I AM, as many of my associates will attest, “unbalanced.” Sometime during my 76-plus years I lost my ability to stand at attention. (I was OK at 17 when I wore Air Force blue, but that was then and this is now.)
No one has been able to determine WHY I can’t stand without support, but I cannot.
Within the confines of the house, I’m pretty much “OK.” I can grab on to something or lean against a wall. But going out of the house — for a walk around the neighborhood or to a store — I need mechanical assistance.
I USED A CANE for awhile, but there were two main problems.
Problem 1, loose ankle biters. One attacked me — he had to run a full block to get to me — and as I tried to fend him off with the cane, I fell. The mutt’s owner finally arrived on the scene. I got to my feet and promptly fell again. Like my wife’s sneezes, once never is enough.
Problem 2, a lazy foot. Hiking what seemed to be more than a mile from Point A to Point H at Miami International Airport (MIA) my left leg couldn’t lift my foot. The cane was no help. Result: I fell trying to step on a moving walkway, a/k/a pedestrian mover. The folks behind me offered to help me up, but sometimes you need to DIY. Still, it was a nice gesture.
The bottom line was, and remains, that after so many steps, I need to sit a little.
My PCP, a/k/a family doctor, agreed that I was a candidate for a rollator.
A rollator is a walker with three or four wheels.
The Medline rollator was a major improvement over the cane — I could rest on the integrated seat. It also proved handy when I went to gatherings (pre Chinese virus) and there were too few chairs: BYOC, Bring Your Own chair.
I still carried the cane slung across the handlebars to fend off ankle biters.
The Medline was fine for short walks on relatively smooth surfaces.
The small, 6-inch, wheels objected to the change between the driveway and the street, and they were not designed for “off road” use.
In other words, I could not see to take evasive action when approached by a car or a mother pushing a perambulator (while concentrating on her cell phone [right]).
The guy who delivered the Medline told me that if I found the handlebars too low, as he saw I would, that I could replace the unit for one with higher handlebars.
That proved easier said than done, but in the end, a red Drive Nitro Tall RTL 10266-T was delivered.
The Drive Nitro, like the Medline, unfortunately is made in China. It’s design is alleged to be European. It is well thought out. Time will tell if any quality control was implemented anywhere — in China or when the rollator came into the U.S.
The new rollator lists a maximum handle height of 41 inches, a gain of six inches vs. the Medline’s 35-inch maximum height. Handlebar height adjustments area easy with both rollators.
It also has 10-inch circumference front wheels (8-inch in the back) that handle both the transition from driveway to street better, to handle potholes and speed bumps better, and to let me roll on the grass — roll the rollator on the grass.
I still carry the anti-ankle biter cane. I intend to buy a dollar store cup holder to carry a can of wasp spray. The wasp spray, unlike other aerosols, sprays a tight stream toward the target (ankle biters) vs. other aerosols that spray a mist. Given the 20 and 30 mph “breezes” we get on a typical day, the mist might be blown back on me. At least with the wasp spray I don’t have to wait until my attacker is within cane range. It is against the law to shoot the dog — “discharging a firearm within city limits” my personal LEO advises — but a non-fatal response to an attacking dog seems in order. Never mind that the loose canine’s owner also is breaking the law.
I am keeping the Medline. Because it is smaller, it is easier to put on the flivver’s back seat — and get it out again. The larger Drive Nitro is a pain to load and unload. It fits in my car's trunk — barely unless I remove necessities (jack, jumper cables, etc.) It fits across the back seat, providing the seat back is almost vertical and the front seat leg room is diminished.
The Medline is OK for short trips such as from car to the doctor’s office or similar “short walk” trips.
Longer excursions such as trips to a supermarket or a home improvement store (that’s what Wikipedia calls the likes of Home Depot and Lowe’s) the taller rollator will be used. Both walkers are highly maneuverable.
- I generally avoid wandering around the cavernous spaces of a “home improvement” store by ordering on line and collecting my purchases at the service desk. This does not work well for me at the supermarket as I like to examine the items before putting them into a basket sitting on the rollator’s seat.
Both rollators fold up for transport and storage. The Medline’s process is a little easier than the Drive Nitro’s. The latter may require either emptying the provided web carry case or removing it. It’s not a problem to remove the “luggage compartment,” and the carry case has hand holds; just a minor annoyance. (Perhaps I just am easily annoyed.)
The Drive Nitro includes a what-feels-like-metal “lock” to hold the rollator in closed position. The catch works fine as long as the rollator is not picked up. Then, as the Medline, it needs a strap, belt, or rope to keep the legs together. The Medline makes the user provide something — a belt, piece of rope, etc. — to keep it folded. Not the best option, trying to keep the rollator closed with one hand while trying to tie something around it. A third hand would be handy.
Both rollators were provided with decent documentation. The Drive Nitro’s book is a little classier, but both are satisfactory.
The Medline handlebars can be set between 31 and 35 inches high. (The Drive Nitro’s minimum handlebar height is 37 inches; the maximum is 41 inches.)
All-in-all it has been an interesting experience.
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