Archive for November, 2012

Winter Special 2012

Friday, November 30th, 2012

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Here is a collection of links with tips and odd stories around the subject winter.
Sorry, but not all blogposts referred to are translated yet!!! More to follow…

Wheelblades, wheelchairski

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=9362&lang=en translated!

FreeWheel

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=15468&lang=en translated!

Put salt next to the car before snow falls…!!!

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=15740

Reflectors and Illumination for Wheelchair & Car

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=5699&lang=en translated!
http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=4162&lang=en translated!
http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=882&lang=en translated!

Moutainbike Winter Tyres

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=1311&lang=en translated!
http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=4829&lang=en translated!
http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=2068&lang=en translated!
http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=4759&lang=en translated!

Wheelchair auxiliary snow chains

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=4928&lang=en translated!

Running direction of “Schwalbe” tyres

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=2271&lang=en translated!

Wheelchair tyre cleaning carpet

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=1328&lang=en translated!

Wheelchair tyre slippers

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=3298&lang=en translated!

Christmas Tree remote control

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=4397&lang=en translated!

Special wheelchair for removing snow

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=4239&lang=en translated!

Story referring to the picture

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=4582

Miscellaneous

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=750
http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=4636

If you have good ideas, as usual e-mail to rollinator@eigude.de

Translator BL

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Posted in General | 1 Comment »

Eigude Shame XXI

Wednesday, November 28th, 2012

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Thursday evening it was time again; the weather god decided that it was about time to extensively wash the cars.

When I eventually arrived home with my car I noticed with pleasure that a van was standing on my personal parking place and kept the tagged disabled symbol dry.

I stopped with my car on the street in the restricted parking area and took some photos first. Then I wanted to call my wife in the flat to plan the next “steps”.

Suddenly I heard a distinct Yeeessss…!!!

A nice lady in blue uniform from the Frankfurt city police was standing next to my driver’s door and probably wanted to point out that my parking place was maybe somehow inappropriate.

I replied with a Yeeesss… as well and pointed out to the lady that my personalized parking place was currently not available, but apparently a note was lying inside the front screen.

The lady immediately took care of the challenge (I have cancelled the word “problem” from my vocabulary already some years ago).

The note read as follows:

I am pregnant!!!

… and a mobile phone number.

The lady from the city police – and her blood pressure seemed to rise as well – let her head office call the number.

Her comment: I am working for the city and not for the telecom!!!

Then she issued a 35 € disabled parking place special use rent ticket.

When she came to me and told me that the call was rejected when calling the disabled parking place occupier we decided jointly to tow away the car!!!

Just before the tow truck was called the lady with the supposed future earth-dweller came back to her car and had to pick up a blow-up from the lady in uniform first. I stayed really calm this time, which has not always been the case (see older blogpost) and just asked the lady how I should have read her note up on the dashboard of her van.

Thereupon the reply: You are right… oh well…!!!

When the bus driver departed I heard the following comment from my new friend:

Pregnancy is a condition and not a sickness.

Let alone a handicap!!!

If labour would have begun early I would possibly still sit in the car in the rain.

Translator BL

Tags:,
Posted in General, Handicap Parking, Chock, Eigude- Shame | 4 Comments »

Wheelchair Tuning Part XXXII (Competitor)

Wednesday, November 21st, 2012

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At the Rehacare fair I had the world’s lightest wheelchair on my knees, the

Panthera-X carbon fiber wheelchair

of the Swedish company

www.Panthera.se

weighs only 2.1 kilo (4,61 lb) (without wheels).

As light as the wheelchair, as heavy is the price for this wheeler Ferrari . ;-)

Further information e.g. www.aktiv-rollstuhl.de

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Technical Aids, Pimp My Ride | No Comments »

Technical Aids Tips and Tricks IXL

Thursday, November 15th, 2012

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Technical Aid of the year!

FreeWheel

 

Uneven paths, curbs, cobble stone, sand, gravel, grass and of course snow are not really friends of a wheeler.

With a little oomph you reach an artistic score of 5.8 for your flight out of the wheelchair. This can end up annoying, see older blogpost Broken Leg.

The solution is rather simple, you “just” need a longer wheelchair. But if I had a longer wheelchair I wouldn’t get it into the wheelchair loading system of my car.

My Minitrac and handcycle are great, but I always need a volunteer to get one of it out of the cellar.

A super alternative is a single wheel in the size of half a children’s bicycle which you clamp to the front of your wheelchair, and when the front wheels are lifted it gets perfect. The wheelchair then looks a bit like a jogging stroller. There are various producers of such a system.

On the Rehacare fair in DĂĽsseldorf I have met Patrick Dougherty, the American inventor of the

www.goFreeWheel.com

I knew this attached wheel from many videos from the internet, but it is not easily available in Germany. It is so small that you can store it at the back of a rigid frame wheelchair. I take it on my knees when I descend with my platform lifter because I have a foldable wheelchair. Just input “FreeWheel” in Youtube and see for yourself what is suddenly accessible, e.g.:

I could buy a new “fair wheel” from him which was still lying in the hotel. On the last day of the fair he deposited it at the booth of Runa Reisen, a travel agency for handicapped. I know their staff very well because I always book my holidays there. They have sent the FreeWheel to my home then. Thanks again from this side.

With the FreeWheel it is even possible, ideally with additional Mountainbike tyres, to ride safely in the snow. Now the next winter can start, or maybe even a little bit of desert…

The FreeWheel is clamped tetra-easily to the footrest of a rigid-framed wheelchair. (But I have a foldable wheelchair…???)

If you ride forwards afterwards the front tyres of the wheelchair are lifted, and the fun can begin.

Because of the big tyres even “shocks” due to rough grounds are almost not noticed any more.

A rack with maximum load of 12 kg is available as well.

It has been upgraded with missing spoke reflectors incl. blinking valve caps (see picture above).

Of course Patrick wanted to know in detail how I get the FreeWheel clamped to my actually non-suitable foldable wheelchair by magic with Michael’s help. ;-)

New 2014 FreeWheel for folder-wheelchairs

For enquiries contact as usual: rollinator@eigude.de

Translator BL

 

Tags:, , , ,
Posted in General, Simply great, Technical Aids, Technical Aids for Quadriplegic, Pimp My Ride, Selbstgebaute Hilfsmittel, Holiday, Winter | 5 Comments »

Chock Part XIII

Friday, November 9th, 2012

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On Monday evening I “just” wanted to fuel up quickly!!!

There it was again

“The just-word”,

which will drive me insane some time.

The petrol station with the yellow shell has re-established the filling station attendant a couple of years ago. This is why I am usually going to the yellow club, but this time not to my usual station.

Unfortunately this one didn’t have a filling service, so I drove through to the cashier desk and waved with my yellow

Please keep distance sign, with handicap symbol

(see older blogpost),

for the side window.

The cashier clerk nodded in my direction, came outside and put the fuel hose into my car. After my cash budget of 40 € was exhausted he pulled the nozzle out again and cashed up.

I wished him a nice evening and started with my vehicle. When I was on the street again the car behind me flashed, then I already saw my

fuel cap flying!!!

Even after intensive search my original fuel cap could not be located any more. Now I have a fuel cap out of the stock of the station.

Possibly it was from a 911 which would explain my rough driving mode from yesterday ;-)

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Chock, Comedy | 1 Comment »

Addendum Technical Aids Tips and Tricks XLVIII

Thursday, November 8th, 2012

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The wheelchair Segway is not only available from

Gennymobility

(see older blogpost).

Also the German company

www.mobilitycube.de

is constructing one of those models. I think they are affordable, but apart from that I could not report more than what you can see on the website.
 

A wheeler mate has found out some things, I consider his investigations most interesting. However I can’t guarantee for the correctness of the information.
I will call him Informant Segway:

The scooter by Genny shown in the film clip costs laid-back 15950 Euro (net). I have got this information from the Italian headquarter.

A possible alternative is the MobilityCube reconstruction kit based on a Segway. Costs 3.800,00 €!

The customer either brings his own Segway, or we provide a Segway.
The aquisition of a Segway costs new 7.900,00 € and used from Segway 6.600,00 €.

We arrange the individual approval of the technical control association for costs of 385,00 €. Illumination according to road traffic regulations 50,00 €.

Optionally the customers can exchange the original tyres with tyres of the company Axperts. http://www.axperts.de
Usually an extra charge of ca. 420,00 € bis 450,00 € arises…

Thanks to informant Segway for the investigation!!!

Now we only have to convince Santa Claus as sponsor, and the fun can begin. ;-)

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Simply great, Technical Aids, Pimp My Ride | No Comments »

Technical Aids Tips and Tricks XLVIII

Friday, November 2nd, 2012

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Since I am rolling through the world for 5 years now, I have another enemy besides disabled parking place occupiers, namely doors.

These mostly white pieces are slowly turning into a phobia.

Not so easy to pull the door shut when you are standing… eh, sitting in your own way.

Hold the handle tight, roll backwards and mind not to fall forward if possible, or to do a backflip with the wheelchair.

In hospital I already had a long ribbon with which I was always fishing for the door handles. This ribbon is still hanging on the door of my flat and is serving its purpose.

I hate my own kitchen door, it is one meter wide. I only say:

No arms, no cookies…!!!

Only the door knows why I haven’t hung such a ribbon on my beloved kitchen door during the last 4 years.

The blue-yellow nordic timber worms offer drawer handles in all designs, sizes and colours. There were no more hurdles for the

kitchen door tuning.

A mate has screwed such a handle on my favourite door from the inside.
Now I can eventually close the door even when I am already standing in the corridor.

Because the screws have to be very long I recommend to immediately take threaded bars (on IKEA handles mostly thread M4), and saw it off to size only at the end.

If you leave the bars a bit longer you can even mount two towel hooks at the inside on the door.

Tip, always drill the holes from outside to inside and use an air level.

Looks a bit like a towel rail, I like it. Next, the door of my flat will be refurbished.

Before spot-drilling the entrance door it can’t do any harm to integrate the landlord in selecting the handles.

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Everyday life aids, Technical Aids, Technical Aids for Quadriplegic, Selbstgebaute Hilfsmittel, Tips and Tricks | No Comments »