Posts Tagged ‘Holiday’
Monday, January 31st, 2011
Frontpage
At this stage I would like to thank Mr. Bock, the owner of a travel agency specialized on wheelchair travels. I had already booked various trips there. In December during our first personal conversion (it was about the details of a reservation) he had the idea to introduce my blog on the travel agency’s newsletter. There are some thousand people on his distribution list, so it should be possible to help effected people. He also employs a wheelchair user and knows about our challenges and projects. Such a PR would be nice!
Of course I am quite taken with such conversations, but unfortunately usually there are rarely results.
On Saturday I received the January newsletter!
There it was, the first Rollinator PR Blog, and the whole thing without any more discussions, great thing!
** client offers advice for free
Internet – Steffen L., wheelchair user and **client, writes in his Blog “Eigude” about odd experiences from everyday life and innovative ideas for wheelchair users:
“News from the Rollinator” – this title shines above the comprehensive Web-Blog of Steffen L. The hobby internet editor is in a wheelchair only since 2007, but in this short time he has collected already a considerable amount of information.
“When you, sitting in a wheelchair, have left the hospital or the rehab the drama begins. You are left on your own, and everybody has to re-invent the wheel to manage everyday life.”
“Therefore this blog with a lot of tips and tricks.”
Interested persons can find the website onwww.eigude.de
As expert for individual technical aids solutions the author offers advice for free!
** Contact details of the travel agency can be requested as usual on rollinator@eigude.de
More than 150 clicks in 24 hours, uff…
Translator BL
Tags:Internet, Oberstdorf, Snow, Tips and Tricks, Holiday
Posted in General, Simply great, Holiday | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010
Frontpage
I already mentioned the accessibility of Los Cristianos. They have equipped a special area for us wheelchair and scooter users on the beach over there.
You can drive in your wheelchair on wooden planks almost into the water.
If you really would like to go into the sea there are two wheelchair lifeguards who lift you with a hoist into a
Beach Wheelchair
and move you across the sand into the sea.
The guys have pushed me across the beach at a run. I was shocked that Spaniards can move that fast, respect.
Swimming in the sea for the first time after 3,5 years, what a feeling!
I was hardly in the water, and the big fish die-off began.
Translator BL
Tags:Technical Aids, Kanaren / Mittelmeer, Wheelchair, Schwimmen, Tenerife, Holiday
Posted in General, Technical Aids, Holiday | 3 Comments »
Friday, October 29th, 2010
Frontpage
Los Cristianos in the south of Tenerife is exceedingly accessible, but quite hilly and only to cope for fit wheelchair users or with extreme pusher.
Wheelchairs, rollators, crutches and rented scooters or electric wheelchairs belong to the townscape.
An alternative to electric wheelchair or scooter is an approximately 60 kg heavy, little tractive.
Minitrac or Swisstrac
I call this thing a mobile cider crate.
With some practice the docking is quite easy. The tractive power is remarkable. I didn’t have any difficulties with gradients, provided that the floor plates were not too slippery.
Curbs are no hurdles at all. The docking bar in the mid of the wheelchair can be de-installed easily, even with a foldable wheelchair.
The some year old Minitrac has passed my 10 day test quite well. Although it was mounted to my wheelchair in a little unconventional-creative-spanish way, it was technically absolutely alright.
The Minitrac a German and the Swisstrac a Swiss product are quite similar. I only heard good things about the Swisstrac, but haven’t tested it yet. I have seen the new Swisstrac on a fair, the new docking station is easy to handle for quadriplegics.
I like these small things, and they fit into any trunk, if a well-trained pedestrian is found to lift it.
The colour was disgusting: pinkish red with glitter effect! Ugh…
There is one comment worth to be translated from the chief engineer of Swisstrac
Tags:Technical Aids, Kanaren / Mittelmeer, Minitrac, Wheelchair, Tenerife, Quadriplegic Tips, Tips and Tricks, Holiday
Posted in General, Technical Aids, Technical Aids for Quadriplegic, Holiday | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, October 26th, 2010
Frontpage
This sign kindly indicates that the way ends 100 meters further ahead on the mole at the sea.
If you are not Jesus of Nazareth, it is also dead end for any pedestrian.
Tags:Kanaren / Mittelmeer, Minitrac, Wheelchair, Sign, Tenerife, Holiday
Posted in General, Comedy, Holiday | No Comments »
Sunday, August 22nd, 2010
Frontpage
As already mentioned a couple of times (see older blog posts wheelchair tyres) I had
Mountainbike wheelchair tyres
built.
With my wife I wanted to make a tour around a lake in Austria:
Vilsalpsee
In combination with my shock absorbers and with assistance it is definitely possible to ride or push my wheelchair on hiking paths.
Gravel paths and pot-holes can be handled without great difficulties.
But suddenly I stood in front of a giant
Mud Hole
2 meters wide, 10 cm deep, 5 meters long, it was the path!!!
There even my
Outdoor Wheelchair
reached its limits.
After a couple of walkers who did not declare me completely insane what I am doing on their hiking paths with my wheelchair ensured me that the path would be accessible without any problems after passing the mud hole, and that they would help me, we took a chance.
New gloves, never mind!
No silly pictures were taken when I got stuck in the mud.
With pushing and pulling I got out of the mud and back on track.
At least my hand rims had to be cleaned. Then it is quite helpful when you receive from another walker a big amount of baby wipes which – as she mentioned funny enough – had an apple-peach scent.
Well, the wheelchair wasn’t clean, but smelled nicely.
The supposed accessible path presented the next challenge quickly.
Although the bridge is only 1,5 meters high the ramp is just 4 meters long. Only marginally I would like to mention that I had to go down again on the other side.
(The perspective is misleading.)
I slowly started feeling like Hobbit Frodo from the Shire.
After half of the round course the path around the sea turned into a country lane first and then into a paved highway.
It took the mouse hours with her white tissue until my wheelchair was clean again.
Translator BL
Tags:Maus (Mouse), Oberstdorf, Wheelchair, Wheelchair Tyres, Holiday
Posted in General, Pimp My Ride, Holiday | No Comments »
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010
Frontpage
The first ride with a cable car in a wheelchair is an experience in itself. When I finally arrived on the top of the mountain the cable car operator wanted to help me out of the gondola immediately even though it hadn’t stopped oscillating yet. I don’t know how other wheelchair drivers would feel, but I don’t like it if the ground is still moving while getting out.
At the Nebelhorn in Oberstdorf there was an add-on:
To surmount some stairs to the sun terrace they have installed a
Platform lifter.
Basically a great thing. These things are nothing special for me because I live on the first floor and use such a lifter each and every day.
But with this lifter it should be
mandatory to wear a helmet!!Â
No joke:
Usually the bottom plate is put down, the safety bars swing out and one drives on to the lifter to get down the stairway.
This one is a little different:
The bottom plate is put down as well, then one drives on to the lifter, and now you have to duck your head quickly, otherwise you will be struck by the swinging
Safety barÂ
or pushed down the stairway…
Positively to be mentioned is that the lifter operator pointed out this “specialty” in the last moment.
Translator BL
Tags:Technical Aids, Hoist/ Lifter, Oberstdorf, Holiday
Posted in General, Eigude- Shame, Holiday | No Comments »
Thursday, June 3rd, 2010
Frontpage
A visit to the swimming pool in my case turns out to be a little bit like the launch of a
Containership.
There are the most different methods to be
„watered“
Possibilities are e.g. a hydraulically swinging bench, a chair in which one is wound down to the water, or a shower chair in which one is pushed down a ramp into the wet as at a ship’s christening.
Into the sea one is pushed e.g. with a beach wheelchair.
(see older blog post).
The strangest variant reminds immediately of the good old
Chairoplane
on a fun fair. The fun begins with this
floating chair
being 10 cm higher than my cushion, and I would have had to unpack little wings to get on it on my own. Presumably for hygienic reasons the footrest was installed towards the inner side of the chair so that not everybody puts his unwashed feet on it.
If the jump on this thing was successful you swing the safety bar around. The copilot (assistant) drives you to the starting position in front of the pool, hooks you up with two belts into the hoist mounted on the ceiling, and the flight above the water may start.
Before watering put on your life vest!
Translator BL
Tags:Bathtub Lifter , Technical Aids, Hoist/ Lifter, Oberstdorf, Schwimmen, Sport, Holiday
Posted in General, Everyday life aids, Technical Aids, Sport, Holiday | 3 Comments »
Monday, May 24th, 2010
Frontpage
After 14 days at the seminar of the
Support Group of
 medical device marred wheelchair drivers and prosthesis wearers
in Oberstdorf im Allgäu I am online again. These conspirative meetings of world-famous
Wheelchair and technical aids tuners
are “run” under the pseudonym cure (only for patients of the employer’s accident insurance), or holiday.
I will inform you about the most recent findings during the next weeks.
Regards from the Rollinator
Translator BL
Tags:Technical Aids, Oberstdorf, Holiday
Posted in General, Various, Pimp My Ride, Holiday | No Comments »
Friday, February 5th, 2010
Frontpage
At the moment everybody is only talking about snow, snow, snow.
Therefore now:
Summer, sun, holiday, heat, heat, heat…
Whenever somebody is lamenting how much too much he is sweating (I knew that well enough), I am introducing my ultimate remedy:
Such a spinal cord injury can work miracles!
(OK that was too hard).
Well, not to be able to sweat any more sounds rather helpful initially, but there is a severe hitch.
E.g. if I am standing in the sun in the summer my body temperature is rising constantly and rising and rising…
So far I could avoid something worse happening.
Water, water, water …
Such a water sprayer for flowers is tailor-made as medical device, but quite bulky and falls constantly off one’s knees.
After longer research, a battery-operated
“hand fan with integrated water sprayer”
has flown to me.
Typically one should apply for a medial device number for this thing.
Then the fan would probably cost 265,23 €.
To prevent price rigging I reveal the source of supply only personally under:
rollinator@eigude.de
Translator BL
Tags:Sweat, Summer, Quadriplegic Tips, Tips and Tricks, Holiday, Fan
Posted in General, Technical Aids, Technical Aids for Quadriplegic | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, November 25th, 2009
Frontpage
Tenerife is in the south west exceedingly accessible.
Almost everything accessible, excellent service at the airport, everywhere ramps and a special handicapped beach with planks for us wheelchair and scooter drivers.
Simply great!
The only disadvantage is that Tenerife is a volcano island.
Hills, hills, hills…
You can rent “trikes” everywhere for little money 
Tags:Kanaren / Mittelmeer, Scooter, Tenerife, Holiday
Posted in General, Simply great, Holiday | No Comments »
Wednesday, November 25th, 2009
Auzug aus einem Beschwerdebrief an die Deutsche Bahn:
Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren,
Bei der 1. Fahrt mit einem ICE von Frankfurt nach NĂĽrnberg reservierte ich einen Rollstuhlsitzplatz.
Ihre Rollstuhlstehplätze haben meiner Meinung nach ein Sicherheitsrisiko.Man steht vor bzw. unter einem Klapptisch.
Es gibt keine RĂĽckenlehne man steht im Freien,
keinen Haltegriff und keinen Sicherungsgurt.
Beim Anfahren des Zuges kippte mein Rollstuhl mehrfach nach hinten. GlĂĽcklicherweise fiel ich nicht nach hinten um.
Aktivrollstühle wie meiner sind so gebaut, dass man sie einfach ankippen kann um z.B. Bordsteine zu überwinden, oder auf den Hinterrädern fahren zu können.
Wenn nun die Bremsen angezogen sind und ein Zug anfährt,
kippt der Rollstuhl sofort nach hinten.
Des weiteren muss man ständig aufpassen,
nicht selbst aus dem Rollstuhl zu fallen.
Durch das Fehlen der Bauchmuskeln ist an Schlafen nicht zu Denken, ganz im Gegenteil, man muss wach bleiben.
Warum bei der Auswahl bei Ihrer Hotline “Fragen zur Mobilität” keine Rollstuhlfahrer gemeint sind, sondern Fahrräder oder so, bleibt mir ein Rätsel.
Die Ein- und Ausstiegsassistenz in Frankfurt und NĂĽrnberg war Vorbildlich.
Antwort:
Es tut uns sehr leid, dass Sie die Unannehmlichkeiten hatten.
Vielen Dank für Ihre Kritik und Ihr damit verbundenes Interesse an der Deutschen Bahn. Da wir unseren Service und unser Angebot kontinuierlich für Sie verbessern möchten, freuen wir uns über jede Anregung, die uns erreicht.
Wir prüfen alle Vorschläge genau, wie und zu welchen Kosten sie umgesetzt werden können und leiten entsprechende Maßnahmen in die Wege. Daher haben wir Ihre Kritik an den zuständigen Fachbereich weitergeleitet.
Tags:Letters, Holiday
Posted in General, Various, Eigude- Shame | No Comments »
