SUGAR LAND, Texas It looks like a wheelchair on steroids and injured Houston Fire Cpt. Bill Dowling now owns one.
My reaction is wow, said Bill Dowling s wife Jacki. It s amazing and it s so bad to the bone. I love it
It s called a Tank Chair and was invented by Brad Soden. His wife was injured in a car crash and needed a chair for outdoor use.
Soden said after two years and lots of beer, he finally created his all-terrain wheelchair.
How many times do you see a wheelchair and say can I drive that, said Soden. We re taught in society it s not polite to stare. Screw that.
Soden started selling the chairs and noticed a lot of injured servicemen loved them.
Thanks to donations from various groups, including the New York Fire Department, Dowling is the proud owner of one painted fire engine red.
It s massive, it s very fireman like and it exemplifies firemen and how cool they are, said Jacki Dowling.
Cpt. Dowling was severely injured in last year s deadly Southwest Inn Fire.
He had to have his legs amputated and suffered brain damage.
The chair was presented to him at the Veteran s Rock N Ride Concert in Sugar Land.
If you re wondering, the base price starts at $15,000 and it can travel up to five miles an hour.
