I knew very little about Rachel Māia when I was asked to interview her for this issue of Adventure Magazine. I knew she was from Whanganui, I knew she was a mother of three, I knew she had injured her leg rock climbing when she was just 16 years old, and I knew she had gone on to become a successful NZ para-athlete and below the knee amputee, but I didn’t know anything about Rachel as a person.
However, now I feel very fortunate to have taken a look inside her world; the challenges, the trials, the heartbreak and her resolve to live her life to the fullest.
My family moved a lot throughout my childhood, and I struggled with no real sense of belonging, to both people or places. Climbing was a sport at my second High School, when I was 16. It was a place where we all learned labels don’t apply. You were not 'a cool kid' or the 'new girl'. You were a climber. You dropped
