A story comes along every so often that makes you stop and think, “Holy cow – that defies what’s possible!” Or does it? You know the stories – the Chilean miners who are recovered, all in relatively good health, after multiple weeks caught in a mine shift, or those who survive seemingly sure death in a natural disaster to walk away and spend their lives raising awareness and funds for recovery efforts for those who were impacted. The stories are endless as the people who live them.
One such story comes from the skirts of my hometown – Lake Tahoe – and epitomizes the human spirit and its capacity for overcoming life’s challenges and achieving life’s greatest quests.
His name is Grant Korgan, a Lake Tahoe native who is an avid snowmobiler, skier, kayaker and ultimate adventurer. On March 10, 2010 he fractured his L1 vertebrae while snowmobiling in the Tahoe backcountry. You can read more on Grant and what came next here http://on.rgj.com/wvyAEM. But the reason Grant’s story caught my attention wasn’t so much about the fact this amazing athlete was injured with a spinal cord injury and working to recover. It is HOW he went about the recovery that was so focused, inspiring and intent that it truly is a lesson for any of us who aren’t giving 100 percent to whatever it is we are doing. For the record, Grant is “gunning for 120 percent recovery,” he says.
Grant and John Davis, a two-time Paralympic gold medalist, are two adaptive athletes are on a quest to become the first adaptive athletes to reach the South Pole. Korgan says in this video http://southpolepush.com/ it will take 250,000 pole strokes to get there. I have no doubt he’ll do it, and that he’ll stand on his two feet when he does.
For me, Grant’s story is about pushing yourself to achieve what is possible. If you don’t have the plan to get there, figure it out and move! Don’t let your days waste away because of a half-ass effort or status-quo attitude. That’ll get you nowhere. Go Grant Korgan! Lake Tahoe and the world is watching and willing you on!
