People Were So Amazed By This Off-Road “Wheelchair” This Man Designed For His Wife, He Started Mass-Producing Them
Back in 2018, YouTuber and tech reviewer Zack Nelson built a one of a kind motorized off-road wheelchair for his then-girlfriend Cambry by splicing together two electric bikes. The unique bike allowed the woman to go to places where she never even dreamed of going in a regular wheelchair and has introduced her to a new level of freedom. And now, a little over a year later, Zack has significantly improved the design and has started mass-producing these off-road wheelchairs in a project called Not-a-Wheelchair .
More info: notawheelchair.com | YouTube
The couple recently shared an introduction video for the off-roader
The couple says that when choosing an adaptive off-roader, there’s little to choose from and they’re extremely expensive, sometimes costing as much as a car. This fact inspired them to build something that is both quick and long range – although it wasn’t so easy. “The toughest challenge when developing ‘Not-A-Wheelchair’ is the price,” said Zack in a recent interview with Bored Panda. They wanted to create something that is affordable for everyone but finding quality components and a simple enough design at the cheapest price possible took some work. “But I think we have something now that everyone will be able to enjoy, at a fraction of the cost of other ‘off-road wheelchairs’ currently on the market,” said Zack.
Cambry still uses a regular wheelchair to get around every day, and uses The Rig when the couple goes hiking. Zack says that The Rig is quiet and they can all talk when she’s riding next to the group.
“We have taken The Rig to Hawaii twice for testing. The bike has to be shipped with a freight company before we go, but we ship The Rig about a week before we fly out ourselves, and it’s waiting there for us when we arrive,” explained Zack. “All this travel was before COVID was a thing. Luckily, we also live near mountains and snow with long wide flat trails to try the bike out on.”
Zack warns that in essence, Not-a-Wheelchair is still just a bike that requires regular maintenance am is not a “fine-tuned, polished, medical device”. But even despite that, the couple hopes that everyone will enjoy The Rig as much as Cambry does.
Not-a-Wheelchairis an electric adaptive off-roader
The bike can reach speeds of up to 12mph
The Rig has a range of 10-20 miles with a single battery, and 25-35 miles with two
The couple says that their goal is to “provide something that is capable and affordable”
The Rig has a rear rack mounting system so you can attach wheelchairs, coolers, and camping gear
The off-roader is built using bike parts, meaning that maintenance and repairs are relatively easy
The Rig has an aluminum frame, a detachable bumper, and four-inch off-road bike tires
TheNot-a-Wheelchairis 5 ft long and 32 in wide without the bumper
This means that it can easily fit in shortbed pickups and wagons
As The Rig is pretty narrow, it can get through most doorways
It handles rough terrain with relative ease
Although it can lose grip on sand and snow, much like a regular bike
The weight limit of The Rig is 225lb
You can also purchase the base model with no suspension and one battery for $3,750
People loved this nimble off-roader
Aušrys Uptas
One day, this guy just kind of figured - “I spend most of my time on the internet anyway, why not turn it into a profession?” - and he did! Now he not only gets to browse the latest cat videos and fresh memes every day but also shares them with people all over the world, making sure they stay up to date with everything that’s trending on the web. Some things that always pique his interest are old technologies, literature and all sorts of odd vintage goodness. So if you find something that’s too bizarre not to share, make sure to hit him up!
