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NEW ZEALAND SPINAL TRUST 22<br />
Charly the Campervan<br />
New Zealand's first rentable wheelchair accessible motorhome has arrived.<br />
TOP QUALITY—Charly was<br />
built by the Director of ACM<br />
motor homes, Chris Cunard.<br />
New Zealand's first rentable wheelchair<br />
accessible motorhome has arrived. For all<br />
“wheelies” looking to stay some nights with<br />
friends, pop out to the country on a roadie or<br />
just plan your holiday as you go—Charly the<br />
accessible campervan makes it all possible.<br />
Designed and built by ACM motorhomes with the<br />
assistance of wheelies, Charly makes the accessible<br />
adventure all about the fun and not the logistics.<br />
Charly—which means “free man” or “valiant”—will<br />
give disabled New Zealanders a holiday option they<br />
never had before. We sat down with CatWalk Founder<br />
Catriona Williams to hear the backstory about how<br />
Charly was made.<br />
Tell us about where the idea of Charly came from?<br />
Pre-COVID-19, I proposed the idea to my husband Sam<br />
that we do a roadie and catch up with our friends. The<br />
idea was to drive a campervan. Having an accessible<br />
campervan meant we could stay with friends and not<br />
worry about what kind of accommodation they had, if<br />
they had steps into their house, so that we could all have a<br />
good time together. We would be able park up outside<br />
their front door wherever it is, in the middle of Auckland<br />
or Wanaka, it wouldn't matter.<br />
“The non-negotiable was<br />
that the wheelie got to<br />
travel in the front.<br />
—Catriona Williams<br />
But when we went online, there literally was not an<br />
accessible campervan in New Zealand. I thought this is<br />
ridiculous. I don't want to buy one. And I certainly don't<br />
want one for 52 weeks of the year. So how about we build<br />
one that's accessible for everybody?<br />
The non-negotiable was that the wheelie got to travel in the<br />
front. That was the one thing that I was not prepared to<br />
give up on because we get chucked in the back of taxis or in<br />
the boot of cars if you hire a taxi in Sydney! And when<br />
you're in a taxi van, you often can't see out the window<br />
because of the height of the wheelchair. So if you’re going<br />
to do a roadie, you want to be able to enjoy the view.<br />
I went to see a good friend of mine, Alyssa Wade—from<br />
Wade Equine Horse Trucks in Hamilton—we had ridden<br />
together many years ago. I told her about my proposal,<br />
and she said she would love to be a part of it. But then
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