Feb 26
Posted by Katelynn,
My dad has been in a wheelchair for his entire life. He is a great man who just doesn’t let something like this get in his way of doing anything. However, because he doesn’t seem to complain about anything he has had the same old chair for a very long time. Since then there have been many advancements in wheelchairs and scooters. I have been finding out the process of choosing mobility scooters and wheelchairs. I want to do something extremely special for him for his 50th birthday coming up. And I figure getting him a more lightweight wheechair that rolls better would be amazing.
As you dad is young he may fancy a scooter with a sporty look. There are many designs of 3 wheel scooters now with large 12 inch wheels. Many with alloy wheels and with wing mirrors, sleek lines, headlights and finished in attractive colors. They look more like a motorbike that a scooter. They’re very popular with younger people as they can also project their personality in the scooter they drive.
There are some scooters manufactured today offering the advantage of being easily portable. They can be transported in the trunk of the car and easily assembled when you reach your destination. If you buy this type of scooter and you have completely lost the power of your legs you will probably need to take someone with you to assemble the scooter for you.
Mobility scooters are great for getting about outdoors. Often the surfaces you will be going over are rough and uneven. Three wheel scooters tend to be more manoeverable than the four wheel version, but they can be unstable when traveling over uneven ground. This can be OK for a younger person, but for a senior it can sometimes be a problem so often they are best to go for a 4 wheel model.
There are so many designs of mobility scooters available today it makes sense to get one that fits your dad’s size and strength. There’s also lots of accessories you can fit to scooters today so you want to be sure the model you buy is capable of accepting the accessories you dad may want.
If you’re investigating what’s available and not sure which direction to go it may be worth while having a chat with your dad and suggesting he try out some rental mobility scooters for a while. Rental companies usually have a range of different models you’re dad can try out before deciding on the one to buy.
I wouldn’t be without my mobility scooter now. If your dad travels outdoors a lot then a scooter is better than a lightweight wheelchair because the wheelchair will be a manual model that still needs to be pushed. Your dad is probably quite fit as he’s been pushing wheelchairs all his life so will be strong enough for a manual wheelchair. But, he may prefer to have power beneath him that he can control.
I find the steering on my mobility scooter very easy to use. It has handlebars similar to the ones you have on a bike. They connect to an arm called a tiller like you have on a boat and this steers the wheels. Very easy.
I would certainly recommend a mobility scooter. They are very easy to drive and extremely manoeverable in tight spaces. The battery powered ones are the best because they have very quiet running electric motors and are available in either three or four wheel models.