Heelys

[Rach]

Anything can be dangerous and used disrespectfully, if that's the way a parent chooses to let a child act.

Thats exactly what I was thinking. Shoes don't suddenly turn kids into brats who knock people over.

[audhs]

He can use them at the zoo when it's not crowded, only in wide open spaces.

I'd make sure he can wear them at the Zoo.  The local one where I live has banned them as well as skate boards rollerblades and bikes.

That being said I voted other because I think they are fun for kids.  As adults we just need to teach them were and when it's appropriate to use them.

[goblue2539]

Maybe this is the new updated version of Darwinism?  If your kid gets run over because you were stupid enough to let them ride around unsupervised, your genes are unfit to continue?   

I'm at work, thank you very much!  Now all my co-workers are staring at me like I've lost it because I'm nearly cackling reading that line.    At least I didn't waste my Coke.  Scritzy won't have to hunt me down.

[MomOf2Boys]

*sigh*

My kids want these SO BAD. Especially DS1. But they know they are not getting them for Christmas. I have several reasons why I will not buy them. The first is that... I don't pay $40 - $80 for kids' shoes. Heck, the most I have ever spent on a pair of MY shoes is $25. Then there is the fact that I don't think they are particularly safe (they are # 1 on the 2006 most dangerous toy list http://www.toysafety.org/worstToyList.html) and that ties directly into my third (and biggest) reason for refusing to consider buying them: they are ONLY good for skating in inappropriate places.

My youngest (he's 6) asked for a pair for Christmas but there is no way he is getting them. The kid still refuses to take the training wheels off his bike so what would he do with wheels on his feet assuming there really was an appropriate place to use them?
I just don't see the point in them. All the places where it would be even semi-appropiate to skate around on them are places where bike, scooters or regular skates would be much more fun anyway.

[freakyfemme]

Off-topic, but do they make Heelys for adults?  I wear about a size 9 1/2 or 10 for women.

[Ki]

I think they're a cool idea - I don't know if they make them in adult sizes.  I'm a small woman, and often wear childrens' shoes.  When I was in college, I tried on a pair; if I could've mastered the technique, I'd have worn them to transport myself around the pedestrian campus.  Unfortunately, I kept tripping in the store.  If they don't make them in adult sizes now, they should - they could be very useful for college students on large campuses.

That said, it is irresponsible to let children wear them all the time.  Good for all of you who restrict your kids' use of them to appropriate venues.

[hobish]

I am one of only two who answered love them. I don't even like kids & it puts a smie on my face every single time i see some kid with the laid back pose just wheeling along. That is mostly what i see, too, not kids running people down. The ones who are doing that are probably the ones who would be running people down without wheels on their feet, as well.

As far as where they're appropriate ... why not the mall or wherever? They are definitely less annoying than strollers, and strollers are everywhere you turn around. My trip to the National Zoo was ruined last year because of all the people with strollers - i got bumped six times! It was ridiculous! If the place had been crammed with kids on wheelies i'd have been jealous instead of fuming.

Someone told me recently that they make them in big people sizes. If they do i am getting a pair & you'd have to fight me to get me to take them off.

edited to add: There is no way anyone is going to convince me that thay are as dangerous as a skateboard or in-line skates. I am not trying to be snarky, but i suggest trying one of those & then comparing it to one tiny wheel surrounded by shoe. You can not do an ollie in a pair of wheelies.

--33 going on 9, i guess.

[Mrs. Eclipse]

You're not allowed to wear them at Disney World, and I swear every time I stop by the park after work or on the weekends (I'm here more now since I have to do my Christmas shopping now) I have to physically jump out of the way of a kid on Heely's.  Have you ever seen the Magic Kingdom near Christmas?  Wall to wall people.  Not appropriate for skates.  There are now signs everywhere backstage, telling cast members to remind guests that skating is not allowed.

When my aunt and uncle (brother and sister) came down to visit me with my uncle's three boys, they wore their Heely's into Disney's MGM Studios and right at the gate were stopped by a custodian gently reminding them that skates were not allowed.  Then she waited until they had removed the wheels and handed them to my uncle before the custodian wished us a magical day and moved on.

The youngest, sevenish, then said, "You mean we came all this way for nothing?!!"

I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing, but I said back, "Well, if you mean you drove three hours to come to Disney World just to skate, then yes, you did come for nothing.  You can wait in the car while the rest of us go to the Tower of Terror and the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster.  Bye now."

It's not that I hate Heelys.  I just hate how they're used. 

ETA No, that's not fair.  I meant, I hate how some people use them.

[Chirple]

 

My 9 y/o DD has these.  She is very responsible and only wears them in advance, with my approval.  Where does she wear them?

- When she 'walks' to school.  It's mostly a slight down hill and she rolls every so slightly more quickly than she walks. She wears a helmet, and (as required by the school and me) takes the wheel out and into her backpack for the day.  She gets picked up from school so that's not an issue.

- Yes, in some stores.  No, she does not roll away from the cart.  I require that she have one hand on my shopping cart at all times when we are in a store, IF she is rolling.  She enjoys gliding alongside the cart.  When not holding the cart, she is walking.

- In the neighborhood, going to and from friends house.  This way she doesn't carry shoes in her hand to change from skates to shoes when she wants to play and vice versa.

I will not apologize for my decision to allow my DD to wear, responsibly, her Heely's.  She takes care of them. She is responsible and courteous when wearing them or she loses them. 

My 10 y/o DS will be getting a pair for Christmas.

My now 25 and 21 y/o sons had similar shoes when they were about 10 and 14, as I recall.  I took them away from them because they abused the privilege in ways many people are talking about here.  So, yes, I was hesitant to let my two younger ones give it a try.

But, alas, I was a child once.  And, yes, I am the parent now, making the decisions.  I can take them away as quickly as I give them, and they know it.

Toys do not cause children to be inconsiderate and rude, bad parenting does.

[Ciarrai]

I hate them. I work at a drugstore, and see so many kids wearing them and running into displays, people, carts etc. We've banned rollerblades etc from the store, and we're lobbying management to ban Heely's as well. I have yet to see a kid who knows how to use them properly.

[mehiali]

My ex bought them for the kids and as they are outgrown, the novelty has worn off as well.
They were not allowed to be worn to school.
They were allowed to be used outside with precautions towards safety and consideration.  Once we hit an area with more than one person, back to normal walking!

[jfulle5]

so if i trip a kid at the mall because he's being rude and nearly rolled over my toddler in his damned skate shoes than that's ok right?

[Elfqueen13]

Saw a pair used at the mall over the weekend; a short-ish kid was popped back on her heels while Dad "steered".  It was fairly obvious to me that this was the compromise between Dad's normal walking speed and the kid's normal walking speed.

[goblue2539]

so if i trip a kid at the mall because he's being rude and nearly rolled over my toddler in his damned skate shoes than that's ok right?

Only if you trip him by accident.

Seriously, I think the use Elfqueen mentioned is the best I've heard. 

[beckygoesape]

Nope for my kid...especially my oldest.

At almost 13 he still hasn't got an especially good grasp on his impulses...or on the consequences for his actions.

He'd be the kid running into people, apologizing, then getting up and running into another person, apologizing, getting up....you get the picture.

I worked at a grocery store when rollerblades were really popular.  We used to tell kids wearing them to either take them off and carry them about their necks, or leave.  No blades in the store.  We only had one parent throw a fit about this, because her child would have to pad around the store in his socks, and that's a health issue!  The manager then reminded the parent that he had the alternative to not come into the store in blades at all.