Even missing a hand, ‘there’s nothing I can’t do’
Robert Orr says that his motorized bike can travel 42 miles per hour.
“About 10 years ago I was running from myself, and I pulled over and went to sleep in my truck. A cop woke me up, and I refused to get out of my truck. They threw a flash-bang in there, and when I picked it up it took my hand off. That was pretty messed up.
“They screwed the hell out of me because I was a felon, alcoholic and drug addict. They offered me $400,000 for what they did to me. If I had been working at some place like Exxon and not had a criminal record and not been honest about my recovery, I’d have had $3 million or $4 million, no doubt. Out of that $400,000, I got around $150,000 because of attorney fees and the fact that I had to pay my own medical bills. They really shafted me.”
What’s your biggest physical challenge?
“At first, I stayed pretty busy trying to learn how to do stuff without two hands. Now I still have a hell of a time with zippers and electrical plugs. To plug something into an outlet is more challenging than you’d think.
“But there’s nothing I can’t do. I built this motorized bicycle. I take care of my mom’s house. I can fix anything. If something breaks, I fix it. We don’t go buy new stuff, unless Mom wants new stuff. My dad was the same way. My grandpa was the same way. You fix it. You don’t throw it away.”
— Robert Orr
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