Mark Wellman made his way down the mountain. He had just fi nished climbing the Seven Gables, in California’s Sierra Nevadas. Wellman had been climbing mountains since he was twelve. For him, it was as easy as riding a bike or tossing a ball.
Suddenly, Mark’s foot slipped on some crumbled rocks. He tumbled down the mountain, falling 100 feet. When he landed, he couldn’t move. His back was broken.
On that day in the Sierra Nevadas, Mark Wellman became physically disabled. Aft er the fall, Mark was a paraplegic—he would never be able to use his legs again. Most paraplegics spend their lives in wheelchairs. But Mark was determined to keep climbing mountains and living an active life.¹
Mark had many battles to fi ght before he could return to the mountains. First, he had to fi nd a positive attitude again. Mark’s injuries depressed him. It was hard for a strong, energetic young man to accept the fact that he’d never walk again. Mark also had to learn new ways to climb and do the other sports he loved.
From now on, he’d be able to use the strength only in his arms.
Mark worked hard to get his body in shape. He played tennis while sitting in a wheelchair. He swam for hours in a pool. And he lift ed weights to make his arms even stronger than they were before. Finally, Mark was ready for his fi rst major climb since the accident.²
In 1989, Mark and his new climbing partner, Mike Corbett, set out to climb the face of El Capitan. El Capitan soars almost 3,000 feet above Yosemite National Park. It’s the highest granite rock in the world. El Capitan has a fl at surface, like a wall in a room.
¹ The writer tells me that Mark is active and skilled, and likes the outdoors. I think Mark may be able to stay active, but I think mountain climbing will be very diffi cult for him.
² I made a connection when I read about what Mark had to do to pre-pare himself for climb-ing. I think about how hard it is to do even one chin-up on a bar. I can understand why he had to exercise the way he did.
His arms would have to be very strong to move his body weight around.
No Barriers 77
Mark became the fi rst paraplegic climber to reach the top of El Capitan.
Mark has kept on climbing since he scaled El Capitan.
He’s also become active in other sports. Before his accident, Mark was a downhill skier, and he still loves to speed down the slopes. Now, he also skies cross-country. He took part in the 1992 and 1994 Winter Para-Olympics, an event where paraplegics and other physically challenged athletes from around the world compete for medals.
To make cross-country skiing easier, Mark created new equipment for paraplegics. Paraplegic skiers sit on a small seat attached to one ski. Mark improved this design. In 1993, he took his sit-ski on a 50-mile trek across the Sierra Nevadas, skiing trails 10,000 feet high.
Mark has shown that paraplegics can conquer more than mountains—they can ride the waves, too. Inside a kayak (a kind of canoe), Mark rushes down whitewater rivers. For a more leisurely ride, Mark sometimes takes his kayak to the Pacifi c Ocean. Th ere, he paddles near the whales that play along the California coast.
Aft er Mark Wellman fell that day on the Seven Gables, he could have given up the sports he loves. Instead, he found the inner strength to meet the challenge of his disability. He refused to let his disability become a barrier—something that stopped him from moving forward.
Today, Mark believes people can do anything they want to, if they try hard enough. Mark travels the country, sharing that message with both the physically challenged and the physically able.
Th e wilderness that Mark loves made him a paraplegic.³ But he says it gave him something, too: a life full of challenge and joy. Mark adds, “Everyone faces the world with diff erent abilities and disabilities. But everyone has at least one goal in common—
to break through their own barriers.”
³ The author says that the wilderness was the cause of Mark’s disability. I’m not sure I agree with that.
Genre Study the selection in order to sum up an impor-tant message: that all people can achieve their goals if they are determined enough.
After Reading
Take Notes: Have students discuss how the author describes the ways that Mark broke through barriers. How does the author feel about Mark’s achievements?
Use Copying Master number 2 to prompt students to relate their feelings and attitudes to those of Mark Wellman.
Cultural Perspective
In 1984, Neroli Fairhall of New Zealand became the fi rst paraplegic athlete to compete in the Olympics. The competitive archer took up the sport after a motorcycle accident.
“I made a connection
when . . .”
Think and Respond
1. Mark says his disability has given him a life full of challenges and joy. How can challenges bring joy to your life? Possible responses: If I meet a challenge, I am proud of myself. It makes me happy to reach diffi cult goals. Analytical
2. The writer goes into great detail in his description of El Capitan. Why is it important for readers to know what this rock face is like? Possible responses:
It shows how diffi cult El Capitan would be for anyone to climb and helps you appreciate Mark’s achievement all the more. Genre
3. What do you think the author wants us to learn about ability and disability?
Accept reasonable responses. Possible responses: Everyone faces the world with diff erent abilities and disabilities. People can use their abilities to break through many barriers, even the barrier of disability. Author’s Purpose
No Barriers 79
Before Reading
Genre: Explain that a poem can give us a whole new understanding of familiar places. This poem uses rhythm to evoke the sound of the sea and its animals. Point out that the poet also uses assonance and consonance, or the repetition of consonant and vowel sounds.
Expand Vocabulary: Before reading the poem aloud, review the following words with students:
harbour: a body of water near a coast in which ships can anchor limpets: marine animals that have shells and cling to rocks pier: a platform built on stilts that juts out into the water murmur: to make a low or whispering noise
gossiping: chatting about everyday events
Set a Purpose for Reading: For the fi rst reading, ask students to listen for assonance, consonance, and rhyme in the poem.
During Reading
For the fi rst reading, use an expressive tone to emphasize the assonance and consonance in the poem. As you read, pause for punctuation to show how the poem imitates the ebb and fl ow of the tide. In subsequent readings, pause to discuss the Think Aloud and genre note.