Quick tidbits from Disabled Explorers

[1leglance]

Many times the things going on in the DE world are short and sweet and not really worth a big long post.
So I thought it would be fun & helpful to keep a thread of tidbits and happenings so folks around here could keep up with things.
There is also a "Behind the Scenes" blog on the DE website that will have more stuff on how we function and what goes on...well behind the scenes.

Here is an example....
http://disabledexplorers.com/images/stories/explore/specialevents/waveatdec/waveatdec-2.jpg
Today was the first day for the W.A.V.E. to be out and about it was right to work. Here in Phoenix we have the Disability Empowerment Center and it is filled with some great non-profits doing great work. This seemed like the perfect place to get some first hand feedback on our project before we start taking people into the back country.

First up was Don P. of ABIL (Arizona Bridge to Independent Living), he leads a mens support group and works with the newly disabled. He gave us some great thoughts from the power-chair users perspective and he hopes to get out with us this weekend for a day trip evaluation.

http://disabledexplorers.com/images/stories/explore/specialevents/waveatdec/waveatdec-1.jpg
Next into the rig was Ashleigh T. of Az Spinal Cord Injury Assoc. she also had some very good ideas from a manual chair users viewpoint and was excited about how many people she could direct our way for some 4wd adventure. All in all the W.A.V.E. had a good first day at work and I look forward to making some changes before the Baja Trip coming up soon. The goal is to get in some day trips and maybe an overnighter with either Don or Ashleigh or anyone else they forward It is always good to shake things down a bit before heading out on a multi-day adventure.

[gjackson]

Nice job Lance. It will be good to see that beast in Baja.

cheers

[Equipt]

Great job at the show, Lance. I am delighted to see the WAVE project off to such a tremendous start.

Congratulations.

[1leglance]

Nice job Lance. It will be good to see that beast in Baja.

cheers

Graham,
Thanks so much for your support through Overland Training. It was very cool to show the disabled folks who were at SEMA the OT sticker and let them know that you guys are already prepped and ready for anyone with physical mobility issues....
Oh and yeah Baja will be a blast since I hope to spend my time in the passenger seat while the disabled guest does the driving :)


Great job at the show, Lance. I am delighted to see the WAVE project off to such a tremendous start.

Congratulations.

Hey Paul,
You guys were rocking and rolling down in your booth..it was very cool to be close to each other so I could send people your way after they saw the National Luna fridge or ask about dual battery systems or even the few who were looking for the FJ Cruiser so find out more about Roof Top Tents.

And thanks for the loaner dual door fridge for the design contest. The thing is over the top nice with the ability to be a fridge/freezer, fridge/fridge, or freezer/freezer...I was really impressed and I think you will see many more NL fridges in Sportsmobiles now :)


The shows are a great public outreach tool for education on the need for motorized access to the backcountry by the disabled. They also allow use to meet new disabled folks, get media exposure and work really really hard (standing in place for me is a killer on my 1 good foot).

But the real work will be the presentations at support groups, schools, boyscout troops and rehab clinics along with actually taking folks out on day trips and overnighters.

If any of you know of someone who would like a taste of the outdoors in the WAVE please contact us or if they already have a rig and need help setting it up.

[1leglance]

Well I will be exploring some pretty new territory in about a month...
I just got off the phone with a pysc facility that is seeing many more amputees and would like an inservice on working with people who are facing new limb loss and how to inspire and interact with them.
First will be an inservice for staff and then the hope is to do presentations to the patients so they can get beyond depression (not sure if we can inspire the manic, schiz or ocd).
In my work as a RN I dealt with pysch patients all the time, but this will be a new combo for me, which is the best way to learn.

On a more normal DE note...the WAVE is back at the Sportsmobile factory for some tweaks that came from our time with a few disabled folks last week. I am beat from working sat night, driving phx to fresno sun, flying back to phx yesterday then working last night (I am grateful for the overtime to pay for all the rig stuff but sometimes it wears ya down).

I should be headed back out to Fresno on Friday, drive back to Phx overnight and show up at the Pavillions car show Sat night.

Then Sunday already have a powerchair user scheduled for a bit of a wheel/picnic adventure.

Watch for pics soon....

[jcbrandon]

The local ABC television news caught up with Disabled Explorers on a visit to the Sportsmobile facility in Fresno, California:

http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=news/local&id=7128878

[vanderpooch]

SWEET! Way to go Lance! :victory:

[1leglance]

Thanks but it ain't about me...it is the rig and what we can do with it that matters.
Being all volunteer and donation supported sometime means things don't happen as fast or as well as I would like but with this project it really came together.

Wait till you see the Baja stuff with our wounded warrior, that will be cool...

The real thanks go to Alan and all the Sportsmobile crew who worked so hard and really cared about every little detail and how things would work for the disabled folks who will be in the rig. Without Sportsmobile's help along with the other sponsors it would never had happen.

Huge thanks go to Oveland Training for letting me bring a pasenger on the Alumni Trip.

And thanks to everyone here who has ever donated or ever will donate in the future, it can't happen without all of you.

[Connie]

Thanks for that link J.

That's great that the word is getting out!

[1leg]

The SMB is looking good, can't wait to see it some time..

[1leglance]

The SMB is looking good, can't wait to see it some time..

See it...see it... dude you need to drive it!
I need your thoughts on how it works for an above the knee amputee..
I am working on a slider with a power step with a company called Rock Slide Engineering and it will be great to get your thoughts once it is done.

Besides your new white rig won't look so big now :)

[DjDrewDigital]

Hey Lance,

It was really cool meeting you at SEMA! That rig is rad! I'm looking forward to hearing about your Baja trip!

[jcbrandon]

Disabled Explorers stopped in at Coco's Corner in Baja on December 2. We were greetly warmly by Coco himself and learned about his life as a double amputee in a remote part of Mexico. He walks on thick leather pads on his knees as he is not able to get good functional prosthetic legs.


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2547/4161015164_c30ef42938.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jbrandon/4161015164/)

...

We signed his hand-decorated guestbook.


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2637/4160966622_83422001d2.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jbrandon/4160966622/)

[1leglance]

I got his info to see if there is anything my guys at Artifical Limb Specialist can do to help him out.
He has an amazing story of his life, lost the first leg in the late 80's/early 90's and then the second leg last year.
Funny guy and well worth a stop if you are romping around Baja.

Thanks for the pic J, I never get any as I am such a blather-mouth :)

[1leglance]

http://disabledexplorers.com/images/stories/explore/specialevents/Inservice/azstatemental-1.jpg
Disabled Explorers gave our first dual in-service recently at the Arizona State Hospital. Part of the presentation was for new amputees with focus on physical and emotional expectations. In addition we covered practical information on skin care, insurance and daily life. The other part of our presentation was for staff including nursing, recreational and physical therapist and educators. For this group our focus was on care, motivation and the reactions to limb loss.

As much as we would have liked to have given our in-service in the great outdoors, first we have to get the person and their caregivers ready to go outdoors.

[jcbrandon]

Disabled Explorers showed off the WAVE 4x4 van project in the Sportsmobile booth at the San Diego Auto Show last week. Drew huge crowds. AutoTrader.com noticed:

"One-of-a-Kind Vehicles - San Diego Auto Show"

http://www.autotrader.com/research/article/auto-show/60262/one-of-a-kind-vehicles---san-diego-auto-show.jsp


http://images.autotrader.com/cms/fast/msn/photo/60262_2.jpg (http://www.autotrader.com/research/article/auto-show/60262/one-of-a-kind-vehicles---san-diego-auto-show.jsp)

[1leglance]

It's about time someone other than me was in a pic!
I keep saying it's not about me it's about the difference it makes in peoples lives.

We had huge crowds...signed up 4 sheets worth of people, far more than I expected.
Looks like the WAVE will be crusing I-8 often.

Big thanks to Jerry 1leg and Chris for the help at the show....oh and that tank tracked monster on the lift...yeah just keep watching for more on that.

Good to see Justin -Gear and SAR at the show...always nice to see old friends and meet new ones.

[jcbrandon]

Melissa Blake, columnist for the Psychology Today "Disabled and Thriving" blog interviews our own Lance Blair today:

Non-Profit Organization Explores The Road Less Traveled. How one organization goes off the beaten path

Ms Blake writes:

This week, I got to chat with Lance Blair, the founder of a non-profit organization called Disabled Explorers. Using independent, individualized, backcountry four-wheel-drive travel, the organization takes those with disabilities off the beaten path to show them the world.

More at:

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/disabled-and-thriving/201001/words-wisdom-wednesday-non-profit-organization-explores-the-road-l

[wanderer-rrorc]

Disabled Explorers stopped in at Coco's Corner in Baja on December 2. We were greetly warmly by Coco himself and learned about his life as a double amputee in a remote part of Mexico. He walks on thick leather pads on his knees as he is not able to get good functional prosthetic legs.


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2547/4161015164_c30ef42938.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jbrandon/4161015164/)

...]


that sucks about his other leg...he's in the Movie "Dust to Glory" (my fav!)...and really seemes like a great guy!!

[1leglance]

The guy is all heart...really inspiring to talk to and watch what he has done to carve out a life for himself.

[1leglance]

Great day yesterday....
got off work from a crazy night in the ICU and went straight to visits some folks about something fun down the road...
then stayed awake awhile longer to answer voice mails & emails..
including 1 from a para in the east side of town..
called him & went over after lunch to show him the wave and sign him up for a outing...
went home to hang with family then...
over to a Boy Scout Order of the Arrow meeting to present on the Disablility Awareness Merit Badge, signed up some of them as volunteers and even better a few knew disabled youth that had never camped but want to!
Then back home to work on emails and plan...
Awake for a total of 32hrs and love'n it.

[jcbrandon]

Disabled Explorers is featured on the BraunAbility blog:

http://www.braunability.com/abilityvoice/2010/02/disabled-explorers-takes-braunability-to-the-backcountry/

BraunAbility is the largest company in the mobility industry. They make wheelchair lifts and other equipment for people with disabilities. Here's a quote from the article:

"Through an ambitious organization called Disabled Explorers, people with physical challenges now have the opportunity to explore even the most remote corners of the backcountry."

[jcbrandon]

Disabled Explorers attended the annual conference of the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association in Reno, Nevada February 10-12. We had met one of the officers of the organization in November at the SEMA show in Las Vegas. He strongly encouraged us to attend this conference and paved the way to make it possible.

It took us a couple of days but we found out why. The industry is small and is centered around getting disabled people into minivans. It is searching for something, anything, to get excited about. So that's why they wanted Disabled Explorers and our Wheelchair Accessible Van for Expeditions to join their party.

The WAVE is sort of the opposite of a minivan. It definitely drew crowds and got a lot of attention. We met with most of the manufacturers and distributors who shape the mobility industry in North America. Most of them were very receptive to our project and our organization. It turns out that overland travel for disabled people is just the ticket.

We'll be working with this association and its members to bring more choices to the disabled community.

Here's a photo of one of our new friends in the mobility industry investigating the WAVE as a model for his own camper van.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4034/4368316678_91bd87bddb.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jbrandon/4368316678/)