Heelys -worth it or not?

[mildmom]

I know a lot of the kids have them and a note came home from school that they are not allowed there... my son (10)would like a pair, but I see they are $60! Grandma offerred to get them, but I'm hearing mixed reviews about them. Are they worth it? Is there an off-brand? Would he be better off with some old-school skates and rink time? (He can barely rollerblade as it is). How about my 6 yr old? He can't skate and doesn't like to try either.

[heatherkw]

Hmmm Can't answer alot of those for you because DS is getting his first pair for Christmas however I have seen lots of kids doing it and it looks very easy. Also if you get them on buy.com yu can use google checkout and save 20 I wasn't going to buy them at all because they are to expensive but I could live with 40(shipped) alot better then 60. Also I go them ver quickly.

Heather

[provresgrp]

I ordered my son a pair a few weeks ago.

While on the site, I noticed they made adult sizes, so I got myself a pair too.

 

Here's what I've found:

They are sort of like a skateboard as far as 'moving' goes.

What I mean is, if you're going downhill you can keep going; But if it's even ground you're going to have to keep pushing yourself off to get anywhere.

 

You have to learn to 'walk' again.

 

You can't just place your heel on the ground like normal. If you do, you'll land on your neck.

 

If the ground isn't perfectly flat, it takes more skill to skate.

Even on surfaces such as asphalt (which never really seemed that bumpy until I got Heelys)

 

Over all, Yes it can be fun, but as an adult I could have done without them.

For a kid, it depends on how much practice he's willing to put into it.

 

Yes there are cheaper brands. You can get them on Ebay:

 

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZgoodbargain1955QQhtZ-1

http://stores.ebay.com/HEELYS-STYLE-ROLLER-SHOES-ALL-SIZES

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZtheresasstuffQQhtZ-1

 

The correct spelling is Heelys - but if you do an ebay search, use HEELIES.

[rimshot]

My ten year old daughter (the tomboy) has a pair that we got this fall. She absolutely loves them. It took a day or two to get them down pat. As you can imagine there is danger with the falls when they first learn so precautions should be taken . You tend to put the toes upward to let the wheels do the work so they are working new muscles in the legs with them.

As far as your six year old - I would put them in full skating safety gear to learn to use them. Balance at that age is still developing so allow a longer time to get it down pat.

The wheels pop in and out so they can wear them as regular shoes and I'll notice sometime that my daughter is out with the wheels in somewhere. She sure gets lots of smiles and laughs from the men when they see her "floating" through the parking lot.

[happy410]

Bought my son a pair last year. He loves them. They are not shoes they will wear daily.

Although you can take the roller out. He's been great to keep up with the rollers and stoppers. He always wears them when we go shopping. He also wore them to DisneyWorld a couple of times. When he would get tired he would hold on to his dads arm and he would just pull him along. I say buy them if you can,he will love them.

[Kayakmom]

My ten year old is on his third pair since last year. Let me start by saying that this is a boy who kills shoes and whines and everything hurts his feet. Santa brought him his first pair last year and they were still intact in the spring when grandma replaced them. His second pair (the ones from grandma) were still in reasonable condition, but I bought him a new pair when school started. My ds5 also has them. They rarely actually put the wheels in any more. Ds10 just likes them because they're comfortable and they fit him well. I used to have A LOT of fights getting him to wear his sneakers, but not any more. Ds5 on the other hand is a pain about tying and untying him, so I think Santa will bring him some Merrell Jungle Mocs, lol.

[racerfan]

My DD, DS & DN have them. They love them. They are much happier giong out with Mom & Dad now because they hold on to our arm and we pull them everywhere. They look like the are "floating" I would say get them, they have a lot of fun with them. They even enjoy going shopping now, although I don't let them go skating off like they did when they first got them. Alot of stores are now objecting to them, so they stay by me and they are ok with that. Alot better than before,they hated going shpping.

[soeluckydmg]

My daughter has them and she just turned 7. My only concern I had with them is that you have to learn to walk on your toes basically. So I notice that when she puts on other shoes besides her heely's she still walks like that alomst like that is how she just walks all the time now. That I dont like. Everything else is great. My daughter wanted these so bad and I finally caved. It took her a weekend to learn but she was determined. I wouldn't object to others buying them but I wouldnt let them wear them all the time on account of its not good to walk on your toes all the time and there are alot of stores that do not allow you to heely.

[mildmom]

Thanks for all the input!

[FourDreemz]

Wow, I can't believe these are back! My daughter had them almost 10 years ago, and my son had them a year or so later. My girl loved them and wore them all the time, and my son loved them so much he wore them to school and had the rollers taken out and given to the office. Never got them back. They're a definite no-no in the hallways.

[1seeker1]

My 8 yr old DS thinks he's the coolest on the planet when he Heely's. Loves to go shopping (now) in them. They take a little getting used to. The $39 deal is killer, I paid retail at last minute last year.

 

(I used to think DH or DW was Divorced x! I was like why are these divorced folks so nice?

[gwelden]

WARNING BE CAREFUL. I bought two Heelys for my sons for x-mas and I am taking them back before they use them. I had a neighbor's 7 yr old break his leg and shatter his ankle. He was not doing anything wild but went over a uneven floor surface inside a hotel. I had another neighbor's 10 yr old son break is leg badly. When he was in the ER a kid cam in with a broken back. He can't walk anymore. My next door neighbor is a Orthopedic Dr. and he says he sees a over welming abount of injuries because kids don't use safety equipment and they can ride Heely's anywhere and anytime. Just be careful. I asked my kids if it is worth the risk and they said NO.