A Day in the Life of Casey
My name is Casey Cherry, I’m 30 years old and am now living in beautiful Noosa in Queensland. I moved up here from Melbourne because the weather is usually better here as I can’t regulate my body temperature due to my accident, and the Sunshine coast climate is warmer and this lets me get out and about more. In Melbourne I would stay at home with the heater on and watch TV most of the time.
It has been 10 years ago this month since I have been in a wheelchair after I crashed my dirt bike at a friend’s property near Broken Hill. We were out riding and I fell off my bike. I landed wrong and broke my neck with damage to C3, 4, 5, and 6 vertebrae. I am now classified as a C5 quadriplegic.
After the Accident I purchased a wheelchair access van from Automobility, with a manual ramp that folds down in the back and a docking station that my wheelchair locks into. I sit as a passenger next to the driver and can see out the front and side window.
The van lets me get out of the house. We go shopping, go down to the river, to the beach or down to the marina. I can sit in the sun, get some lunch and throw a line in, though I haven’t been very successful when we go fishing. I love the beach and the National Park. We go exploring the area, see a lot of dolphins and turtles or just sit and watch the waves.
Watch Casey tell the story of how his wheelchair conversion vehicle has impacted his lifestyle for the better:
Often we’ll go on road trips in the van and do a big trip to Broken Hill twice a year. It takes about 24 hours. We take the van to some pretty remote areas, in one case we went around 280 Km on dirt roads. Occasionally, we drive down to Melbourne which also takes about 2 days. The long trips are a bit hard on my body, but the van makes the journey more comfortable.
I’ve had my wheelchair access van from Automobility for 10 years and it now has 157,000 km on it. Last September, on a trip to Broken Hill, we were driving on a rugged dirt road full of pot holes and corrugations, we had been on roads like this many times before when we go exploring in the van, this trip we hit a big bump, broke something in the front suspension of the van and it had to be towed 200 km back to Broken Hill. We contacted the Automobility 24-hour emergency number and they worked with the local mechanic to fix the van. Automobility even fabricated replacement parts and sent them up to the mechanic who installed them. They were great!
The van means a lot to me, it gives me the opportunity to get out and about when I want and lets me go where I want.
Call 1300 660 773 or contact us online for an obligation-free vehicle demonstration. www.automobility.com.au.
Download Casey’s story in this brochure: Click here.
