia. 2018. Photo Credit: Jon Rigg,

The Chief presents many objective hazards not found on many other walls.  

​I once had to jumar sideways and up for about thirty feet to avoid being lowered into the small forest on a ledge just below.  On another my partner let go of the rope as I was being lowered.  I went flying into the top section of a rather large evergreen, only to be catapulted into the granite to the side with no small amount of force.

The worst example of being let go on a lower out was on the far SE face of El Cap. My partner, sure that he could lower me out hand over hand, realized, (after me imploring him to put me in his belay device before I left the anchor), that he could not, and I fell over 40 feet, on an 11 mil static line, which is more like a cable than a rope.  Luckily it was a steep pitch and there was only air below me, had there been a ledge, or even an outcropping of rock the results would have been far more catastrophic than the injuries to my back that I incurred.

 
Every adaptive climber has their own ambitions and methods for gaining vertical progress. 

​What we all share, is what all climbers share:  A love of adventure; The satisfaction that comes from realizing hard fought for goals; Camaraderie and friendship; Being outdoors and in awe of your surroundings; Challenging oneself and finding out what you are capable of; And, developing a better idea of just who you are, from having been involved in that process. In other words, exploring some of the best aspects of being an "unreasonable human".      
​​

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  • Editions
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      • Adaptive Climbing >
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        • Quinn Brett Interview
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        • A - Shawn Axelrod - Overcoming Boundaries
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        • D - Favia Dubyk - American Ninja Warrior
        • F - Debbie Fowler - A N00bie Climber's Story
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        • B - John Brailsford Tribute - The Immaculate MOAC
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      • Mental-Physical >
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        • Climbing Through Life
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        • Of Cartoons and Quickdraws
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        • Dorothy, We Aren't on Havana Anymore
        • Guatemalan Worry Dolls Go Climbing
        • GymRhino
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        • Summit Fever
        • Sydney: Growing Up
        • The Adventure of A Lifetime - So Far
        • The Bane of Northwest Climbing
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        • Things of Stone and Wood
        • We Were Just Boys
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          • Lost Boys Meets Hard Boys >
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          • Ozymandias Direct - Fifty Years of Fun and Games
          • The Fourth Bolt of Texas Radio
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          • Yosemite - What We Came For
        • Location Reviews
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          • Copen Hill Climbing Wall
          • Drytooling in the Rain - Wayne's World, WA
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          • Desert Special Forces Adventures: Part 1
          • Ecuador - A Nation of Four Worlds
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          • Moonarie
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          • Tasmania - Legend of the ‘Unclimbable Cliff’
          • Thailand - Lost and Found: A Mini-Epic in Paradise
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        • Euro-Death Knot is NOT
        • Multi-Pitch Tips: Two ATCs
        • Sketchy Anchor Bolts
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        • Three Ways to Use a Stick Clip
        • Top 10: Climbing Best Practices
      • Social, Social Media, & Social Issues >
        • A Delicate Balance - Gariwerd
        • Chossy Trio Renegades
        • Climbing into the Fold
        • Diversity in Climbing is Not a Bandwagon
        • Don't Burn Out
        • From Gortex to Camouflage: The story of climber, Irina Galay and climbing’s responses to the war in Ukraine
        • Fuck "Gumbies" and "Noobs"
        • I Am a Woman: Brie Chartier Shares Her Transition Journey
        • Montana, My Home: Claire Larson
        • My Husband Climbs Stronger than Me
        • Navajo Rising
        • Social Network Rescue
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        • The Alps Will Have to Wait
        • The First Climbing Gym Union?
  • Marketplace
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  • Reviews
    • Book Reviews >
      • Advanced Rock Climbing Book Review
      • Adventures at the Edge of the World
      • Climbing Glass Book Review
      • Climbing Rock: Vertical Explorations Across North America
      • Hangdog Days Book Review
      • HOOKING UP: The Ultimate Big Wall and Aid Climbing Manual
      • Paul Preuss: Lord of the Abyss
      • Red Curtain - Book Review
      • Sydney Climbing - Book Review
      • The Greater Fool - Brad Gobright and the Blinding Shine of Originality
      • The Mountain Path Book Review
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      • Uncoiling the Ropes
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              • Nowra Photos and Beta
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      • United States >
        • Climbing Area Check List - U.S. >
          • Climbing Area Check List Part 1: Alabama to California
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        • Arizona >
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  • Photographers & Artists
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      • O - Charlie OlGrady-Kessner
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      • S - Helmut Schulze
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