Within weeks of having his first prostheses fitted, Herr was climbing again and in a workshop augmenting his very basic prostheses. The same stamina and tenacity that made him an exceptional climber also made him dismiss the doctor’s verdict that he would never climb again, so his narrative goes.

He was lucky to survive a traumatic accident on Mount Washington in January 1982 in which he suffered severe frostbite and had both legs amputated below the knee. Herr has a seductive backstory, which begins with prodigious talent as a young mountain climber. Below that, Herr is constructed of a pair of supremely impressive bionic legs. Herr is an impressive figure behind a podium tall, imposing and with a well-cut suit that stops just below the knee.

After 50 minutes listening to him speak at SXSW in Texas, it’s hard not to believe that he’ll do it. Hugh Herr says he wants to eliminate disability.