Hot New Wheels

Recently I purchased my very first "every day" wheelchair. Ordering something this customized and, well, expensive is somewhat of a nerve wracking experience. Even more so because I purchased it online. However, I was quickly put at ease while speaking with Scott at bike-on.com. He took the time to actually talk with me and get a true feel on the types of activity and places I would be using my new chair, and never once made me feel "less than" because it was my first time ordering such a chair.

I decided on a Quickie GPV in midnight purple and spent quite a while on the phone with Scott specifying all sorts of details like seat width and depth, back rest height, options for breaks and footrests. When it was all said and done I put my money where my mouth was and ordered the chair. It took about two weeks from ordering to receiving and I woke up one morning with a giant box sitting in my living room waiting for me to open it up.

I love this chair!

For the last year, ever since losing the use of my legs, I have been using a second hand Jazzy power chair. The power chair was comfortable, and lets face it, free...so I had been more than happy with using it since I had no other options at the time. It had its uses, but lets face it...it also had its drawbacks. For one, it had a limited range, only being able to go a total of five miles, when the batteries where brand spanking new and fully charged. As the batteries got older, the range of the chair became less and less. We put quite a bit of money into the chair, having bought two sets of batteries over the past year and a new charger for the unit. Another one of its drawbacks was that it was heavy and quite a bit of a challenge to transport, making it absolutely impossible for friends to drop by and pick me up for an afternoon out.

I have been dreaming about a new wheelchair for at least the last six months. However, a good "every day" wheelchair (not the kind you see at hospitals used to transport patients here and there) costs a pretty good chunk of money. The most economical of them run between $1,000-$1,500. I had to wait until I knew for sure that the investment was necessary and for the money to be available to us. Finally the day came and I bought my new wheels.

This chair is so light, and the wheels are so easy to remove that I am able to transfer into almost any old car and break the chair down myself and put it in the backseat. How cool is that, I ask you? Pretty damned cool!

The seat and angle of the leg rests are so comfortable...I never knew what I was missing until I spent just a few minutes sitting in it. Its great, absolutely great. I took it to a grocery store and went shopping with my family not too long after receiving it to test drive it in the world. Gliding along the polished tile floors in the grocery store was practically effortless!

I love this chair so much that in celebration of receiving it, I put purple highlights in my light brown hair to commemorate its arrival.

So now I have myself some hot new wheels and a hot new hairdo to match. Life is good.

~River, simply being me.