Are you up for adventure?

Some Magic Mobility users like to push beyond cautious, everyday limits and experience the edgy thrill of adventure. We hope that a few of their stories may inspire you to add a dash of adventure into your own life.

Taking on new challenges and testing your abilities is part of many people’s aspirations for life. Powerchair users who share that adventurous spirit need a chair that’s equally up to the challenge. That’s why so many choose Magic Mobility.

Leonie is always looking for new places to test the limits of her Extreme X8 powerchair ‘Franklin’.

One such adventurer is Leonie, who lives on a bush-covered property in the Adelaide Hills (South Australia) with her parents, sister and her horse, Legacy. Affected by a neurodegenerative condition, Leonie relies on her purple Extreme X8, which she calls Franklin, for mobility outdoors.

Young and full of life, Leonie loves taking ‘Franklin’ right to the edge.

She explains, “The X8 loves adventure too, the fact that it can literally go anywhere, it’s so important. I am someone who breaks the mould when it comes to disabilities, pushes boundaries. I take mobility devices to inappropriate places, or have tried to. But the X8, its whole existence has broken the mould. It can keep up with my lifestyle, take me to all the places I thought to be lost to me. It has no boundaries, it’s just no matter what “I’ve got you, let’s do this” … I feel like I have now regained my sense of adventure!!”

“Every time I use Franklin, I fall in love with it more and more. It gives the gift of life back.”__

Gary loves to blaze a trail in his V6 AT.

Gary is a Texan US veteran who chose his Frontier V6 AT for its ability to take him all the way from indoors to off-road in the woods.

Gary also loves pushing the limits in life and whenever he ventures outdoors.

“I love going where there are no sidewalks and I will blaze a trail of my own. I have adventures every time I go out. I cut across fields, through the woods. I did get it stuck pretty deep in a swamp in Georgia. Had to call the fire department to come find me using the GPS on my phone. They couldn’t believe I got where I was!”

Gary’s confidence in heading off into the unknown comes from knowing his chair won’t let him down.

“I am hard on equipment; I take care of it, but I admit that I am hard on it. It has never broken down on me or let me down. It has always gotten me home, that’s important. I have confidence when I leave out on my daily excursions.”

From Gary and Leonie’s everyday adventures to the adventure of a lifetime…

Francesco is a 25-year-old student at the Academy of Fine Arts in Macerata, Italy. Francesco set himself the challenge to trek The Camino de Santiago trail in north western Spain for 120kms in his Magic 360 Off-road chair. This leg in his powerchair would be the final leg of his total 4,800km journey from Ancona, Italy to Camino de Santiago.

Severely affected by Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and relying on his sip-and-puff controller to drive his powerchair, Francesco’s passion and courage are truly remarkable.

His amazing adventure, branded ‘Santiago on Wheels’, was inspired by the desire to make a documentary that would “show all the skilled and the ‘ableist’ canons that I, a disabled person, do not count any less than others, and that exceeding one’s limits is possible.”

Francesco (and his support team) travelled across Spain in his Magic 360 to show just how much disabled people can do.

Francesco’s is a social and political adventure, just as much as it is physical one. He and his team’s ability to engage people, businesses and institutions all along their way has demonstrated just how much can be achieved with the right attitude and community support, paired with reliable assistive technology to help get the job done.__

Rob challenges himself by taking on rocky mountains and muddy marathons.

Another group of outstanding adventurers are those who have taken on the challenge of climbing to the top of one of the UK’s tallest peaks, Mount Snowden. Wheelchair users – assisted by their support teams – compete in an annual wheelchair race event ascending the summit to raise awareness and funds for various charities. So far, we’re aware of at least five competitors who have made the climb in an Extreme X8 off-road powerchair.

One such competitor is Rob, whom, without the use of his arms or legs following an accident, took on Mount Snowden a few years after completing his first Tough Mudder marathon. He is justifiably proud to have made it up by steering using his chin control, relying on mirrors to see where his wheels were pointing. He told us this gave him “a fantastic sense of achievement”, and that he had a “really great day doing it.”

Summing up what he feels about his X8, Rob says it’s “powerful, impressive and life-changing”.

Ian is another intrepid adventurer who conquered Snowden in what he calls his ‘Tangerine Dream Machine’ or ‘TDM’, in his case to raise money for MND research. Posting about his fundraising adventures Ian says:

“We’ve done the biggest mountain in England and Wales; we mastered over 100 miles through the Yorkshire Dales, and we tamed over 100 miles across the North York Moors and Clevedon Hills. What next for the TDM?.”

Ian has climbed Mount Snowden and covered hundreds of wilderness miles to raise money for MND research.

Whether it’s to raise money or just raise your spirits, the message is clear; getting out and taking on adventures in your Magic Mobility powerchair can be a hugely rewarding part of life. It can prove a sense of purpose and pride, as well as memorable experiences, opportunities to meet new people, and to change the way people might think about living with a disability.

Click here to find your local agent and test your taste for adventure.