Max Woodbury describes himself as a “C-6 quadriplegic who loves handcycling, wheelchair rugby, being a board member of XRAY.FM and supporting the local nonprofit Green Empowerment.”

Max discovered Walnut Studiolo quite a while back at the Art in the Pearl art fair in Portland, and he has been using our Leather Bar Wraps on his wheelchair ever since.

“When I first saw your grips, I thought they were so beautiful. They seemed perfect as impact guards on my everyday wheelchair.”

Our full grain leather is a high-performance material that is durable in the elements, warm to the touch and becomes grippier when wet.

Leather is a versatile material and we’re a flexible company. We enjoy a strong spirit of ingenuity and finding new uses for our products. Our customers are often the ones to drive this creativity, such as installing our leather handles on a cutting board or our leather grips on a vintage motorcycle.

Our Leather Bar Grips have long been a favorite among cyclists looking for a gorgeous bar covering that’s also extremely practical, but we have never before seen them used on a wheelchair, so we were thrilled to work with Max on his set up. It has been fun getting to know more about Max and his busy life in the process.

Max has played wheelchair rugby for more than 20 years. His team, The Portland Pounders, won the 2013 National Championship. Max also likes to compete in marathons on a handcycle.

“I got my personal record in Boston this year with a time of 2:07:48. I plan to compete in Hood to Coast and the Portland Marathon for the tenth time this year.”

When he’s not busy competing, Max is dedicated to supporting XRAY.fm, a Portland-based non-profit radio station. He was one of the founding board members to help launch this station, which is focused on building a culturally relevant center for ideas, music and creativity.

And we know what you’re all wondering: Just who is that cute yellow lab in the photo above? That’s Cobalt, Max’s 90-pound service dog and trusty buddy.