Ramps

It's been a very busy day today. Almost as soon as I was up and dressed, my friend Bobbi stopped by for a visit. After she left, Adam, Katherine and I started to load the truck in preparation for out weekend up at my brother Jim's place north of Edmonton. First we got the cot, sleeping bag and air mattress out of storage to put in the back of the truck.

This part is interesting. We had to measure the height of the entry into the back of my truck bed. That entry is 38". Next we measured the height of my PWC; it's 41". However if we lean the chair back, we can get the height down to the required 38". We knew it would fit. Then we got to work on acquiring a system to get my PWC into the back of my truck.That's when the fun began.

First, at my insistence, we went to Canadian Tire to look at ramps. My idea was to get a simple set of loading ramps, the kind I've used for loading a quad into the back of a truck in the past. After all, my PWC weighs a heck of a lot less than a quad. We purchased, and came home with, a set of ramps at a cost of $150. Both Katherine and Adam said I should call the ALS Society first to see if they had something, but I wanted to do this my own way with my own stuff. I can get that way sometimes.

As it turned out, the Canadian Tire ramps were completely unsuited to the operation. After several rather risky tests with Adam at the controls of the PWC, we determined that that slope was too steep and the access to the ramp too narrow. So we returned the ramps, and I called the ALS Society of Alberta.

Jeremey, the equipment manager, immediately knew what I was trying to accomplished once I described my situation. Not only that, but he had an immediate solution for me, a folding ramp that is designed for power wheelchairs and wheelchair access. It's a one piece ramp which folds up when not in use, with safety edges on the side. While not perfect, it seems to work pretty well.

All I have to do is get my emotions out of the way and learn to call the ALS Society first whenever I need a piece of equipment. After all, I'm not the only person in southern Alberta with ALS. If I need it, odds are someone else has needed it too. But I really do want to look after myself as much as I can. Oh well, another emotional conflict within me. That's not really all that new.