Heelys
Heelys are a brand of Roller shoes marketed by Heelys Inc. that have one or more wheels embedded in each sole similar to inline skates. Thus the wearer can walk run or by shifting their weight to their heels roll. Braking can be achieved by lowering the back of the foot so that sole contacts the ground. Generally “Heeling” is a form of skating and as such may not be allowed in some places including schools. In February 2007 Yeovil Town Council were the first English council to ban their use.
lt;a href=”http://www.himfr.com/buywhite_tightswhite tightslt;/agt;Over one million pairs of the shoes were sold in their first year alone. Roger Adams patented Heelys in late 2000.
The journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics published a study of injuries resulting from the use of Heelys and Street Gliders a similar product that is strapped on to regular shoes. The study counted only significant injuries that required assessment by an orthopedic surgeon ignoring minor injuries that were treated solely in the emergency department. The 10week study conducted during summer school holiday found:
An injury rate of approximately 51 injuries per 100000 children for injuries requiring orthopedic attention; the rate for lessserious injuries is unknown2 but presumably much higher. For comparison in 1997 the United States nonfatal dog bites required 151 emergency department visits per 100000 population including adults.3
Injuries ranged from dislocations to displaced arm fractures including one patient with this injury in both arms.
38 of the injuries requiring hospital admission and general anesthesia to manipulate fractured bones.
34 of the injuries were suffered by children using Heelys or Street Gliders for the very first time. 70 had used the products five or fewer times.
The injuries comprised 8 of the workload for the pediatric orthopedic department.
12 of the injured children were familiar with the instructions for use of the products.
Although the manufacturer says “While protective gear is not required we highly recommend its use when the wheels are in the shoes”4 most users do not wear such gear largely because these shoes are worn for everyday use2 unlike more specialized sporting equipment such as inline skates.
For people who have attained a degree of technical skill and proficiency with the sneakers Heelys Inc. provides sponsorships with “Team Heelys”. Also these people get free heelys wheels and get paid to go to demos. They also get paid access to practice in skateparks even some parks that charge an entrance fee. There is a National Pro team for Heelys which consists of David Chau Hailey H. Brian M. AJ Roth Danny M. Mikey D. Shawn P. Austin P. Britton M.
Advanced Heelys users can perform tricks such as spins backwards skating and skating on one foot.
There are four categories of tricks used in heeling: flatland tricks grinding tricks stalling tricks and vert tricks.
Ground tricks the main category of tricks used in heeling.
Grinds these tricks can only be performed if the model has a nylon pad in the shoe it involves jumping on a surface landing on the nylon pad and sliding across the surface.
Stalls generally involves jumping on to a raised object and pausing before jumping off and heeling once more.One stall is the joe stall.
Vert any type of tricks performed on a vert ramp.
About the writer: Himfr is a scholar focusing his research on Chinese cultures. If you are interested in purchasing China goods please visit www.himfr.com
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