Dean Kamen is brilliant, but I’ve always felt Segways were kinda for lazy people. Well, I did think that, until I got this email from Allen, a segway using reader with a disability. Doh!
Hello Brian,
Let me start by saying that I love Gizmodo. I read it almost every
day and frequently post in the comments section. The reason I’m
writing to you is not to whine, but to make you aware (if you’re not
already) that a great number of disabled people use Segways instead
of wheelchairs or mobility scooters. It may not always be apparent
that a person has a disability, as is the case with me (severe ankle
injury that didn’t heal properly). I know that a lot of the anti-
Segway sentiment assumes that everyone who owns or uses one is a
lazy douchebag. While this may be true in some cases, I would bet
that a higher percentage of non-commercial use (Police, security,
etc) Segways are used by disabled or handicapped persons. In fact
the only reason that Segways are not marketed as FDA certified
mobility assist devices is that Dean Kamen sold the rights for the
medical applications of the balancing technology to Johnson and
Johnson before the Segway was ever released (the iBot wheelchair).
Again, I’m not whining, but all of the Giz posts seem to
automatically assume that all Segway operators are fat, lazy, turds.
This is a bit misleading and lacks insight. Check out www.segs4vets.com
to see some of the good that Segways do for our disabled returning
veterans. I don’t care about apologies or anything like that, I just
wanted you to know that these things do a lot of good for a lot of
people.
Thanks!
Allen Ash
OK I FEEL REALLY BAD NOW!
