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Marvin... I've had this mental picture of you as truly a giant among men, albeit a "sitting giant," and a very mortal one. I've always thought of you that way 'cause of the stature your written words gives to your presence here on the List. Seeing you thus, I'm rather startled to hear that people notice ya less in a powered chair then they would in your non-powered chair. In fact I guess I've always mentally seen you as being highly visible wherever you are BECAUSE you're YOU - that verbal giant. Soooooo.. will ya please enlighten me and tell me what I'm overlooking here? WHAT is it about the powered chair, in your opinion, that makes you less visible than you'd be in your non-powered chair? Size of the chair? Noise difference between the two chairs, or lack thereof? What's the difference in the two chairs that causes ya to be less visible in what I'd consider to be the better of the two? This really puzzles me, Marvin, 'cause life is tough enough for chair-bound folks. (uhhhh... remind me not to be right in front of ya in a mall 'cause I don't wanna get flattened while you try to stop on a dime!) <grinning, ducking & running> Barb Mallut [log in to unmask] ---------- From: Parkinson's Information Exchange on behalf of Giles Sent: Monday, April 20, 1998 10:06 PM To: Multiple recipients of list PARKINSN Subject: My powered chair: The Good, Bad, and Blind You have a powered chair. Congratulations. You=92re in for some surprises. You will find that you are more mobile in some ways and less so in others. If you are like me, you will fin= d yourself having to adjust to being faster and stronger than those aroun= d you for the first time in your life. Some places that were available to you are no longer accessible. A two inch step is a cliff. Multiple steps become mountains. That grass filled meadow can now be crossed with ease, but you are on a limited power supply. It is a short hop to the store for a snack but you can=92t get back in the chair from the toilet. Getting around at wo= rk is less tiring but you can=92t go out to lunch because the chair won=92= t fit. However, the biggest surprise is the change in visibility. For example. Kristen and I went to the Main Street Arts Festival this past weekend. Having been in a wheelchair for a rather long time I have become accustomed to the way people in malls and other crowded places react t= o wheelchairs. I found that a powered chair makes you less visible. In one instance I watched as one person planted his foot squarely between my front and rear wheels. I did manage to stop, but did so on top of his foot. Another young man walked in front of me and wound up on his rump lookin= g mildly annoyed. Now I=92ve always come in on the short side so not bei= ng seen because people don=92t look down or don=92t want to look at the ch= air is not new to me. But I find this inability to see three hundred pounds of motorized steal plus 190 pounds of person frightening. Consider this= , a powered chair can travel at a maximum speed of seven miles per hour. The minimum speed is one that will make your head ache trying to watch. At that minimum speed, a powered chair user can move twice the combine= d weight of themselves and their chairs. In fact, I have to be careful moving around the house or I will find myself moving furnature that Kristen does not want moved. A powered chair can do a 180 degree turn in under 4 seconds and on a flat dry surface can stop in something like six feet. These bits of information are based upon my attempts to find out what my limitations are. But I hope this information makes one thing clear. Those poor unfortunates out there that must walk simply cannot see a powered wheelchair, thus you must look out for them, although you will find tha= t nobody wants to walk ahead of one. Marvin Giles