1976 I was injured in a racing accident. I realised quite quickly that if I wanted a good wheelchair I was going to have to build it myself. What was I looking for? Well, a chair built for me to drive myself.
Lightweight, comfortable sitting position and great to drive.
I learnt some obvious rules from racing, such as the significance of low weight, a rigid chassis, correct balancing in the chassis. My goal was to build the lightest chair ever. There have been many wheelchairs and a lot of wheelchair users since then.
In recent years it has also been a great pleasure to build chairs for children that are lighter than those available on the market. We haven’t needed any market surveys – the look on a child’s face tells you whether or not the chair is any good.
A few years ago, we also presented our ultralight Panthera X. It was built of carbon fibre, an extremely expensive but fantastic material that gave the chair properties that no one thought were possible.
My dream of the ultimate chair was almost fulfilled. However, as a designer and a racing driver, I know that development never stops. It is always possible to go a bit faster or do it a bit better. So I never stop working
Jalle Jungnell
