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Thank you all for your thoughtful and supportive comments on my "gimp social life" post. Folks made many good points.
- Yes, a scooter would help an awful lot for outingsinvolving movem um, "outings" do tend to involve movement, don't they? I plan to get one as soon as I decide which one is lightest/smallest/easiest-to-transport/reliable/cheap and as soon as I'm pretty sure I'm never going to get better (they're pricey, so I don't want to buy it just to have it for a year). Soon. I'll probably buckle down and get to it soon. I've test-driven several models now.
- Yes, which activities people are doing makes a *big* difference. Anything with the words "explore" or "see" should be planned much more carefully than events with words such as "crafts" or "pot luck". :)
As some of you probably guessed, my main frustration is with myself. If asked to label myself two years and change ago, I would have said: "runner, hiker, camper, backpacker, square dancer, square dance caller, pilot, computer programmer, owned by cats". Scanning down that list will give some idea of how big a shift this is for me. It will take time before I'm comfy in my new life. My thanks for all the words of support.
- Yes, a scooter would help an awful lot for outings
- Yes, which activities people are doing makes a *big* difference. Anything with the words "explore" or "see" should be planned much more carefully than events with words such as "crafts" or "pot luck". :)
As some of you probably guessed, my main frustration is with myself. If asked to label myself two years and change ago, I would have said: "runner, hiker, camper, backpacker, square dancer, square dance caller, pilot, computer programmer, owned by cats". Scanning down that list will give some idea of how big a shift this is for me. It will take time before I'm comfy in my new life. My thanks for all the words of support.
1. scooters
I looked at several models sitting out on the floor and I immediately decided I wanted one that was small and lightweight and portable. I need to put it in a 1989 Toyota Corolla, and I'm not building one of those power chair hoist things onto the back of my little tiny car. Some scooters are freakin' enormous, the size of golf carts, and I'm thinking they should be street legal. Plus I weigh 125. I don't NEED support for 300 pounds of body -- not when I'm going to have to pick the scooter up by myself.
That narrowed it down to about three things: the Featherlite, the Go Go, and something else like the Go Go. I will have to check out more stores to see other models before I make a final decision. Here's what I found about these.
The Featherlite (or Featherlite Deluxe, I'm never quite sure of the differences any more) was the largest of the three. It is very comfortable to ride, and it comes with a basket that can hold an extra battery or some personal effects under your seat. Major advantages: you can fold it up and walk it like a piece of rolling luggage, AND if you like you can disassemble it into pieces and pop it in your trunk. Major disadvantages: price, reliability. My friend has one and hers has turned out to be flaky as hell.
The next model I tried, whose name I sadly cannot remember, was lighter and smaller overall than the Featherlite but difficult for me or the salesman to disassemble. They hadn't had that model long; it's new. Perhaps he'll get better at it over time, and if I had come in six months in the future, I'd have learned all the tricks to make it easier. It looked very like the Go Go, so the helpful guy steered me to that one next.
The Go Go can't be walked like a rolling suitcase, but it can be disassembled into three big chunks, and it would handily fit in the trunk of a car. I could disassemble it; with your achy hands, you should check one out in person, as there's a latch to pop that might be a little hard to do. I could also lift each of the components. It too is very comfortable for me to ride. Its arms can be removed, which I'd do. There's no real storage space, so I'd probably go with a backpack-ish bag across the seat back. I don't know how a second battery could be carried for increased range. Advantage: price, size. I don't know anything about its reliability.
Another thing to check out in person is the hand controls. My friend with RA chose the Featherlite Deluxe because (I forget which other model) would hurt her hands. In the store I kept repeating how very lucky I was that above the ankles I'm okay. Small or finicky hand controls are okay for me. Tight connection pins are okay for me. Picking up heavy things, of course, requires feet, but I can do it for short bits of time.
There must be a web site out there somewhere with people's experiences of various scooters. A sort of Consumer Reports for scooters. I'd love to see such a thing!
Re: 1. scooters
I've been shopping around for sexy orthotics too.... the joy of disability.
Maybe I'll make my CJ take me to the store today - check out models and pricing. Thanks, and I'll let you know if I find anything.
Re: 1. scooters
OK, I will stop being Posty McPostalot and get my butt in to work. :-)
Re: 1. scooters
Re: 1. scooters
Re: 1. scooters
*pout*
Re: 1. scooters
Re: 1. scooters
At least from the forum headings, it claims to cover a huge, huge range--- golf carts, scooters, motorized bikes, power chairs, and all kinds of things that I wouldn't even know what the distinctions mean...... "electric quads" -- oh it does go on.
This one I think is NOT about "your kind" of scooters (not that I have any freakin' idea) -- but you could ask them where to find discussion of the types of scooters you are looking at:
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/TwistnGoScoot/
Now, what about Consumer Reports? I easily found stuff from them on scooters, but, again "wrong" kind -- these are the stand and kick with a foot on the ground typd.
This one is not exactly consumer opinions
http://arthritis.about.com/od/assistivedevicesgadgets/tp/scooters.htm?terms=scooters
still, it looks like it is in the right ballpark, and I have sometimes found the links from ABOUT articles helpful. This article is pegged under "assistive devices", so I think it is at least barking up the right tree. The links at the bottom part of the page look pretty interesting to me, but your mileage may vary (e.g. you have read a lot on related topics and I have not -- and I don't know if some of the topics are too far afield "how to protect your joints")
okay, well, that was a very quick look, so I'm not claiming these are the bestest.....