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Film of wheelchair adventurer's climb up for award

Isabella Verona
News imageBen Kelly Visuals Nick Wilson wears a yellow hoodie and looks into the distance. He is wearing a helmet and gloves holding onto the steering part of the specially designed wheelchair. There is a black overhead structure as part of the chair. He is outside and blue sky and trees are visible. Ben Kelly Visuals
Wilson is the first wheelchair user to do an unaided solo assent up the mountain

A short film about a man who was the first wheelchair user to do a solo assent up Yr Wyddfa without any physical assistance aids has been nominated for an award.

The film, called Project RockClimber, follows Nick Wilson, from Towcester, Northamptonshire, on his journey to ascend the Welsh mountain, also known as Snowdon, in July 2024.

Project RockClimber has been shortlisted for Northampton Film Festival's documentary feature film award and will be shown on 3 March at the University of Northampton.

Wilson, who produces online content under the name Disabled Adventurer, said the mountain climb "saved his life".

When speaking to BBC Radio Northampton's Bernie Keith, Wilson said: "I'm all about supporting others that can't support themselves.

"RockClimb became my focus and literally saved my life. The sense of freedom is incredible."

Wilson spent 14 years in the Army and served in Northern Ireland, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan before being forced to retire with severe spinal injuries.

News imageNick Wilson Nick Wilson smiles and waves at the camera. He is wearing a yellow hoodie and grey trousers sitting in his specially designed chair. It has four big wheels and two steering handles. It has a black structure protecting Wilson's back and his head with a go pro positioned on the top. He is wearing a black helmet and gloves. He is outside with greenery surrounding him.Nick Wilson
Wilson's chair was designed specifically for the climb by the motorsport company, Rock Engineering

Wilson, who has used a wheelchair since 2023, said Project RockClimber also shows his experience of chronic pain and mental health struggles.

The film includes Wilson's collaboration with the firm Rock Engineering, based in Towcester, which led to the creation of a prototype mobility device designed for extreme environments called RockClimber.

"You can learn what accessibility is, but I want people to feel accessibility," Wilson said.

Wilson had brought his plans for the climb to the engineering company in October 2022.

He added that the first drivable model of the "incredible machine" was ready in March 2024, four months before the climb in July.

Wilson said the company's engineer worked on creating RockClimber "right way, they know their stuff".

Wilson, who has more than 57,000 followers across Instagram, Facebook and TikTok, said his online community helped him "a lot".

He added that he used content creation mainly to "have a bit of fun and a laugh at the world".

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