Customer testimonials
We've created this space for your stories of joy, freedom and independence from around the world. Thank you for sharing!
Please feel welcome to send your own story to info@thealinker.com so that we can share your Alinker experience to inspire others and for everyone to see and learn from, as we work together towards building a more inclusive community for all!
IN YOUR OWN WORDS...
Short term gain
- I can go out of my home
- get to places, do groceries, see friends
- I am comfortable on my nice cushy seat
Long term pain
- I lose what I don't use (muscles, strength)
- People look down at me
- I am not feeling very good about myself, don't feel free
- My medical and personal care expenses increase
- My health trajectory is a downward spiral.
— Ceilidh
"I’m an artist, performer, writer, director, and animator. I am also disabled. I use forearm crutches, and have had to use wheelchairs in years past. Now I have my own Alinker mobility device that I am able to use at all the cultural institutions and museums. It has enabled me to finally see exhibits as they should be. I am at eye level. Few exhibits or art are made to be seen from below except the Sistine or pieces that are installation specific. I am able to self propel myself, I can move from piece to piece in my own timing. For someone in a wheelchair, often pieces in cases are entirely inaccessible (if not equipped with adjustable mirrors enabling those lower to see their contents). The Alinker is a godsend. It is my Walker but better. I’m not reaching down but forward. And my weight is not fully on my legs. I no longer have people hitting me in the face with purses, backsides, and backpacks or am backed into."
— Sara
Short term gain
- The cost of getting an Alinker
- It took me a few weeks to get used to it
- It makes me work at it
Long term pain
- I get my strength back
- Reduced my medical expenses
- I am independent
- I am engaged in life
- I feel happy and positive
- People see me as the one on the cool bike.
"It can be a simple thing.. to walk to the places that we love and to be at eye level with the people that we love! Yay, been wanting to walk on this trail for years! Thank you Alinker!!!"
— Glenda
"Yesterday I was able to walk beside my awesome husband for the first time in 6 years. (Let's soak this in) You see, because he uses a walker and a cane to walk, it's extremely hard for him to keep his balance next to a person."
"He walks slower than the rest of us, and gets fatigued after a few feet of walking. Not only walking next to my husband, but also to see him enjoy walking, at a faster pace next to me, and not getting fatigued. So to everyone that helped us, thank you for this gift. We love you."
— Paloma
"Greetings from Zurich Zoo! We met as visitors at the Swiss Handicap and the Alinker spark jumped immediately! We are already a remarkable Alinker community in Switzerland! So good!"
The #alinkerfamilygrows!
"Hi from Czech Rep! I started looking for compensatory aids for my son after all possible genetic tests. He has a neuromuscular disease and severe hypotonia, so he couldn't handle normal toddler bouncers from an early age. Eliášek has the smallest version for adults, he is only eight years old and we have been dealing with the disease since he was two years old ❤️ Alinker is his helper, thanks to him he is independent and can go around the whole zoo with him alone 😃 he was even with us at the beach by the sea and we also want to try winter sports."
— Mother of Eliášek (Czech Reublic)
"A day with my daughter to the Kröller Muller Museum in Arnhem in the Netherlands. Admiring the paintings of Vincent van Gogh and other works of art."
— Mary (Netherlands)
"A walk with a good friend and my Alinker on a sunny day in January! Umbria, Italy."
— Claudia (Umbria, Italy)
“It was hard to admit I could no longer walk around stores, but the Alinker made what had become a painful and almost impossible struggle, into an easy errand. It took me a few weeks, but now I love this thing! I especially love feeling the wind in my hair again.”
— Katie
"I waited as my insurance wouldn’t approve it! I’m so frustrated by that, but the crowdfunding worked perfectly, and it brought me back to life! I avoided falls and injuries - it slowed or stopped my health decline."
— Eleanor
"When I am using the Alinker I am in a much better mood than I was in the wheelchair. It impacted my mental health. I could have saved so many health care expenses and on treatments and surgeries like I do since using the Alinker."
— Anna
“I took the Alinker to the Metropolitan Museum in NYC today. When I saw this painting of Oedipus and the Sphinx by Moreau, I knew I had to take a picture. Let's update the riddle: What goes on four wheels in the morning- baby carriage, two wheels at noon- bicycle and three wheels in the evening- we know that answer!"
— Sara Blumenstein (New York, USA)
“I went outside for lunch at work, twice this past week. I avoided this for the past year because the memory of how hard concrete is to fall on, is still fresh in my mind. In the past, my right wrist would begin to hurt using my pole, a residual pain from the fall on concrete last year. I had to pause if I needed to make eye contact. Now with the Alinker I can whiz down the hallway, easily make eye contact again and I seem to have permanent smile on my face. My brain feels so relieved not having to stress so much about tripping and falling. I love that with just two weeks of using the Alinker consistently I feel it is a natural extension of my daily life and I feel so secure using it. With the Alinker my world has expanded greatly. Gosh I feel like I am 5 years old again! I can’t imagine living my life without the Alinker."
— Valerie Kline (Colorado, USA)
“The Alinker is much more than I expected. It’s an emotional attachment. I will be fitting in the society again like I should, because I should not be measured by my disability. I am not my disability. I am now not stared at as being a disabled person, I’m now looked at as a curious person, because I’m riding this really nifty bike and I feel good, I feel really good!” (Joe)
“For the first time in many years we are actually walking side by side and that hasn’t happened in a long, long time. It’s a really nice feeling!” (Denise)
— Joe & Denise Revello (Plainfield, NJ, USA)
"I used the Alinker today to take my dog to a nature preserve/off-leash park I haven't been able to get to for over 2 years. Yesterday I took it to a Pride event in Eugene. I am thrilled to have it and I always get many questions about it. I cannot remember how I first heard of the Alinker – was it through Mobility International? (I just taught a self-defense workshop for their WILD women – 20 women from all over the world). Thanks for checking in with me – I am truly happy with it."
— Nadia Telsey (Eugene, Oregon, USA)
"I am 67 years old and I have CMT (Charcot-Marie- Tooth) disease. CMT is a hereditary neuropathy disorder that affects the nerves in the feet, legs and hands. I had surgery on both feet and ankles many years ago and had triple arthrodesis surgery on the left ankle about 12 years ago. I have titanium screws in my ankle. I wear knee-high leg braces on both legs to assist walking, but both legs are now atrophied. Although I was able to take short walks with my wife and our dog, I didn't have the stamina to walk distances, so I couldn't keep up and lagged behind. But now with the Alinker I can go on walk/rides for longer distances and get the exercise my leg muscles need. Now my wife has trouble keeping up with me. It is so much more enjoyable to be able to 'walk' with my wife using the Alinker, which has been a life changer and I hope that many others can soon enjoy the wonderful benefits of your genius invention."
— Bruce and Linda Myers (Pennsylvania, USA)
"I did take the Alinker to Las Vegas on my trip to have new leg braces made and we rode it inside the Mirage Casino and all the way down to Caesar’s. I wear leg braces and find that I can ride the Alinker better with my new braces. The day we left for Las Vegas we attended the San Francisco area CMTA meeting at Stanford. I set up the Alinker and demonstrated how to use it.”
— Dennis J. Woodard (Clayton, California, USA)
“Inspired by my Mom, who has always dismissed the option of ever using a walker, I developed the Alinker™ R-volution walking-bike to help people with walking challenges and various physical disabilities move easily. I have suffered from back pain myself for many years, especially when running, so I use the Alinker because it allows me to run with my partner and friends. It’s so much fun! With the Alinker™ R-volution I can run again!”
— BE Alink (Vancouver, Canada)
"I wasn’t able to go out on my usual walks for the past 4 years because of severe back aches that makes it very difficult to walk without pain. Now I am out and about. We went to a park at Lake Ontario yesterday and I rode the trails for 4 miles. It was just wonderful. By the way, I am 70 years old. Much too young to just sit around!"
— Bonnie Avery (Ontario, Canada)
“I love the Alinker because it really gives me independence! I’m paralyzed on my left side, so it helps me to walk for longer distances. I always have a smile on my face when I’m on it and it’s such a great feeling! Instead of sitting in the wheelchair and feeling a lot more disabled, this makes me feel like I’m on my way to becoming healthy again. I can just take it anywhere.”
— Diane van Egmond (Vancouver, Canada)
“He is loving it, Leon, and is going off on his own to our local mail boxes - once around the block. It is giving him a freedom that he has not had in [a] while, and I feel very comfortable being able to let him go out on his own without worrying that his legs might give out. He can certainly get some pretty good speed going, to the effect that I have to speed walk or jog in order to keep up with him. It has been a very long time since he was faster than I am.
I will take a couple of pics or video clip and get him to share his experience with you. I know that he would be happy to do so. People in our neighborhood think it is a very cool 'walking bike' and can see how much he enjoys using it."
“G. loves his Alinker and is able to go out for regular rides.” — (I.W.)“
You may get many great reviews daily, weekly etc. but one more for your record: (Delivered this morning by I.W. with not only a genuine smile, but also a very relieved expression of one 'care-giver concern' removed):
"Oh Graeme, it's wonderful to see you going out on your own, not only with a smile on your face; but also, providing me with the feeling that you ARE going to return without falling, having difficulty… just to see you doing something where you don't need others and I justifiably feel you are safe."
“BTW, up to ½ K now getting stronger daily and with no butt tenderness at last. Going through slush is doable but certainly a very challenging task and good for me. I look forward to going on fresh snow, I think…LOL” — (G. & I.W.)
— Graeme and Ingrid Waymark (Ontario, Canada)
Watch the video
“I bought the Alinker because I want to be able to walk longer distances without putting a lot of stress on my knees. I’ve had a knee replacement and the other knee is very bad. I’m using my leg muscles but without all that body weight on my legs. I don’t want to ride a rickety bicycle anymore at my age because it’s a long way to fall, and I’ve already broken my wrist twice, so I don’t want any more broken bones. The fact that my feet are on the ground and I’m well alanced, I feel that’s quite safe. It really is wonderful!”
— Helen Overgaard (Vancouver, Canada)
Watch the video
“My pre-MS life was very active, and I enjoyed going to markets and fairs, walking, jogging and cycling. After being diagnosed with MS in 2005, I started needing a series of mobility aids including walking sticks and a walker, and felt it increasingly difficult to get out. I eventually got a Travelscoot, which for almost three years has meant I could get out and about again, and is also great for Martin and me to go places and do things together. It fits in the boot of my hatchback car and there is always someone around to help me get it out and assemble. The only thing missing is that I don’t get any exercise. The Alinker (which I have had since December 2016) is exceeding all my expectations! I have been taking long walks in local parks and on the waterfront, and have learned how to use it with both legs –when my “bad” leg is tired, I can really work my other leg–, so both are getting slowly stronger. I can go out with friends and walk and talk at the same time. “Walking” beside my partner at the local market and looking at things together is wonderful –just like the old days. Hard to find the words for how I feel –independent, free, confident and with a constant smile on my face. When I am out, I am at the same level as Martin, my friends and the people we meet. People talk to me rather than asking Martin about me. The Alinker is so much more than my other mobility aids as I am getting exercise again! Roll on summer, as I will be looking out for fairs, markets and outdoor events again!”
— Christine O’Sullivan (New Zealand)
“I am an ability crusader, a blogger, a model and a designer. I’m passionate about universal design and inclusion. I live with a spinal cord injury and use a cane and manual wheelchair for mobility every day.” “I am currently working on my walking canes, have an inclusive dance class, am an ambassador for an inclusive media organization, am involved with Spinal Cord Injuries Australia, and on the Access committee for my local council... I have several other things in the works BUT I always have time for more.
My passion for universal design and inclusion developed out of necessity. When a spinal cord stroke left me with incomplete paralysis, I suddenly found myself in an environment and a society that were no longer built for me. After years of exerting energy on trying to adapt, I decided to educate the world on my needs and wants with the hope that maybe something would change.
My first encounter with the Alinker was in Los Angeles at LA Fashion Week. I was modeling for Bezgraniz Couture, an inclusive fashion label, and the Alinker was featured during their show. From the moment I saw it I was hooked. To me, this product is the epitome of purposeful design and universal thinking."
— Angel Dixon (Port Macquarie, Australia)
“I noticed that my dad used his feet to move around in his wheelchair in the apartment. That is what gave me the idea he might enjoy the Alinker. After some initial hesitance about the Alinker, my dad has become very eager. The joy of feeling the movement reminds him of his younger age when he was an enthusiastic biker. With the walking aid, we were down to about 300-400 meters a day. The first time with the Alinker, he covered about 1km. A week later, he is already up to nearly 2km. My dad stopped travelling at age of 90 because he thought he was too old. This is him on his spring trip to Budapest shortly after his 96th birthday. We are looking forward to going back with the Alinker soon."
— Peter Szabo (Switzerland)
We've heard great things from you
main takeaways
Enhanced Mobility & Independence
Users consistently highlight how the Alinker improves their ability to move around with greater ease and independence. Many have found it especially beneficial for navigating different environments, such as museums, parks, and shopping malls, which they previously found challenging due to mobility issues.
Improved Social Interaction & Confidence
The Alinker has helped users feel more integrated into social situations and less self-conscious about their mobility challenges. It enables them to engage more freely in social activities and feel less like they are defined by their disabilities.
Physical & Emotional Benefits
Users report significant improvements in their physical well-being, such as reduced pain and increased stamina. Emotionally, the Alinker provides a sense of freedom and joy, with many noting that it helps them feel younger and more active.
Practical & Versatile Design
The design of the Alinker is praised for its practicality and versatility. It is noted for being suitable for various environments and conditions, including rough or icy terrain, and is easy to transport and store. This design adaptability contributes to its effectiveness and user satisfaction.