Vertigo, 60% disability, a five-day coma, arrests, multiple, near-fatal fallsu00a0-- Alain Roberts isn't your average climber. He tells Fiona Fernandez about why he feels alive every time he reaches the top of a manmade monument

"I take it one step at a time. Honestly, it's always a good feeling at the end of it. If it's a difficult climb, I focus on my target. I don't have much time to think about falling or dying. All that matters is the short perimeter around my limbs," 49 year-old Alain Robert is giving us a slice of his average day in the office. Speaking to us from France through his thick, accented English; we are able to get a sense of what life is for this Urban Spiderman, as he is popularly recognised around the world.

Daredevilry, my middle name
Robert overcame vertigo, numerous injuries that have left him 60% disabled, survived a 15-metre fall to land in a five-day coma, several arrests for illegal climbs atop some of the world's tallest urban landmarks. At last count, he scaled 85 manmade structures.

"In 1982, I fell twice from heights of 15 metres. After the second fall that year, I slipped into a five-day coma. The doctors said I wouldn't climb again. As a young boy I was afraid of heights. I overcame the fear when I slowly began to climb craggy cliffs near my home and later, scaled the French Alps. When I fell, I was a 19 year-old gutsy youngster. Naturally, news of my condition came as a huge shock," recalls Robert of the life-changing instance where he had to make a choice.

Thankfully, in his case, he took a risk, and it paid off -- "I realised that if I could succeed, all those years ago as a young boy, why not now. I needed to find the truth for myself. I wasn't sure if I would be as good as before. But I wanted to try, so I gave it a shot." As it turned out Robert recovered to become a better climber. "Never on earth did I imagine such a comeback," the million-mile distance doesn't hide the excitement in
his voice.u00a0

Robert took to climbing at a young age, purely as a means of recreation and soon enough, he was scaling exterior walls and buildings in the neighbourhood. His physical conditioning from an early age saw him never have to use a rope and instead, make use of the small protrusions of walls and windows during his climbs. While on his climbs, he usually carries chalk powder to absorb sweat from the hands.