[Chief of the 60's]

Originally Posted by poncho-mike

I started going to Charlotte Autofair in 1978 as a spectator, then later as a vendor. I loved walking the fields looking for parts.

Around 1986, I was in a car accident and had some problems with pain in my right hip. A doctor diagnosed me as as having a defective hip joint that was aggravated by the accident. The ball on the femur was elliptical shaped and one leg was an inch shorter than the other. I was told I would need hip replacement by the time I was 50. I continued to walk the show and used anti-inflammatories kept the pain down. As I started walking less I gained weight. By age 50 or so, I had to make a decision if I wanted to continue to walk the show, either have hip replacement surgery or get a scooter. I felt too embarassed to ride a scooter while I still looked healthy, so I stopped walking the show and began selling parts. I can't say I made the right decision, since I allowed vanity to make my decision for me. I felt people would judge me the way some of you are judging people on scooters

I would be careful about making observations regarding people who are riding the scooters. Not all disabilities are visible to the casual observer. I know there are probably a lot of people that abuse these, but many people that look healthy have issues that are not readily apparent.

I finally had my right hip replaced a couple of months ago, and plan to spend a little time walking the swap meet this September.

Sorry to hear about your accident but like handicapped parking privileges, you are not going to convince me that it is not abused.