In the present study, no significant relationships were observed between the racing WV
during the SR or TR and the peak V02 in the quadriplegics and paraplegics. Previous
studies that have examined the relationship between the physiological responses and
wheelchair performance in spinal cord injured subjects are equivocal. The studies by
Asayama et al, 9 Cooper, 12 and Hooker & wells13 reported that the peak V02 during
mcremental exercise was not significantly related to WV during a marathon9 or
10 km I2.13 race in well trained paraplegic road racers. In contrast, Lakomy et alll
observed a significant correlation of 0.61 between these two variables during a
simulated 5 km road race in male quadriplegic and paraplegic athletes. It should be noted, however, that these investigators were able to explain only 37% of the common variance (r2) between these two variables in their sample. They speculated that the balance could be attributed to factors such as variations in wheelchair design and racing speed, both of which have been reported to influence wheelchair performance in subjects with SCI. 19-21 In the current study, considerable variation was observed in the V02 among the SCI subjects during the SR.
While some of it could be attributed to the differences in the design of the subjects'
wheelchairs, it is postulated that factors influencing propulsion technique, such as
stroke rate and stroke intensity, as well as upper-body involvement and body posture
during wheeling also contributed to this variation. It is recommended that studies be
undertaken to examine the effects of these variables on the wheeling economy of subejects wit? SCI, so that factors which optimIze racmg performance can be established for this population.