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7-Year-Old with Cerebral Palsy Enjoys Custom Chopper Frontend for His Wheelchair

Henry Craig Van-Vliet is a 7-year-old from Saskatoon, Canada, but this little guy is, in a certain way, different from his peers, in that he suffers from cerebral palsy. He loves motorcycles, and his grandmother Annie loves bikes, too, so she thought about getting him an uncanny Halloween costume.
Henry Craig Van-Vliet 1 photo
Photo: Facebook capture
Annie knew that Henry loved bikes despite the fact that he can't speak. Each time a motorcycle passed by, he would become visibly excited, she tells the Star Phoenix.

One of Annie's friends, Rob Gilchrist, is an instructor at the Saskatchewan Polytechnic, and he decided he should get involved in creating a special Halloween costume for Henry. Given the kid's condition, every costume idea had to include his wheelchair, and this meant that carrying out such a project was a rather complex task.

Working with students on a voluntary basis in the welding, auto-body and industrial-mechanic departments

Rob assembled a team consisting of ten students and everybody was a volunteer in the project. They agreed to design and build an add-on for Henry's wheelchair that mimicked the front end of a custom chopper.

The students combined fun and learning in this, as the team had to deal with welding, milling, solving industrial-mechanic problems and putting their auto-body skills to the test. A bike fork was used, complemented by tall apehanger bars with two-tone wrapped grips, a custom handmade tank mockup and a headlight.

Still, the best part of Henry's costume is the engine that sits at his feet. His wheelchair got an air-cooled single-cylinder engine, complete with a spark plug, exhaust, and even transmission. Add a leather kut with SAMCRO patches and Henry is a legit Son of Anarchy.

Both him and his grandmother couldn't be happier, especially as he will be able to enjoy his bike whenever he wants, and not only for Halloween.

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