IKAN User Profile: Lilian Strandlund, Florida

Last month I introduced you to Angie Keiser, a delightful, record-setting woman who is 65-years-young. The person who introduced Angie to IKAN-style bowling was Lilian Strandlund, Angie's good friend, who is also a delightful, record-setting woman.

Born with cerebral palsy that has her using a power wheelchair, Lilian is 59-years-young and has never let her disability stop her from living life. Imagine being born 40 years before the ADA and being a wheelchair user, yet Lilian graduated high school on time with her able-bodied peers and went on to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Fine Arts 2-D from Cal State University (Northridge). Lilian was a selling artist before her daughter was born in 1981. Now Lilian is a business owner, and recently traveled from Florida to California with her boyfriend Ed for her high school's 40th class reunion. Did I mention that her CP affects her ability to speak?

That makes her accomplishments even more impressive, and it didn't stop Lilian from joining a Toastmaster's speaking group -- and giving speeches -- which is where she met my Dad and learned of the IKAN Bowler.

And as of March 14, 2009... Lilian Strandlund has become a big-time achiever in the sport of dynamic wheelchair bowling. Lilian bowled a most impressive 189, which to date, sets the top record for anyone with CP, for a female who drives her chair by joystick, AND for ALL female dynamic wheelchair bowlers! That's not bad -- three world records with one game. Lilian opened her multiple record-setting game with a strike, followed it with a spare, then another strike, and spares the rest of the way. She had no open frames -- a task that is not easy to accomplish, as any bowler will tell you, able-bodied or not.

CONGRATULATIONS LILIAN and keep up the impressive work! :-)

Here's a link to Lilian's scoresheet:
http://www.wheelchairbowlingrecords.com/Lilian_Strandlund_Multiple_Records_189.htm

And here are Lilian's IKAN User profile answers:

Name: Lilian Strandlund
Age: 59
Location: Mt. Dora, FL
Reason for Wheelchair Use: Cerebral Palsy
Onset or Injury Date: Birth
Wheelchair Operation Method: Joystick
High Bowling Score: 189
Approx. Bowling Average: 135
Typical Range of Scores: 115 - 165
Bowling Frequency: Once a week in league bowling and twice a month for Quad Squad Team
Bowling Ball(s): Yellow Dot 16 lbs
Quote from Lilian: "Having a positive attitude is most important for achieving your goals. Taking action to acquire your goals is the second most important. If you think you can, you can! If you think you can't, you can't. You can choose how you want to think."

Great quote Lilian, thanks!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

IKAN User Profile: Angie Keiser, Florida

Angie Keiser is a delightful woman who is 65-years-young and also a friend & fellow Central Florida Quad Squad member. Angie is actually a paraplegic, and has taken a challenge that many younger paraplegics have yet to attempt, and that is to try dynamic bowling with a manual wheelchair. Dynamic bowling uses the movement of the wheelchair to simulate the able-bodied bowling process (i.e. setup, physically approach the foul line and release the ball from the momentum of the stopping wheelchair) which is what using the IKAN Bowler enables any wheelchair user to do.

I actually think using a manual wheelchair is harder than bowling dynamically with a power wheelchair, which makes Angie's record score even more impressive. Since Angie is the first manual wheelchair user to bowl somewhat extensively with the IKAN Bowler, I believe her very respectable 138 is the current world record for dynamic wheelchair bowling (as described above).

Congratulations Angie and keep up the good work trying to raise the bar for manual wheelchair users! :-)

Here's a link to Angie's scoresheet:
http://www.wheelchairbowlingrecords.com/Angie_Keiser_Manual_Record_138.htm

Here is the master list of dynamic wheelchair bowling records:
http://www.wheelchairbowlingrecords.com/

Here are Angie's IKAN User profile answers:

Name: Angie Keiser
Age: 65
Location: Eustis, Florida
Reason for Wheelchair Use: Spinal Cord Injury at T6 (Incomplete paralysis from sternum down).
Onset of Injury Date: December 23, 1995 (age 52)
Wheelchair Operation Method: Manual
High Bowling Score: 138
Approx. Bowling Average: 103
Typical Range of Scores: 53-135
Bowing Frequency: Twice a month for four months. Love to do more. Need my own IKAN equipment and someone to come with me who knows how it works. [Bill here, we can easily teach anyone how it works, no worries.]
Bowling Ball: Bill's extra ball - I think its 16 lb. - don't know make. Ball has a tendency to curve when thrown. [Bill here, I need to explain more about bowling balls and also offer general IKAN User tips, which I will make a blog entry out of, and I'll definitely share it with you Angie.]
Quote from Angie: "Bowling makes me feel alive!"

I love your quote, thanks Angie!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

New Record for a Male with Muscular Dystrophy!

At Quad Squad bowling this month, 16 year old Alex McDonald set--and reset--the record for power wheelchair bowling by a male with Muscular Dystrophy!

Since I'm going to post the verified scoresheet, I have to "explain" Alex's first game... warm up! Typically speaking, the first few strike attempts and spare attempts, it is a "feeling out" process to see how our bowling ball will break with certain shots, given the lane conditions, and also how our IKAN Bowlers are set up, and it's also all relative to how our bodies are positioned in our chairs. So when you see that Alex opened with a 91, that isn't his usual, but it is not uncommon to see missed shots and multiple splits particularly in the first game as we get acclimated (the circled number below indicates a split).

So after a warm up game, Alex started heating up. He improved his second game by 30 points, then went "off" in his third game. I was bowling next to him and we have a healthy (and friendly) competition.

Alex started bowling his third game before I started mine, so as he made a good shot, I needed to answer. After opening with an open frame, Alex quickly got on a roll. He actually finished with just two open frames that game--he had either a strike or spare in the eight other frames--and finished with a new MD record of 180! :-)

I managed to keep the heat on Alex and finished with 176 that game. I congratulated Alex on his new record, and we both wanted to bowl a fourth game. Once again, Alex started with an open frame (a difficult split) but then he finished with NO open frames and smashed his 180 with an impressive 192! :-)

Again I kept the heat on with another 176, but the bowling day clearly belonged to Alex. And so does the record for power wheelchair bowling by a male with Muscular Dystrophy!

Congratulations Alex, and welcome to the 190-Club! I sincerely look forward to you joining the 200-Club with me and two others (Jon Musgrave, the overall record holder with a 243 high game; and a Veteran named Anthony, who I believe had a 214 high game, but unfortunately he passed away--which helps to underscore the importance of us wheelchair users enjoying ourselves when we can, just like able-bodied people do, and bowling is a good way we can).

May God bless all who read this and may you find some enjoyment every day--bowling or otherwise!

Click HERE for Alex's scoresheet!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com/
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/

Smother Movie on TV

The movie Smother, a comedy & drama starring Diane Keaton and Liv Tyler, is on TV nationwide in the U.S. five times in the next week. Why am I mentioning it on my blog?

Our IKAN Bowler was selected as a product to be used in the movie. It has a brief appearance, and a slightly odd one at that. I don't want to give anything away (to spoil the scene) but I will say the IKAN Bowler is attached to a three-wheeled scooter. That was a shock to us, since it's designed for wheelchairs. However, we were impressed that the Hollywood people were able to attach it to a scooter, and we are looking into the possibility of adapting our IKAN Bowler for use with common three-wheeled scooters that people with limited mobility use.

So, if you're interested in watching Smother, here's the upcoming schedule:

Sat. Jan. 3 9:00 PM Eastern on Lifetime
Sun. Jan. 4 12:00 AM Eastern on Lifetime
Sun. Jan. 4 9:00 PM Eastern on Lifetime
Mon. Jan. 5 12:00 AM Eastern on Lifetime
Tue. Jan. 6 9:00 PM Eastern on Lifetime

Here's the link where I got the above TV info:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0867591/tvschedule

Here's the link for more on Smother:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0867591/

AND, here's the link if you want to see video of how the IKAN Bowler works with wheelchairs:

http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/2007/06/two-videos-and-slideshow-on-power.html

May all who read this have a Happy New Year and BLESSED 2009!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

Belated Thanksgiving Thoughts...

Hello Everyone! :-)

In the spirit of empowering people and wheelchair users, I want to quickly share my philosophy on "worrying" and also share a few simple things that anyone with a computer & Internet connection can do to make the world a little bit better.

Philosophy on Worrying

You may have noticed I sometimes write "no worries" which may seem odd since I happen to be ventilator-dependent and paralyzed from the neck down. What "no worries" means is that it makes absolutely no sense to "worry" about things that we cannot control. Worrying doesn't help anything, but it can make a person physically ill. Personally, I pray and turn all major concerns over to God and let Him worry about them. That unburdens my mind so that I can focus on today and what I can do. We all have concerns, but I believe we can all have "no worries" too.

Make the World a Little Better

On Thanksgiving, most of us had an abundance of food. But there are people who did not, and the below website is called "free rice" and it is a way we can play some simple "intellectual games" (vocabulary, geography, math, and more) and each correct answer results in 20 grains of rice being donated through the UN World Food Program to help end hunger. They have multiple choice questions of varying degrees of difficulty, and I find it to be a fun way to both learn something and help the hungry.

http://www.freerice.com

You can also make a difference--in less than one minute--for SIX different charities! By simply visiting the below websites and clicking their free "donate button" you make a sponsor-paid donation for each cause.

http://www.thehungersite.com - the hunger site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com - the breast cancer site
http://www.thechildhealthsite.com - the child health site
http://www.theliteracysite.com - the literacy site
http://www.therainforestsite.com - the rain forest site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com - the animal rescue site

This Thanksgiving, with our world in seemingly uncertain times, I felt it appropriate to share these thoughts. Thank you for indulging me.

Happy (belated) Thanksgiving and may God bless you & yours! :-)

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

Quadriplegic Graduates with 4.0

The purpose of my blog is to show how wheelchair users, especially power wheelchair users, can be and are being empowered -- mostly through sport (bowling and power soccer). But perhaps the MOST empowering activity one can do is to increase his/her education. Increasing one's education is arguably more important for someone with a significant physical disability, since it isn't possible to earn a living doing manual labor. Apparently, education level can impact happiness too.

With regard to quadriplegics, I read that quads who continue or "complete" their education (and perhaps those who achieved higher education before becoming quadriplegic) are often happier than quads with less education. I believe being happy is a choice that essentially anyone can make, regardless of education level or even disability, but I do see how achieving higher education can help someone feel happy. Thinking about my long educational journey and the challenges I conquered... it is something I will always appreciate and can feel good about. Here are some details...

I became a quadriplegic literally 11 years ago today -- August 23rd, 1997. I was injured just before I was to begin my senior year at THE University of Florida as a math major. I spent three months in hospitals and was discharged from Shepherd Center in Atlanta as a C1-2 ventilator-dependent quadriplegic (much like Christopher Reeve). I had to move home with my parents and team of family caregivers who cover all times when we don't have a nurse (I currently have 40 hours of nursing coverage a week). I've been as busy and productive as possible since returning home (I haven't spent one full day in bed, ever since I've been home). With good caregivers & caregiver routines, I have been quite healthy, despite my paralysis (knock on wood and thank you God:).

But I plan to be financially independent one day -- whether still paralyzed or not. That meant going back to school, and there is only one school from which I ever wanted to graduate -- UF. To go back required an online option, and boy was I THRILLED to learn they have an Online BSBA Program (Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration). I needed some prerequisites, which UF advisor Jill Lingard told me I could acquire online via St. Petersburg College (one can earn an entire AA degree online via their eCampus). I actually started back to school four years ago today -- on the 7th anniversary of my injury.

I completed the Online BSBA Program with a 4.0 GPA (straight A average) and graduated with honors from the University of Florida two weeks ago -- August 9, 2008. It was important to me to "ace" the Program because I wanted to demonstrate that I can be highly successful despite being vent-dependent and paralyzed from the neck down. And I actually rolled across the stage in Gainesville, too.

I almost did not get to roll across the graduation stage. My wheelchair is extra long, largely due to the ventilator on back. UF has a hydraulic lift to raise wheelchair users to the stage, except it wasn't designed with chairs like mine in mind. I was barely in what was like a metal box, and my feet were pushing the door forward. As they tried to raise me the door caught the stage -- and the STAGE WAS COMING UP! That happened twice! Finally, on the third attempt, some people pushed the door back away from the stage and the lift cleared.

You can see me roll across the stage on UF's webcast of the graduation ceremony (commencement) at the below link (on that page, scroll down to "Previous Commencement Webcasts" then choose morning ceremony and your desired player). I roll across at about one hour, 25 minutes, and 30 seconds. Start about 1:24:30 and you'll see the UF official in the Orange & Blue robe who is ushering students through. You'll see him stop the line and take a couple steps forward. That's when the stage was coming up; he was telling them to stop and go back down. Then you'll see me roll across the stage. Click HERE for the commencement page!

Also, if you go to the Online BSBA web page, you'll see a picture of the summer graduates and I'm on the right side of the picture -- click HERE (ok they apparently already removed the picture, but I did a "print screen" command and captured it; click HERE for the picture!).

I shared my "full" educational journey on my website before writing this blog entry. I shared some different things above, and if you want additional details on my educational journey and where I'm planning to "go" from here... click HERE! Thanks...

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com/
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/

Quadriplegic Student Bill Miller Is Graduating!

Please see my next entry titled "Quadriplegic Graduates with 4.0" -- thanks!

Bill Miller :-)