An incredible climb and an inspirational journey

For Skot Pierson, a 20-year-plus U.S. Army veteran who has survived prostate cancer as well as a leg amputation, accomplishing the incredible feat of climbing and descending the Manitou Incline in Manitou Springs, Colorado was one of his life goals.  

There to support Pierson on the July 4 journey was Jarrod Starr, a 2003 graduate of Candor High School and an Army veteran of Kuwait and Iraq, who currently works as a heavy equipment mechanic at Fort Carson, Colorado.    

From Starr’s perspective, he said, “This isn’t my story, it is Skot’s story,” adding, “I was just a vet helping another vet.”  

Even for the seasoned hiker or athlete, the Manitou Springs incline is extremely challenging. According to Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, the Manitou Incline, built along a former cable car line and made of railroad ties, goes straight up the side of a mountain. Of its one-mile length, it ascends 2,000 feet and includes 2,744 steps.

The average grade of the Manitou Incline is about 45 percent, while some spots greatly exceed that. Known as an intense workout, and not meant for everyone, those who do challenge themselves are rewarded with spectacular views. On the way down, hikers typically choose a little easier descent, such as the less intense Barr Trail option.

Pierson’s inspiration to climb the Manitou Incline came after hearing a story about a woman, a double-amputee named Mandy Horvath, who lost her legs in a train accident and had completed the incline twice.   

While planning his climb at Manitou, Skot reached out to the KCCO group, an organization of individuals who help others and commit to change the world in their own way. Starr, a member of the group, was one of several volunteers who answered Pierson’s request.  

However, the night before they were to gather at Manitou, Pierson received a discouraging message from the other volunteers who said they were unable to help Skot because of his use and publicity of use of medical marijuana. It is Pierson’s opinion that medical marijuana has saved his life on three occasions, twice from prostate cancer and once during the surgery to remove his leg, and of which he said kept him 100 percent opiate free. 

Starr’s response to Pierson, “I can carry everything.”  

Carrying everything meant Skot’s wheelchair and a day’s supply of water, which was a one-gallon jug and seven, 20-ounce water bottles. The challenge of carrying everything was extraordinary for Starr, who explained that he is in training for a competition in late August called the GORUCK Challenge. To prepare, he has been carrying a 35 pound ruck sack, even up and down the Manitou Incline as many as three times per week.

Starr’s mother, Jane Behari, a former Tioga County resident, said, “I am one proud mama of a military son,” adding, “There are wonderful things going on every day in the United States that otherwise go unnoticed.”

Behari continued, “Wheelchair and all, my son hiked up behind this veteran giving words of encouragement and support.” 

The entire climb up and return trip down was a ten-hour ordeal from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Fortunately, on the way down the Barr Trail, another fellow veteran offered to help.

Starr said that once Pierson reached the top of the incline, tears of joy streamed down his face.

Starr also commented that he is not seeking notoriety, but instead, he is looking to inspire others.

Starr remarked, “Don’t disable yourself, and if you fail, do it again.”

On Starr’s “To Do List” is to challenge himself further by climbing as many as 53 other mountains in Colorado. He climbed Pikes Peak three years ago.

Friends of Starr’s say that his actions are a representation of giving back to the communities served by paying it forward through random acts of kindness.