Off-Road Walker demonstration @ SPV

During a recent Longevity Circle meeting at Sequoias, Portola Valley, the group welcomed inventor Elaine Levin, creator of the Podna Rover, a wheeled walker (also known generically as a 'rollator') that she could take outdoors, and off of paved surfaces.

The highlight of the visit was this off road excursion up the trail at the back of the Sequoias.

See the off-road walker adventure on a trail:

Elaine went for a stroll on a walking trail near the campus, and chatted with Richard Caro about the rig's performance as they encountered a variety of trail conditions.

The visit

First demonstrating her prototype indoors, Elaine gave a brief talk about the personal needs that led her to design her own walker which would permit her to leave indoor or paved areas and walk on grass, trails and other terrain rougher than a standard walker would permit.

The seat

In addition to support for ambulation, the Podna Rover has a comfortable seat for taking a break enroute.

It collapses

The walker collapses for transport or storage, as demonstrated here:

Cool wheels

In addition to a patented front wheel suspension, the Podna Rover is cushioned by silicone spiral-spoked wheels.

Demo in grass

Taking the walker outdoors, a member who uses a standard four-wheeled rolling walker volunteered to test the Podna Rover by taking it off the sidewalk, over the wood partition to the grass lawn. She was dubious as to whether her roller walker would permit her to do that, and as it turned out it would not permit the same ease of movement.

Rocky path

Choosing terrain even more challenging than a grassy lawn, Elaine demonstrated the ease of pushing the Rover on a rocky path.