Story by Sean Storrs
Photo courtesy of Handy Bag
Handy Bag was founded to offer practical storage solutions for wheelchair users. The Dynamic Bag, the company’s top-of-the-line model, is designed to provide easy access to your gear and a level of added security.
This second feature comes in the form of an outer shell that easily attaches to the back of a wheelchair to encase the bag and acts as an extra layer of protection for your personal belongings. With seven compartments, the bag itself has plenty of room for all of your important stuff and taking the bag out of the case was a breeze. Sliding the bag into the case takes a bit of practice though and largely depends on how tightly it is packed. If the bag is too rigid, there is not enough space for the bag to easily fit in the case.
When securing the bag in place, it is essential that the magnetic fasteners on the side flaps of the bag that attach to the straps on the case are facing the right direction. After sliding the bag in the case the wrong way around, I tried to cut corners by twisting one of the side flaps so that the fastener would connect and I popped the fastener out of the flap. When the bag is secured the right way, it firmly stays in place, though I should note, because the magnets are so strong, users who have less grip strength than I do might have trouble detaching the bag from the case.
I really liked that the bag and case took up a lot less space on the back of my wheelchair than my standard backpack and didn’t change my center of gravity, but the way the case protrudes made it harder to hang bags of groceries on my handlebars. The bag’s carry strap also got tangled on my armrest more than once but it came in handy a couple of times too when I was catching the bus and didn’t have enough time to stow the bag in the case.
All in all, the bag and case do the job they are designed to do and are durable, if they are used correctly, but the case is too bulky to easily use on a day-to-day basis. Handy Bag’s Dynamic Minima, which is the same bag with a slimmed down carrier instead of the full case, might be more my style.
Sean Storrs
Writer
@SeanStorrs
Sean Storrs lives and works in Tempe, Arizona. He has traveled solo to Italy, Mexico, New Zealand and the United Kingdom and is looking forward to his next adventure.