cjsmith: (Default)
cjsmith ([personal profile] cjsmith) wrote2005-06-01 02:57 pm

[identity profile] sharya.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 10:06 pm (UTC)(link)
It looks like a decent size too!

[identity profile] cjsmith.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 10:10 pm (UTC)(link)
Yeah - small and portable, but still has a seat. I'm not ready for an impulse purchase but it's tempting enough for me to bookmark it.

They have stand-up versions that are very small and portable, and I might have a lead on one of those on my local Freecycle list. I'm crossing my fingers. Standing hurts less than walking, so owning one of those would be helpful (and hey, it's FREE).

[identity profile] mactavish.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 10:40 pm (UTC)(link)
Where were you thinking of using it? Do you want it to count as a disabled mobility vehicle that can go on public transit, malls, etc.? If so, that won't.

[identity profile] cjsmith.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 10:42 pm (UTC)(link)
I hadn't thought that far. What disqualifies it?

[identity profile] mactavish.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 10:48 pm (UTC)(link)
The instability, the speed. I just sent a link to the scooter I was looking at to BART, and they said, "You could bring it on if you didn't ride it, just pushed it on/off." At the time, I was barely walking, so that was useless to me. In this case, they might say the same thing. They might approve of the "mobility vehicle" linked here, but I'm not sure because it goes 10 mph. You could send them the link and ask. Or you could have one that you could push on/off transit, but still, mall security might look at you funny if you tried one there.

I wasn't able to find (as you saw :/) one that was both cheap and usable as an official wheelchair type vehicle when required in public. But they *do* come up on freecycle from time to time, and you might find a used one on craigslist. And of course, there's [livejournal.com profile] scooting ;) (I'm not really joking.)

[identity profile] cjsmith.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 11:10 pm (UTC)(link)
The instability, the speed.

Ah, gotcha. They'd want three wheels, I'm sure. (Some able-bodied humans can go 10mph, but I suppose they get exemptions, huh? [grin])

Now that I think of it, I'm not too worried about BART -- or any public transit, really -- because it doesn't come anywhere within miles of where I ever am. The only public transportation near me is buses, and they don't go anywhere I need to go (like my work).

I guess this would be for "walks around the neighborhood" -- getting outside and moving around, feeling the wind on my face. Are there laws about riding such a thing on public sidewalks? (too fast?) 'Cause I could imagine commuting in it on a nice day!

[identity profile] lindalee.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 10:50 pm (UTC)(link)
Just so you know, two-wheeled vehicles with small-diameter wheels are somewhat unstable. Much less stable than a bicycle or motorcycle, because the small wheel diameter doesn't have as much gyroscopic effect keeping the vehicle upright.

I learned this when I borrowed a scooter from a friend, after riding a motorcycle for a while. I took one hand off the handlebars briefly, and was shocked at how much the scooter tipped.

Good luck!

[identity profile] cjsmith.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 11:01 pm (UTC)(link)
Yeah, I'd wondered about that. I've been on a (human-powered) razor scooter once or twice and I would guess its lack of stability is similar.

This company has a three-wheeled version, but of course it's way more expensive and harder to toss in a car.

[identity profile] quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 10:51 pm (UTC)(link)
That one looks sweeeeeeeeeeet!

[identity profile] cjsmith.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 11:15 pm (UTC)(link)
After thinking more, I'm not sure it's the right "sweet spot" between portability and comfort. The thing weighs seventy-two pounds (!) and is too fast / unstable to qualify as an official mobility device. Maybe I want a slower but lighter one...

Ah heck. I dunno what I want, I'm just browsing. It sure would be fun to try them all out.

[identity profile] quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 11:26 pm (UTC)(link)
Is there anywhere you can do that around you?

[identity profile] cjsmith.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 11:31 pm (UTC)(link)
I have no idea. Maybe. If so, I bet it's in Berkeley. ("In Berkeley" is a generic term for "somewhere I can't reach using public transportation, farther than I want to drive, to a place I can't park.")

[identity profile] quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 11:37 pm (UTC)(link)
"In Berkeley" is a generic term for "somewhere I can't reach using public transportation, farther than I want to drive, to a place I can't park."

I like that. May have to borrow it from time to time, as I don't have a good semi-regional analogy. Can't say "In Chicago" even, as I've actually managed that fairly well most of the time. I did pull a fast one in Berkeley once, though - the last time I was out there I was heading down Telegraph, resigned to heading for the garage just off the Cal campus, when someone vacated a space right in front of the bookstore I wanted to hit. I was in the left lane. Felt like I should have been driving in Boston the way I pulled off getting into the space. :-)

[identity profile] cjsmith.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 11:46 pm (UTC)(link)
Maybe a crowded suburb on the far side of Chicago? Heh, I like the parking space story -- you will do FINE inside 128 :-)

[identity profile] quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com 2005-06-01 11:59 pm (UTC)(link)
:-) My problem isn't so much the aspect of other drivers' behaviors alone - it's my map geekitude reflected in my desire always to know where I am, where I'm going, and exactly how I'm getting there, and I know Boston by foot pretty well but haven't mapped that to being behind the wheel since so many of the streets are one-way (and with said other drivers' behaviors, glancing at the map on the passenger seat isn't a comfortable thing to do there).

[identity profile] cjsmith.livejournal.com 2005-06-02 12:06 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah, I hear ya -- at least that's a thing you can learn.

[identity profile] aelfie.livejournal.com 2005-06-02 08:29 pm (UTC)(link)
Believe it or not Toy's R Us has similar sized scooters for you to go look at if you'd like (or at least the one by me does)

[identity profile] cjsmith.livejournal.com 2005-06-02 08:43 pm (UTC)(link)
Electric-powered? Cool, I may go look, thanks!