21 replies to this topic

[crash]

I live in California and I might have to move to Colorado where it snows during the winter. Anybody have any experience dealing with snow in your wheelchair?

[Philip]

I'm moving next week to Chicago from South Texas where today is a cool 99 Degree's. I'm also needing information on dealing with Cold weather. I'm living Blocks away from the School and will be walking/rolling every day to class. Can anyone tell me what I'll be dealing with?

[ruth]

We get a BIT of snow in the UK. Not anything like the Rockies, though.

I do have a friend who emgrated in Alberta, Canada, and then a few years later had a stroke. He swears by thermals and a garage with a remote control door - you get in your car in the warmth of your garage, drive wherever you want to go, get out in their undercover car park (eg the mall) go round the mall, then get back in your car - you need only rarely go out in the extreme cold (frostbite is a real issue there in winter, even for a/bs - so I guess we have to be even more careful)

In the UK when there is snow it is pretty dreadful, as we dont really have the infrastructure to cope with it - but in an area where it is really cold, at least they will clear the footpaths n stuff (and sell clothing apropriate to the weather!) I have slicks on my chair and curse that decision for about a week every year when there is a bit of snow on the (uncleared) footpaths.

California sounds like a pretty ace place to live - if you dont mind answering, why do you want to move?

[crash]

I live with my parents and they are selling the house to move to Colorado. It may be possible for me to get into school somewhere before they move, but if not I can't afford to pay rent here. Way too expensive!

[livewriter]

Snow? Snow? Any different from sand?


If you get stuck you wait,


If you slide say ohhhhhhhhhhh yeahhhhhhhh and pray........

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[LadyPilot]

We used to get lots of snow here in the East of England, but now we just get the occasional few inches and I use a long handled snow shovel to make a path to where I need to go. Novelty wears off PDQ when it starts snowing after you just cleared it.
I keep warm with snow boots and neoprene gloves.

Ice is worse because if you start slipping just enjoy the ride

[russ1]

I try to spend at least a couple of weeks a year up in the ski resorts in colorado. You really shouldn't worry too much - get some wheels with mountain bike tyres with a good tread pattern on that you can swap onto your chair when it snows, wide front castors help but aren't essential, goretex gloves, warm trousers and a down jacket and you're good to go.

The roads and sidewalks are usually cleared pretty quickly. It may be a bit of a pain but set against that look at the upsides - you can be skiing 4 or 5 months of the year which just has to be the most liberating experience available to paras. - I'm very jealous

[Boozyuzi]

Get a pair of leather full fingered gloves and maybe think about moving your large back wheels out a bit so that your trousers don't get soaked. Waterproof (golf) trousers can be handy as well.

[Philip]

one idea I had was getting the Cheap gardening gloves that I can put over leather Gloves. They are good for grabbing the rims even when they are wet. I tested this when I was in Chicago for a visit last winter. I have to think of some sort of side guards.

[Okie Rick]

Crash,

I usually give up on going out on days like this:

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http://i7.tinypic.com/24y8oro.jpg

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I'm in rural OK - the country. No cable. No DSL. Dial-up. If I'm dragging bottom on snow I stay in. Glare ice is bad, too.


Okie
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Edit: removed pic of snow to benefit dial-up connections. Link to still pic works.

Edited by Okie Rick, 21 August 2006 - 12:15 AM.

[crash]

wow, okie that is a beautiful scene. Good to stay inside and just observe. Are those your horses?

[Chilepepper]

Okie Rick you just reminded me just how much I dislike winter. What I hate the most about winter is driving. My work is 76 km from home. Two years ago we had this major storm while I was at work. My shift is twelve hours shift. So it snowed hard for my entire shift. The Highways were like a war zone as there a banded cars and trucks on the side of the road or in ditches. It truly was a surreal view while driving home at about 10 km an hour. Work said they would pay for hotel rooms but I passed because I had no spare cloth or toothbrush etc, etc. At any rate it took be almost 4 hours to get home. By the time I got home I went straight to bed because I had to get up at 4am to try and beat the traffic has the storm was still raging. I took hours to get to work. So yes I hate winter.

Edited by Chilepepper, 19 August 2006 - 01:32 AM.

[LadyPilot]

Philip, on Aug 17 2006, 08:10 PM, said:

one idea I had was getting the Cheap gardening gloves that I can put over leather Gloves. They are good for grabbing the rims even when they are wet.

This makes doing anything but pushing very difficult.
I use a pair of 4mm thick neoprene water sport gloves in snow/wet/mud. My hands stay warm and there is no loss of grip.

[Philip]

LadyPilot, on Aug 19 2006, 07:59 AM, said:

Philip, on Aug 17 2006, 08:10 PM, said:

one idea I had was getting the Cheap gardening gloves that I can put over leather Gloves. They are good for grabbing the rims even when they are wet.

This makes doing anything but pushing very difficult.
I use a pair of 4mm thick neoprene water sport gloves in snow/wet/mud. My hands stay warm and there is no loss of grip.

Pushing is all I'm going to be doing. I'm going to living 3 blocks fom School. I'm a novice so I'll look into the Neoprene gloves. Damn the Rims get cold. In south texas the opposite happens in the summer. in 2 mins the rims can get to hot to touch.

[brquad]

I live Canada in the province of Manitoba. We live on the praries so we get alot of snow and cold. So basicly like the guy said earlier "you get stuck you wait". Snow that is not deep isn't to bad but ice is a problem. Actually one winter I coached a kids hockey team so can you imagine a c5 quad in a power chair ripping around a hockey rink. I swear I did it, once you got going it wasn't bad. I've also done plenty of hunting in the snow.

You do have to be careful though because if you get stuck out in the cold and no one knows where you are you could be in serious trouble.

[Okie Rick]

crash, on Aug 18 2006, 08:04 PM, said:

wow, okie that is a beautiful scene. Good to stay inside and just observe. Are those your horses?

That is a December '04 picture looikng southwest out the patio doors across the back deck to the south most barn. Two of the horses are mine. I'm in with my parents rasing and racing Thoroughbreds on a small scale. I check on my nags every day weather permitting. What part of Colorado are you headed for?

Okie
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[Okie Rick]

Chilepepper, on Aug 18 2006, 08:29 PM, said:

Okie Rick you just reminded me just how much I dislike winter. What I hate the most about winter is driving.

Unfortunately I don't have to worry about driving anything except my powerchair by using a head control. I have to trust others to do the driving for me. Living out in the country has it's +'s and -'s. We have very few neighbors but everyone watches out for each other's property. The closest Walmart is 20 miles away. Pizza houses won't deliver out here.


Okie
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[AHolland]

Alberta, Canada here.

A few things to think about.

I find leather gloves give me a god grip on my rims. If you want neoprene gloves, check into your local scuba shop. Any dry suit requires them. I have a pair as I use to scuba dive a lot but have never used them in winter.

You can buy these rim wraps that you put on your rims. They are like tennis wraps. You can make them quite rough if you need extra grip.

I love my coded keypad for my garage. They are low cost and get wired to your garage door opener. Roll up to them, type in your PIN number and in you go.

Try out your normal chair tires. If you are in a manual chair you can change up to mountain bike tires. Go to your local bike shop and have them takee out your standard rims and respoke them for mountain bike tires. It may be expensive so check around. You will have to check for clearance if you have the thin high pressure tires to start with. The mountain bike tires are quite a bit wider and may require some respacing of the axle.

Double lined pants work well to keep you warm. Most of the Costco's in north america carry cargo pants. In the summer they sell a normal pair with removable lowwer leggings. In the winter they sell cargo pants with a second fleece liner. I'm really happy with mine. They wear pretty good but could use a higher waistline in the back.

For general warmth use a second layer of clothes.

Hats are a must. Touques are best. Neck tubes are good for colder weather.

Get a cell phone. When you get stuck (not if), you can call for help.

[Chilepepper]

Alex nice to see you back.

Edited by Chilepepper, 20 August 2006 - 01:02 PM.

[dave]

livewriter, on Aug 16 2006, 09:39 PM, said:

Snow? Snow? Any different from sand?


If you get stuck you wait,

the difference betwen sand & snow is that in snow if you wait you frooze to death
i live in Quebec,canada its white hell for a wheel chair

[milosh]

as i have experience with living in 3 countries famous for snow and cold weather, i do agree with other guys.

what truly does matter is hoy they cope with snow... whether you're disabled or AB...

getting new tires for your chair is good too.

you should also take care of your legs... i mean, it's cold and we don't move them... so you might have problems with blood circulation.

[zzipzz]

I'm in mass and we've had some snow - if you go with mountain tires (which I use all the time) find a small stiff brush to carry with you if you can
The tires are great but depending on the snow you will leave a puddle wherever you end up when it melts (if it's really bad even after brushing it off) I went out one night during a really storm and found myself in a sizable puddle in the corner which was embarrassing and limiting because I didn't want anybody to trip and fall while dancing because of me.
I use the rubber lined utility gloves eluded to above and small inner liner gloves which depending on how cold works most of the time but I'm gonna look into the neoprene as well.
If you end up driving invest in a scraper with a long handle! I also have a little telescoping shovel which works pretty well