Why should wheelchairs stay boring when the people using them have so much personality? That is exactly what Bill Lasher when he created his first sporty wheelchair.
In the six years since that first garage tinkering, Lasher has built Lasher Sport, crafting custom wheelchairs and handcycles that can roll on sandy beaches, ski on snowy mountaintops and careen terrifyingly fast down the slopes of the Swiss Alps. The chairs are also one of only a handful of products fully manufactured in Alaska, though Lasher does contract to Lower 48 firms for some processes. They are sold to clients all over the world – from Guam to Germany. The chairs aren’t cheap – from around $5,000 to upwards of $10,000 for a custom chair. Anything but medical-supply beige, they’re inspired by Orange County Choppers and mountain bikes, often tricked-out with chrome details that wouldn’t look out of place at a car show. They range from basic but sleek with vibrant oxidized colored aluminum – like a fresh custom car paint job – to fanciful, like one with a dragon motif that features gold and red details, fire-breathing dragon cutouts and a foot rest that looks like two gold coins.
http://www.ktuu.com/gotoak/ktuu-building-wheelchairs-20111013,0,6116770.story