Bay Area wheelchair hiker bound for Sierra glory

[SF Chronicle RSS Feed - Tom Stienstra]

At 20, Bob Coomber was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. At 35, he broke his left leg simply by bearing weight on it. Doctors told him he had debilitating osteoporosis, and at 40, he was in a wheelchair for life. This summer, the Bay Area’s world-renown wheelchair hiking legend, 4-Wheel Bob, will set out this summer to be the first wheelchair hiker in history to cross the Sierra Nevada. It includes a high Sierra pass approaching 12,000 feet, a region known for some of the most violent afternoon thunderstorms in the high Sierra, and a few crossings with creeks and rocks where a temporary assist could be required. “I expect it [...]

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