Toy Fair '08 - Sledding in the Grass

Sledding in the summer? Sign me up!

One thing we love to find at Toy Fair is innovative new toys that nobody has seen before. At Toy Fair '08, the Slicer was definitely one of those toys.

What do you do when you want to sled in the summer when there's no snow. Make your own snow. That's sort-of the idea behind the Slicer sled. Except it carries it's snow (actually ice) with it. The idea is based on Ice Blocking, which is riding a block of ice down a hill, and is apparently popular in Australia. Of course the Slicer will keep your butt warmer than sitting on a block of ice.

In the winter, the Slicer seems like it would make a great sled. It's made from Polyethelene plastic for durability and it's got two runners that allow it to steer well.

But summer is where the Slicer does what no other sled can. It comes with two "Icer" containers. Fill them up with water and put them in the freezer until they are solid ice. When you are ready to go sledding, the Icers attach to the bottom of the Slicer with the ice side down. This creates an icy surface on the bottom of the sled, which is what allows you to sled in the grass. What happens is that the ice melts slightly on the bottom "floats" on a thin layer of water. Of course, it's winter now, so we have no way to test the summer sledding abilities of the Slicer, but our research has shown that it certainly does work and kids love it. If we get the chance to test it out when it's warmer, we'll post a full review here.

According to the manufacturer, under optimum conditions, the ice should last up to an hour. You can purchase additional Icer trays so you have more ice ready to go when they run out (if you have the room in your freezer). The Slicer works best in warmer temperatures (above 78 degrees), because the ice melts more readily, making it more slippery. Of course the ice will also not last as long. It also works best on short grass for obvious reasons.

Since the Slicer doesn't run on rails in the summer, but on two blocks of ice, it doesn't steer at all. It may spin around, and wipe-out's would be expected. Sledding can always be a dangerous activity (I received a concussion while sledding many, many, many years ago when I was a child), but sledding in the summer has additional concerns. For one thing, if you take a tumble, there's no soft snow to break your fall. I would think that a bike helmet might be a good idea, as would parental supervision and careful choice of hills. You may also get some strange looks, but it will be much easier getting back up the hill in the summer.

One other feature of the Slicer is that the ice trays store inside the sled, so you won't misplace them in the winter. Nice.

The Slicer is the kind of toy I love. It's innovative, there's nothing else like it, It's well thought-out, and it lets you do something you may not have thought possible... sled in the summer. Excellent!