Overcomer

Jerry Traylor had a problem.  The achievement-oriented athlete had just finished climbing Pike’s Peak, and was looking for his next adventure.

What’s a jock to do?

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OK, I kind of lied to you in the opening paragraph.  Well, not so much lied, as misled you.  OK, maybe not so much misled but oversimplified.  Wait a minute, what I actually did was minimize.  Yeah, that’s it, I minimized what Jerry did.  Boy did I.

Anyway, Pikes’ Peak has a road going all the way to the top, so anybody can navigate the 14,110-foot height, stand on the top, and say, “Wow, this is beautiful.”

But Jerry didn’t drive or take a ride to the top.  No, he climbed it on foot.  That’s a heck of a challenge, one that few people can say they have undertaken, let alone accomplished.  Even fewer can say they have done what Jerry did; he climbed Pike’s Peak on foot, three times.  That’s right, three times.

So what should he do next?

How about run across the United States?  Yeah, run all the way from sea to shining sea.  That’s 3,528 miles.  Yeah.

So he did, running for more than seven months while averaging 18 miles a day the whole time.

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As he was growing up Jerry had a fascination with athletics, although he didn’t actually take part in sports much until after high school, while pursuing a bachelor’s degree in business administration at Colorado’s Western State College. 

Like many of us, college was a time for Jerry to, “find himself.”  Rather than drinking, partying, or using drugs, Jerry trained and ran a 5K…and liked it.  By the time he turned 24 Jerry had taken part in a full marathon…and liked it too.  He would eventually complete 35 marathons!  Yes, 35 marathons.

After finishing his first marathon, Jerry noticed, “All of the sudden, I was in the spotlight, and my story was in Associated Press and United Press International.  It was getting picked up by newspapers and television all over the country.  I was at that time doing a nine-minute mile, and it wasn’t too shabby.  But it was (also) at this time that I thought I could help others.”

At the time, Jerry was working for the U.S. Treasury in West Virginia.  While working there, he continued competing in athletic events, like dance marathons, but, as he neared 30, his thoughts turned more and more to his long-held dream of climbing Pike’s Peak.  Now, the Pike’s Peak trail is well-known for its rugged terrain and steep drops and, of course, there’s that whole “climbing over 14,000 feet” thing.

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Now, there’s not just physical effort involved in that climb, but danger too.  For Jerry, besides the altitude, which makes breathing more difficult, the biggest problem was navigating large rocks and boulders during his ascent.

“It’s a 14,000-foot mountain and at that altitude, anyone is going to have trouble breathing,” he said.  “But as I got higher and higher, I noticed a ton of boulders. I had to actually lift my legs over the boulders; sometimes I would spin my body to the next level.”

Despite the difficulty, he made it.  Then he did it again…and again.

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Jerry noticed that people where using him as encouragement, and as an example of how to live their lives.  So he quit his job with the treasury to take on a career as a full-time inspirational speaker, while continuing to take on more athletic challenges as well.

As I said, Jerry thought he could run across the United States…so he did.  He set off from San Francisco and arrived in New York City in only nine months.

During the run he got almost constant coverage on national television.  Along the way people turned out to offer him support and to tell him how courageous his efforts were.

Now, a lot of people have run a 5K, many have completed a marathon, quite a few have climbed Pike’s Peak, and several have run all the way across the country, so why did Jerry’s efforts garner so much attention?

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You see, when Jerry was born it was found that his umbilical cord had gotten wrapped around his neck, cutting off the blood-flow to his brain.  Though he obviously survived the experience, it left him with a condition called ataxic Cerebral Palsy.  Because of that, he had to wear waist-high braces to stabilize his lower body until he was 14, and underwent multiple corrective surgeries in his teen years.  Though his condition was improved by these efforts, he remained dependent on crutches to help him get around.

Yes, he climbed Pike’s Peak, ran 35 marathons, and ran across the country on crutches.  He also parachuted from 12,500 feet but I guess crutches don’t make much of a difference there, and he did it all despite his continuing battle with Cerebral Palsy.

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“When people say that I’ve overcome obstacles, I tell them that it’s not true,” Jerry explained. “I tell them that I have learned to work within my limits, and use what God has given me. There’s nothing special about me.”

During his speeches, Jerry encouraged people to set goals and achieve them.

“My message is that people can do what they want to do,” he said. “But they need to believe in themselves.

“I tell people that it’s difficult to depend on others for personal growth. I needed to discover what I wanted to do on my own, and that allowed me to be the person I am. I always tell people that I’m not handicapped because I use crutches. I would be handicapped if I did not have crutches.”

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As if there were not enough obstacles in his life, Jerry found out a few years back that he had cancer.

“I was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma two years ago, and I’m undergoing treatment and chemotherapy,” he said. “I wasn’t angry when I found out, but I thought, how could I use this?  This has been another opportunity for me to embrace my imperfections, and that’s something we should all learn to do,” he said. “People shouldn’t try to be like others – they need to say, ‘I am blessed because I am unique.’”

Sadly, that was one battle Jerry was unable to win. 

Jerry Traylor passed away on June 10, 2018, at the age of 63.  He is survived by one daughter, Sarah, and three sisters.

His obituary said, “Jerry cared little for possessions and greatly for people. His spirit will live on in those with whom he shared his caring heart, his irrepressible optimism and his radiant joy in life.” 

That’s about as good a tribute as anyone could hope for.

Those who would like to know more about Jerry and his attitude toward life can learn more in his book, LiveCAREfully: The Importance of Caring in a Life of Significance.

May he rest in peace.

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