The Slip N' Slide: Where to Find the Revivals of This Classic Summer Favorite

America has always been rich in inventing brilliance--particularly when it comes to toys. In the world of toys utilizing water for summer, we've also been bar none, even though some of them have been at risk for being abused by people who don't know how to read directions. It seems that the American populace was a lot smarter on that front when the well-known toy manufacturer Wham-O invented the Slip N'Slide back in 1961. Not once did anybody report being hurt by a Slip N'Slide for over a decade until the era of filing lawsuits developed its own fad by the 90's.

Well, no lawsuit could fault the brilliant engineering of the Slip N'Slide. Designing a simple long strip of plastic that could be inflated and used as an effective water slide was not only a synapse of smart design, it was also inexpensive to make, hence just about every parental income bracket being able to afford one for their kids.

Even though I was a child of the 70's and 80's, the Slip N'Slide didn't really hit its peak of popularity until then anyway. In its earliest days, the simple design of just the slide itself was good enough for kids who previously could only run through a lawn sprinkler or jump in the backyard swimming pool if they wanted any fun in water during the thick of summer. While I and my friends weren't ones to get easily bored in summer just playing around a lawn sprinkler turned on at full blast, the Slip N'Slide turned up the notch of playtime intensity when each slide on it brought a different situation thanks to the laws of physics.

Yes, depending on how you slid, you could either take a tumble to end up on your stomach, or perhaps even end up falling off the sides, outside of the slide design made to prevent that. At the end of the slide is where all the exclamations and comedic reactions would be uttered by the spectators, depending on how skilled you were on the sliding. If you were a guy, there was always the effort to make sure you ended up sliding on your butt with legs forward rather than embarrassingly being tossed around in the slide like a rag doll.

Of course, having the water spraying on you from the sides of the slide is what made it a true blast when it was pushing 100 degrees Fahrenheit outside. All those generations who grew up with the simple version of the Slip N'Slide didn't need any particular gimmicks to make it fun. It's only been in recent years when Wham-O had to start putting out variations on the product to make it look more fun for demanding kids who didn't understand it was already fun based on decades of past experience. Taking the Slip N'Slide to that level almost didn't pass anyway once the era of filing lawsuits became as common as buying a cup of coffee.

You may remember hearing back in the early 90's about parents with an apparent brain the size of a snail decided to take a run for it and slide on the Slip N'Slide, only to go about it in the wrong way and became injured in the process. Whether this was deliberate or not is hard to say without being there and watching those parents plot out a way to get lawsuit money from Wham-O. No matter what happened, the lawsuits went forth, forcing Wham-O to take the Slip N'Slide off the market for a while.

When Wham-O brought the Slip N'Slide back within the last decade, the different variations of it provided more intense fun, yet also some continual criticisms...

Perhaps the most popular and best of all the more recent Slip N'Slides is the double chute (or Double Wave Rider) variation of the product. You might think that it would cost more to have one that allows two people to slide. But this one generally sells for around $20 and easily folds down as the single edition still does. It's quite startling that Wham-O didn't create a double slide decades ago with the thought that kids wouldn't want to have to stand in a long line for ten minutes waiting to slide again. Then again, that earlier-mentioned concept of everybody watching one person at a time slide was part of the fun.

Naturally, the water pressure aspect on the slide would eventually become a factor in the newer generation of kids. That's why it was inevitable that Wham-O would put out versions that provide more of an intense water blast. One of the best is the Spiral Splasher where the water spouts into a spiral shape as you make your way down the slide. Then you have the Wave Rider editions that more or less give you the feeling of riding a...yes, tidal wave. For a so-called big splash at the end, Slip N'Slide also has the Splash Factor editions where the end of the slide has a place that collects water so you can create a giant splash finale. There's even a Boogie Board edition for more of a rush when sliding.

Along with the Wave Rider editions, it seems Wham-O decided that putting simulated danger on the slide was mandatory to give kids the exhilarating feeling of being adventurous. One of the most controversial Slip N'Slide editions made thus far is the Mega Shark where the end of the slide has a giant shark's mouth that closes as one enters through the fangs.

Yes, a lot of people have wondered if Wham-O lost its mind putting out a simulated kill by a shark. Based on the reviews of this product on most online site that sell toys, many aren't happy about it or find it very workable. It seems that this particular Slip N'Slide is shoddily made besides, which gives the indication that the Slip N'Slide of today is undoubtedly made in China rather than America as it was in a different era.

Keep in mind that the product has also gone corporate as every other toy seems to do eventually to remind us it comes from a corporation. I won't force you to stay away from the NASCAR editions of the Slip N'Slide, but I have a feeling most people find it annoying to see the famous checkered logo on the slide and promoting the idea that you're a humanized, ad-sponsored race car sliding down a watery track.

All of this shouldn't keep you from buying at least the simpler versions of the Slip N'Slide. A classic is a classic, and it's still one of the few toys available in summer that provides both a cool blast of water while bringing a physical dare that kids want on a psychological level when enjoying time away from more sedentary school.

An Amazon.com page showing all the different editions you can buy of the Slip N'Slide:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_t?url=search-alias%3Dtoys-and-games&field-keywords=slip+n%27slide&x=0&y=0