April 6, 2001

“Everyone faces the world
with different abilities and disabilities, but we all have one goal
in common … to break through our own barriers.”
—-Mark Wellman, extreme athlete

Extreme athlete to describe his
adventures

MIDDLEBURY, Vt.-Extreme athlete Mark
Wellman-the first person with a disability to climb El Capitan and
Half Dome in Yosemite National Park-will give a talk titled “Beyond
the Barriers” on Friday, April 20, at 7:30 p.m. at Middlebury
College. A parapalegic as a result of a life-threatening climbing
accident, he is also the first disabled person to sit-ski, using only
his arms, across the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range unassisted. The
event, which will include video and a slide presentation, will take
place in Room 216 of Bicentennial Hall on Bicentennial Way off
College Street (Route 125). Admission is free.

The talk by Wellman, a Middlebury
College Twilight Lecturer, will include a discussion of his struggle
to regain his spirit and strength, and to realize that adversity
offered him an opportunity for a new beginning.

Wellman lives and trains in Truckee,
Cal., where he owns and operates a business called No Limits,
offering various types of adaptive climbing gear that he has
developed with the help of equipment experts. He has also instructed
and assisted in many climbing seminars throughout the
country.

This event is co-sponsored by several
Middlebury College offices and departments-the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) office, the office for institutional
diversity, the department of athletics, and student residential
organizations Wonnacott and Atwater Commons. For more information,
contact the Middlebury College ADA office at 802-443-5936.

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