from Total Access, Winter 2004

The Chief is composed of several sections, the centrepiece of which is the nearly vertical Grand Wall. On July 11th, 2003, 27-year-old Brad Zdanivsky, along with fellow climbers Mark Ballard, Chris Geisler and Hobey Walker, scaled the Grand Wall. Of course, many climbers have scaled the Grand Wall. But none have been quadriplegics relying only on biceps and shoulder muscles.

For Brad, a 27-year-old with incomplete quadriplegia, reaching the top of the Grand Wall was the result of years of preparation—developing equipment, practicing technique, persevering.

“It was more anti-climatic than you might think,” he says. “Each year was a new high point and testing for the next coming summer. So, after a long, uncomfortable day climbing, I wasn’t cheering or worked up, but more reflective and relieved to be going back down. But, in the pub after the carry out…then I had a big grin, and the accomplishment joy set in. Today, it’s still hard to believe we pulled it off--certainly the years of effort paid off.”

Not surprisingly, Brad has always been a climber. As a kid, he’d spend hours scrambling up bigger and bigger boulders and trees, often using yellow nylon rope to scale his conquests. In his teens, he scraped enough money together for a proper rope and gear. He learned rock-craft through sheer enthusiasm, even setting up a modest climbing wall in the crawlspace of his parents’ home so he could train in winter.

By the time Brad completed high school, he’d chalked up a number of challenging climbs across B.C. and into Alberta.

In 1994, just months into the first year of computer science at UNBC in Prince George, Brad’s world changed forever in a car accident.

“I clearly remember lying helplessly against the steering wheel of my wrecked car, sixty metres below the road,” says Brad. “My first thoughts were that I would never climb again.”

As it turned out, Brad’s climbing career was far from over—it was simply put on hold while he struggled through a gruelling eight month rehab at Vancouver General and G.F. Strong Rehabilitation Centre. Despair and self-doubt gradually receded, and shortly after discharge from G.F. Strong, he immersed himself back in his studies.

Not surprisingly, he also began to wonder if there were some way he could get back on a mountain. Some talk with good climbing friends first turned into a small rappel, then snowballed into a much larger adventure.

“No climber wants to simply rappel the big routes,” says Brad. “That's backwards, and not challenging.”

A goal emerged: to finish what Brad and his good friend Mark planned prior to Brad’s injury; to climb the Chief.

But how to do it?

The challenge was daunting, and Brad admits the hurdles initially seemed insurmountable. There were his physical limitations, and health hazards like autonomic dysreflexia to consider—potentially deadly during such a climb. There was also the equipment issue: how does a quadriplegic climb a mountain? Answers were arrived at largely though trial and error, as nobody had ever attempted such an undertaking. Clearly, Brad needed a comfortable harness combined with a counter-weighted haul pulley mechanism which would allow him to contribute to his fellow climbers’ efforts, using the muscles he still controlled.

His first attempt at a rig utilized a parasailing harness, which had several problems—it didn’t provide enough support or protection, and it was far from quick—it would take him about four days to make the climb. So the design was abandoned for a heavier but faster rig, which featured custom seating enclosed in a steel frame, guide wheels, and modified sailing winches and climbing gear. Specialized hand splints were developed for him so that he could operate the rig without injuring his wrists.

Perfecting the equipment—and practicing technique--was a tortuously slow, extremely expensive process. It took six years of fine-tuning to get to the point of being ready to climb the Grand Wall. Even with all that preparation, Brad concedes that the climb didn’t go smoothly.

“Never on these climbs am I comfortable or relaxed, and it's a huge mental effort to keep calm so we can do what we need to do to get up the route,” says Brad, who stays in shape with a stationery handcycle and weights. “A few times I thought we would need to come down early, but I hung on until the end. Last minute changes to the splint and cam system caused problems that went unnoticed until under full weight. So, Chris was having to pull extra hard, and my energies were being wasted when the cam slipped on my end. So, it was not as clean and fast a climb than we are capable of, and we’re hungry to kick ass next summer after fixing these few remaining issues.”

The thing about climbing is that besting one peak only leads you to set your sights ever higher. Such is the case with Brad. Remember that the Grand Wall is just one part of the Squamish Chief. Not surprisingly, he’s determined to climb two ropes higher in 2004. In 2005, he plans to attempt to scale the legendary sheer granite face of El Capitan, in California’s Yosemite National Park.

“Each year feels like a big effort, but it’s really only a test for bigger routes to come. But certainly each climb has a goal, and I want to reach that goal each year. My reasons for climbing are still the same. There are huge rewards from outdoors and vertical exposure. My style of assent is less graceful and free-flowing, but certainly worth the effort.”

He’s quick to point out that his successes are from personal—that they are only possible through the financial contributions of local businesses and non-profit organizations, and the countless hours of volunteer time contributed by a team of OTs, climbing companions, support staff, and family.

“Its all team,” he says. “Me alone? I sit in the parting lot. Beyond the exhaustive preparation, it’s a huge effort of many people trading off to carry me in, over big rocks and trees, to get to the base. On the rock, it’s about organization and communication. Me and Chris work on the main ‘counterweight haul’ system. We pull together, as I count out the timing. Mark stays near me to help me when needed. Like adjusting ropes, or moving the rig sideways to avoid big ledges. Hobey at the top has the duty of organizing all of the ropes we have and managing all the safety backups. Without these pros, we would be unorganized and slow.”

While Brad is the immediate recipient of this impressive team effort, he sees his climbing successes as benefitting all quadriplegics—a group of people he feels are unnecessarily left out of many activities.

“We looked far and wide, and it looks like I am the first quad climber the world,” he says. “It wasn’t easy, but it will create new sport opportunities for quads in years to come. We do want to share this with other quads. To leave this legacy is a major goal, but to do this first we must forge ahead, breaking new ground.”

He’s so committed to his dream that he has become a media spokesman and fundraiser, has early plans to create an indoor gym program for others quadriplegics to try climbing, and will make all of his equipment’s working designs available to whoever wants them at no charge (he explains that liability and start-up costs are a huge deterrent to actually manufacturing and selling the equipment). The bottom line is he wants to see other quadriplegics go climbing, and is committed to playing a large role in building an international community working together to make it happen.

“The climbing mentality is about adventure, new things…and that mentality I have maintained throughout my post-injury life. Maybe that thinking saved my life; kept me fighting throughout the rehab and anguish that comes with injury. If others can see that you can re-invent yourself—and your sport--well, maybe they can choose healthy lifestyles, and stay active.”

If you’re interested in learning more about Brad and his climbing ambitions, and finding out how you can get involved, visit his website