Here’s a shocking update, putting little wheels on the bottom of your shoes is dangerous. No! Yes! 1600 emergency room visits last year were blamed on roller shoes or “heelys.” For those of you not familiar with “heelys” they’re the wheeled shoe that sends children floating past you like the nun in Blues Brothers as you walk around Target shopping for paper towels and Diet Coke.
And they’re dangerous. Sort of. A firm hired to study the shoe responded with the statement: “…using wheeled footwear is 42 times safer than basketball, 29 times safer than bicycling, and 18 times safer than skateboarding.” Ok. Couldn’t someone have hired a firm to study how annoying the shoes are, rather than silly old safety? —MEGHANN MARCO
1,600 roller-shoe injuries reported [Seattle PI]
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@paco: I’ve been seeing these on kids for about 8 years now. They’ll never go out of fad-shion.
whoa shit – kids are reckless and annoying? Is this a recent development?
Hmm. Still much safer than the ball-kicking contests (with elimination rounds!) that we’d have during middle school!
I’ve got a pair (I’m 27). We found them at a skate shop in a mall; I think it was Journeys. I very much enjoy wearing them when I’m forced to go into the French Quarter. You wouldn’t think it, but the roads down there are surprisingly nice. And they’re wonderful for parking garages. They were great for mardi gras parades until the beads got too thick on the ground.
To the other owners: you can use your heel as a brake if you stick that foot out farther, you don’t have to go into a run if you don’t want to. And in doing that you can also roll on one foot, using the brake for balance. And most sidewalks/bricks/whatever just require a bit more speed and you’ll roll right over the cracks.
Any person or group of people who are not watching where they are going, crossing paths without looking, blocking paths, weaving erratically, stopping quickly in the middle of nowhere, standing in the middle of a path, whatever, is likely to get a sharp elbow or whack from my collapsible baton. Say a peep to me and out comes my pepper spray or worse.
I am an equal opportunist lesson teacher. Cyclist, walker, wheelyer, very young or very old, dog, pregnant lady, etc., ther’re fair game for my discipline.
I don’t care if you fly around on a jet pack, just do it in a predictable manner, in straight lines, be able to control yourself, keep to the right except to pass, and watch where you’re going/be aware of your surroundings, and i won’t say boo.
@Red_Eye
You beat me to it. I live an hour away from Orlando and frequent Disney World. Despite the fact that they are banned from the parks (again substantiated by a cast member, my sister-in-law), there is an absolute infestation. I really want a video of a kid eating one of those turkey legs they sell doing the happiest faceplant on earth.
This is a clear case of product mis-use. There is nothing wrong with the shoes, they were designed to be used as an alternative to a skateboard, therefore they should not be used where a skateboard shouldn’t be used. They should definitely be banned from malls, theme parks and anywhere where they would be a public hazard, basically if you wouldn’t use a skatebaord there, then don’t use the shoes there. Most amusement parks have banned these shoes from what I hear, and I suspect more bannings are to come as the lawsuits emerge. The shoes do come with warning labels and all kinds of warnings but no matter what leave it up to the people of America to find non-appropriate uses for the latest fad. They are designed for outdoor use and are designed to be worn with protective equipment such as a helmet, knee pads and elbow pads. I don’t think these shoes were designed to be daily, every-day wear shoes, and were designed to be more of a recreational sports shoe that you put on for a couple hours each week.
The shoes should not be banned altogether and should not be banned from being sold in the USA or anything like that, and I am certaintly not for sheltering our kids and not letting them participate in sports such as this but there are appropriate uses for things and innappropriate uses for them, and these shoes were definitely not designed with the intent to be used how they are being used in society today. Maybe if the salesman would just give a stern speech to each person or parent buying these shoes then it would sink in or offer to sell them protective gear along with the shoes.
The situation with these shoes was out of control after christmas here, but it seems to be getting better and more controlled and you only really see the occasional kid wearing them. I guess most kids have either forgotten about them, or just given up on them. I hear a lot of kids give up on them after a couple days of their feet killing them from the shoes so thats not surprising.
The injury number actually seems kind of low, I consider “roller shoes” a sport such as skateboarding so I am sure the injuries from the shoes are comparable to other sports kids participate in, however I do wonder if there are long-term effects from the innapropriate every day use of these shoes on children’s growing feet. Will kids develop foot problems early on in life if they spend a couple years wearing these shoes daily??
There is a time and a place for everything.
I was really into Inline Skating when I was in my late teens, but I wouldn’t go into stores with my skates on.
Kids where these things everywhere, and the parents never says damn thing. I guarantee you, if some kid comes into my store with those on and falls and gets hurt, the parents won’t hesitate in trying to sue me.
…..Skating burns calories. Anything that gets them away from the TV or the X-box…
…..My kids had these about 5 years ago. Wisely, my daughter gave hers up pretty quickly. Skating is NOT one of her talents. My son was pretty amazing on them. No, we didn’t let them run through the mall with the things on. I tried my daughter’s out, and it was awkward. I tend to lean forward from years of inline skates, and I wouldn’t roll.
…..The biggest problem we had with the shoes was that the wheel would break before the shoe wore out. They are certainly safer than real skates or a skateboard. For one thing, it’s a lot easier for a novice to stop.
…..Don’t ask how I know this, but the best way to trip an obnoxious, skating little punk, is by pretending to not be paying attention to them. Look the other way, casually stick a heel out, then act stunned, surprised and injured while the kid crashes headfirst into a drink display. Whatever you do, repress that snicker. Not even a smile.
@zncjmom: “And if god intended us to roll around everywhere he would have…”
Damn these planes, trains and automobiles, blasphamy!
Allowing children to roll around with these inside stores is the same as, if not worse than, letting your kids RUN around a store.
When kids run around a store they are usually not looking where they are going and cannot stop themselves quick enough if they have to, which leads to running into merchandise, customers, or employees.
It all boils down to bad parenting. Teach your kids how to behave in public. Unfortunately millions of parents in America are HORRIBLE parents and that is why we have so many stupid laws, to basically scare parents into being more responsible for their children.
Definitely the parents’ faults on this one. I’ve never tried the product, but I’ve had several kids run into me and patrons at my workplace. I’ve managed to get even ‘though — I throw pennies out in front of them. “oops”.
@Sam: I would rather watch a kid do a faceplant while eating one of those turkey legs myself. Yum…
Blah blah blah
To hell with all you uptight jerks whining about those darn kids and their bicycles/rollerskates/skateboards/heelys/whatever is next.
Before that it was, damn you kids for running around all the time!
Same hypocrites whining about kids watch too much tv/use computer/play video games.
So let me speak for the youth, if I may: FUCK YOU, OLD BAG!
We all have enough issues…this don’t make the cut.
Oh, and to the others who are talking about tripping the kids:
Nice attitude, sounds like hoodlums talking about kicking the canes out from old ladies.
I hope you try it and get your ass kicked. Then arrested. Then sued. Then die of some terrible disease that afflicts hypocrites.
That is all.
Funny, every time I see some inconsiderate little brat rolling around on these I think
1. Why didn’t we have these when I was a kid?
2. Do they come in my size?
I work in a store with a lot of glassware and wine. I cannot wait for the day that some kid crashes into a wall of glass and dies on those things. It may be from all the small pebbles I threw on the floor so they’d crash. That being said, I must admit, I love those things.
1. It’s always funny when a kid falls. Always.
2. Jealousy. I want a pair, but can’t afford them, and I’m a klutz with bad karma. The second I put them on at work…boom, right into the wall of glassware.
Ban Heelys from stores? Nah… I think they should just ban kids from stores. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve almost been run over/into by a kid in a store that wasn’t wearing Heelys.
@oldhat: I’m pretty sure there aren’t a lot of old ladies out there running into store displays, clipping folks on the sidewalk and rolling into oncoming traffic. If these kids aren’t paying attention to my foot sticking out, they deserve to trip over it.
I really don’t have a strong opinion on roller skate shoes. I do think its a shame that kids don’t seem to get to have much fun these days. Almost all play is supervised and structured. Kids don’t seem to have the opportunities to learn lessons and boundaries by trying something out, having a bad experience and learning from same.
There has been a recent, interesting series on NPR regarding the .com generation or the millenial generation and the issues with that group entering the work force. I only caught the first two episodes but my basic understanding was that these early 20 somethings need to have constant positive feedback (one company is handing out daily awards) in order to produce work product. I’m sure that’s not true for all, but it seems like our country is in a current pattern of raising self centered egomaniacs and that can’t be good.
I’ve only ever seen a teenager in the mall and a child in Walmart skating in Heely’s. I want to get some as well, I always enjoyed “driving” the shopping cart.
I’m 31. I’m jealous of the kids who have these. I want a pair of my own. One day in the near future, you’ll see me flying through Target.
Mark my words!
I don’t hate the shoes, just the obnoxious brats that I usually see on them. I’ve seen kids that fly around stores making sure they avoid people and keep an eye out. I sort of envy them. Then there are those kids that fly around, running into what ever is close to stop. Usually me, my shopping cart, or 6 inches to the right of me as they slam into the shelf because they have no freaking clue how to stop or control their own speed.
@madktdisease: a kid on the south shore of MA died last year when he rolled into traffic without looking.
And I’m sure a kid died last year by chasing a ball out of his yard into traffic without looking. Moron parents, letting children play in the yard! I’d like some actual data, not anecdotes.
I would sort of like a pair myself, and I now realize why: I’ve never been able to roller skate because I hate how out of control it makes me feel to be on wheels the entire time. If I could skate around on my heels, and transition back to walking just by leaning forward when I feel unstable, that would be a lot of fun. I wonder if there are rinks which allow or even rent these shoes?
And there have been many times when I had to walk some distance through boring scenery and thought, “Boy, I wish I had some sort of wheeled vehicle right about now, that I wouldn’t have to carry around or park when I wasn’t using it.”
These damn things are pretty cool, but like anything, there’s a place for them. Whipping around a store is not that place – might as well let people shop in rollerblades, roller skates, and skateboards.
Do what any sensible person would do: trespass into that old Woolworth’s they’re converting to a Target or similar and have at it on the smooth floor. Not that I’ve done that or anything.
What worries me is the odd gait I see on the kids when they walk. They end up walking on their tippy-toes instead of the normal “heel strikes ground first.” I am not an expert, but human feet aren’t designed to walk that way. A longitudinal study on these Heeley-ed children would be interesting.
@kerry: I can hope…
wow, so far we’ve had the nun from The Blues Brothers, the little girls from The Shining, Tootie from The Facts of Life, and the platform shoe roller bandits from CHiPs. This thread is pushing all my nostalgia buttons.
cudthecrud makes me jealous. I want some.
Do me a favor and stop “Thinking for the children” rather than “Thinking of the Children”. The shoes are fun and part of being a kid is to fall, have accidents, break a leg, an arm, whatever. I had a skateboard and a bike growing up and I rode in traffic, on the sidewalk, in fact, anywhere. Granted, I almost got hit sometimes but that was part of the EXCITEMENT of being a kid.
Tell me, do you have statistics on how many bicycle injuries ended up in the hospital last year? How about in-line skates? How about quad-skates? Have you checked on the number of ER visits due to after-school fights as well? Maybe we should escort kids home from school because they may slip and fall getting on the bus. Come on, grow up a little and let kids be kids. Maybe people are freaking out about these “heelies” because their old and they just “don’t get it”. Deal with it, old fogies!
Every kid I’ve seen wearing roller shoes seemed to be both coordinated, and aware of the other people around them.
Which is more than I can say for a lot of the kids around here.
Unfortunately for the kids in my neighborhood, a bunch of fogies just pressured the HOA into banning roller skates and skateboards.
We should jump on this as adults and uses these in stores. Isn’t this what everybody wanted from “the future?” Here’s the ability to get places quickly, to skate or walk when we want to without changing shoes.
I don’t want these banned. If kids are flying into displays or adults, it’s an issue of the parent’s responsibility to teach their child how to behave. Why punish everyone for the actions of a few?
I wear mine in stores. I like rolling in Walmart.
To everyone commenting against the users of these because they are annoying; I seriously hope whatever you enjoy in life is immediately halted the moment you annoy someone with it, regardless of its validity. Second, the comment about national obesity and the problem with these requiring children not to walk; complete ignorance would be a compliment. The amount of work it takes to use these properly is beyond your comprehension. I think there’s way too much bandwagon hopping here, and the crowd mentality is diverting from any rational thought, where the child’s early life experience is given some consideration outside of your ‘it mildly inconvenienced me, so I tripped him flat on his face hahaha I’m so cool’ way of thinking.
If I were a kid, I totally would have a pair of these. The main problem, as I see it, is the lack of grinding capability. If someone were to integrate these wheelie shoes with Soaps shoes That would totally rock.
Frankly, I think all these watch out-for-grandma faux concern is simply jealousy for not having maximized the danger/fun potential of their childhood.
I have 6 kids and only my 9 year old really wears her healys – she is healthy and quite thin. I always tell her to look before she skates and if a store is crowded, she’s not allowed to skate.
People just need to be more considerate of one another regardless of their age. Sometimes I wonder if the adults in this world realize that they were once kids, too.
As time goes on, I see more signs going up not allowing kids to wear their skates. It saddens me that we all just can’t ‘do the right thing’ and get along. As my best friend always says, ‘the many suffer for the few’. I have never been run over by any of these skaters (I admire how they can do it with such grace) and I happily see them all over the place.
Remember: we were once kids, too. Think back to what YOU did when you were a kid. Amazing how you adults think you were the perfect CHILD and probably you are horrible adults, too!
@ buck09: mine have grind plates.