UTMC

http://www.9news.com/news/local/article ... &catid=346


Company unveils first motorcycle designed for wheelchairs

posted by Dan Boniface

DENVER - A groundbreaking new motorcycle, driven from a wheelchair, made its debut early this month.

"It opens the road in a way that wheelchairs haven't had open to them in the ," Adaptive Automobility owner Kevin Durban said.

He says you can roll your way into a high-powered, fully road and track tested motorcycle designed for the wheelchair bound. The Mobility Conquest, now available through Adaptive Automobility, is
equipped with a BMW engine that accelerates the tricycle to 60 mph in 7.6 seconds.

With six hand-controlled gears, a safety lock to keep wheelchair users secure, and a motorized back entry ramp, wheelchair users can now use the motorcycle independently - no assistance needed to operate.

"It looks unusual... like a Batmobile," CJ Snider, an army veteran injured in the '90s said. "It's big, sleek and powerful. It's comfy, easy to maneuver and I felt totally safe. When we were stopped on the road people would lean out of their car windows and ask
where I got the bike."

Potential customers can visit Adaptive Automobility for test rides at their Denver office on East 76th Avenue or online at www.adaptiveauto.com.

Adaptable with both a manual and power wheelchair, Durban believes the Mobility Conquest puts power back in the hands of handicapped riders, who lost their ability to independently enjoy
motorcycles.

"There are lots of other trikes out there, but they all require mobile transfer," he said.

$57k.

If I'm ever crippled and rich...

I should get on the waiting list, by the time I've got the dough I'll likely need one I'm willing to bet the price will go down as they make more, seems like that would have a lot of market potential!

There's a couple of companies that make bikes with hydraulic landing gear and folding wheelchair storage, so if you still have the use of your upper body, you can actually lean.

Stuff akin to this:


But this stuff is interesting, also. Guess it depends on how much time one would want to spend getting on and off the thing.

I want to dress up like Ben Hur and drive it around standing up!

Rabbit_Fighter wrote:I want to dress up like Ben Hur and drive it around standing up!

Like so?

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<div style="text-align: center; font-size: 10px;"><a href="http://www.gaskrank.tv/tv/motorrad-fun/ ... g-5923.htm" target="_blank">Ben Hur - die Amis ham eindeutig ein Rad ab , Motorradkampfwagen</a>
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Many years ago there was a setup similar to this here locally, but on a Honda CB. Looked really weird when he was giving somone a ride on the bike with no controls. Not my picture, just a similar setup.

I saw a setup very similar to that CB on the highway into Sturgis one year. It was done on an old Harley with a custom sidecar, the bars were somehow under the bin of the car. There was the guy in the car and a sexy blond riding passenger on the rear fender waving her arms in the air! Completely boggled my brain for a moment or two until I figured it out. I tried to find the bike once I hit main street but alas, no luck.

Stuff like that makes me want to get a helmet cam.

I'm pretty sure there's a guy down in Colorado Springs with a similar setup. I've actually seen him roll his wheelchair into the sidehack and lock down the wheels and drive off. The dick in me wanted to ask why he still had the kickstart.