Invisible on wheels?

[DisneyFreaks]

This thread is absolutely why I do not use my ECV at Disney. It's bad enough in my WC but at least I'm not getting the stress. My DD usually pushes me and she can be quite verbal if someone starts being nasty after they have walked into me. I had one man who was trying to take a picture keep moving backward toward me. We kept trying to avoid him but he just kept coming. When he finally fell on me he actually started yelling at me. It can be so embarrassing. I'm starting to dread each trip and I love WDW.

 

[Tiggerish]

I So, yes, my wheelchair can also be a stripper pole.

Did they at least offer to share their dollar bills take with you?

Actually, it never ceases to amaze me how people that are complete strangers feel it is perfectly acceptable to lean on the back of the scooter. Not to mention how tempting of a seat it becomes when stowed on the bus. Think about it people, if it was safe to sit on don't you think I would be staying on the cushy captain chair and not the hard, narrow bus seat?

 

[Kristen K]

I've had this problem as well. My husband nearly punched a guy on a boat in Epcot who sat down on the arm of my ecv. I had no idea that this was happening to other people too!

I like the flag idea, I wonder if it would help my experience at all. I leave for WDW again in three weeks maybe I need to head over to Toys R Us and see what I can find. I want a pink one

 

[FortForever]

Yes, I am invisible. Unless I can be useful to a person, then, I can be seen and touched.

Exactly.

This part just blows my mind. Having a woman sit on my leg was just beyond bizarre. If I was sitting on a bench, would she have felt that was acceptable?

 

[tigger&tigerlover]

Exactly.

This part just blows my mind. Having a woman sit on my leg was just beyond bizarre. If I was sitting on a bench, would she have felt that was acceptable?

Hmm. I wonder if I need to take a few hat pins with me to encourage them to move on....

 

[FortForever]

Hmm. I wonder if I need to take a few hat pins with me to encourage them to move on....

Probably if you plan on doing parades or fireworks.

Be aware, they will sneak in on you slowly. This lady (and I use the term loosely) didn't just come up and plop onto my lap. At first, she had her back to me. Over time, she kept moving back until she was leaning. Eventually, the leaning turned to sitting.

The person leaning on the back of my seat was a snake too. Closer, closer, lean.

 

[strawberrylilacs]

After reading this thread I have decided to be proactive on my third trip to WDW in August using an ECV for the entire time. I have decided now to get the canopy not only for shade but to be more visible. I intend to give people a chuckle and smile when they see my scooter and maybe put them in a better mood when they (or I) pass by. I am ordering large stickers that I design to put on canopy (such as DISNEYWORLD LOVER GRANDMA DRIVING SAY HI! I DON'T BITE.) and maybe a balloon, decorations. I have had some of the same experiences as stated by others. Would be interesting to see if this changes things a little.

 

[tigger&tigerlover]

After reading this thread I have decided to be proactive on my third trip to WDW in August using an ECV for the entire time. I have decided now to get the canopy not only for shade but to be more visible. I intend to give people a chuckle and smile when they see my scooter and maybe put them in a better mood when they (or I) pass by. I am ordering large stickers that I design to put on canopy (such as DISNEYWORLD LOVER GRANDMA DRIVING SAY HI! I DON'T BITE.) and maybe a balloon, decorations. I have had some of the same experiences as stated by others. Would be interesting to see if this changes things a little.

I've been considering a canopy for visibility. Please let us know here how it works out!
And if anyone here has already tried this, I'm sure more than just myself would love to hear about. IMO, anything that improves our visibility at Disney is a Good Thing.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

One of the first things that we do when we get to the parks is to buy a lighted helium balloon for DH's ECV. We tie the balloon on the back of his chair at eye level to an average adult. It really does seem to make DH on his ECV a bit less invisible. The light is necessary after dark.
We haven't stayed at any of the AK properties, so I don't know what we would do since balloons are prohibited there.

I wonder if using a canopy with the EVC might have a similar effect, since the canopy protrudes into the same visual space. DH uses his own EVC, which doesn't have a canopy, but I wonder if anyone that has used rental EVCs with and without a canopy has noticed a difference.

Years ago when Mom was alive and in her wheelchair (none or few EVC in those days) this is just what we did!

It wasn't that she cared whether anyone noticed her, she was concerned that she didn't want to hit anyone!

One thing we noted, was that normally in crowds people go hard left and right and stop fast, with the expected result of bumping each other. Now people bumping people no big deal. People and wheelchairs/EVC bumping more of a issue!

The bottom line is we are not so sure its people not noticing, but more people in a crowd in general.



AKK

 

[tigger&tigerlover]

The bottom line is we are not so sure its people not noticing, but more people in a crowd in general.

AKK

I suspect it's both. I've certainly seen that with general crowds as well. Being below eye level certainly doesn't help any. I've heard of studies (and advertising) that now shows adults can't view things below a certain level, when kids can. I read an article in the last week or so that actually shows a mall-type add for child abuse. The top part was generic, but there was a hidden message that only someone below a certain height could read, giving a phone number if they were being abused. So I guess in some ways the lack of visibility of WC and ECVs is actually scientifically based.

Which would also mean that doing anything to put our visibility back above a certain level would help.

So that being said, I plan to either rent the canopy or buy a lighted balloon (or both), and anything else that sounds like it would work.

 

[WheeledTraveler]

If you rent an ECV with a canopy, be aware that there are many places where you will be asked or required to take it down. If you don't need the ECV in lines or in shops, restaurants, buildings, it won't be so bad, but I know we've had people come back here and say that there were so many places where they had to remove them that they just stopped using it after a few days.

I like the balloon idea. You can also get the sort of triangular flags that bicyclists use. If you feel like getting creative, you could make some sort of flashy cover to put over the seat back (with a rental, you should be able to get an approximate size from the rental company). Another thing that can be effective if you want people in front of you to be aware as you're moving forward is a bicycle bell. I once had a wheelchair that even came with a bell attached! It's much more effective than the "horn" that most ECVs have.

 

[I Love Pluto]

I am a full time wheelchair user - I call this "rear eye view." Not something you really want to see all day!

Yes, I am invisible. Unless I can be useful to a person, then, I can be seen and touched. I have been leaned on, stood on, and one person even used my push handles when dancing at a concert once. So, yes, my wheelchair can also be a stripper pole.

It is more than becoming invisible when you use a wheelchair. You cease to be a person. You notice even that foul article in the NY Post kept talking about the "Handicapped," not the PERSON with the disability as if we become the disability.

Sometimes I feel we are more than disabled, we actually cease to be, and just become wheels, illness, and inconvenience.

The other option is that we become the cute new puppy in the room, with everyone wanting me to do "tricks" in my wheelchair. Next time someone asks me to do tricks I am going to start barking and ask for a cookie.

Wow! You said it ALL! You are "wise beyond measure"!