By Joshua Gruener
I went to see a talk by climber Maureen Beck at EVO Rock + Fitness in March of 2019. I first learned about Mo Beck through Reel Rock 12 in 2017 and I’ve been amazed ever since. Her talk at EVO was on a climbing expedition that she was invited on by Jim Ewing, a fairly recent amputee of an unfortunate climbing accident and Senior Engineer at Sterling Rope, to climb the Lotus Flower Tower in Cirque of the Unclimbables in Canada.
She recounted the experience in detail including how the cracks on the second half of the Tower were too thin to get her residual limb into, which would have required her to do no-hands gear placement. This was compounded by the fact that Ewing had begun suffering a severe complication due to his prosthesis rubbing.
Through determination and trust in each other they were able to successfully and safely complete their objective.
The lack of climbing protection for adaptive climbers struck me as a glaring issue with the current state of rock climbing, and inspired be to begin designing cams that was specifically for one-handed climbers. After a few days of researching protection available to handicapped climbers, I found they were either non-existent or limited to lower-extremity amputees. I had an epiphanic dream and I started my Masters Program to fill this need.
I have spoken with both Mo and Jim about this project and both believe there could be a place for it. As of today, I’m talking regularly with Mo to gain her insight on what needs to be taken into consideration for the comfort of the climber without compromising safety. My discussions with Jim revealed his thoughts on the matter: “…the lack of adequate adaptive equipment for amputees is pretty sad, never mind stuff advanced enough to be useful in the mountains.”
Joshua Gruener 