What is a track chair?
My wife Leesa and I love spending time at the beach. There has always been a major obstacle for me though in that wheelchairs and sand don’t play well together at all.
Then I made a discovery thanks to a friends Facebook post that literally skyrocketed my beach experience.
The track chair. “An all-terrain tank with a chair on top. Literally.”
Randy, a friend of mine from high school, brought to my attention on Facebook a non-profit named David’s Chair that provides track chairs that people with mobility issues, like myself, can either reserve for a couple of hours at various locations on the Oregon Coast.
Getting onto the chair was easy
We met our contact Rod at the Elks Lodge in Seaside who brought us out the track chair and explained the controls. The controller was basically a joystick and very similar to the controller on a scooter.
The chair also had a standing platform on the back with a second controller in case the rider wasn’t able to operate the chair. This would allow for another person to pilot the chair from behind.
I had to be able to get on the chair with only Leesa to help me but it was pretty easy. I just used my walker to back up to the chair’s footrest and had Leesa lift my feet up backwards onto the foot plate.
Since this chair was a stander it had a harness and padded crossbar brace to support my legs.
Just like the term implies a Stander chair lifts up vertically allowing the rider to get to a secure standing position.
It isn’t really advisable to drive the chair very fast while standing as turning fast would make it susceptible to flipping over sideways.
It was time to head to the beach!
Pure freedom and joy of my first track chair experience
I drove the chair the couple of blocks to the beach access ramp just south of the Seaside Turnaround and headed down the concrete ramp onto the sand.
Once on the beach headed across the soft sand
This chair was a beast! I felt like I was driving a really small tank.
The ability to plow over the soft sand was so amazing! The freedom I felt was awesome!
Soft sand on a beach is impossible to navigate with a standard wheelchair. Being able to just move over the sand was an amazing feeling. It was almost surreal because in my mind this was a major mobility obstacle that had just been defeated!
Once I reached the wet sand I couldn’t wait for the tide to meet the tracks.
As I was driving along the surf, with the tide gently washing over the tracks beneath me, I felt as if the chair was drifting toward the ocean as the tide receded. Leesa explained to me that feeling was like the tide washing over bare feet.
Getting to hold hands while strolling on the beach
This was the first time I’ve ever been able to stroll on the beach with Leesa hand in hand. It was wonderful.
She told me she always felt guilty going for walks on the beach without me while I waited in the car.
I was FINALLY able to join her! It still almost makes me cry thinking about it. (They are tears of joy!)
You’re taller than I thought…
As I mentioned earlier, this track chair had Stander ability.
The upper body harness kept me in place while the padded bar along the bottom kept my legs secure allowing me to stand completely upright.
This was really cool!
We wandered south down the beach in and out of the low incoming tide until we ran out of beach and headed back.
The end of an amazing day at the beach
I texted Rod before we left the beach to let him know we were headed back so he could secure the track chair upon our return.
We met Rod at the Elks Lodge parking lot and returned the chair for him to put away.
We did stop and talk to a few people on the beach who were curious about the track chair.
I believe the most often used term to describe it was “Bad Ass!”.
It was such an amazing day. I can’t wait to do this again!
How to reserve a track chair
If you would like to use one of these amazing devices please go to https://davidschair.org and click on ‘Request A Chair’ on the menu bar. This organization provides a tremendous service and relies on donations so please help them out if you can.
Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts on this amazing experience.
Until next time Peace and Happiness.
So happy for you having this kind of fun experience!