Minichan

If the typical, everyday wheelchair is built for comfort, those designed for adaptive sports athletes are built for speed. They’re less bulky and the wheels slant inward. They have a lower back and maneuver like a dream. They can also be a real pain to deal with in an airport.

Adaptive sports athletes have to bring an everyday and sport chair when traveling, so the latter becomes equipment storage that the athlete pushes in front of them. This one-person, two-chair convoy has to contend with baggage claim, escalators, security and every other hassle inherent to an airport.

For Jeff Townsend, this is just another stop on the way to a wheelchair tennis match or basketball game. Jeff is a longtime adaptive sports athlete and coach who now serves as a lecturer in Clemson’s parks, recreation and tourism management department. Seamlessly transitioning two chairs at once up and down an escalator is muscle memory for him at this point.

However, this was all new for Clemson student Marsden Miller, who is just now getting the hang of life as an adaptive sports athlete. When he and Jeff ventured down to Orlando, Florida for the National Wheelchair Tennis Collegiate Championship hosted by the United States Tennis Association (USTA), Jeff was there to support his teammate, but also to share travel tips and tricks with Marsden