My Gear

A side view of my beach chair. You can see the ratchet lever drive system I made.

Here’s how I have my gear stored in the back of my truck. On the left side, the handcycle gets pushed up an angled track and tied to the bed with a bungee cord. This makes use of the space above the left wheel well while keeping the handcycle flush against the wall. It’s hard to see but I also have installed a DC power outlet and a switch to turn on the interior lights. The beach chair gets put in the middle. On the right above the wheel well I store two sets of lever arms for my beach chair (always have a backup!) and on the bottom I store an an electric air pump.

I drive a convertible Mustang when I’m not biking or at the beach. To put my chair in, I fold the back down, open the top of the car, pick up my chair while sitting in the driver’s seat and leverage it over the side of the car, into the backseat. I can then close the top of the car. Getting out goes in reverse – open the roof, pull out the chair, unfold the back, and close the roof. Its a little effort, requires good upper body strength, and doesn’t work the best when its raining – but it beats having to rely on a ramp van. Of course I also have hand controls installed.

Me inside my car with my wheelchair stored in the backseat

Here you can see my chair stored in the back seat with the roof closed.