Eleven years ago, a tragedy nearly cut short Mandy Horvath’s life: She lost both of her legs above the knee after being struck by a train in 2014.
“I don’t have full memory of the night, but I do know that I died more than three times during the fight to save my life,” she told the Pikes Peak Bulletin in an email exchange.
In the years since then, she has overcome alcohol use disorder, moved to Colorado Springs for a fresh start and conquered summits that most people only dream of – using her hands and arms to pull herself up the Manitou Incline, Pikes Peak and Africa’s highest mountain, Mount Kilimanjaro.
Sitting at the summit of Pikes Peak, knowing that she had just crawled up the fourteener, was “one of the most powerful experiences of my life.”
Both that climb and the Incline allowed her to redefine her limits and prove that she could achieve goals she once would have sworn were out of reach, she said.
After these successes, Horvath set her sights even higher and decided to scale Kilimanjaro, a full 5,000 feet taller than Pikes Peak.
“I wanted to show others that, despite my disability, I could achieve remarkable feats,” Horvath said.
Then, with those challenges under her belt, Horvath began her journey toward Naked and Afraid, which she describes as “the Everest of reality shows.”
In the show, complete strangers, one male and one female, are dropped into some of the most extreme environments on Earth and left there to survive for three weeks with no food, no water, no clothes and one survival item each. Naked and Afraid is in its 18th season and Mandy will be the first female double-amputee in the show’s history.
Horvath was treated no differently than any other competitor on the show, she said. Like her peers on Naked and Afraid, she was “expected to endure, adapt and survive,” she said.
In an odd way, losing her legs helped to get her to where she is today, driving her to take on challenges like scaling tall peaks and surviving with a stranger in the wilderness, with none of the comforts of modern life, she said.
“Losing my limbs pushed me to redefine my limits and pursue goals I never thought possible,” Horvath said. “It inspired me to advocate for others and embark on adventures that highlight resilience and strength. In some ways, my journey has become a source of motivation for others who face their own challenges. So, while I may not have chosen this path willingly, I do believe it has led me to a life filled with purpose and impact that I might not have achieved otherwise.”
Losing my limbs pushed me to redefine my limits and pursue goals I never thought possible. – Mandy Horvath
The Naked and Afraid episode featuring Horvath will open the new season of the show. It is set to air on the Discovery Channel on Sunday, March 9 at 6 p.m. MST. Horvath and Sunshine Studios (3970 Clear View Frontage Rd., Colorado Springs) are hosting a donation-based watch party open to the public. Doors will open at 4:30 p.m. with a meet and greet with Horvath. Organizers say there will be guest speakers including Mayor Yemi Mobolade, Jason Marsteiner from The Survival University, and Gary Golding also of Naked and Afraid acclaim, plus a slew of vendors and special guests, and raffle prizes. More info on the Facebook event page Season Premiere of Naked and Afraid at Sunshine Studios Live.
