Rolling Traveler

In the first few parts of this series (1, 2 and 3), I dealt with the wheel options for a manual wheelchair. Today, I’d like to talk about a minor but nonetheless important part of the chair: the handles. As mentioned, you should always choose wheelchair parts primarily according to your physical and medical situation, and then according to your lifestyle. Provided your body can cope with the choices you make, you are free to mix and match any number of parts to assemble your perfect wheelchair, but there is no part that can be chosen without some thought about your physical requirements: from the wheels all the way to the handles, you need to consider each part carefully.

On my last two wheelchairs, I chose not to have handles. Many of my friends would say this is further evidence of how stubborn I am: I much prefer getting around under my own steam, and you can’t push a wheelchair that has no handles. Well, you can, but it’s more difficult, because there’s nothing to grab onto, especially on a low-back wheelchair of the type I prefer. However, that is not the reason I chose not to have handles.

Not having handles means there’s nothing blocking me when I turn my upper body to reach for something behind me, or go to get something out of my backpack. It also makes it a little easier to maneuver the chair in a tight space, as I can grip the wheels where I want to without having to reach around the handles. I have a lot of upper body mobility, and I had often found the handles getting in my way, so this seemed like a good choice.

Another minor advantage is the weight consideration. No matter how small, every extra part adds some weight to the wheelchair. I wanted to have an ultra-light wheelchair because my chair gets carried a lot, so I was going for minimalism. Any part that I didn’t see as essential was dropped.

There is also an element of truth to what my friends say about me being stubborn and not wanting to be pushed. An element, nothing more. Since there are no handles, strangers who decide that I need to be helped onto a tram, bus or train, or up a slope are more likely to stop and ask how they can help rather than just grabbing the handles and pushing. It happens a lot during the day that someone sees me out and wants to help, and while I appreciate the willingness to assist someone who might be in need, I much prefer to be asked. When I had handles on the chair, I sometimes only used to realize what was going on after I’d already been moved a few feet. On one occasion on a trip to the Czech Republic, I nearly lost my gloves, because I’d set them down on a low wall while I sorted through my pockets. We were at the bottom of a hill, so a passerby assumed I needed help, and started pushing me upwards; because of the language barrier, it took me a while to get him to stop, and go back down. A kid was just picking up my gloves and trying them on when I got back down. This sort of thing hasn’t happened in the time I’ve had handle-less wheelchairs.

While all these are good reasons, at least to me, I have had cause to regret my hasty decision this year. Some wrist and shoulder trouble caught me by surprise, and it has really slowed me down. During the last few trips I took, I was really hurting by evening, and my traveling companions always wanted to lend a hand and push. However, that proved tricky, and more than a little uncomfortable for them. Is it really worth having no handles, just for the slight weight difference and easier upper body movement? This is the choice you make when you decide to have no handles, so think carefully.

I think my next chair will either have permanent or removable handles. It will be irritating to get used to the slight restriction of upper body movement again, and I’ll be annoyed if strangers start pushing me around without asking again, but ultimately, I think they’re worth it for the times I need them. I’m not as physically capable of doing all the miles on my own this year, and it seems better to have the option of being pushed without it being a hassle for my friends. If I don’t get handles, I guess I’ll just be proving everyone right that I am stubborn, and who needs to give people that kind of ammunition?

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