Wheelchair Worries - The Bookery and Amerton Farm

A New Independent Bookstore

I saw a post from The Staffordshire Spotter on February 13th that a new independent bookstore - The Bookery - would be opening at Amerton Artisans in Amerton Farm. The post asked "Do you know of an established local author who would be interested?" Well I'm not established, but I am local. Oh and it said there would be cakes.

Well say no more!

I mounted my trustee steed (iM4.Elite from Easy Living Mobility) then immediately dismounted, folded the wheelchair up and stored it in the boot of a taxi from Westside/Aerobrights taxis, as it took me to Amerton Farm.

Brain Tumours, John Bonham and Fat Pigeons

Brain Tumours,
John Bonham and Fat Pigeons

In case you didn't know - as I don't mention it much - I've written a book - Brain Tumours, John Bonham and Fat Pigeons - who am I kidding, if you've read any of my posts you'll know this poorly kept secret because as I'm reminded regularly by friends and family - I'll repeat that, FRIENDS AND FAMILY -  "you're always banging on about your damn book!" well sod them, none of them have written a book...actually, that's not true. My dad's written three. The Larks, all this way for a shilling and Yellow Impi. See, I'm capable of banging on about other books as well, but back to mine now. 

Any Jem Shaw fans should know that he edited my book. Feel free to leave a positive review on my book for this reason if you wish. Only positive though please, I'd rather people buy the book to find out it's only worthy of a one star rating.

Here was an opportunity to bang on about my damn book to a different audience. As I've learnt it's not easy to sell millions of copies on Amazon if people don't know it exists.

Amerton Artisans

As you go in through the main entrance, immediately to your left is the entrance to Amerton Artisans. It's basically a very large room with several small businesses. It's fantastic. I'd never been here before, there are several types of business here, for example homeware, gifts & cards, metalwork, arts & crafts... The list goes on. Check out the Amerton Artisans Facebook page for more info as this blog is about my wheelchair worries, of which there are a few to be found at Amerton Farm.

The Bookery

As you enter the hall The Bookery is on the opposite wall about fifty yards up. What a charming little shop. There are post cards pictures of 'Indie Authors' and short descriptions and multiple copies of their books. Indie Author means independent author. This store appears to be a great supporter of local authors. The store is quite small, I only stayed a few minutes before excusing myself as I felt I was taking up to much space. I was able to introduce myself to the owner and two local authors and showed them a copy of my book - well what did you expect? Afterall, I'm always banging on about it.

Amerton Farm

The access isn't brilliant, but I'm fairly sure it will be a listed building, so their hands will be tied with regards to what changes they can make. If it isn't listed I certainly don't hold it against them for not making changes that wouldn't be in keeping with the style of the farm.

For example I went into the tea room for a hot chocolate (the best hot chocolate I've had by the way.) But the door was quite old fashioned with a pull down handle. I was struggling to get in but a couple came to help me. They had to open the second door so that I could get through. If you've read previous posts on this blog you will know that inaccessible doors are a particular bug bear of mine. But I think in this case, keeping the old fashioned doors is acceptable.

However, the access when I got in wasn't much better. The tables were so close together it was a struggle to get the wheelchair through. I was having to move empty chairs from there place at the table or if people were sitting in them, they would inevitably have to move because the chair would be infringing on the tiny walkway.

As I was leaving the tea room I felt a tap on my shoulder, it was the lady I had spoken to in the bookery. She said she was looking on Amazon for my book but couldn't find it. She was keen to read about my story. I had hoped my appearance would open the floodgates and I would be inundated with requests for my book. I can't say it worked as I hoped, but I delved into my bag and retrieved a copy I had on me. She went to the table she was sitting at and returned with a £10 note and a copy of one of her books - The Haunted House 2. This was fellow author Ann K. S. Thayre. I say fellow author but that would imply I think I'm an author but I have only written one memoir, Annc has written five books.

Anyway Ann was a lovely woman who offered me very kind words of advice. Please check her out.

@fatpigeonsbook 

@fatpigeonsbook

@fatpigeonsbook

Wheelchair Worries - That was supposed to be an 11 minute car ride...

£15 for a taxi!

I arranged with a friend to go round to her house for a coffee. It was going to cost fifteen pounds to make the eleven minute journey via taxi though, so I had the brain wave that I would take the bus instead. It wouldn't cost me anything and I could document it,

I'm sure that would make a fantastically thrilling post.

In case you didn't notice, that was said with sarcasm...

It was tipping it down with rain. The video doesn't quite show the extent of it, but trust me it was biblical...well, alright, it was raining a bit, but it meant I was going to get a lot wetter waiting for two busses than I would if I took a taxi, but I would have a nice hot coffee waiting for me at the end...hopefully.

It was lashing it down with rain (honestly, it was biblical), my trousers were soaked through and I'd only been waiting for fifteen minutes. I don't like being cold and wet so I decided to open up my taxi app, spend the fifteen pounds and look forward to having a mug of coffee in the very near future, and guess what?
Go on guess!
Yep, the bus emerged from around the corner. It offered immediate shelter from the rain and it saved me from spending fifteen pounds. Granted, it would take me into town, which was the exact opposite direction to Wildwood, and I would have to wait in the rain to catch a second bus, I was fairly sure I was going to regret this decision. 

*SPOILER ALERT* I DID REGRET IT

When we reached my stop, the bus driver lowered the ramp and - as he is familiar with my lack of capabilities when driving my trustee steed (iM4.Elite from Easy Living Mobility) - he warned a person waiting in the bus shelter to mind her feet because the bus driver knew what I was like.

Should I be offended? Nah, it's harder to maim people who are already wary of you.

I shut my front door about thirty-five minutes ago, I was now even further away from my destination than when I started. I got to the bus stop to catch my second bus and I asked one of the people waiting if she could check the timetable for when my bus arrives.

Why do you have to be someone of a certain height with decent eye sight to read the bus timetable?

Even if I wasn't in a chair, my poor eye site means that I still would struggle to see it. What if there was nobody here to help me? I think the wheelchair user is an after thought - if a thought at all other than doing the minimal amount so that they can tick a box on a form. 

According to the timetable my bus was due in twenty minutes at 12:48 but the electronic board said 13:48. I'm sure this was an error but I'd arranged to be there at one o'clock. It was still raining (and remember, it was biblical) I was still cold, so I gave up and ordered a taxi.

Ah the predictability of stupidity

I booked a taxi on the app - the app that I always use - I followed my usual routine making sure I didn't put in my usual payment details as I normally use the taxi service to get to Headway. I paid with my debit card rather than the debit card that the council funds. I had arranged to be picked up from my usual location however - my house. I got  a text saying "your driver is outside". I looked up from my phone. Nothing. I looked up and down the road. Nothing. It then dawned on me. I phoned the taxi company and told them my mistake and told them where I actually was. That mistake cost me half of the fare on top of the original fare.

This is going well

• I'm cold
• I'm wet through
• I've had to order the taxi that I didn't want to pay for anyway
• I've ordered it for the wrong pickup point
• I've had to pay extra to rectify my balls up
• Oh and I'm late

I finally arrived at my friend's - Kim - house. The first hurdle to overcome was the inch high step up into her house. I had questioned this when we made the arrangement and her response was "ah, we'll manage, don't worry about it." In fact I had a number of worries that involved my wheelchair and her house. Her response was "we'll manage, don't worry about it." Although it soon became "WE'LL MANAGE!" I took this subtle hint to stop worrying about it. 

1. Issue 1
   

   She had a dining room chair for me to transfer onto. And while I lazed around watching, she got the wheelchair in. Well, she tried, but the wheelchair is quite heavy and quite awkward to move unless it's folded up. The taxi driver offered to help before he left. We now had a sliding puzzle to solve. The hall was quite small and we needed to get my trustee steed in and be able to shut the front door. Kim slid me over towards the stairs, the taxi driver lifted my trustee steed inside and to the left of the door and we were able to close the front door.
2. Issue 2
   We were in the hall. We needed to be in the living room, so Kim slid me close enough to my wheelchair so that I could transfer onto it. I had to then wheel into the living room, there slight problem however. There was a shoe rack by the living room door, so I couldn't fit the wheelchair through the door and  the shoe rack was far too heavy and big to move. So I had to get back into the chair and then Kim slid me across the living room floor so I was close enough to transfer to the sofa. My electric chair was still in the hall though, so Kim folded it up and dragged it into the living room.
3. Issue 3
   Kim went into the kitchen to make a hot chocolate with Bailey's. Yum! Yum! 😋 She came back with a fairly full mug so I lent forward to sip it but I was forgetting that I was wearing a cap. The peak of the cap touched the mug which made me recoil immediately and the contents of the mug spilt onto my jeans and onto the sofa. She got me a cloth. I cleaned up my jeans and the sofa as best I could and then I slid across with Kim's help to the other sofa. She has a Miniature Dachshund who wanted to join in with our 'game'. He excitedly jumped up, I recoiled as if the dog was trying to gnaw my face off and Kim fell onto the sofa almost spilling hot chocolate on t'other sofa 
   
   Again, this was going well!
   
   
4. Issue 4
   I needed to go to the toilet. So I slowly went from the living room into the kitchen making sure I didn't mark the skirting boards or the walls. I then had to go into the utility, which was through a perfectly wide doorway, although there were several plastic bags hanging off a door next to the doorway. So, because I'm an idiot I tried to creep through the doorway without touching the bags. I could have just moved the bugs but then only a person who WASN'T an idiot would think of that. I was too close to the side and knocked into the skirting board and part of it came off. But I was barely moving at all so I thought it must have already been loose. I asked him and she reassured me that it was.
   
   I went back into the living room afterwards and bashed into the television table, knocking a Christmas calendar onto the floor.
5. Issue 5
   I was ready to go home so I booked a taxi and when it was about 15 minutes away I announced I better go now because I needed help to get me out again. We did the starting puzzle in reverse this time but Kim was struggling to get the wheelchair out through the front door. Fortunately her next door neighbours mother-in-law who Kim had never met, saw that we were struggling and offered to come and help. She helped Kim get the wheelchair outside and then helped me down the step into the wheelchair.
6. Issue 6
   The skirting board wasn't already loose, I knocked it off. Kim knew that I would go into meltdown so she hid the truth from me.

So there we have it. That's how easy it is to go around to a friend's house for coffee. She hasn't invited me around since though. Strange 🤔

@fatpigeonsbook

@fatpigeonsbook

Wheelchair Worries - Special assistance when catching the train

 I remember reading about special assistance on a very handy little blog called...oh what was it...oh, I remember! wheelchairworries.com 😁 (https://www.wheelchairworries.com/2025/02/wheelchair-worries-social-prescribing.html?m=1)

John Cleese

I'm going to see an evening with John Cleese in November, in Manchester with my brother Daniel. He lives not far from Manchester and normally I would require him to travel down to Stafford to pick me up to take us/me to Manchester. It's a Tuesday evening though and he's one of these responsible adults with a job.

"I'll get the train" I said confidently, as at this point it was July and the evening in question was a long way in the future. It was easy to say I would do it without thinking about the fact I was actually going to have to  do it. Now it's in a couple of weeks and the thought of navigating the train station on my own made me apprehensive. I'm not the most confident bloke, but my trustee steed (iM4.Elite) is enabling me to get out of my comfort zone. So...

"I'll do a practice trip before the actual trip" I thought
"Because I'll probably cock it up"

And guess what? I was right.

I cocked it up!

Mind the gap

Let me explain. Again, I remember that there was this very handy little blog called...oh what was it...oh, I remember! wheelchairworries.com 😁 it mentions that you can purchase a Disabled Persons Railcard  (see post Wheelchair Worries - Social Prescribing. So I did, but it takes up to five days to process, so I thought I'd just do the journey without the card. I thought the only advantage of the railcard is that the ticket is cheaper. However, card or not, my dad informed me, I needed to tell the train company (Avanti) of my disability as they will need to provide a ramp to get onto the train.

Cock up number one.

Luckily my train was at 13:03 and the Trainline AI assistant told me I needed to give them a minimum of two hours notice. I called them on the morning of my trip and they arranged assistance telling me to go to the ticket office upon arrival.

My taxi got me there about 30 minutes early, the pessimist in me assumed something was going to go wrong and I wanted plenty of time to spare.
Surely this wasn't going to go smoothly? 
I went straight to the ticket office and informed them of my arrival.

Starbucks

I was told somebody would come to the ticket office and take me to the platform. I even had time to go and get a Starbucks. The lady didn't know what time I needed to be back for, but she wasn't too fussed if I was here or in Starbucks. I would usually be stressed about all the things I could cock up and wouldn't relax until I was on the train. And that relaxed mood would quickly evaporate when I started thinking about getting off this train and getting to my connecting train. 

I returned to the ticket office after I got my (iced) coffee. I was taken from the ticket office to the platform where the special assistance went to get a ramp and came back to help me onto the train.

This is already my favourite way to travel. Granted, my opinion will change when the infamous train delays affect me. But for now, it couldn't be going any better.

Getting onto the train wasn't particularly simple. The train is a good height above the platform and there is a decent sized gap between the platform and the train. I had my wheelchair on the lowest speed setting [PICTURE OF POWER] so as to reduce the speed of the impact when I inevitably run into the back of somebody - some might say I'm a bit of a liability - not the best driver. I disagree, I say I'm an excellent driver

A wheelchair users view

The ramp is quite steep but the iM.4 Elite is upto the task. I take an immediate left and then follow the corridor as it curves right to the carriage. It's incredibly tight. The corridor is barely wide enough to fit my wheelchair and I'd left the footrest down. A rookie mistake. It adds a couple of inches to the length which meant I was pinging off the walls like a pinball machine. The wheelchair space had luggage in it, but the passenger moved the luggage in question and I took up residence, opposite some more luggage. The driver came to see me to confirm I needed special assistance at Manchester Piccadilly. He told me to wait here when we reach my stop and somebody will set up a ramp, get me off the train and take me to the correct platform for my connecting train.

When I got off the train it was about 20 minutes till my connection to Oxford Road and the Starbucks had left me in need of the facilities.

Here was my first opportunity to cock it up 👍

It only took us about 5 minutes to get to the toilets and I only spent a minute or 2 using the facilities but we were going to miss the connection... Well, I don't see how we were definitely going to miss the connection, but there was no point rushing when the next train was an 8 minute wait. So the special assistance changed my booking to the next train on a different platform and took me to it. He made a call and phoned ahead to the next station and arranged assistance at the next station.

I kinda cocked it up, but an adult was around to sort it 😁

Have I mentioned that I love this completely stress free method of travelling?

I boarded the train and by the time I positioned myself in the disabled space, the train had pulled into Manchester Oxford Road and I could hear the ramp being clicked into place.

Here was my opporunity to cock it up, an opportunity I took full advantage of. According to Google Maps it was a ten minute walk from the station to the Albert Hall. I got to the street and the road I was on went in both directions and the text instructions said walk north-east...I didn't know which way North-East was and Google Maps didn't show what direction I was facing, but logic tells me that if the time it takes on Google Maps increases, I need to turn around. Well Google Maps wasn't updating, by the time it did it said I was 17 minutes away. Ok. So I turned around. It wasn't updating again. I asked a Traffic Warden but he didn't know as he'd just moved to Manchester. I went along this road for ages and I couldn't find it. I think this successfully illustrates my infamous sense of direction. I could well have passed it and not realised. 

It got to 15:30 and my train was leaving at 16:13 so I thought I'll head back now, even though I had forty minutes to spare, I wasn't confident I'd find it in time.

I got back to the train station with plenty of time to spare. As I entered the station somebody came over to ask me if I had booked special assistance. I hadn't, I'd neglected to book it for my return journey. He told me to wait for him at the platform and he would come and find me. He then arranged for somebody to meet me at Piccadilly and take me to my connecting train.

I love special assistance!

As I think is quite obvious from my posts on this blog, I am an idiot, and I quite frequently do idiotic things. Having special assistance means I have less opportunity to be an idiot, but when I do manage it, they are there.

I have told Daniel (brother) that he will need to pick me up from the train station though, I don't want to go all that way and then miss the show.

@fatpigeonsbook

@fatpigeonsbook

Wheelchair Worries - My quest to get a motorised wheelchair part IV. And the winner is...

I was getting close to picking my chariot. I'd tested a few, I'd done research on others, I'd looked at the pros of renting over buying - spoiler alert, there aren't any - this was looking dangerously like I'd taken my time and was making a sensible decision. Fear not, I'm sure normal service will be resumed. 

But for now I will remain on this path, I've even made this little table to show which chairs are in the running.

	Price	Showroom location	Carry weight (at it’s lightest)	Range	Rear wheel size
iM.4 Elite
Freedom A06
Ultra Light Folding Electric Wheelchair
Freedom Pro ST
Automatic Folding Freedom Elite AF
Freedom Elite ST
Dashi Eco Foldable Powerchair
Pride iGo
Dashi (125kg) Folding Powerchair
Invacare Alber Erivo Folding Powerchair
LW1 Lightweight Folding
Zora
Stratus

I was pretty close to making a decision, but I thought it would be worth giving Wheelchair Services a call to see if they could help. Who are wheelchair services you ask? Good question. When I was first wheelchair bound it was part of the NHS - a department within Cannock Chase hospital. They were responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of your wheelchair. As time has moved on things have changed (I think we still had black and white televisions when I first used the service) and it was outsourced to a private company. There have been many companies over the years. I hadn't used them for several years after my last encounter with the MD/owner of the then current occupant - Opcare. But that's in the past, I won't say anymore... Except she was the type of person who would look out of the window, see it's raining and tell you it's sunny.
Oops, now, NOW I won't say anymore...

I had used Opcare a few years before this MD/owner came to power. I visited them at their place of residence on an industrial estate in Stoke, there were four or five employees as you enter into a large room and two separate treatment rooms. I sat in the main room in a designated waiting area, waiting to be called into the treatment room for my appointment. 

A few years passed by and I hadn't had a reason to return, but my gel cushion was leaking, so I asked for their help. Things were very different this time. I entered the main room to be greeted by one person sat on a chair in the middle of an almost empty room. One or two desks were pushed up against the wall with unplugged monitors, keyboards and various office paraphernalia resting on it. I didn't see into the treatment rooms but I suspect they were similarly abandoned...

Dammit! I've done it again! Seriously, I've said too much, this has got nothing to do with getting a motorised wheelchair...

When I would phone them, it would just ring endlessly, there wasn't even an answer phone. I was later told by Fibby McFibberson (MD/owner), that this was because they were inundated with calls so they couldn't answer mine. I reminded her I'd seen the empty building, but she said the phones are answered in a different location.

Sorry, I didn't realise I was still holding onto that!

Anyway, back to the matter at hand. The contract now belongs to AJM Healthcare. They have a private and commercial side of the business and a NHS funded wheelchair service. They will assess you and offer you a wheelchair to suit your needs. You have the option to accept that NHS wheelchair or accept a voucher and use it to get a chair privately and you pay the difference. They will then bring a chair to your home for you to try. If you then choose to purchase it they will send you information of the various charities you can apply to for a grant. A member of there clinical team can write a covering letter to ensure the charity realise you are making a legitimate claim.

My book

I decided to make one last throw of the dice before making my decision. I gave them a call and had a fifteen minute assessment over the phone. He took down my requirements, sent them to his engineers and arranged for someone to come to my house to demonstrate the chair(s). If I didn't like the chair(s) they could help me find a better suited chair. There is no obligation to buy, but if like me, you need some guidance, it's a very appreciated service. The chair they chose to demonstrate to me was the Quickie Q50r carbon. It was only 14kg with an 8 inch back wheel. I made my usual knee jerk reaction and immediately decided it was going to be pointless for them to come and demonstrate it to me, it was too light and small. But this is Tom 2.0. I decided to give them a chance and met Ben Zissmin who now worked for AJM Healthcare. He is possibly the single most impressive person I've met in my life, but I haven't met Mr Blobby yet, so Ben could still lose that accolade. I won't say much about him here, maybe I'll save that honour for my second book...

Oh, which reminds me, my book - Brain Tumours, John Bonham and Fat Pigeons - isn't available in any good bookstores. On the plus side, it's not available in any bad book stores either. It's available on Amazon only. 

Quickie Q50r carbon

It was quite a nifty little thing, like an office chair. That was the problem though. You would enjoy zooming around the office car park during your lunch break, but you wouldn't use it get home. To be fair the wheels were bigger than an office chair...I think. I took it out for a spin and Ben gave me some much needed pointers. I've taught myself over the past couple of weeks and I don't think I've done too badly but he was pointing out a few things I was aware of but wasn't showing enough respect. The main issue facing foldable motorised wheelchairs is they need to be light enough to lift, yet still practical. I've found that about 26kg is a good balance between making it easier to transport, store, and maneuver and it's ability to handle terrain. The Quickie wasn't great on either fronts. Just going up a slightly raised curb required you to be directly in front of it with straight wheels. The front wheels on a wheelchair spin around like trolley wheels, allowing a very tight turning circle. If there was a pebble on the ground you had to decide if you were approaching at the correct angle to tackle it. You had to ensure you were on the side of the path furthest from the road because any slight change in the slope of the terrain, would dictate the direction you were going in. It coped better than I thought it would, but it didn't impress.

 

	Price	Showroom location	Carry weight (at it’s lightest)	Range	Rear wheel size
Quickie Q50r carbon

And the winner is...

iM.4 Elite

It probably won't shock you that I went with the iM.4 Elite. It wasn't the cheapest, but it also wasn't the most expensive. But the Easy Living Mobility showroom is a 10 minute trip, which is very convenient, but convenience alone doesn't impress me - customer service does. Easy Living Mobility were my first point of call and arranged for me to borrow the Freedom A06 for £70 plus £150 refundable deposit. Just about everywhere else didn't let me borrow a chair, or if they did wanted to charge me hundreds. Nathan (salesman) allowed me to interview him so I could record it on my blog. I then dealt with Aby who helped me enormously and re-assured me they are there for me aftersales. I can not recommend them enough.

As soon as I got it home I wasted no time in getting out and about it. It's an absolute game changer. Although, the same issue I had when testing the Freedom A06 still existed with this. The terrain dictated my direction, so I got into the habit of driving on the far side of the path, away from the road.  At least this responded fairly quickly when you tried to rectify it. The Freedom A06 seemed to keep skidding towards the road until my heart was beating so fast it sounded like it was doing a drum roll. This was 3kg heavier but was still light enough to pick up, had bigger wheels and better suspension. However, unless the chair is too heavy to pick up, it's going to have this problem.

I embarked on a lengthy journey and intended to do several journey updates as I went, but it became clear I needed a phone holder to do this. I think they're onto something when they say you shouldn't use your mobile phone when driving. I found it quite hard to hold the phone while looking where I was going and looking where the camera was pointed and trying to commentate on my progress..

Fortunately there weren't any wheelchair police around.

@fatpigeonsbook

@fatpigeonsbook

Wheelchair Worries - My quest to get a motorised wheelchair part III

I still wanted to try more wheelchairs, I was going to be paying a significant amount of money for something that I would have for a long time...hopefully. I thought I'd found a similar deal with Mobility Hire that I had with Easy Living Mobility I.E I could loan a chair, but that price went up considerably from the £93.00 visible on the website to £373.20...up again to £487.20 when delivery is added.

EeZeeGo LW1
Lightweight Folding

Back to Google I go, but this time to look for a company who will allow me to hire the chair for a reasonable price. Step up EzeeGo. They have a great website with a good selection of new, used and 'for hire' wheelchairs. I liked the look of LW1 Lightweight Folding Electric Wheelchair it was 24kg - 2kg lighter than the Etech and Easy Living Mobility. It only had 10 inch wheels - 2.5 less than the other 2 - and plain plastic castor wheels on the front. Only the Etech had tread on the front wheels, I'm not sure if that makes any difference or is important, but this is my blog my rules and I say it is important.

EeZeeGo buying
options

'Worth a shot' I thought. I chose the option to hire it for 2 weeks. That was going to be £100...EH? hang on, it clearly says "available to hire from only £30.77", but the option to rent it for that price doesn't come up. The cheapest option is £100 for 2 weeks. Now I'm no math genius but I'm pretty sure that's £50 a week, not the £30.77 advertised. The most expensive option is £400 for 3 months, which works out at £33.33. So it seems to be impossible to rent it for as cheap as they claim. I chose the cheapest options:

Hire term: 2 weeks £100
Delivery option: Standard delivery £59
Security deposit: Refundable security deposit £250
Total: £409

£409! for 2 weeks! I could buy a chair from Etech for £845.50.

It doesn't seem like renting is a very cost effective option. I returned to Google and found a mobility showroom in Stoke - CareCo. They sell everything - mobility scooters, wheelchairs, motorised wheelchairs, walking aids, recliners and walking aids. I booked an Uber and made the 30 minute trip to hopefully take a few wheelchairs for a spin.

I had no idea this place was so close by. The showroom was deceptively big and all one level. The walkways' were very wide and everything was nicely spaced out so you could see each product up close. They welcomed me in and once they found out what I was after, took me to their selection of motorised wheelchairs. 

The first chair I tried was the Zora. It was made from carbon fibre and weighed 13kg or 2 stone. My cumbersome, hard to move, lard-arse manual wheelchair is only 12kg. Does that mean mine is carrying a lot of weight or the Zora is freakishly light? The latter. The website boasts that it is "The lightest powerchair in the world". It's carbon fibre price tag illustrated this, £2,500...add another £500 VAT on top of that. 

It was quite a small chair and the arm felt quite flimsy when I was transferring from my chair into it. The rear wheel size is only 11 inches and the front wheel is only 6 inches, and all four were similar in how painfully thin they were. It's like the wheels were tip-toeing, barely connecting with the floor. I gave it a whirl, but there was nowhere other than the flat smooth shop floor and the incredibly smooth car park to put it through its paces. I'm fairly sure if I faced a piece of gravel I would have to go round it. If I tried to run over it I might be in danger of having to buy the Zora because of irreversible damage.

I tried the Stratus powerchair while I was there. It reminded me of the Freedom A06 I borrowed first. It was fairly substantial looking, it only weighed 17kg (2.7 stones) someway below the 'sweet spot'. The back wheels were 11inch and the font 7, they were asking £1,699 and another £340 VAT. It wasn't looking hopeful so I took it for a spin around the store to give it a 'thorough' testing. This place sold everything! 

It wasn't going to be selling this wheelchair though. The wheelchairs were too light and too expensive.

Look out for the final part 'My quest to get a motorised wheelchair part IV'

@fatpigeonsbook

@fatpigeonsbook

Wheelchair Worries - My quest to get a motorised wheelchair part II

iM.4 Elite

Now that I'd had the chair for a week I reported my findings to Aby at Easy Living Mobility. Thanks to this loan I knew more about what I wanted now and I was fairly sure the Freedom A06 wasn't it. I told her how I didn't seem to have much control over its direction at times. I was feeling fairly downbeat, I was bothered that foldable wheelchairs just weren't going to be heavy enough to give me decent traction, and that was a major problem. Aby told me that the lighter a wheelchair, the less it sticks to the road, but - as she mentioned over the phone a few days ago - she wanted to show me the iM.4 Elite. Aby was sure it was ideal for my needs. It's their own brand and not available in any other stores. It was still light enough to pick up at 24.6kg or 3.87stone (at its lightest), but it had bigger wheels and much better suspension.

Freedom A06
vs
iM.4 Elite

It was on display currently so I couldn't give it a go, but its bigger brother (Voyager) was available to try around the store and car park. It was identical in every way but had got Increased Tensile Aluminium Frame whereas the Elite has Lightweight Aircraft Quality Aluminium Frame. 

I zoomed around outside (actually I crept around on the lowest speed setting). Aby was walking beside me, there were many unscratched cars parked around, I thought having it on the lowest speed setting would limit the potential of me inflicting damage.

It felt brilliant. It felt grippy and sturdy. The outside of the shop might not have been Millbrook test track but it was handy for testing the chair. There were drop curbs and the path had crumbled getting down to it. The Freedom A06 would have slid towards and the tyres would have struggled to get traction on the gravel. Not the iM.4 Voyager/Elite. To get from the path to the road I had to cross some cobbled tiles/paving slabs, which it handled without any problem. There were a few cracks and divots in the road, which the chair had no problem going over. I drove it outside for a couple of minutes and returned to the shop. Granted, it wasn't much of a test, but I knew what I was looking for now. Either the iM4.Elite was what all chairs I tested from now on were going to be like or this was going to be a class leader. I was thoroughly impressed.

I wanted to test some more chairs before making my decision.

My current wheelchair

A lot of the results were from companies selling online only, or if they had a store it was a long way away. For example mobility extra were advertising the Ultra Light Folding Electric Wheelchair. It's only 18.5kg or two stone one pound. My current wheelchair is 12kg or one stone nine pounds. Mobility Extra had got a store, but it is in Essex. Their website has got a chat function, so I asked some questions. The response is pretty quick and it's a human not a bot, so they do actually answer what you ask, rather than saying "I don't understand, did you mean..."

Me:if I wanted to try before I buy, but can't get to Essex, am I be able to arrange a short term loan?
Them:You can take advantage of our 14 day return policy. We can ship the chair to you so you can check it meets your needs in the comfort of your own home. As long as the chair has not been damaged or used extensively outdoor we will accept a return and full refund. We can arrange the return process and collection for you so it’s hassle free.
Them:We can’t offer a loan ourselves but you can use Klarna or PayPal credit at our checkout.
Me:so I would have to pay full price and risk not being able to return it if I use it outdoors?
Them:Yes, you will have to pay. You can test it outdoors as long as it doesn’t get any damage. Some wear in the tyres is fine.

MX-Air
from Mobility Extra

They do have a fourteen day returns policy, but it makes me nervous paying full price and relying on them to deem it acceptable for refund. That wasn't quite what I had in mind. I like the idea of having a store nearby and I'm not great at geography, but I'm fairly sure Essex isn't nearby.

Back to Google I went! Etech Mobility seemed like a very good option. Their prices were ludicrously low, which made me think they were on-line prices only. They had an online chat that connected me to a human straight away who told me that they have a showroom in Birmingham where I could make an appointment to try some wheelchairs. I can certainly get to Birmingham, but it's not exactly local.

Me:Are the prices on your website (for example:Lightweight Electric Wheelchair | Folding Powerchair | Freedom Pro ST) cheaper than if you buy instore?
Them:It will be still the same.

They have got 4.8 out of 5 based on 495 reviews. A little concerning...why haven't they got five? (Imagine a sarcastic tone when you read that). At these prices, the distance didn't seem to be much of an issue. I made an appointment to try out a few chairs. I really liked the look of Limited Edition Purple Lightweight Electric Wheelchair | Freedom Pro ST at £997.50. Unfortunately they hadn't got the limited edition purple in stock, but they had got it in blue. The only difference being the blue one was £152 cheaper! Suddenly I didn't particularly like the purple colour as much.

Etech is on a business park so it's very similar terrain to what I'd be using it on. I was really impressed with it. It felt brilliant, the steering wasn't too sensitive and the joystick control was switched for a golf ball shaped control, which I found much easier to hold, my hand would rest in that position. It became awkward and tiring to hold the stick. There were a few divets in the tarmac which the chair went over with barely any bump. This had large (12inch) puncture proof tyres on the back and smaller (8inch) tyres on the front, but these front tyres had tread on them. The Freedom A06 had 10 inch puncture proof tyres on the back and 8inch plastic castors on the front. It was substantial in size, it engulfed me, I looked like the Freedom A06 was too small for me. I looked out of place sitting in it, like I had squeezed into it. It weighs 26kg which is 3kg heavier than the Freedom A06 but my brother was with me who managed to pick it up without any issue.

He had brought out the Automatic Folding Lighweight Electric Wheelchair Freedom Elite AF which at the touch of a button would fold itself up. Ideal for storage I thought, It wouldn't have to take up so much space in my house when I'm not using it. Plus it looked cool! And that's the important thing, it was like a transformer. Unfortunately it was a transformer who needed to go to weight watchers. It was 28kg and my brother - upon lifting it - felt it was probably too heavy. Around 26kg seemed to be the sweet spot. I didn't try that one, but I did try its little brother. It wasn't a transformer, but it was sporting Etech's Luxury Leather Seat Cover, an optional extra at £84.99.

I wasn't a fan of this at all. The control was far too sensitive. It was heavier than the Freedom A06 but it triggered my PTSD again from not confidently being able to control it. I was having the old zig zag problem and the slightest touch of the stick seemed to overcorrect too much, when I was intending to adjust the direction a little bit. The tyres didn't have tread on them either, they were like plastic shopping trolley castors. I don't know if this made much difference, but I felt I was now an expert in motorised wheelchairs and saw this is a major flaw.

I said my thankyou's and told him I'd let him know as I wanted to try some more wheelchairs before I decide.

There is Mobility Hire in Tewkesbury. They offer a huge range of products like bathroom aids and walking aids as well as motorised wheelchairs. They do have a showroom but it is over an hour away. There is the advantage that you can hire all products on a temporary basis however.

Dashi Eco Foldable
Powerchair

I emailed them a short description of what I'm looking for (lightweight and foldable) to see what they suggest and they came back with a number of options. She recommended the Dashi Eco Foldable Powerchair, Pride iGo (120kg) Folding Powerchair, Dashi (125kg) Folding Powerchair and Invacare Alber Erivo Folding Powerchair.

I liked the look of the Erivo, it looked quite substantial and looked like it could handle the local mean streets easily. It is 28kg though (4.4stones) and slightly above my sweet spot, whereas the Dashi Eco Foldable Powerchair is only 23kg (3.6stones). The Dashi was available for £93.00pw. They were a bit far away to purchase from but I could at least rent a chair to try for a week. I started orrdering it and the cost quickly increased, within a few clicks it was asking me for £373.20!

Me: I've gone through the buyimg process for the Dashi Eco Foldable but stopped before purchasing as it was going to cost £373.20 not the £93.00pw advertised? It's ordering for 2 weeks, I only want it for 1. I realise a £150 returnable deposit and VAT is included in this, but an extra £280 isn't right surely?
Them: Our minimum rental charge is for two weeks, so the online ordering will default at the minimum two. You are welcome to have the Powerchair for a shorter amount of time, but the minimum rental charge will remain.
Me: Can I pickup and return the chair myself? That would take £95 off the cost and with the return of the security deposit, that would be a total of £245 off.
Them: Please find below the revised quotation to include customer delivery/collection:
Minimum two weeks hire of Dashi Eco Foldable Powerchair: £186.00
Security Deposit: £150.00
Customer Collection: £0.00
Customer Return: £0.00
Total Costings: £336.00(ex VAT)

Look out for part III 'My quest to get a motorised wheelchair' 

@fatpigeonsbook

@fatpigeonsbook

Wheelchair Worries - My quest to get a motorised wheelchair

Me being an idiot

My current wheelchair has its limits, granted, the main limit is the idiot that's sitting in it, but if I don't have much input on propelling the chair, then it doesn't matter. Unless I drive into someone. Or something. Either are likely but we'll cross that bridge if/when we come to it.

I searched Google for 'mobility Stafford' on the off chance there was a local store. There was! About fifteen minutes away. Easy Living Mobility. They deal mainly with motorised wheelchairs and mobility scooters as well as walking aids like rollators and furniture like Rise & Recline Chairs. Most importantly they had people I could talk to, to help me with where to start in knowing which motorised wheelchair is right for me. I had spoken to Nathan on the phone and made an appointment to come and see him. I then phoned Community Link and ordered a wheelchair taxi.

Freedom A06

We sat down (well he did, I already was) and I took out my mobile phone so I could record our conversation. I felt like some important journalist who was interviewing people about the pros and cons of motorised wheelchairs. He probably thought I was some spotty school leaver who was playing 'big boy journalist'. I'm probably older than him though, so not so much spotty school leaver but bearded grizzled middle aged forty-two year old man playing 'big boy journalist'.

He asked me about budget, what I was looking for, speed, range etc and I answered quite vaguely. I wasn't being difficult, actually I probably was, but not on purpose. I didn't really know where to start as I wasn't sure what I wanted or needed. The only help I offered was it needed to be lightweight and foldable so it can be transported in the boot of a car. Oh and it only needed to handle suburban terrain like footpaths and roads. 

I had noticed that many of the wheelchairs said 'try before you buy' on the website. He said that means you can try the chair in the shop and outside the shop before you buy it. I explained I was keen to take it home and try it for about a week, I wanted to use it multiple times and over several days to see what it's comfort was like. I didn't want to buy something that will give me aches and pains after a few days use. He had a Freedom A06, which was an ex display model that I could take home and try for ten pounds a day, and a security deposit in case I drive it into things. 

As if I would do that!

With the same knowledge and expertise I offered earlier, I gave it a thorough testing (I took it for a very brief spin in the shop), deemed it acceptable handed over my security deposit and phoned my Dad to pick up me and my growing family of two foldable wheelchairs.

How to fold

The Freedom A06 was indeed lightweight - 22.8kg at its lightest, or three stone six pounds - I have learnt that at its lightest means excluding batteries and cushion - a range of nine miles per battery with the capacity for two lithium batteries and a top speed of 4mph or 6.5kph. The range is a best case scenario and many things like uneven terrain, inclines, and rough surfaces can reduce the distance a wheelchair can travel on a single charge. It folds up incredibly easily, there is a clip on the back of the chair that you open and then you can easily fold it with very little effort.

I wasn't what you would call a natural when it came to driving it. My spacial awareness is terrible. I thought I could judge where the sides of the wheelchair were. I couldn't. I'm sure the chair widened by about an inch when it was near something I could bump into.

I hadn't driven since 2009, which is suspicious because I had my operation in 2007. I may have tried driving in a car park to see if the bit of brain they removed was important. Seemingly it was.

I dumped my manual chair in the house for the newer sexier model, to use around the house to try and get used to the control.  I was constantly bumping into walls and the door frames were barely wide enough to get through. This chair wasn't any wider than my manual, but I was nervous of scuffing this one and losing my security deposit. As you can tell from the door frames around my house, I'm not so careful normally. After about an hour I was back begging my manual for forgiveness and telling it I'd made a terrible mistake. I decided to only use the new sexier one outdoors.

It was incredibly tricky to get around where the space is limited. E.g. Most of the footpath is taken up by an overgrown bush. It would be too close to the bush so I would tap the control 'right', but it would be heading for the road now. My attempts to correct it would cause it to go towards the bush again. 

It was quite quick. There are about six speed settings to choose from, the sixth setting unleashes the full might of the 200W brushless motor. However, after almost crashing into a wall previously, I left it on setting two, which offers around one third of the available power. 

Over the next few days I drove it a few times to and from my parents house with my Dad walking beside me. I didn't feel safe in it. The controls were far too sensitive, it was impossible to go in a straight line. I would zig zag to get to a destination straight in front of me. It's direction seemed to be dictated by the terrain. I would be driving along the path just minding my own business, when the direction of the front wheels would suddenly turn towards the drop curb, even though I immediately pointed the joystick away from the drop curb, it would seem to have no effect until I was dangerously close to the road.

Assuming my years of not being in control of anything that moves was the issue, I practiced driving around my estate. No matter how slow I drove, I still struggled to precisely control it, the sensitivity meant it would turn if you simply thought about tapping the stick. There was a small path that took me out by the main road. Feeling brave, I drove out to the main road. For comical effect I pretended the cars scared me. Honest, it was pretend.

My week loan was at an end and I took it back to Easy Living Mobility. 

I'd already spoken to Aby a few days earlier over the phone and told her that I was struggling with the sensitivity and it's lack of stability and control. I'd only had it for a few days at this point though, so I was willing to accept my lack of experience/ability was to blame and would improve with practice. It didn't really improve though and I was pretty sure the wheelchair was the problem, not me. Aby had suggested the iM.4 Elite over the phone, it was much more suited to my requirements. It was on display at the moment but there was an identical model called iM.4 Voyager, the only difference being it can hold a passenger upto a weight of 28.5 stone or 181kg rather than the 21 stone or 133kg of the Elite...

Look out for part II 'My quest to get a motorised wheelchair'

@fatpigeonsbook

@fatpigeonsbook