Re: iGlide Manual Assist Wheelchair - not a power chair, not a manual

May 17, 2004

Aase, Thaqt is a very nice looking chair. It looks so light and easy to handle.

Have you tried one yet? I wonder about it not having arm rests. You don't need

them? Other than that, I think it's a fabulas chair!

Cindylouwho

May 17, 2004

Aase, Thaqt is a very nice looking chair. It looks so light and easy to handle.

Have you tried one yet? I wonder about it not having arm rests. You don't need

them? Other than that, I think it's a fabulas chair!

Cindylouwho

May 17, 2004

Aase, Thaqt is a very nice looking chair. It looks so light and easy to handle.

Have you tried one yet? I wonder about it not having arm rests. You don't need

them? Other than that, I think it's a fabulas chair!

Cindylouwho

May 17, 2004

Hi dear roomie,

I hate arm rests. They are just in the way, makes pushing too hard,

as you have to hold your arms in a really odd position. So I won't

have them on manual chairs at all. They kill your shoulders/arms, not

good for you at all... I haven't tried it yet, but the company has

been very nice, I just have to get back to them and they will arrange

something, they were even willing to loan me one for the Denmark

trip, but we did not have enough time to sort it out. I am in

Kristiansand, and they are in Oslo, 330 km from here, but they'll

come to let me try it out. It is still so new, and the company is new

here...

But it is obvious that this company is also a bit different. They are

into innovative things to make people independent (they're called

Independence Technologies). Did you see the iBot chair? how funny, it

raises up on two of the four wheels and stands there balancing, so

that you can see people straight into the eyes without using a lift.

You can also " walk " together with another person this way, and it

climbs stairs. There's still a long way until chairs like that will

be common though. But, it is very exciting...

Did you check the video's for the iGlide? And the guys doing the

iGlide challenge? Amazing!!!! I checked several user reviews on

independent websites, and all say the same, the iGlide is fantastic

compared to other alternatives it can be compared with, the main one

being the E-Motion which I up until recently thought was the only

alternative...

The total weight is way higher than a normal sporty manual chair,

totally 22 kg (48 lbs) (or was it 25 kg? I might be confusing it a

bit now), but it is lower than the E-Motion plus a light chair, as

the E-Motion is 22 kg itself only for the two wheels and then you

have to have the chair too, at somewhere between 5.5 and 8 kg

(depending on backs etc.) for a light chair...

What is really neat about this chair, is that it has a little " smart

computer " , that analyzes the way you push and the surface you are

driving on, and gives you the assistance you need, not more, not less

(other solutions give the same force all the time, making it easy to

tilt over backwards etc.). The battery package is a little box the

size of a child suitcase or old fashioned suitcase type lunch box,

with a handle and all. It is 3 kg and sits just under the seat. So

when you go onto the plane, you just take it off and bring it with

you into the cabin, it is a gel battery pack. Then the chair can go

into the luggage compartment. So you can take it to the plane door,

something you can't do with a power chair with most airlines/airports

(the only exception I have encountered, is on Lanzarote, where they

beg you to take it all the way so they won't have to handle it, they

drive you to the plane in a lift van, you drive into the plane, and

they take it back into the lift van and just takes it down below and

straight into the plane, turns off the power without disconnecting

anything - that's it! They are not a big airport, but they handle a

lot of wheelchairs because of rehabilitation centers there, and they

say this is the only and safest way to do it, beat that! Well, that

was a long digression, but....

I really, really hope it works out so that I can get it and get it

before the conference. It has not finished the approval process here,

so that makes it a bit more difficult, but the OT is convinced that

it is the right solution, the case handler at the soc. sec. sees the

problem and understands my side of it. So it is now up to the OT they

have there, who has to give it a go before they can go for it. The

case handler said that he maybe didn't even have to do all the paper

work all over again. Because he had already approved my case for the

E-Motion when I found the user reviews and got cold feet, and

discovered the iGlide at the same time. He had approved it the day

before, so I called him and asked him not to order the E-Motion. They

had probably done that already, but said it wasn't a problem, they

would just give it to somebody else. I must say, I have been so lucky

with them all the time. They offered me the E-Motion earlier, but

then I wanted to wait. I have never had any problems getting things

approved. One thing that made them even more positive to the iGlide

for me, was that the E-Motion did not fit the chair I wanted it on,

but only my other chair which I want to remain completely manual. So

I hope that this works out, and they will get one of my chairs back

(that is how it works here, if you don't need something anymore, you

give it back to them)...

It must be odd at first not being able to just let go downhill. This

one breaks for you automatically, so you have to push to tell it to

go fast downhill instead of breaking. But that is just great,

breaking is really hard sometimes... I am a bit anxious to see if

they can put on the special Tetra handrims I use, but they probably

can't. They have rubber coated ones though, and as long as you don't

have to break, those aren't bad at all. I haven't used wheelie bars

or anti-tips for years now, so I am really excited to see if I will

need to have them on this one because of the helper motor. I think I

might not need them though, since it analyzes how you push and

shouldn't give too much force. But if they have some that are easy to

fold in, I may just get them anyway, or I will have them at first and

then just adjust them higher up as I feel more secure and then take

them off if I can.

Oh, I am so excited!!! This will really make such a difference.

Because I can do pretty well most of the time if it is completely

flat, but when it is not, it is tough. And my neck and upper back

really gives me a hard time now. But the thought of doing New York

city with this one is really fun!!! and I will probably have a

ball, with her using her power chair...

Talk more later, I'll give you an update when I know more... I really

think this can be an option for many EDSers... Especially those who

haven't got a car and have to take ordinary taxi's, or those with a

tiny car. Or as an alternative instead of a manual one to combine

with a power chair or if you just aren't ready to go there with a

power chair yet. It sure looks great too, and that does count!!!

hugs,

Aase Marit

>Aase, Thaqt is a very nice looking chair. It looks so light and easy

>to handle. Have you tried one yet? I wonder about it not having arm

>rests. You don't need them? Other than that, I think it's a fabulas

>chair!

>Cindylouwho

>

May 17, 2004