SCI Life: December 2015


Lonnie Bissonnette
Lonnie Bissonnette

BASE Jumping Full Circle

Jumping from Perrine Bridge in Twin Falls, Idaho, a little over 10 years ago, a freak accident changed Lonnie Bissonnette’s life forever. Bissonnette, now 50, did a somersault, a trick to celebrate his 1,100th jump, but the parachute had a mind of its own. “The parachute became entangled around my foot, so it never had a chance to fully open. I hit the river below upside down on my neck doing between 70-80 mph.” He became a C3 incomplete quad, and today is able to walk short distances, but usually uses a manual wheelchair.

Thanks to his incomplete injury, as well as his insane bravery, he was back doing what he loved within a year of his injury. “From the very beginning I told the doctor and my family that I will jump again. For me, there was no way I was going to let this stop me from continuing with the sport I loved!” He decided his first post-injury jump would be somewhere near home — St. Catherine’s, Ontario — so he chose Niagara Falls, a 500-foot jump. Since then he has BASE-jumped several more times, including Sibu Tower in Malaysia and Kjerag in Norway.

As for any adaptations he needs to continue his hobby, there aren’t many. “I don’t really need any adaptations to BASE jump,” he says. “In fact, I’m still jumping with the exact same equipment that I jumped with when I had my accident. However, after a couple years of jumping, I wanted a new challenge, so I designed a strap system so I could jump and land with my wheelchair. The strap keeps the chair with me and has a single emergency release handle.” To date, Bissonnette has jumped 30 times post-injury. Currently seeking sponsors, his ultimate dream jump is the Cave of Swallows in Mexico.

rim-crop

Stylish Handrims to the Rescue

Ugly, pegged handrims for quadriplegics looking to push their own wheelchair may be a thing of the past, thanks to Marco Pilotto, a recent C6 quad from Montreal, Canada. Calling his creation BBraver, he has developed completely personalized ergonomic texturized handrims made of ethylene vinyl acetate that are nearly just as easy to push as handrims with pegs. You can choose what color, pattern and lettering you’d like added to your handrims as well.

Thanks to this special version of vinyl (nonstick and soft), as well as an offering of two different widths of handrims and a texturized surface, these handrims make the chore of pushing a whole lot more appealing to the low quads of the world, or to paras looking for more stylish and ergonomically-friendly handrims.

Note: The rims are most compatible with Spinergy wheels and include exclusive fasteners to help with placement on the wheel.

Learn more: www.bbraver.com

Scrambled Keys

Have you ever dreamed of creating your very own keyboard with keys that perform whenever command that you wish? You’re only limited by your imagination with the novel Sonder keyboard, a brand-new keyboard design for the masses that is also perfect for people with spinal cord injuries. Cost is $199.


Support New Mobility

Wait! Before you wander off to other parts of the internet, please consider supporting New Mobility. For more than three decades, New Mobility has published groundbreaking content for active wheelchair users. We share practical advice from wheelchair users across the country, review life-changing technology and demand equity in healthcare, travel and all facets of life. But none of this is cheap, easy or profitable. Your support helps us give wheelchair users the resources to build a fulfilling life.

donate today

Comments are closed.