SportsAbilities Adaptive Sports and Disability Resources
SportsAbilities Accessible Garage
The SportsAbilities Garage is very accessible considering all of the adaptive equipment and tools that would typically clutter the floor making accessibility an issue for someone with mobility challenges. The purpose of the layout of this garage is to design it to be usable by someone with lower and some upper mobility issues. This is a typically sized 2 car garage measuring 17' wide by 18' deep and is about 8' tall in the center.
Major Items in the Garage:
1- Lasher ATH 26" Off Road Handcycle
1- Lasher ATH 29" Off Road Handcycle
1- Freedom Ryder LC1 Handcycle
2- Invacare Top End BB Sport Wheelchairs
1- Quickie T3 Tennis Wheelchair
4- Pairs of Wheelchair Wheels
1- Freewheel Wheelchair Attachment
2- Shelving Units
1- 15 Gallon Husky Air Compressor
1- Craftsman Shop Vacuum
1- 4 Drawer Filing Cabinet
1- Reel Lawn Mower
1- Electric Yard Cultivator
Tons of miscellaneous sport equipment, garage tools, Etc.
Obviously we made excellent use of the wall space to hang as many items as we could so that the floor space is empty and clear for a car. We will describe each of the walls and then go into detail as to how the handcycle/pulley system works.
The Wheel Wall
This garage was previously a car port which is why the interior wall are brick and there are closets on this side. We used wall hooks to mount everything in the spaces that were available. The wheels are paired together by using an axle and then hung on the doors. The Cultivator and Mower are also hung using hooks. We hung the Freewheel Attachment by mounting a screw on the wall and then hanging it by the rear hook. The tennis rackets are also hung using screws.
The Back Wall
The Back Wall contains all of our shelving, large tools, and also holds the winch that raises and lowers the handcycles and sportchairs on the Handcycle Wall.
We placed all the chemicals and tools at levels on the shelves where they can easily be accessed by someone in a wheelchair or seated position. The less used products are placed higher on the shelves. We also placed the labels facing outward so they are more easily recognized.
The Air Compressor was stood on its end to take up less space.
The Handcycle/Sportchair Wall
The Handcycle Wall took a lot of design and trial and error in order to get it to operate properly. In order to make the garage completely accessible, we decided to use a pulley system in order to raise the bikes and sport chairs off the floor. We paired the pulleys with a winch that will electronically raise and lower the equipment and have a rope lock down system that prevents the chairs from falling.
Below, we will show pictures and describe how and why we did things the way we did in order to make the system work flawlessly.
The Sport Chairs
The Sport Chairs are double stacked. The top chair is raised into place with the pulley and winch while the lower chair is stood on end and placed on the ground.
We used 1/4" nylon rope, a 150lb capacity carabiner, a polished pulley, and a reinforced shelving bracket to mount the upper chair. The shelving bracket is bolted into the wall with concrete anchors.
The Handcycles
The Handcycles are single stacked and the rear wheels stay on the ground.
We used 1/4" nylon rope, a 150lb capacity carabiner, a polished pulley, and a reinforced shelving bracket to mount the upper chair. The shelving bracket is bolted into the wall with concrete anchors.
The Pulleys and Lock Downs
Since you need to have a long enough run from the winch to accomodate the amount of rise, we mounted the winch across the garage and needed to make the rope turn 90 degrees. These pulleys accomplish that.
The lockdown system are Rope Cams commonly used on Sailboats. We purchased these from West Marine for about $27 a piece. They use springs to grip the rope and will hold over 500kg. To drop the bikes down, we pull the rope tight and then pull the rope out of the cam and place it below. To raise the bike, you simply slide the rope in between the cam and raise using the winch.
The Winch
We purchased this 110v electric winch from Harbor Freight Tools for about $60. We mounted it using 1 1/2" galvanized pipe and bolted it to the wall. The cable is run through a 2" PVC Pipe that is clamped to the wall. The reason we did this was to avoid the cable from getting hung up on screws or the shelving units. The PVC Pipe is 10' long which is longer than the highest lift for any of the bikes and chairs.
In our previous system, we ran the winch down the same wall as the equipment but the bolts were wanting to pull out of the concrete anchors due to the strain and tension.
Two things to bear in mind when laying out the system. You need to have a free run for the winch to lift the bikes equal to the height of the lift.
Also, make sure everything is bolted securely. Improper securing of this system can lead to severe injury or even death..
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We Go Further Together!