Man with no legs reaches the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro
Jun-20-2012

West woke up at 4:30 a.m. Monday to begin climbing toward the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro. He moved steadily, but slowly, hand over hand along the rocky path. Near exhaustion, he reached the top at 11:15 a.m. and collapsed.
Unlike other mountains that must be climbed, such as the deadly Mt. Everest, the 5,895-metre-high Tanzanian mountain can be hiked. And, unlike other hikers, West reached the summit without legs.
"It was bittersweet and incredible to finally make it after all the hardships we went through to get there," said West, 31, on a satellite phone from Kibo Hut, about 1,000 metres from the summit. "I would say it was humbling, beautifully overwhelming."
The trek took seven days, taking the Toronto-based West and his best friends, David Johnson and Alex Meers, through various microclimates that included jungles, snowfields and a desolate stretch known as the lunar desert.
West said he was on his hands for about 80 per cent of the trek, leaving them beat up, despite a pair of gloves.
When the terrain allowed, West hopped in his custom-made wheelchair. When desperate, he hopped on the back of porters. The team consisted of 50 people, many of them porters, plus Paul DeAngelis, who owns Mountain Climbing Adventures in Oakville, and two videographers documenting the trip.
West was born with sacral agenesis, a birth defect that left his lower spine poorly developed and his legs permanently crossed, as if he was seated. Doctors recommended amputation, and took off his legs at the knees when he was only three years old. He needed further surgery at five, which is when his legs were amputated below his pelvis.
"Doctors told us when he was a baby that he would never do much with his life," said his mother, Tonette, from Wyoming, where West grew up. "They said he should stick to activities like reading and writing."
But West's parents didn't let that sort of talk filter down to their boy. That, coupled with a strong stubborn streak he inherited from his father, allowed him to flourish. He moves his two-foot-seven body with ease, using his hands as feet.
He and his friends trained with a personal trainer for a year, climbing hills around Toronto and working on strength and core conditioning at the YMCA.
There were two reasons for the trip: One, to inspire others to achieve the impossible, a campaign called Redefine Possible; two, he is trying to raise $750,000 - he's raised $500,000 already - to build a clean water program for nearly 20,000 Kenyans with Free the Children.

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