Mega Shark Slip 'n Slide: Product Review

I remember begging my mom when I was a kid for a Slip 'n Slide. It was the newest and coolest thing back in late 80's and early 90's. My mom however would decline each and every time I went into an all out begging fest. She would tell me they were dangerous, and a waste of money. Back in those days $30 for a garbage back with some water on it was just that, a waste of money, but as a kid, it is far from it. I would sit and drool at the commercials, and envy those children in the commercials as they ran, and took a belly flop onto the yellow mat, from there they would fling at about 100mph. (At least thats how fast the commercials made them look).
Finally one sweet day Slip 'n Slide went on sale in early November. I remember it well, and the excited knot in my stomach that would only go away once I set it up and put it to use.
I knew it was cold out, and that I should have kept it in the box until next summer, but hell, I was 9. I wanted to try it, and I wanted to try it now, even if that meant getting the flu thereafter.
My mom wanted no part of it, and she wouldn't even come outside to help us set it up. Me and my younger brother worked fast as we had on our summer bathing suits, and we were of course freezing.
We hooked the hose into the nozzle that is placed at the end of the Slip 'n Slide. We then set up the stupid little shark mouth piece. You see when you come sliding down the Slip 'n Slide it is supposed to look as if the shark ate you. After you went through the sharks mouth you would land into a very small puddle of water.
We got our Slip n' Slide set up, and I do recall staring at it disappointed. It looked nowhere near as long and wide as it had in the commercials, but I had begged for it all summer long, and I was not about to let it's flimsy appearance get too me too much.
Next we turned on the hose and watched as the sides of the Slip 'n Slide let out small streams of water into the air and on to the yellow mat. I of course had to go first.
I took a few steps back to get a running start...the moment I came to the edge I flopped down on my stomach...and oofff! It hurt like hell, I didn't have a moment to concentrate on getting the air punched out of me, my body began to fly down the mat. My arm however caught the side of the Slip 'n Slide, which threw my body off balance and set me hurdling into the grass. Son of a monkeys butt! I was hurt! Man down! Man down!
I looked at my arm, and sure enough it was cut up. I had a nice long rub burn from where my arm had dragged across the cheap plastic, as it cut the skin open.
I must have let out a yelp because my mom came running outside to see if I was okay. It was all too much to handle, I felt like the kid in a Christmas Story, 'you'll shoot your eye out.'
I tried to act like I was okay, because I didn't want to hear, 'I told you so.' However my arm was bleeding, and I knew my mom was right the whole time. The damn Slip 'n Slide was dangerous.
She packed it up and returned it, never to be seen again.
But...
Yep, there is a but... Slip 'n Slide is back, and the commercials look exactly like they did when I was a kid. They are portrayed as fun, exciting, and when kids of this generation see it on TV, they are squealing in delight. My niece and nephew in particular would beg for one every time the commercials came on. I being the great Aunt I am, figured that with time Slip n' Slides performance had to of improved, and most likely is 100 times safer now than it was when I was a kid.
I went out to Target and picked them up a Slip 'n Slide. What really took me by surprise was how they still were selling the shark version of it. It looked almost identical to the one we had for a day. It dd however look modified, and they even went and added a cute little inflatable ship nose to it. So instead of landing in a small puddle of water and flinging to the lawn, the ship hull would stop you.
I looked at it closer, and to be honest it still looked just as dangerous, seeing how there were no sides to keep you from flinging off of the sides like I had done many many moons earlier. What surprised me most though was the price. I knew this thing was a death trap then, and I knew that this company had probably been sued a few times because of their dangerous summer cool off toy. I assumed the price would be $10, but no, the $29.99 price tag remained the same. I could not believe that this many years later Slip 'n Slide was still selling for the same damn price!
I picked it up anyways and headed over to my sisters house. She helped me set it up while the kids were at school. Everything came flashing back as I sat their looking at the final piece. Hot damn, it looked exactly the same as it had nearly 16 years ago.
We turned the hose on and let the water run for awhile, just to give the yellow mat some moisture. Perhaps I had hurt myself because I jumped on too fast and the mat was not completely wet.
The kids got home, and of course when they seen this 16 foot floor slide, they ran into their rooms to change and put the slide to use. I watched as my nephew flung himself to the ground and sling down the slide into the sharks mouth. It looked cool, until he got up. He was holding his stomach. The same issue I had when I was a kid. You see on the commercials it shows kids just flopping down belly first and taking off, so of course it is only natural to copy what you saw on TV. However flopping down belly first onto a hard ground feels like getting punched in the stomach.
My sister went over to comfort him, as my niece stepped up to the plate before mom could say no. She however weighs a lot less, and I had a feeling that she would fly right over the boats hull onto the grass, in the end it would result in her crying.
She flung down the slide without any issues, and landed in the hull safe and sound. was surprised she was not holding her belly as she ran around to do another round. My nephew then decided to give it another go, even though my sister had told them to cool it.
It seemed to bring them fun for about an hour till they grew tired. Surprisingly no accidents happened, and no one ended up in tears or bloody. I guess they had improved the Slip 'n Slide. I do recommend not adding the sharks mouth though, as kids seem to run head on into them. It doesn't hurt, but any means to avoid an accident is the best idea.
What this company really needs to improve is their commercials! Too many kids are copying what they see, and what they see is a bunch of kids throwing themselves out like Superman and flying down the yellow mat. However flinging your body like this only results in getting the wind punched out of you.
If you do buy your kids a Slip 'n Slide show them a proper way to slide down it. I find that sliding down on their butts is the safest method, so long as they are not wearing thick shorts. Bathing suits or trunks work best. If they are going to go face first and do the belly flop, make sure they are not taking a huge running start and just flopping down.
Also make sure the Slip 'n Slide is completely wet before the kids use it. Any dry spots could result in rub burns, which could take skin off and result in bleeding.
Although the Slip 'n Slide is made a bit better, does not mean it is any less dangerous now, then it was then. So long as it is used properly and children are given a lesson in what NOT to do, the Slip n' Slide can be a lot of fun.
SAVE!
The Slip n' Slide can not be left out after use. It is best to fold it up and store it away in the shed or garage until next use. The mat will dry out and become brittle in the sun which will result in damaging the unit all together.
Overall, the Slip 'n Slide is actually a lot of fun if used correctly. However I do feel that the price needs to be reduced drastically.
Where to buy Slip 'n Slide:
You can purchase the shark version of Slip 'n Slide at any local Target or online at their website at www.target.com.