Photo Credit: Courtesy of Terry Hobbs, Prosthesis by: www.wcbl.com
Larry French stood in the marina in Safety Harbor, Fla., eyeing kayaks on a trailer. The 67-year-old above-elbow amputee looked at his right arm, which ended just 4 inches below his shoulder, and said to himself, “I can do that. I can kayak.” French began to mentally sketch a limb with one purpose—functionality.
French had tried traditional full-length adult prosthetics before, but found them to be too long, heavy, painful, and cumbersome. Determined to kayak, he met with his Veterans Affairs doctor, who referred him to Westcoast Brace and Limb (WCBL), a private company that specializes in prosthetic limbs. Together, French and WCBL came up with a design for his unique kayaking arm—a shorter prosthetic arm with a tube-like device fit onto the end—the perfect size for a paddle.
“It took a lot of hit and miss,” French recalls. After four or five prototypes, the design was finalized. Around the same time, French met Terry Hobbs, a tour guide, instructor, and longtime paddler and kayak enthusiast. Between Hobbs’ paddling expertise and French’s ideas, they were able to create a prosthetic perfect for paddling.