background image

AdvenChair Field Guide 

 

Spring 2021 

 

 

 

Field Guide and Trail Notes 

 

 

Summary of Contents for Field

Page 1: ...AdvenChair Field Guide Spring 2021 Field Guide and Trail Notes ...

Page 2: ...wrenches 10 13 17 mm and 13 16 in Tire pressure gauge for presta stems Spare inner tube 20 x 2 for front wheel Tire pump for presta and Schraeder stems Tube patch kit Tire levers Hiking gear recommended Appropriate foot gear Extra socks Water and water purifier Warm clothes Flashlight or headlamp Knife or multi tool Sunscreen sunglasses and hat First aid kit GPS Emergency Locator Device Food Rain ...

Page 3: ...ts of the AdvenChair 1 Figure 2 Detent pin ratchet handle and spring plunger 2 Figure 3 Positioning the footrest and casters 5 Figure 4 Installing the main wheels Inserting the brake rotors into the brake caliper 6 Figure 5 Install or remove the main wheels Inserting the hub and axle 6 Figure 6 Installing and removing the forward beam 9 Figure 7 Positioning the front wheel to install or remove the...

Page 4: ...o recharge their gratitude for life a reconnect to being apart feeling the here and now of self secure from security the certainness of certainty knowing the quiescent sounds of silence the pervasiveness of open space the elemental simplicity of a natural world the real nakedness of being in a place and time that was and still is out there John Dell ...

Page 5: ...enChair to the trailhead along the trail and home safely so you can enjoy your whole experience For information about initial setup of the AdvenChair please refer to the AdvenChair Owner s Manual at www advenchair com advenchair user manual This field guide can be found at www advenchair com advenchair field guide Parts of the AdvenChair The primary parts of the AdvenChair are shown in Figure 1 Fi...

Page 6: ...urning the ratchet handle will tighten or loosen the bolt The ratchet handles should be hand tight Never loosen the ratchet handle more than one full turn NOTE Do not loosen the ratchet handle more than one full turn If loosened too far the handle will come off and the internal spring and bolt will come out 3 Spring Plungers Spring plungers lock two pieces of sheet metal in position by holding a p...

Page 7: ...ider will be riding in the chair follow these additional steps a Set the parking brakes by pulling the levers and pushing the locking button b Attach the vehicle mounted tie down straps e g QStraints to the AdvenChair frame not the wheels c Attach the seat belt firmly and securely across the waist and the chest strap firmly and securely across the chest ...

Page 8: ...tom to keep the footrest up and out of the way iv Pin the footrest tray in place using the blue detent pin c Casters Rotate the casters up so they take up less room i Tip the AdvenChair on its back ii Unpin the yellow detent pins from the top of both casters Figure 3 iii Rotate the casters up and re pin them so they point straight up d Taking off the main wheels i Tip the chair onto its front and ...

Page 9: ...d 45 degrees from vertical for adjustment for the rider For transport and storage the footrest assembly can be rotated up so the footrest support tubes are vertical and the footrest tray is next to the seat The red pin is then inserted into hole 3 from the bottom to hold the footrest assembly in place Green Adjusts the height of the footrest Blue Controls the angle of the footrest tray Yellow Cont...

Page 10: ...AdvenChair Field Guide Page 6 Figure 4 Installing the main wheels Inserting the brake rotors into the brake caliper Figure 5 Install or remove the main wheels Inserting the hub and axle ...

Page 11: ...their dropouts Figure 5 Make sure to slide the brake rotor straight into the brake caliper slot to avoid damaging the rotor and the brake pad iii Slide the axle through the axle dropouts and the hub screw the axle tight with a 6mm hex wrench d Lower the casters i Tip the chair on its back ii Pull the yellow pins from each caster rotate each caster down and pin them in place Figure 3 e Position the...

Page 12: ...ighten the brakes Install the forward beam and front wheel 1 Reverse the front wheel to take the weight off the forward beam Figure 7 2 Slide the rear round end of the forward beam into the two round clamp blocks above the standard footrest Make sure the ratchet handles on both the clamp blocks are loose and the white detent pin is not inserted through the rear clamp block Figure 6 3 Insert the wh...

Page 13: ...oes through both the rear clamp and the hole through the end of the forward beam Figure 7 Positioning the front wheel to install or remove the forward beam When the front wheel is reversed the casters take the weight and the front wheel is off the ground When the front wheel is in rolling position the casters are lifted off the ground putting the weight on the front wheel ...

Page 14: ... should only be loosened one half to one full turn Keep the handle pointed back to keep it from getting stuck under the spring plunger d On each side of the chair pull the round spring plunger out and turn it 90 degrees to disengage If the rider is in the seat the spring plunger may be too tight to pull out In this case lift the blue webbing strap at the top and back of the seatback to unbind the ...

Page 15: ...t assembly The tube supporting the footrest assembly telescopes and can be lengthened or shortened Pull the green detent pins from the tubes on both sides raise or lower the footrest assembly to a comfortable height and re pin both sides c Angle of the footrest tray At the top back of the footrest tray there is a blue detent pin on each side and three holes in the each side of the footrest tray Pi...

Page 16: ...en the side strap and raise the seatback to a more upright position Figure 9 To tilt the seatback further back lengthen the side strap by pulling out on the gray portion of the buckle and sliding the strap through the buckle to make the strap longer To raise the seatback to a more upright position pull the black lever portion of the lever as many times as necessary to pull the seatback more uprigh...

Page 17: ...owing adjustments Move the handgrips forward Move the seat forward Reduce the angle or dump of the seat so it is more upright 7 Adjust the chest strap Bring both sides of the chest strap around the rider buckle them together and tighten them by pulling the rings to a comfortable position Additional length adjustment can be made where the chest straps attach to the seatback The chest strap is not s...

Page 18: ...ngle Loosen the ratchet handles just below the center of the upper footrest on both sides pull the pins just in front of those ratchet handles rotate the upper footrest to an angle comfortable for the rider insert the pins and tighten the ratchet handles There is no button to push to release these pins c Strap the rider s feet into the footrest Buckle the footrest straps together over the rider s ...

Page 19: ...drest Slide the stem of the headrest support into the headrest bracket and tighten the clamp The height is adjusted by how far the stem is inserted into the bracket The bottom of the stem must be in far enough for the clamp to engage with the stem c Adjust the angle of the headrest There are two swivel joints on the headrest support Loosen both of them with a 5mm hex wrench just enough so they can...

Page 20: ...ially those involving significant uphill sections install the towing poles optional component Figure 12 i Screw the poles together each arm has two sections The arms are connected by a swivel fitting ii To attach the poles to the side of the towing harness put the eye bolt at the end of the pole over the webbing loop at the widest point of the lead mule s hip and slide the carabiner through the we...

Page 21: ... forward beam and to towing harness FULL TOWING PACKAGE WITH HARNESS POLES AND SWIVEL FITTING ATTACHED TO FRONT OF FORWARD BEAM TO ATTACH TOWING POLES TO TOWING HARNESS PLACE WEBBING LOOP ON TOWING HARNESS THROUGH EYE BOLT OF TOWING POLE INSERT CARABINER THROUGH LOOP ...

Page 22: ... AdvenChair frame There are four attachment points on each side of the AdvenChair and if the towing poles are not being used at the front of the forward beam Figure 13 Figure 13 Strap attachment points 4 Lifting handles for Side Mules Side mules can lift the AdvenChair by the caster legs the frame next to the main wheels or the frame where it loops over the main wheels Figure 14 The forward beam s...

Page 23: ... participates on the ride 2 DRIVER Pushes the chair issues commands to start and stop does most of the steering and braking and is the primary director of tactics to get around and through obstacles 3 MULE The mules a term of endearment for our friends have a variety of roles and can move from one role to another as needed The major roles include a Lead Mule Pulls the chair with the towing poles e...

Page 24: ...ecific to AdvenChair hiking include 1 Understand your route Very easy routes in town or on paved or wide firm trails can be undertaken with a rider and driver Difficult routes with steep hills and rough irregular trails require a larger experienced crew Scout ahead on the route match the crew to the route and be prepared to alter the route or turn back depending on conditions 2 Communicate The lea...

Page 25: ...he chair could tip or slide to the side Side mules need to be deployed carefully in this situation If the side slope is steep and the footing above and below the trail is unstable consider how much of this condition the team can deal with and consider turning around if the team is not comfortable proceeding 7 Uphill Hiking When the lead mule and front mules are both deployed they sometimes get in ...

Page 26: ... with no narrow sections Suggested Minimum Team Size 3 rider driver lead mule Moderate Surface Mostly firm footing with long sections of uneven material Steepness Includes long sections of moderate uphill or downhill Obstacles 8 or less Rocks ruts logs or roots May include short sections of constructed stairs Trail Width Generally greater than 36 with short narrow sections No or very minor side sl...

Page 27: ... Many obstacles of 12 or less and some of 18 Rocks ruts roots and with sudden drops or rises in the trail Some sections of the trail may feel like natural stairs Trail Width Trail can be quite narrow with steep sidehill sections The rider may have to be carried through some narrow sections Scouting These trails should be scouted before attempting to travel on them with an AdvenChair to ensure they...

Page 28: ...s at the brake levers If this doesn t correct the issue a bike mechanic can trouble shoot other brake issues Voice Commands Communication between team members is critical When the going gets tough clear incisive commands usually from the driver are essential Other team members especially the lead mule need to contribute as needed 1 Start the chair forward Onward 2 Stop the chair Stop 3 Back up a b...

Page 29: ...f the strap in the hand The extra friction of the strap around the body makes it much easier to apply force to the strap The strap is held much like a rock climb belayer holds a rope Straps can be used in many configurations and as the team gains experience they will figure out their preferred techniques and develop the ability to improvise A few considerations Make sure the mule s footing is stab...

Page 30: ...g 4 Sharp corners a Lead mule swings wide When approaching sharp corners the lead mule can swing wide to the outside of the corner to give the chair as much room as possible to get around the corner This is most effective on sharp corners with few obstacles and allows the chair to get around the corner with the least amount of forward momentum b Multi point turn If there isn t room for a wide swin...

Page 31: ...ues described for traveling on a rough uphill trail are used except that the front mules are replaced by rear mules The two primary differences are that i the speed of the chair needs to be controlled carefully with the brakes and by the rear mules and ii it is more difficult to lift the front wheel over obstacles when traveling downhill Some lead mules prefer a towing strap to the towing poles in...

Page 32: ...ars to cross a steep sidehill 8 Crossing wide obstacles When crossing wide obstacles like water bars or stairs square the chair to the obstacles so that both wheels roll over at the same time to prevent any chance of tipping the chair 9 Narrow passages Very narrow trail sections or trails constricted by rocks trees or logs which cannot be navigated by the AdvenChair can be a dead end and may requi...

Page 33: ...ons pay attention to clues about accessibility such as references to narrow bridges steep stairs and so forth Use web searches to find trails in your area Some example sites include AdventureGuru All Trails requires a subscription for full use Oregon Hiker s Guide Accessible Nature Trail Link American Hiking Access Recreation Explore Central Oregon Many of these sites let users suggest and describ...

Page 34: ...post them to www advenchair com field notes Help others Roll Boldly Use the Trail Notes section in this guide to keep notes about your hikes so that you can pass your stories on to others Trail Notes In this section keep track of your adventures on the trail __________________________________________________________________ Date Trail Distance Team Weather Trail rating description Notes ...

Page 35: ...____________________________________________________ Date Trail Distance Team Weather Trail rating description Notes __________________________________________________________________ Date Trail Distance Team Weather Trail rating description Notes ...

Page 36: ...____________________________________________________ Date Trail Distance Team Weather Trail rating description Notes ________________________________________________________________________ Date Trail Distance Team Weather Trail rating description Notes ...

Page 37: ...____________________________________________________ Date Trail Distance Team Weather Trail rating description Notes ________________________________________________________________________ Date Trail Distance Team Weather Trail rating description Notes ...

Page 38: ...____________________________________________________ Date Trail Distance Team Weather Trail rating description Notes ________________________________________________________________________ Date Trail Distance Team Weather Trail rating description Notes ...

Page 39: ...y must make a personal decision about the level of risk he or she is comfortable with weighing their own age and health status life circumstances and general level of risk aversion or tolerance All team members are free of COVID 19 symptoms temperature cough Maintain social distancing of at least 6 feet Wear a mask when near others Limit team size to 5 Rider driver 3 mules Preferably driver is fro...

Page 40: ...AdvenChair Field Guide The wild requires that we learn the terrain nod to all the plants and animals and birds ford the streams and cross the ridges and tell a good story when we get home Gary Snyder ...

Reviews: