Video: AdvenChair, a Bend-made, all-terrain wheelchair, helping more Central Oregonians enjoy the outdoors

AdvenChair, an all-terrain wheelchair designed by Bend resident, Geoff Babb, aims to help people with mobility restrictions enjoy the outdoors.

“I was always mountain biking or skiing or being outside and the main bulk of my career was spent in national resources so I was always outside,” Babb said.

Babb, a former wildland firefighter, suffered a near-fatal brain stem stroke almost 16 years ago, affecting his mobility. “Surviving that, I realized that being outside is where I really need to be but my standard wheelchair was not going to do it for me,” Babb said. Rather than lobby for wheelchair-accessible wilderness trails, Babb chose to develop a wheelchair capable of adapting to trails.

Jack Arnold, a retired product development engineer partnered with Babb to help create the all-terrain Advenchair. “We built this specifically around mountain bike parts. They’re more robust than wheelchair parts, they’re more readily available,” said Arnold. Both men say the device is made almost exclusively in Central Oregon.

Kirin Stryker, of Cogwild Mountain Bike Tours, said Babb used the bike skills course by her business to test run the wheelchair during its development phases. She thinks it’s great to see him do something great for the community.

“We’re trying to normalize all abilities in recreation and so for our clients who are on mountain bikes to see Jeff and his clients accessing the outdoors on the same trials via a slightly different method is great,” Stryker said.

The wheelchair can hold all sizes from a small child to a full-grown adult. “That’s always been a big incentive of ours to make the outdoors accessible for kids as well for older folks,” Babb said.

Sales have begun and "demo days" are coming up for AdvenChair.

The AdvenChair team will be hosting demo days where they will be demonstrating how to use the chair to the public beginning August 7th.

For those wanting a longer excursion after the demo, AdvenChair will be available for rent on each of the following Sundays — August 8, September 12, and October 10 — at just $75 for a half-day (four hours).

Also this summer, AdvenChair is available for free hikes through Oregon Adaptive Sports (OAS) Community Hiking Days. On alternating Tuesdays, members of the OAS team are guiding outings on some of Central Oregon’s favorite trails, including the Deschutes River Trail and Shevlin Park. Hikes are scheduled for August 10 and August 24, departing at 8 am and returning at around 2 pm. For more information and registration, visit oregonadaptivesports.org.

Just two AdvenChairs are still available for immediate purchase.