AdvenChair Gives New Purpose to Geoff Babb

Blog post published on Stroke FORWARD

BY MARCIA MORAN

Featured on the StrokeFORWARD.com website

The scent of pine trees pricks your nose as you sniff the mountain air. The adrenaline rushes as you figure out the best way to navigate a steep decline. The aromas, sights, sounds, and the joy of being human brings joy to your face as you look toward the sun. Mt. Rainier, Crater Lake, or different park adventure cries, “Pick me, pick me next!”

But what happens if you are suddenly stuck in a wheelchair and are told you will never walk again? Are your days of adventure over? A few days ago I would have said, “Yes.” I would have been wrong.

Geoff Babb has a passion for the outdoors. He gets his energy from being out in the wilds. When a brain stem stroke in 2005 left him in a wheelchair, he decided that it was just one more obstacle that he would have to overcome. He didn’t have his legs underneath him to walk, but he did have wheels. Part of the problem was that the wheels of a regular wheelchair weren’t tough enough to take him where he wanted to roll. So he decided to figure out a way to upgrade so that he had an AdvenChair.

“It is so empowering for me to be outside in nature feeling the elements and being part of a team that got me there. It is being out in the elements and part of the process.”

-Geoff Babb

Things to Solve

The standard wheelchair did not perform well on off-road surfaces. It wasn’t long before Geoff figured out that he needed something different. Like some stroke survivors, he lost arm mobility that he couldn't get back. Somebody needed to push or pull him, typically a task his wife, Yvonne Babb, took gratefully.

Geoff and Yvonne started building what eventually became the AdvenChair with friend Dale Neubauer. They added mountain bike wheels (and eventually handlebars) to give the driver more control over where to guide the wheelchair. In 2008, a FreeWheel was added to the front to allow the chair to glide over rocks and roots without being stuck by the four-inch caster wheels that come standard on wheelchairs. In essence, the AdvenChair can now turn into a three-wheeler.

It was 2016 when they hit the Grand Canyon and expected a phenomenal hike to the bottom. The hike ended abruptly going down when the AdvenChair broke the axel sheath. Geoff got back with the help of his friends. (I can hear grunting at this point.) He had to begin working on a new design.

The Second Time Around

Twelve years (to the day) after his first stroke, he had stroke number two. The second one scared him. He had face droop and vertigo, which he hadn't had before. Geoff quickly understood that he had been there before. Although he lost some additional mobility in his arms, he couldn't wait to hit the trail again with his team.

AdvenChairing is a team sport with as few as two people or as many as six. It takes a lot of coordination and communication as mountaineering and rafting do.

“I feel as if I am part of the team,” explains Geoff. “The process of evaluating where we are, the footing and safety issues. I help the [team] problem solve. It’s definitely a physical work out for me because being jostled side-to-side takes a lot of core strength for me. It’s really good for me because I feel like I am really part of the strenuous activity. It’s definitely a way that I am participating, not just being a passenger.”

New Meaning

I was intrigued by this business. Geoff has figured out a way to make the wheelchair able to go off-road and comfortable at the same time. If you want one, go to AdvenChair for details. Geoff also plans to make it available to bike and equipment rental shops, nature centers, parks, tour companies, adaptive recreation programs, outdoor schools, and veteran’s groups in the future. If you have a friend or family member who has had a stroke, Parkinson’s Disease, dementia, or a kid who has special needs, the AdvenChair might be for you.

AdvenChair has given new meaning to Geoff Babb and his friends because he can enjoy the outdoors once again. I think it created meaning in a different way as well. Geoff has demonstrated that you are not the disease, and he will sell the AdvenChair to those who need it.

(Sniff) Ahh. Can you smell the pine air?

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Note: The AdvenChair is now on sale. Go here for more details and to order this all-terrain wheelchair with options and accessories.

Specs for the AdvenChair show how different this product is.

Designing A Wheelchair For Adventure

Issac Shannon (seated) tries out the AdvenChair in Bend, Oregon

FEATURED ON FOLKS MAGAZINE
by Brent Crane
A PillPack Magazine

After a stroke left him partially paralyzed, lifelong outdoorsman Geoff Babb set out to design a wheelchair that could truly take him anywhere.

Geoff Babb has always been an outdoorsman. Around the mountains and valleys of Washington State, where he grew up, Babb was an avid climber, mountain biker, skier, hiker, and runner. He started a career in bio management with the Nature Conservancy and later the Bureau of Land Management working as a fire ecologist. “My whole life was really based around being outside,” said Babb, who now lives in Bend, Oregon. 

That all changed on November 10th, 2005, when, at the age of 48, Babb suffered a brainstem stroke. “The survival rate is supposed to be about 10%,” said Babb. “Of that, most people don’t even make it to rehab.” Babb lost the ability to walk. He maintained only limited mobility in his arms. He bought a wheelchair and adjusted to his newfound disability. Then, twelve years later to the day, he suffered a second stroke. It was a miracle that he survived, but he lost further arm mobility. 

Babb, though “very grateful to be alive and have the abilities to think and talk,” yearned to get outdoors again, into the rugged terrains he had always explored. Standard wheelchairs, he found, didn’t cut it. Sturdier ones, too, didn’t work, as they required a level of arm strength which Babb lacked. He decided to do something about that. 

With the help of a friend, Dale Neubauer, a helicopter mechanic, Babb created the AdvenChair, a wheelchair specifically designed for use in rough wilderness. Made of durable, aircraft-grade aluminum, it comes equipped with handles and heavy-duty ropes, for a team of helpers to push and carry the user. With those additions, users can access most any kind of terrain nature tosses at them. “It wasn’t long before we realized that the AdvenChair wasn’t just for me, but for so many other people that are in my situation, that need to be outside but need help to do it,” Babb said.

But it was an arduous development. Babb relied on funds from an Indiegogo campaign and his own money. The team went through several prototypes, with lots of bent and broken metal in the process. Finally, they are readying for larger production. Folks reached out to Babb to hear more. 

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Lifelong outdoorsman Geoff Babb invented the AdvenChair after realizing that most wheelchairs did not allow disabled people like him to fully enjoy nature. Image provided by SmithRock.com.

Lifelong outdoorsman Geoff Babb invented the AdvenChair after realizing that most wheelchairs did not allow disabled people like him to fully enjoy nature.

Why doesn’t a regular wheelchair work in the backcountry? 

It was pretty obvious that a regular wheelchair was not gonna work. The small tires were really difficult to push on any kind of soft or rough ground. They’re not conditioned to somebody pushing or pulling. There’s limited push handles and no real place to help somebody pull. We had to create our own system. 

What were some existing options of sturdier chairs before AdvenChair? 

There’s basically two different options on the market: heavier chairs that are made for people who can push themselves, with good arm strength. But they’re limited once that person needs help because there’s no real push handles. They have limited versatility. 

On the other scale are a couple of one-wheeled things that are really good for single-track trails. But they’re very limited in that once you get to where you’re going, the person would still have to have a wheelchair to be out and mobile. So we’ve kind of combined the two. Our chair can go on rough trails, with good stability, but back in a parking lot or campsite the front wheel comes off and it works as a standard wheelchair. It can easily be folded up to fit into a car. 

How did the engineering process happen?

 It started out with my initial wheelchair, a nice frame with mountain bike tires. But it was very difficult for me to push. We first tinkered with putting mountain bike handlebars on–for the pusher–that were higher up and more efficient for pushing. We also found some mountain bike disc brakes made for wheelchairs. That worked out but it was kind of awkward. Our question at that point was: do we start from scratch? 

We took that particular model into the Grand Canyon and broke an axle. So we knew that wasn’t gonna be the answer. Part of the problem was we didn’t have good points for people to lift and pull. That was really an important event for us, to cause us to really rethink the design. I had my epiphany, though, when I was skiing in a biski. I realized that the seat on the biski was really supportive. That gave me the basis of our new design, to use a biski seat on this new double frame. 

Where did you test the prototypes? 

Here in central Oregon we have a number of very rough or challenging trails. We put this chair through the tests. We beat it up and bent it a few times. We made some more changes. The front wheel, for instance, we tried to make as light as possible. Sure enough we bent that. We replaced it with something heavier. I’m pretty happy with where we are. 

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Unlike the AdvenChair, most wheelchairs can’t handle the full spectrum of outdoor terrain.

Unlike the AdvenChair, most wheelchairs can’t handle the full spectrum of outdoor terrain.

What is the experience like of using the chair outdoors? 

It makes it so much easier to roll over rocks and go down hills. It’s really exciting to be out, knowing that I can do it. It’s something like mountaineering or rafting, where it takes a team of people working together to solve problems and make it through the obstacles. I’ve worked with a group of people who’ve been through this whole process these last couple of years. They got me through the original stage. They were there when we broke down in the Grand Canyon. 

What sorts of reactions are you hearing from potential users? 

It’s been amazing. That NPR story brought out a lot of people who thanked and encouraged me. Everything from family to kids with cerebral palsy who wanna be outside as a family to people whose parents have Parkinsons and want to revisit places they’ve been in the past. We’ve been able to give them hope that they can do that. 

What are some future plans? 

“Those of us with various physical challenges need nature as much as anybody else, maybe even more, to regain our connection to the land.”

We have one person set up to go on the Camino de Santiago in Spain using an AdvenChair. It’s a young man with myositis, a degenerative muscle disease. He’s with a group called I’ll Push You. That’s unfortunately been postponed until next year because of the COVID uncertainty. We’re also hoping to get it into outdoor schools here in Oregon. If all goes well, we’d like to go back to the Grand Canyon. 

This is all about getting people out into nature. Those of us with various physical challenges need nature as much as anybody else, maybe even more, to regain our connection to the land. I think that the AdvenChair will help people do that. That’s what I’ve heard from so many people. 

Copyright 2020 Folks Magazine, A PillPack Magazine. All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission.

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Podcast: AdvenChair Featured on easterseals Tech Show

Published on the easterseals Crossroads indata project
Assistive Technology Update

BY JOSH ANDERSON

Featured on the easterseals Crossroads indata project website

The Assistive Technology Update is a podcast of the indata project

Josh Anderson:
Hello, and welcome to your Assistive Technology Update, a weekly dose of information that keeps you up to date on the latest developments in the field of technology designed to assist individuals with disabilities and special needs. I’m your host, Josh Anderson, with the INDATA Project at Easterseals Crossroads in beautiful Indianapolis, Indiana. Welcome to episode 456 of Assistive Technology Update. It’s scheduled to be released on February 21st, 2020. On today’s show, we’re very excited to have Geoff Babb on to talk about the AdvenChair. We also have a handful of other stories today, so let’s go ahead and get on with the show.

Listen here:

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Read the transcript:

Josh Anderson:
We’ve talked a lot. We’ve had a lot of guests on. We’ve discussed smart home assistance, Alexa, and all these things quite a bit. I found a fun story over at The Daily of the University of Washington, and that’s the dailyuw.com. It’s by Ann [inaudible 00:01:11], and this story is called Accessible Voice Interface for Social Well-being. This talks about a doctor’s study, Dr. Robin Brewer, and how they used voice technology to help older adults feel a little less lonely. So, I think we may have talked about this a little bit before. I know I’ve even done a presentation a little bit on how robots and these personal home assistants can just help individuals, especially who maybe live by themselves, feel a little bit less like they’re by themselves, actually feel like they have someone that they’re actually talking to.

Josh Anderson:
What I like in here is it talks a little bit about something I see a whole lot. It talks about adults that maybe get a visual impairment later on in life, find themselves really overwhelmed by trying to use a screen reader or trying to navigate a screen with a mouse with a motor impairment or other kinds of disability. Whereas, these things like Alexa, like Google Home, they’re pretty intuitive. You just ask it a question or tell it what to do. So, fun story. It’s just got some cool things in there, stuff that’s probably not new to listeners of this show, who’ve maybe listened to some of the different folks that we’ve had on to talk about these kinds of devices and how they can help individuals with disabilities in our aging population, but still pretty fun little read, and we’ll put a link to that over in our show notes.

Josh Anderson:
Our first story comes to us from goodnewsnetwork.org, and it is titled This App Delivers Instant Sign Language Interpreters For Those Tricky Moments That Need More Than Pen and Paper. It’s by Andy Corbley, and it talks about an app called Jenie, J-E-N-I-E. And it says that Jenie is an on-demand, 24/7-availability, live interpreter app. So, there are different kinds of interpreter apps, of course, and VRS, and some other things like that. It talks about how some VRS, or video relay services, are available for free in the US, but they’re not available in Canada.

Josh Anderson:
This story actually does come from our brothers and sisters up to the north. And it said that companies do provide in-person interpreters, but they’re usually about $90 to $125 an hour. It says Jenie charges $1 per minute, but they have packages that then take that fee down even further. So, if you buy so many minutes per month, then you’ll pay a little bit less per minute. So, this is for those times when you really need an interpreter and just writing it down just isn’t going to work. There really aren’t many of these available, so it’s really great that they’re doing this.

Josh Anderson:
It says usually within one minute of placing your request, you’ll be connected to an interpreter at any hour of the day. It says they have over 100 operators on call at any given time, so really great for individuals who use ASL to communicate. A lot of people just think, “Hey, let’s just use pen and paper,” but that doesn’t always cut it depending on what kind of conversation you might need to have. We’ll put a link to this over in our show notes, so you can go check it out for yourself.

Josh Anderson:
Back in September on episode 434 of this show, we were lucky enough to have folks on from Floreo to talk about that technology. Just to remind you, that was a company that were using virtual reality headsets with individuals with autism to teach them different things, and that can be anything from emotions to other stuff. But one thing that I found really impressive was they were teaching them interactions with folks, and that’s everything from how to interact with somebody in the hallway at school or perhaps in the cafeteria. But what I really liked was they were teaching them how to interact with police officers. Any of us could be a little scared if we saw a police officer come up to us. I mean, they have a gun. There’s loud noises. There’s a lot of things going on. And especially with individuals with autism, that can become really difficult.

Josh Anderson:
Well, I found a great story over at KTAR News, that’s K-T-A-R News, and it’s Phoenix Police to Use Virtual Reality Headsets For Empathy Training. So, what this is is the other side of what Floreo is doing. This is made by Axon, and Axon’s a company it says here that is based in Scottsdale, Arizona. And what Axon usually does is they do a lot with tasers, with body cameras, and with other things to help police officers. But what they’re doing now is a training using virtual reality headsets to teach empathy to police officers to help them deal with individuals with autism or with a mental health crisis, such as schizophrenia and even suicide.

Josh Anderson:
The immersive training actually takes the officer and, first, it puts them in the shoes of the individual with autism, with schizophrenia, with contemplating suicide. So, if they’re in the shoes of the individual with autism, then the loud noises, the people getting close to them, the other things like that, all these will affect their perception of what they see through that headset. If they’re the individual with schizophrenia, they may have shadows moving, they might hear voices, and have some other things like that. And then, it moves and puts them in the shoes of the officer responding to the same situation just from the other side, and then gives them choices of, “How would you handle this situation?” And it really can help with that deescalation part. That’s really where bad things can come from.

Josh Anderson:
And I mean, you have to realize that sometimes these poor officers walk in not really knowing much. They might hear something on the radio that just says, possible shoplifter, irate, maybe even they pushed someone away from them that was getting too close. So, they might hear something like assault or something of that sort and think they’re coming in contact with a dangerous individual, when really maybe they’re coming close to someone who’s either in some sort of mental health crisis or, just due to their disability, maybe isn’t handling the situation the way that the officer thinks they should.

Josh Anderson:
So, this can be extremely helpful for really helping these officers in dealing with individuals who have different kinds of abilities and who handle different commands differently and who maybe work a little bit better with the bright lights and the sirens turned off, a calming voice, maybe not being surrounded, not being too close to the individuals, but really can just really help out. And like I said, I think it would do really just about anyone some good to be able to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, almost literally, and in this kind of thing. So, very cool thing that they’re doing there. We’ll put a link to that over in our show notes so that you can definitely check it out for yourself. But again, that’s a very cool thing that Axon’s doing with the Phoenix Police Department in order to use virtual reality to teach them how to deal with individuals with different abilities.

Josh Anderson:
Since our guest later is going to be talking about a new kind of adaptive wheelchair, I thought it was fitting to talk about this news story over at homecaremag.com, and it’s titled Numotion Announces Strategic Partnership with NOW Technologies. Now, Numotion is America’s largest provider of complex rehab technology. It says here in the story that they formed a partnership with NOW Technologies to become the first US distributor for this company’s full line of next generation power wheelchair control systems. It says with this both companies will actually share knowledge and be able to help each other out with future product design, but really, Numotion was doing this because they really said that, over the course of about the last decade, nothing’s really changed that much in wheelchair controls. Whereas, NOW Technologies, they’ve received numerous awards for innovation in social impact over in Europe and currently have different kinds of products that utilize Bluetooth, gyroscopes, and other technology to create really smooth, intuitive head control movement for different kinds of wheelchairs.

Josh Anderson:
They have a couple of products called the GyroSet Glory and the GyroSet Vigo, which offer power wheelchair users a 21st century alternative to outdated switch-based control head arrays. It’ll definitely be interesting to see where these two go together. And as you get down a little bit farther down in the story, it also says this follows closely on Numotion’s introduction of the Independence Drive, and this is a collaboration with Evergreen Circuits and Team Gleason to utilize eye tracking technology to control a power wheelchair. So, very cool new ways to control power wheelchairs out there, and we’ll have to keep monitoring this to see what kind of new things Numotion and their new partners come up with.

Josh Anderson:
Since our interview today has to do with being outdoors and being in the wilderness and just how important that is, I really had to do this story from KWWL.com out of Dubuque, Iowa, and it’s called Kids of All Abilities Get Moving Down the Slopes at an Adaptive Ski Clinic. It’s by Ashley Neighbor. So, this story is about a group called Ark Advocates, which is a nonprofit that supports families of those with disabilities, and what they do is they set up an Adaptive Ski Clinic.

Josh Anderson:
And they did a bunch of different things with this. I’ll put a link to the story over in our show notes because it does have a video with it that can show you some of the different things that they had. But they had some different things to help individuals with vision impairment, so a guide that could help them get down tethered to them to help them get down the slope and be able to ski just like anyone else. They also had some adaptive skis, so if you think of a seat on skis that you can lean a little bit and get your turning in just like you would if you were wearing the normal skis. So, those can help individuals with cerebral palsy or really all different kinds of mobility challenges.

Josh Anderson:
It goes on to talk about, they also help individuals with autism learn to ski and just be able to get out on the snow and out with everyone else, with their peers, with their families, and just be able to enjoy a day out on the slopes. As we’re sitting here in the middle of winter in Indiana, I got to admit that the slopes don’t sound good, whereas a beach might sound really great, but it looks like a ton of fun. And it says, of course, lessons in adaptive equipment can often be very expensive, so this program really helps offset some of the costs for families so that folks can actually go and ski on Sundown Mountain. Really great story, looks like a heck of a lot of fun, and I really thought that this really fits in with our interview today.

ADVENCHAIR STARTS HERE

Josh Anderson:
So, the words hiking and wheelchairs rarely get used in the same sentence. Well, our guest today is out to change that. Geoff Babb is the AdvenChairman of the Onward Project and the visionary behind the AdvenChair, and he’s here to tell us all about it. Geoff, welcome to the show.

Geoff Babb:
Thanks for having me, Josh.

Josh Anderson:
Geoff, I think it’s really important that before we get into talking about the AdvenChair, to learn a little bit about you and your background. Could you tell our listeners a little about yourself?

Geoff Babb:
Yes. I’ve been a lifetime outdoorsman. I grew up in the [inaudible 00:12:06] in Washington, and climbed Mt. Adams and Mt. Hood. Areas to plan, I made a career in the fire management field, a firefighter and fire ecologist. So, my whole life has been spent outside. When I was 48, I survived my first brainstem stroke and realized that I would be in a wheelchair from then on, and we needed to figure out a way to get me back outside effectively, to hike, and do the activities we used to do including work. So, over the course of the years, we developed the AdvenChair.

Josh Anderson:
Excellent. Geoff, tell us, what is the AdvenChair?

Geoff Babb:
The AdvenChair is a unique, all-terrain adventure wheelchair. It was made to be pushed and pulled by a team of people. It allows the chair to go on rough terrain or terrain where other chairs will not climb. So, it’s made to be pushed and pulled, and it has larger mountain bike tires. More importantly, it can convert from a three-wheeled operated chair into a standard wheelchair to go inside of buildings.

Josh Anderson:
Oh, very good. So, it can be used both ways. Geoff, where did the idea for the AdvenChair come from?

Geoff Babb:
Well, yeah, we needed a chair that will allow us to be outside on trails. My wife and I do a lot of hiking, a lot of [inaudible 00:13:56], so we wanted something that was adequate for her to push. But at the same time, as we got into more challenging terrain [inaudible 00:14:06] people to effectively be able to push and pull, but we wanted the chair also [inaudible 00:14:13] versatile, will allow us to [inaudible 00:14:17] as well as go into buildings to shop or use the restroom or go into a house. So, it had to be convertible and be versatile.

Josh Anderson:
Very good. And I know you didn’t work on this alone. Can you tell me a little bit about the team?

Geoff Babb:
Yeah. I’ve been very lucky to have a great group of people working with me. Initially, as I started to modify an existing chair I have, [inaudible 00:14:50] mechanic [inaudible 00:14:51] really had a precise way of looking at things. It really helped me. But the more thing was he had developed a [inaudible 00:15:03] working on helicopters. So, he brought design engineer to do project, and with that came there years of pros having experience and then the quality control. And Jack has been instrumental in the development of this chair. In addition that, we had a number of mountain bikers who have a certain perspective on the trail, as well as people from the adapted recreation field, and importantly, the wheelchair scene specialist. So, we covered a lot of ground in terms of we use on the trail and design features.

Josh Anderson:
Yeah. Sounds like you’ve got a really, really good team working on everything. Geoff, when was the first AdvenChair created?

Geoff Babb:
I would say the first AdvenChair probably was in 2008 when I got a chair that was meant to be off road, had bigger tires. But it proved to be much more than I could push on my own, and it was also difficult for other people to push. So, from that [inaudible 00:16:31] frame, we started fiddling with it and add mountain bike handlebars and a front wheel, a nice device called a free wheel, clamps onto the front. And then, we [inaudible 00:16:48] this breaks that were made for wheelchairs, so that really got us locked in to where we wanted the chair to go.

Josh Anderson:
Oh, definitely. I know there’s a lot of trial and error on these kinds of things, just figuring out what can work and get it out, and then, like you said, trying to find something that can even get on harder terrain and be able to get you anywhere that you might need to go. So, Geoff, when are you hoping to have this available to the public?

Geoff Babb:
We hope to have it available in the late spring or early summer of this year. We kind of pushed that out there the same time we have some design features we’re still finalizing the testing on, but yeah, it should be available in late spring, summer this year.

Josh Anderson:
That’ll be excellent. I know it’s a little early to ask this kind of question, but where would you like to see AdvenChair go in the future?

Geoff Babb:
I would love to see it used internationally, everywhere from adventure travel groups down to local family situations. About a number of people contact me about the chair because they have a child, for instance, with cerebral palsy or [inaudible 00:18:14], Parkinson’s disease, and they would like to get their family members out onto the trail. But I can help bring some [inaudible 00:18:28] to those families by helping them get on the trail, then we’ll be successful. As well as veterans, we’d like to help veterans get out in the wilderness.

Josh Anderson:
People don’t really know how important it is to get out there in the woods. I know it’s always been one of my favorite things. Geoff, you said that it’s available to be able to be pushed and pulled to get around some kind of rocky and kind of wild terrain. How many people does it usually take to help and be able to get it really anywhere that it might need to go?

Geoff Babb:
Well, yeah, again, it depends on the trail itself, and well certainly flat rail one person can push it, or we can have a pusher and one puller in front. But we’ve had a number of trips where we’d had up to five people pulling the chair this year, and mostly what they’re doing is helping to lift over rocks in the woods and rocks [inaudible 00:19:31]. And the design of the chair really was intended for that, to have a wrap around frame that allows places for people to lift it. There are actually at least 16 different places on the chair for somebody to push, pull, or lift the chair, but [inaudible 00:19:56].

Josh Anderson:
Oh, nice. And I could see how that could even be helpful, maybe not just in the wilderness, but in just areas that aren’t very accessible. Especially when you talk worldwide, I know a lot of countries really don’t make anything beyond maybe their main city very accessible, so I could see how that could be really helpful and maybe open up some experiences for folks all over the world, not just in the wilderness.

Geoff Babb:
Yeah. That’s truly our goal is to help people get around, whether it’s over curbs, on sidewalks, or travel somewhere in the woods.

Josh Anderson:
Well, I’m sure out there in Oregon, you probably need five people quite a few times to get around some of the terrain. Out here in Indiana, we call our hills mountains because that’s about all we really have.

Geoff Babb:
Yeah, right.

Josh Anderson:
Geoff, if our listeners would want to find out more about you or about AdvenChair, how would they do that?

Geoff Babb:
They can go to our website, AdvenChair.com, A-D-V-E-N-C-H-A-I-R, AdvenChair.com. If they go to the website, they will be asked if they’re interested in buying and can get on the mailing list and answer some questions that’ll help us with our marketing. So, we encourage people to go to the website and join our newsletter.

Josh Anderson:
Geoff, why do you think the AdvenChair is an important invention?

Geoff Babb:
The AdvenChair opens up opportunities for people to be outside and more in the healing aspect of nature, so it’s really important to allow people to do that. The chair also is really unique with its ability for a team to push and pull. And it’s just so important for families and groups of people to be out on the trail, working cooperatively to not only help that person in the chair but themselves, to be working as a team, just as a mountaineering team or a rafting team would work together to solve problems and routes. We want the chair also to be available to camps and outdoor schools where kids can be part of the whole outdoor experience where, quite often, they’re left behind, they didn’t get to go to camp, or they’re more restricted to the pavement. And this chair will allow kids to be out on the trail but also to take the wheel off and go inside buildings . So, we see a lot of opportunity with this design to help people be outside.

Josh Anderson:
You mentioned camps, but it makes me think of a field trips, too. When a school goes on a field trip, sometimes the individual in a wheelchair doesn’t get to go or can’t really participate. But with this, they could easily participate with everyone else and, like you said, be able to be part of a team and all work together.

Geoff Babb:
Exactly. We hope, too, things like education services,school districts, that they will be able to buy a chair that would be available for the schools in their district and not have to buy one. We’d like also to eventually have chairs available for rental and have people contact me do that or family members coming down that weekend, we’d like to take them get them hiking. So, we’ve been able to do that a couple of times, but we’d like to really look into the rental market down the road, as well.

Josh Anderson:
Yeah, I think that would be really great, because like you said, it might not be needed all the time, but I do like the way that you did think to make it not just accessible for the trails but where you can easily change it so that you can still get into the rest area or the Ranger’s lodge or somewhere else that you might need to access, also, instead of having to actually completely shift chairs.

Geoff Babb:
Yeah. Or just simply getting out of a vehicle. You can roll the AdvenChair up to the door, transfer right into it without having to transfer from a wheelchair into the chair. We’re also, going back to the cooperative nature of it, we see it as a good opportunity for kids with their school groups to really get involved to helping to move their friend around and be part of the process and learn some problem solving skills along the way. Obviously, it would depend on the age and the trail, et cetera, on what they’re able to do, but I think there’s a whole lot of cooperative and problem solving skills that can come from using the AdvenChair.

Josh Anderson:
Oh, definitely. And I know that’s one of the problems schools always seem to have is how do we teach kids to be able to work together? How do we do team building and stuff like that, but yet still make it fun and interesting and where you’re actually accomplishing a goal.

Geoff Babb:
That’s right.

Josh Anderson:
Well, Geoff, thank you so much for coming on the show today and telling us all about the AdvenChair and the great things that it can do. We can’t wait to see it come out and have it available for folks.

Geoff Babb:
That’s great. Thank you so much for inviting me to be on the show, and I look forward to helping people.

Josh Anderson:
Do you have a question about assistive technology? Do you have a suggestion for someone we should interview on assistive technology update? If you do, call our listener line at 317-721-7124. Shoot us a note on Twitter @INDATAproject, or check us out on Facebook. Are you looking for a transcript or show notes? Head on over to our website at www.eastersealstech.com. Assistive Technology Update is a proud member of the Accessibility Channel. For more shows like this, plus so much more, head over to accessibilitychannel.com. The views expressed by our guests are not necessarily that of this host or the INDATA Project. This has been your assistive technology update, I’m Josh Anderson with the INDATA Project at Easterseals Crossroads in Indianapolis, Indiana. Thank you so much for listening, and we’ll see you next time.

Audio: When Wheelchairs Failed Him, He Invented A New Way To Hike

Geoff Babb (seated) hasn't walked since he suffered two brainstem strokes 14 years ago. That prompted him to focus on helping people with serious disabilities access trails, and an outdoor lifestyle.

Emily Cureton/Oregon Public Broadcasting

BY NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO
PHOTOS BY Emily Cureton
Oregon Public Broadcasting

A Bend, Oregon, inventor designs for more equity in the outdoor adventure community. 

Five people moved in tandem down a trail, connected by a wheelchair unlike any other.

This hiking trail, popular with Bend, Ore., families, is a testing ground for inventor Geoff Babb. One miscalculation about how to navigate a tight squeeze of boulders, and he could topple over the edge toward an ice-cold river below. But that's not what worried Babb, who hasn't walked since a stroke 14 years ago.

"I don't feel scared on the trail. I trust these guys to figure it out," Babb said, adding that he feels more vulnerable crossing a city street.

Babb's arms won't propel him, so he relies on teammates pushing, pulling and steering.

Emily Cureton/Oregon Public Broadcasting

Driven by a love of the outdoors, he's invested countless hours in this prototype for an all-terrain wheelchair, creating a new team sport in the process. His AdvenChair resembles a mountain bike. It has handlebars, disc brakes, and a bright orange frame. Its purpose is to help people with serious disabilities access trail systems, because as Babb put it, "we need to celebrate that we're alive."

Even though stroke is the leading cause of serious disability in the nation, he found existing all-terrain wheelchairs didn't suit his needs. A single rider can power the AdvenChair, but like many stroke survivors, Babb's arms won't propel him. Instead, he relies on teammates pushing, pulling and steering.

"Even though we have a planned route, you don't always know what you are going to encounter along the route," said Amy Kazmier, a friend and "mule."

The nickname for people who power the chair came after a fateful trip to the Grand Canyon in 2016. An axle broke in the steep terrain, and "we had to take his chair apart and carry it up the hill," Kazmier recalled.

After that, product development engineer Jack Arnold looked to the mountain bike industry to overhaul the design.

"The AdvenChair is not based on wheelchair parts. It's based on mountain bike components, which are more durable than wheelchair parts and less expensive," Arnold said.

Still, building a prototype has been costly — totaling around $10,000. They're pitching the idea to tourism companies that lead adventure trips for people with disabilities. This fall the team entered into a "Shark Tank" style competition in Bend, Ore., to attract investors from the outdoor industry.

There was a $5,000 prize on the line, to be decided by an audience vote. Babb had seven minutes to pitch. In the crowd sat one of just a handful of people to ride in the AdvenChair, so far.

Michelle Pearson's trip last year was her first time on a trail since she became disabled by a stroke in 2015.

"It was just a great day. It felt really good to get out there. And not just your yard, and not just your street, not just driving around your car looking out the windows," Pearson said.

She hasn't been on a hike since. She said her own wheelchair broke just going out the front door.

When the results of the competition came in, Pearson erupted with cheers. Babb's team pulled him up the stairs in the AdvenChair to collect the $5,000 check.

The win was a boost for a project inspired by extreme setbacks. This spring the team has plans to go back to the Grand Canyon, and test the mettle of their latest design.

---

Strokecast Episode 063—Stroke Survivor Designs Off Road Wheelchair

Geoff Babb, inventor of the AdvenChair

BY Bill Monroe, Strokecast
PHOTOS BY Michelle Simmons

“The wild requires that we learn the terrain, nod to all the plants and animals and birds, ford the streams and cross the ridges, and tell a good story when we get back home.”

—Gary Snyder

A few weeks ago, we heard from Carol-Ann Nelson from Destination Rehab about the PT work she does in Bend, OR, helping folks with disabilities from around the world spend a week doing rehab and enjoying all the beauty that Central Oregon in the northwest United States has to offer.

You can check out http://strokecast.com/destinationrehab to learn more about a Rehab Vacation or listen to that episode.

After we finished, Carol-Ann told me about Geoff Babb, a fellow Bend, OR, resident who had his own project.

“Whether it’s AdvenChair or just being out on their own I want to encourage people to get out and tell their own stories and feel empowered by their experiences outside. — Geoff Babb, @TheAdvenChair #stroke #wheelchair”

Geoff Babb is a 2-time stroke survivor who loves the outdoors. After he got back to Bend following his work on Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, he had a brainstem stroke. After that first stroke, he discovered standard wheel chairs are not compatible with hiking trails. They’re barely compatible with city sidewalks. So he decided to invent his own and thus, the AdvenChair project was born.

Timing

Timing is one of the amazing things about the story.

Geoff had been helping out in the New Orleans area in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. It was right after he got back to his home in Oregon that he had his stroke. Had it happened while he was still in New Orleans, his recovery would likely have been much more challenging, considering how strained the infrastructure was at the time.

This actually raises another interesting point for discussion in the future. As folks survive uninjured from natural disasters like Katrina or Maria, they are still susceptible to the same medical challenges folks in the rest of the country face — stroke, heart attack, car crashes, etc.

How does the limited or over-stretched post-disaster infrastructure impact their recovery? And if someone dies from a stroke due to limited availability of care a week or month after a disaster do they get counted among the disaster’s victims? This opens up all sorts of questions of equality, social justice, and simple fairness.

The first AdvenChair failed early in a hike instead of later. The timing was also fortuitous, avoiding an expensive, time consuming, and risky rescue.

And finally, Geoff’s second stroke was 12 years to the day of his first one. It’s amazing how those timing things all come together.

“My days in rehab would start out with my attitude of Well, I'm going to work. This is my job right now.”

—Geoff Babb, @TheAdvenChair #stroke #wheelchair

Developing the AdvenChair

Geoff has a lot more details on the process of designing this chair on his website, and I’d encourage you to check it out (and contribute if you can).

There are a few things in particular that come up in the conversation.

Geoff and his team ultimately had to start from scratch with the concept, rather than modifying an existing chair.

I know very little about the history of wheel chairs, but it seems to me, they were first built as a chair that could then move, rather than as a method of transportation that could then allow a person with disabilities to be seated.

Looking back at the historical wheelchairs we see on TV and period movies, they’re almost dollies for moving a person, almost as though the person is a type of cargo. It seems they evolved from there.

That sort of approach impacts your goals when you design something and also offers some insight into how designers viewed people with disabilities and the people who assist them at the time.

I should reiterate that this is my analysis, not Geoff’s.

“The big thing... was that we realized a standard wheelchair or modifying wheelchair was not going to do it. We needed to start from the ground up & make it more like a mountain bike.”

—Geoff Babb, @TheAdvenChair #stroke

Geoff and his team started pulling together ideas that aren’t based in the dining room chair metaphor.

They looked first at vehicles already optimized for off road use — skis for wheelchair users and mountain bikes for ableds. Then they grew the plan from there.

Instead of focusing on pushing the chair, the looked at Pulk Sleds used by arctic explorers and other folks to develop a method for pulling it.

And they made sure it could be self-propelled and work in environments already friendly to traditional wheelchairs.

“So what we like to say is that AdvenChairing is a team sport.”

—Geoff Babb, @TheAdvenChair #stroke #wheelchair

Bio

“Whether it's AdvenChair or just being out on their own I want to encourage people to get out and tell their own stories and feel empowered by their experiences outside.”

—Geoff Babb, @TheAdvenChair #stroke #wheelchair

Geoff Babb’s first of two strokes abruptly pushed him into the world of disability. Today Geoff is the AdvenChairman of the Onward Project, which seeks to inspire, encourage, and enable people of all abilities to have active outdoor adventures.

Geoff Babb

Geoff is active in the disabled and adaptive community in Central Oregon. He is currently on the board of Oregon Adaptive Sports and the Advisory Council of Stroke Awareness Oregon. Previously, he served on the board of Healing Reigns Therapeutic Riding Center and the City of Bend Accessibility Advisory Committee. Through these experiences, Geoff has an in-depth understanding of the outdoor adventure opportunities available for people with mobility challenges, be it by horse, ski, or wheels. There are many possible ways for stroke survivors to be outdoors.

Before his first stroke, he was an active outdoor enthusiast who enjoyed mountain biking, skiing, and hiking with his wife and twin sons, and he enjoyed a long career in wildland fire management.

Geoff’s life has been an odyssey and three significant life events have emerged as important opportunities:

1. Surviving his first brain-stem stroke in 2005. This changed his relationship to the world in general and the natural world in particular. No longer was he able to work, hike, bike, ski, and enjoy the outdoors as he had before. So, with help from friends and family, he developed a modified wheelchair that allowed him to go places where he could still have a meaningful connection with nature.

2. In 2016, he and his team attempted to go to the bottom of the Grand Canyon when his wheelchair broke an axle. While they didn’t achieve their goal, this experience inspired an opportunity to design a better chair, one more durable for off-road travel.

3. Twelve years to the day from the first stroke, in 2017 Geoff survived a second brain-stem stroke. This one helped him focus his energy to complete what is now the AdvenChair.

Because of these opportunities, Geoff’s dream is to help people experience the outdoors and wild places using the AdvenChair, rolling boldly where no chair has gone before.

At one point several month afterwards I realized it I didn't want to think of myself as a patient anymore, but I was definitely as a survivor.

—Geoff Babb, @TheAdvenChair #stroke #wheelchair

Hack of the Week

Geoff recommends a cellphone that works with a stylus. Phones optimized for this technology have options that go beyond just using a generic stylus. They include special software and native support for digital ink.

The Samsung Galaxy Note product line is one fantastic option. I use an LG Stylo 4, which is less expensive but slower and older.

The advantage of a stylus is that you can get more precise control when writing emails and messages. You can also send messages in handwriting or draw pictures and do lots of cool things. If you have the strength to hold the phone with one hand while tapping with another this is great.

Now as I think about it, if I was left handed, I might use my stylus more. My current phone challenge is that I have to use it entirely in my right hand, and I have trouble reaching the left side of the screen with my thumb, resulting in more typos. My left hand isn’t strong enough to hold my phone yet, but it might be strong enough to hold a stylus.

So I guess one of my next projects ought to be figuring out if I can teach myself to write or tap on a phone screen with my affected hand. It’s my non-dominant hand so this would have been tough before the stroke, but now I get to deal with proprioception challenges, tone, spasticity, and weakness.

Sounds like a good therapy goal to me.

Thanks for the idea, Geoff!

I knew from my previous stroke there was lots information from lots of doctors and I wanted to keep track of that. So I had my son bring in a good size whiteboard and we just kept recording everything.

—Geoff Babb, @TheAdvenChair…