Monday 1 January 2018

Maltese Busses


There is an amount of information on the web about getting your wheels on the Maltese Busses HERE & HERE

All the public transport busses are able to accommodate wheelchairs with dipping suspension and manual ramps at the front door. There are a number of hop-on hop-off open topped private tours but they seemed to be without ramp access, I could be wrong

The official websites are slightly contradictory in that they give two definitions for allowed widths. There is also a form that you are directed to fill in that should be followed by a vehicle inspection at the Dept. For Transport in Malta. This should lead to the issue of a permit. I was unable to find the downloadable form and gave up with getting it sorted prior to travel

There are lots of bus routes in Malta and the services are well priced with a flat rate of €1.50 a journey. They are busy and weekly passes are available. I didn't bother looking for the illusive wheelchair permit
Download pdf map

In practice things did not go so smoothly. The aisle width was enough for my wheels at 63cm but would be tight for bigger chairs but the main issue was a lack of clear understandable practice by some drivers. I was lied to, refused admittance due to a child's buggy using the space and I was released onto a pavement island with no ramp exits. There were very cross drivers who refused to talk or even look at me, then again there were drivers very happy to help who didn't even charge for the ride

Information stickers were clearly displayed stating that spaces should be prioritised for chair users and that prams and buggies should move to make way. I am slightly uncomfortable getting buggies moved but always try to facilitate sharing space for the safety of all. On one bus they just didn't want me at all

We coped with the busses but it was generally stressful and I wouldn't rely on them getting you to the airport or somewhere requiring punctuality. If I lived in Malta and needed to travel with wheels on the Busses I would be running a campaign to get this sorted.

As just a visitor I would suggest being prepared. Go to the bus stop prior to a busy tourist stop so you will have more room to manoeuvre. Maybe queue on the road as that doesn't make the bus have to be tight to the pavement - you will be better seen but be warned people drive fast in Malta

Saturday 30 December 2017

Mdina

An easy bus drive took us to Mdina

Mdina is a mysterious golden-stone Arabic walled city that crowns the hilltop next to Rabat and is a world apart from modern Malta. Its hidden lanes offer exquisite architectural detail




We found an amazing cafe to lunch leaving my wheels at the door


The bigger more formal buildings were also magnificent





Friday 29 December 2017

Malta

Yesterday we arrived in Malta. My flight was via Gatwick and all went well till I recovered my wheels in Malta. On occasion Genny goes into a "just not having it" mode after a rough ride. The start button on the infokey control shows an exclamation mark sign and 2 flashing feet accompanied by bleeping. The warning inhibited an active startup so we were stuck at airport arrivals with a wheelchair that wouldn't start. We dragged it through immigration and into the baggage reclaim area where I tried to repair whatever was wrong. 

Where this has occurred before it has always righted itself within a few minutes but this was different. I tried the Segway reset by removing both batteries to no effect. The next option I tried was to swap infokeys - hourrah! Genny started. 
We missed our booked taxi that gave up on us as we were so late but we had finally arrived

Valletta Harbour 

Malta has considerable history with just about everyone having a go at it at one time or another including the PhoeniciansRomansMoorsNormansSiciliansSpanish, the Order of St. John, the French and the British. Malta finally became an independent state in 1964, and a republic in 1974. Since 2004 the country has been a member state of the European Union.
You may notice some signls that Britain had a hand in Malta 


A cave of Maltese treasures

Wednesday 27 December 2017

Saturday 2 December 2017

On the road again

How nice to be up and running again. It took me about 2 hours to put Genny together again. I had intended to get the main Segway base unit shotblasted and protected by some kind of coating but I couldn't wait. As my wheels are frequently on the beach, the salty environment has tarnished the aluminium and some corrosion is apparent. I was going to apply the sort of coating you would use on alloy wheels but maybe next time eh?

The EO24 error has not occurred again and things are much less twitchy. I made several adjustments to the seating and footrest position so the ride is different but the steering has improved and it is easier to operate

I'm a lot happier with my wheels now. I feel better able to handle issues that may arise. I like the design of the Genny and it was great to discover that at the core of it is a perfectly ordinary Segway i2, if you can call a Segway ordinary

I am even OK with the Segway discontinuation of the i2 model and the release of the i2SE. From the various forums it seems not uncommon that a Segway goes around the clock. By that I mean there seem to be many Segways that have hit 9,999 miles and still working. I have also discovered that should my Segway give up on me it would be possible to install the updated i2SE with relative ease

At this point future adventures include a trip to Malta after Christmas and the Caribbean is also going to happen - more to follow... 

Friday 1 December 2017

Gone to Pieces

Instructions on repairing a Genny Mobility wheelchair that has a Segway fault and requires the separation of the Genny from the Segway base unit see the following page - HERE   




Sunday 26 November 2017

Pimping my wheels

Whilst waiting for my wheels to be repaired I am planning some upgrades

Unless Genny Mobility is salvaged from receivership and production starts again, there will be fewer and fewer replacement parts available for these rather unique hybrid wheelchairs. Except for Genny’s central circuit board and a few sensors, everything is mechanical so could be fabricated if required. The bits that will be difficult to replace are therefore the covers. 
I love my wheels but always fancied a red one. I spent an afternoon a week back checking Genny dealers across Europe, looking for a new set of red covers. Genny in Spain had a set at €795 + postage but that is too much. The 2nd option I found was a set of silver covers from the UK that can be professionally coloured. I have gone for these
This picture is from the Genny Switzerland website

Genny lends itself to a bit of bling but when I was offered covers & wheels in gold - for just a little extra, I recognised my limits

What I do want however is a Segway skid plate. These are available but expensive but an obvious addition to protect the very expensive batteries . They come as an anodised aluminium accessory from Switzerland but are currently out of stock. I have a reminder set to check back in the new year but this is probably an accessory I can make myself out of some 3mm aluminium plate. I would form the simple shape and get someone to do the simple welding that requires equipment I don't have. I also need to get used to the idea that I will have to be making parts myself as the company is in administration

In addition I have ordered a number of stainless steel nuts and bolts to replace the rusting hardware on my wheels, wheelnuts and the like

Another change is on the Segway side of things. The base unit for the Genny wheelchair is the Segway i2 platform. The i2 SE came onto the market in June 2016 replacing the i2. In my communications with Segway UK I understand that replacement parts will  become increasingly difficult to get hold of. I hate the increasing redundancy of life

The good news is my wheels were repaired and have passed testing. The EO24 error could not be replicated but it was recommended that the problem was the pivot unit. This is a set of sensors that translate the right left movement of the handlebar into the turn. I'm now looking forward to the postman

Thursday 16 November 2017

Autumn 2017

So it's been quite a while since my last post - life goes on and Genny is firmly part of my life now

My last post back in June 2017 was the start of a fantastic summer with lots of memories down at the beach and long wandering trips rediscovering places I have not visited for many year but can now once again explore

At the beach
High tide
Sunday morning swim

More recently my 1000 miles and still smiling has unfortunately turned into 1650 miles and an EO24 error in the little display window. I have also discovered that the international company Gemmy Mobility has gone into administration as I understand it. The effect of this is the UK distributor are unable to offer service or do guarantee work but they may be able to get me some parts


This has been a real quandary for me. These machines are expensive, even with the fantastic price I got, however one year down the road I have a unique machine that when it breaks, cannot be supported by the people that sold it

With investigation I was able to determine the EO24 error in the display is a Segway code for "CU A YAW B FAULT" according this reference list I came across: http://www.funkywheelchair.com/p/resources_14.html When this error occurs it initiates a lot of bleeping, shaking and in 10 seconds does an emergency shutdown procedure. It is alarming for everyone within 50m if this happens in a supermarket or other public arena. Although it is reset by switching of/on I don’t like the attention.

Genny chairs are advertised as the only Segway chair supported by Segway, I made some enquiries and discovered the UK Segway dealers are willing to repair the Segway part of things, but didn’t want to be involved in any complicated guarantee issues. I therefore needed to separate the Segway from the rest of the wheelchair

I did not know how integrated the Segway was to the Genny. There are functions where the Genny actions are affected by state of the Segway like: no legs down whilst moving and no legs up if not sufficiently level. To my delight I have discovered that the Genny is a completely separate entity and the integration works by monitoring the LEDs on the central consul display of the Segway rather than some bespoke hack that would render my Segway effectively unsupported

This means that even if the Segway dies completely I could get a replacement and with relative ease, rebuild the powerbase of my chair

I spent a whole day stripping out and packing the core Segway base unit to post off to Segway UK for repair. I await the verdict as to how repairable my unit is and am hopeful that within a week or so, I will have my newly serviced chair back in action and the assurance that at least the Segway can be supported.

I now feel reassured and am planning trips that take me out into the world again without the worry I'll need to ditch my wheels and hitch 

I will do a blog detailing a step-by-step how to take your Genny wheelchair to pieces and separate the Segway powerbase - Available HERE

Friday 16 June 2017

Today I found a wallet


Left on a seat along the cycleway to St Helier was the black leather wallet and a plastic comb. I noticed 5 cigarette butts pushed into a pile of blown sand, the type I associate with menthol cigarettes. I searched for a name on a card or maybe a telephone number I could call -

The wallet contained a wad of 1840 Bolivar, mainly in 100 Bolívar notes from the Republican Bolivariana de Venezuela, a number of passport style photographs of an slightly shifty looking late middle-aged man, a small amount of tablets and a few long international telephone numbers in tiny spider like handwriting

Intrigued I checked the currency on my phone and the Venezuelan Bolívar (VEB) is obsolete. It was replaced with the Venezuelan bolívar fuerte (VEF) on January 1, 2008. Apparently the VEF is equivalent to 1000 VEB making the value if still valid £0.14 how curious is that?

I carry a dollar and a 5 Euro note in my wallet mainly to remind me that the world is still out there somewhere but who carries a fat wedge of South American currency that went out of circulation in 2007? Not only the useless money but no cards, no current money and no coins?

Is this a secret stash that maybe a child has lost or a visit from a slightly dodgy time traveller? Maybe it's me materialising artifacts from another time and place?

The wallet is now with the police and is someone else's mystery but wouldn't it make a great start to a novel?

Wednesday 24 May 2017

Genny in the Orchids


Yesterday I visited a beautiful area north of St Ouen's Pond looking at wild orchids

This area is part of a wider wetland area designated as an SSI (site of special interest) and owned and managed by the National Trust for Jersey. I have not been able to visit this site for about 8 years and yesterdays visit was a walk down memory lane

In 1990 I worked for the NT as the first ever countryside ranger in Jersey and managing these areas was my favourite job. It was great to see how the area had changed in the intervening 20+ years. The orchids you can see on either side of the path form a riot of colour every year in May and have increased in abundance through the conservation management I helped to instigate. Where these plants were restricted to a core area with only odd blooms in other parts of the site, the orchids are now spread around the northern perimeter of the pond in an area historically too wet to farm and previously overgrown by the reeds seen in the right of the photo

What a joy to explore these areas again. Tomorrow I will attempt to access the southern side of the site

--------------------------------------

So I didn't make the southern side - it was behind a gate, a "Do Not Enter" sign and being grazed by a herd of cows. I gave it a miss and instead slipping across the road and onto the adjacent beach and did a long run across the sands. I have always wanted to travel the length of this bay, its number 1 on my tick list for Genny but I may start with a bus to the far end
  
I crossed about 3 miles of beach avoiding the odd soft sandy patches that labour Genny. I watched the battery indicator drop throughout this journey uncertain of how far I would make. At any point I could have called a taxi or begged a lift but having never actually run Genny completely out of juice I persisted

From where I was in the picture above I continued a further 3 or 4 miles to my home, then messed around till completely flattening the batteries. Genny died 3 meters from my door after a lot of bleeping and flashing of lights on the display. slumping forward onto the footrest it was easy to dismount in a controlled manor

I have seen in the Genny manual that it suggests running batteries out completely if there are issues with the battery level indicator so I was keen to see the outcome. I have since drawn and measured the route I took and have determined it to be 25.5 miles (41 km), not accounting for the vertical element - impressive eh?


Saturday 4 February 2017

Antiguan Review

Travelling to the Caribbean island of Antigua on my Genny Mobility wheelchair was a fantastic experience. Using it gave me independence and the freedom to do what I wanted


There was an amount of planning required like needing to ensure accommodation was suitable and I had to organise travel to and from the airports but these are things everyone has to do

I had 2 weeks in a ground floor AirBNB apartment that had improvised ramps made to mount the one step access required. I had a garden, terrace, kitchen/lounge area, bedroom and a jetty out onto the Caribbean. With a boat I would have had it all

It was easy to navigate to shops, cafés, beaches and many tourist attractions. Generally I needed to leave my wheels at the door but that works for me. People were delighted to interact with me cruising around on my funky wheels and I was the centre of attention with the local children and many others

The roads and pavements were generally poor so on occasion I needed to backtrack as there was no way off a pavement end. The tropical weather means mega-downpours require storm drains, deep channels and gutters by the sides of the roads. Nights were trickier as judging step heights and avoiding potholes was harder and in addition I felt more vulnerable in the traffic. The local rum consumption, both mine and others probably didn't help

The whole trip was relatively easy right the way from Jersey through to Antigua. My journey started carrying a backpack hooked to the back of the chair seat and a small but heavy suitcase on my lap. I need to cross a short rough track to where the taxi collected me - destination airport

Leaving Genny at the airport gate I can board the plane and recover my chair in Gatwick for the next leg. I had arranged a lift at Antigua airport involving a pickup truck (see earlier post) but I could have managed with a local taxi although I would have needed to rally some strong assistance and done some tipping

Genny met all of the challenges I gave it including soft sand, seriously steep hills, rough tracks and load carrying - shopping, beach trips etc. I had no breakages, flat tyres, or mechanical faults, my only issues were loosing a wheel-nut and the allen screws on the seat back coming loose. Both of these issues I was able to sort locally


I will retain many treasured memories of this trip particularly swimming with the turtles, the beautiful scenery and hanging out with my children and other friends




The airports need convincing that Genny is air-worthy and I have developed a travel kit that include: laminated printed instructions; a pair of inserts that stop the legs from deploying accidentally and a small see-through box that protects the switches from being tampered with (see following image)


I am in discussions with Genny UK about reducing the period of time the switches take to turn off as loading crews will not put anything ‘live' in an aircraft hold. This has previously resulted in me delaying a flight and I see no advantage to these lights staying on for the quoted 7 mins. I imagine a firmware update could do the trick to everyone's advantage


Using this machine in a culture where disability is more apparent (less oppressed) was extremely enlightening for me. Everyone was interested in both me and my funky wheels and within 24 hours I was on first name basis with many ‘less able’ people, various street vendors and all the local characters. In Antigua I am less of an invalid just someone else coping with the issues of life, at least with the Antiguans. I was brave to do this trip but bigger and bolder because of it

Tuesday 31 January 2017

Antiguan Bungalows

Like some parts of India the basic unit of accommodation in Antigua is the bungalow. They are often small and brightly painted, can be made from wood or blocks and normally have a small veranda. They are usually topped with a tin roof

There is something very appealing about the design of these houses and many are charming in there uniqueness. In the warmer climate the veranda is used like a conservatory might be on a European house and is often a hangout in the heat of the day