Since that time, Wham-O has been sold twice more—first to Cornerstone Overseas Investments in 2005 and then to InterSport and Stallion Sport in 2015. The Slip ‘N Slide remains on sale with the standard cautions that it should only be used by kids, though that hasn’t prevented adults from trying it out. This time, they tend to post the results on YouTube. Beyond 2001, Wham-O and makers of similar competitive products later included various enhancements such as an inflatable pool at one end of the sliding surface, spray tubes on both sides and longer paths. [5] [4] Safety [ edit ] Another new approach in the works: a collaboration slated for next year called the Studio Frisbee Collection, featuring the work of notable and up-and-coming artists on the ever-popular flying discs.

I think it is telling that the Slip ‘N Slide comes from Wham-O, a company that seems to have a particularly sensitive finger on the American pulse, as the people who brought you the Frisbee, the Hula Hoop and the SuperBall,” says Chris Bensch, Vice President for Collections at The Strong National Museum of Play. “They just seem to get it, and capture something that isn't quite like anything you've seen before, but suddenly you've got to have.” a b c d e "A Hazardous History of the Slip 'N Slide". www.mentalfloss.com. 2019-08-09 . Retrieved 2021-04-05. So basically our kids get a fabulous version of the long piece of tarp we had as kids…but honestly…if they use it for longer and burn more energy and are happy and tired and go to bed earlier…do we care? Nope. Slide on, kids. Laugh. Make Memories. Go to bed. Slide on… You know your kids are going to love this! Now can you keep the adults off it so the kids can have a chance to use it? That might be the big question! lol. But really, this looks super fun! While the history of the Slip 'N Slide appears sensational, it's not unique in the realm of playthings that can prompt injury. Between 2002 and 2011, roughly 1 million people—most of them kids under the age of 16—wound up in the emergency room as a result of bouncing on a trampoline. A third of them suffered long bone fractures.It’s very easy to dismiss,” says Walsh. “The best inventions are so simple that people are like, ‘Wow, why didn't I think of that?’ But if you look at the patent, I mean it is really genius. You attach the hose to one end and then sew the other end shut so that there's pressure, and then you put spaces in between the stitches so that water literally shoots out every inch and lubricates the entire surface of the slide.” They eliminated the product development team. They eliminated the design team. And when I was tasked with eliminating the marketing team, I knew it was never going to be the same,” Richards said. Although the game can be played alone, **Fireboy and Watergirl: Forest Temple** is primarily a cooperative game that can be played with a friend on the same device. You can control both characters separately (with WASD and arrows keys) and use their unique abilities to overcome the challenges that await you. According to Carrier’s 1961 patent , the “ aquatic play equipment ” was a portable surface for the “sport” of body planing. From his original strip of Naugahyde, Carrier took a ream of the plastic material and sewed a tube into the side, forming an “irrigating duct” to which a hose could attach. The duct had punctures along the length of it, from which water could be released via pressure from the hose. Seams stitched across the length of the fabric at regular intervals also carried water laterally, wetting the repellant surface but not making it soggy. The game features 32 levels in which players must solve puzzles and overcome obstacles to progress. Fireboy and Watergirl must work together to collect gems and reach the end of each level.

Carrier was an upholsterer who happened to work for a company that produced boat seats and had access to a variety of materials. So he brought home a 50-foot roll of Naugahyde, a fabric coated in vinyl, which he unspooled on his property. Carrier curled the material over on one side and stitched it in intervals. When the hose was fed through the curl, water seeped through the holes and kept the surface wet. The deal also includes rights to Wham-O’s other brands, which include Frisbee disc and Hula Hoop. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Slip ‘N Slide, first introduced at the New York Toy Fair in 1961, has seen a 180% increase in sales since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the company. A post shared by CostContessa | Costco Finds (@costcontessa) Costco Super Slip ‘N Slide 2022 Our Review In 1993, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a recall notice in conjunction with Kransco to alert consumers to the dangers of the slide. Though it had been discontinued, 9 million had been sold between 1961 and 1992 and an unknown number were still available in stores. (A total of 30 million slides were sold through 2011.) The CPSC warned the slide was for children and that adults and teenagers might suffer permanent spinal cord injury. Unlike some product recalls, however, the CPSC did not take action to take it off the market entirely. The reason, according to a spokesperson, was that it was a product for children, and children were not getting hurt on it—only adults were.Mike told me the story of his dad saying, ‘well you guys are going to kill yourself sliding on concrete’,” says Tim Walsh, game inventor and author of Timeless Toys: Classic Toys and the Playmakers Who Created Them. It was at this point that Robert Carrier decided that if his son was going to insist on sliding, he might as well try to make it as safe as possible. It was off the market for while… [Wham-O] kept shortening the length of it, so if you're a full grown-adult and you can sprint way faster than a kid and you weigh 100 pounds more than a kid and the thing is short, and you stop short, bad things are going to happen,” says Walsh. Of course, over the years other companies have created competing versions of the slide, some even resulting in legal disputes. Though the Slip ‘N Slide name has become synonymous with the product and those like it, now, none except Wham-O’s can be the trademark yellow. “Remember,” wrote Wham-O on the toy’s 50th anniversary, “if it’s not yellow—it’s not a Slip ‘N Slide.”

Race your friends for All-Day Fun on the giant 26 ft x 4 ft WHAM-O ®Super Slip ‘N Slide ®! It’s made with heavy-duty 28-gauge vinyl with 6 ground stakes to keep it in place. The over-sized inflatable bumper rails keep you and your friends on the slide. An easy-to-use pump is included to get the sliding started right away. During this last phase of U.S. ownership, Richards came into the picture again, running the sales department from 2001 to 2006. He was part of a tightknit leadership group of Wham-O believers who had grown up with and loved the company’s products. But that came to an end when Wham-O was bought by a Chinese company, Cornerstone Overseas Investment Ltd., in 2006. U.S. staff cuts were severe. The game takes place in the Forest Temple, where the two protagonists, Fireboy and Watergirl, embark on a quest to collect diamonds. You'll need to activate buttons, move platforms, and jump over lava and water obstacles to reach the exit. For easy setup, WHAM-O’s CONNECT-N-GO system will get the water where it needs to be… on your Super Slip ‘N Slide ®. Now go out and SLIDE! Officially, the box says under 12," Wham-O president Todd Richards told the Los Angeles Times in 2017. "Not everyone abides by that."

The toy is a long sheet of thin plastic, constructed with a heat-sealed tube running along one side. The tube can be connected to any garden hose and water goes in the tube and out through small holes, spraying onto the sliding surface where it becomes very slippery, allowing users to slide the length of the sheet and also has lubricant molded into the plastic that acts as a propellant. 30 million slides were sold in 2011. [4] As for Slip ‘N Slide’s inventor, Robert Carrier used royalties earned from his creation to start an aircraft interior business. When Kransco bought Wham-O in the mid-1980s and re-released the toy, Carrier negotiated a full buy-out. “I believe I’m not speaking out of turn when I say Slip ‘N Slide is the most profitable line in Wham-O,” says Walsh. Robert Carrier passed away in 2002, but his legacy lives on every summer in grass stains and laughter as kids “slip, slide and away.”

This article is about the toy. For the record label, see Slip-n-Slide Records. For the 1974 UK hit single, see Medicine Head. Slip 'N SlideCritical Content CEO Tom Forman and Critical Content Studios president Jenny Daly added, “Wham-O is synonymous with good times and fun for the whole family and Slip ‘N Slide is one of the most enduring products in their portfolio for good reason. We all have fond memories of our first encounter with a Frisbee disc, a Hula Hoop and a Slip ‘N Slide and have passed that legacy onto our children, and our children’s children. Sexton, Courtney (2 July 2020). "The Accidental Invention of the Slip 'N Slide". Smithsonian . Retrieved 13 July 2020. Hiebert, Paul. "50 Years Later, The Slip'N Slide Is Still Simple, Speedy Fun (For The Brave) - Wham-O". Wham-o.com. TheDaily.com. Archived from the original on 18 May 2020 . Retrieved 18 May 2020. Despite these controversies, Slip ‘N Slide’s staying power is strong, and in 2014, more than 40 years after Carrier’s original design first hit the market, the toy was nominated for induction into The Strong’s National Toy Hall of Fame. Slip ‘N Slide has yet to win the honor, but given its iconic status Bensch says he is “confident it will have its day.”