Here are some things I’ve been asked. Any other questions you have, just pop them down below.
Here are some:
Should we offer help?:
Personally I really appreciate it. Strangers have really helped me out of a jam several times.
Only becomes an issue when people grab your handles without asking. Or when you tell them “No thank you” and they insist, assuming that you’re just being polite/don’t want to be a bother.
Is it bad that I think they look kinda fun?:
Look, zooming down a totally flat and even slope feels like flying, it’s dope. So in that particular instance you’re not wrong. It’s just the rest of the time that it’s shit.
Why is it hard? You’re sitting down and you have wheels!:
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Because it’s like rowing a boat moving the oars in the wrong direction. Our bodies are good at pulling and rubbish at pushing, that’s why we row backwards.
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Pavement/sidewalk camber a.k.a slope. Next time you’re out walking look at the pavement. It has an often imperceptible slope so rainwater can flow to the gutter. Even the sliiightest slope means wheelchairs glide towards the traffic with each push, so you have to push with the traffic-side arm 3 or 4 times more than the outer arm in order to course correct and roll straight. For the length of any street you’re pushing your body weight + chair weight + jacket/bag weight mainly with one shoulder rotator cuff. Ow.
Why are you going against the flow of pedestrians?:
Probably camber. The angle is more acute on the traffic-side of the pavement, and shallower on the outer/upper side of the pavement. So if the flow of pedestrians is walking towards us on the outer side of the pavement it looks like we’re going against the flow. Really, we know that if we’re on the inner edge we’re one hand slip away from rolling into traffic.
Why are you barreling down the centre of the pavement, pick a side:
Again, camber. Sometimes the pavement slopes imperceptibly on both sides so we’re going down the middle hump like a tightrope walker.
Why do you go so fast?
Momentum is everything. Anytime you’re fighting momentum to go slowly at a “walking pace”, or restarting a wheelchair from stationary-to-motion because you’ve paused to let people pass, or had to slow to dodge people/obstructions, you’re burning a huge amount of energy and joint strain. Minimising pushes is key to avoiding rotator cuff injuries and general strain
I saw a wheelchair user stand, what’s the number of the Disability Police?:
Yes, many people use a wheelchair because they’re unable to mobilise without one. Others are “ambulatory users”. They can technically walk. Gasp!
How are you meant to live if you can only walk short distances such as a few metres without collapsing? Or are unstable being bipedal? etc. Are you meant to not use a wheelchair and be housebound because they’re “only for people who cannot walk”?
We have sloped curbs now, what more do you want:?
Seems nuts but if a curb ramp isn’t flush by even an inch you have to do a wheelie to get up it because our front wheels need to be tiiiny, often only 3 or 4 inches. A lot of disabled people do not have the strength or coordination or control to be busting wheelies. This means we have to roll in the street. Where we keep the traffic.
Why do you have a rug on your lap like my grandmother?
You’re in a park on a brisk breezy autumn day. What’s warmer, sitting on a bench or walking? Even the slightest, gentlest, exercise makes our bodies churn out heat like a furnace.
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I was actually curious about why the front wheels have to be so small. Is it just a clearance issue with the swivelling because it’s more important that the back wheels be as big as possible to a much higher degree? Combined with the total length/width requirements needing to be kept within a specific margin to fit in as many pedestrian friendly places as possible?
I know there are alternate wheelchairs for different occasions that have bigger wheels in front, so I’m guessing they don’t fit in places you need to go other times?
I wondered the same.
Few thoughts
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weight. every gram is a gram you have to push with every push
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COG / centre of gravity. Ergonomics are everything and so your COG generally needs to be directly below your spine for balance and energy efficiency. You want the chair to be “tippy” so you can navigate obstacles, but without risking tipping fully backwards. Riiight on the cusp is perfect. The more weight at the front, the further backwards your seat would have to be fitted relevant to your axle and pretty soon your COG is no longer under your spine
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all power and steering is done with your hands, obviously, and on the back wheel so the front wheels are purely for stability
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the smaller they are the more agile they are, the quicker they respond to steering originating from the back wheel
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smaller the caster the lower your seat-to-floor height the stickier you feel to the ground
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smaller, sharper, turning radius
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Ok not a question but my favorite wheelchair story.
I was working security on the door of a pub and the police had pulled a car over about 20 meters up the road, an old guy with both legs missing above the knee in a motorised wheelchair came around the corner and said “Do you think they are gonna pull me over?” He was clearly drunk as all fuck. Without thinking I said “Its not like they can tell you you should have walked instead.” He just looked at me… for an uncomfortably long time… and then roared with laughter and rolled off.
He shouted at the cops about being absolutely legless as he did some donuts on the footpath and then rolled off.
Absolute champ.
I’m terrified to drink’n’roll in my powerchair. If I think of when I was ambulatory and drunk and how often I accidentally knocked a table or stood on someone’s foot…
In my head, me drinking in a powerchair is like Ellen Ripley doing shots then climbing into a giant yellow power loader and stumbling through the USS Sulaco while Newt ducks and weaves for her life