From slippers to suitcases, here are five great wheelchair accessories that will enable you to pimp your ride
Some wheelchair accessories are practical. Others are fun. These offer the best of both worlds:
Best Bag Forever
Smergos has created the Best Bag Forever – or BBF – to carry a wide range of personal belongings, from laptops and groceries to clothes and medical supplies. The BBF fits onto the back of a wheelchair, with adjustable loops that slip over the handles and support most of the bag’s weight.
An additional Velcro strap fits around the back of the wheelchair seat to prevent the bag from swinging to and fro on inclines as well as for safety purposes. The BBF is padded with a divider on the inside of the bag to ensure your belongings are protected.
For more information visit www.smergos.com.
Price: R499
S-Cool Bag
Another product from the Smergos stable, the S-Cool Bag is perfect for carrying textbooks, notebooks, laptops, files, stationery and more. It is specifically designed with wheelchair users in mind – it fits onto the back of a wheelchair, with adjustable loops that slip over the handles. The S-Cool Bag is padded and features a convenient divider on the inside.
A light cushion flaps over the backrest of the wheelchair for extra support and comfort. The cushion can easily be removed by unzipping it from the back of the S-Cool Bag, should you prefer not to use it.
For more information visit www.smergos.com.
Price: R549
Unstoppable luggage
The Phoenix Instinct Unstoppable twin set of luggage may be pricey, but it is purpose-designed to fit the majority of rigid-frame lightweight wheelchairs that have a bar on the rear of the backrest. It also comes with an adapter that would fit a backrest bar that is curved.
The two-piece system consists of a large 87-litre bag and smaller 31-litre cabin-sized backpack. The two bags clip together to form one unit for easy transportation.
It’s easy for the independent traveller to disconnect the backpack from the larger bag at check-in.
The 31-litre backpack is then simply slung over the back of the wheelchair and used as hand luggage, and on arrival the two bags can be reconnected.
For more information visit www.phoenixinstinct.com.
Price: From R5 400
Wheelchair Slippers and Socks
Do you want to avoid tracking dirt and germs into your home via your wheelchair’s tyres? Are you embarrassed about leaving black tyre marks on your friends’ floors? Would you like to prevent damage to flooring and carpets? Rehadesign’s Wheelchair Slippers and Wheelchair Socks offer a neat solution.
The slippers cover the rear tyres, while the socks cover the front tyres. They are slipped on in seconds and are machine-washable.
For more information visit www.rehadesign.com.
Price: From R630
Spoke Lights
How about some lights for your wheelchair? Increase your visibility and your cool factor with these transparent “blades” that attach to the spokes of bicycle-type
wheels. As the blades spin, computerised internal LED lights are modulated so that images and even custom text appear.
Some of the designs (petals, flowers and checkerboards, for instance) are really funky! The spoke lights come in green, yellow, orange, blue or rainbow colours.
For more information visit www.pimpmychair.com.
Price: From R500
