Saturday 2 June 2007

Boing! Boing! Boing!


Earth continues to revolve around the sun this week. And apparently Summer’s here and the time is right…for trampolining in the garden. Now the days are longer (thanks to the planetary tilt) and toasty (thanks to global warming), I see more and more young ‘uns with banana shaped arms and legs after misadventures with their favourite family entertainment centrepiece: the trampoline. It’s apparently the “must have toy” for the summer and is reportedly the third most wanted gift for children aged 5 to 13.

It never really struck me how popular it was until the mental link of seeing backyard after backyard after backyard of trampolines whizzing by me from the train window in the NE of Scotland and the concomitant relatively high frequency of injured limbs from such activities. I do hope more parents take the time to realize the full implications of their purchase and take reasonable precautions instead of assuming their kids knowing how to use the damn thing properly.

And here’s a popular American home video of a trampoline accident that’s been circulating the internet…(what are friends for eh?)

And it’s not only kids. Nocturnal high jinks (ba dah bum) by inebriated adults who aught to know better had resulted in at least one chap whose sprightly springiness launched him into orbit over the garden fence and into his neighbour’s backyard, shattering both his legs. He was crying both in pain and laughter when he realised how ridiculous it was.

In Tameside, where I’ve lived and worked before, sometimes despite adequate supervision, freak accidents do occur and this can give rise to the parallel claim culture.

Oh, and to cap it off…this is PURIFIED LIQUID GOLD from the most recent episode of The Apprentice...how NOT to sell a trampoline…LMAO!

2 comments:

Unknown said...

at the same time...i wouldn't constantly think about worse case scenarios to stop from the fun being had...and that applies in any situation...my mindset almost never goes there otherwise it would prevent me from doing anything

El Draque said...

Yes you are right elle. The first article praised the benefits of the use of trampolines and gave suggestions on how to minimise unneeded accidents. The second article illustrated the principle that when something is used beyond what it is designed for, problems will arise. Placing a water-filled paddling pool on top of a trampoline with a group of children in it will only increase the chance of someone slipping and hurting themselves and/or others. The third article illustrates that even when all necessary precautions are taken, freak injuries still do happen. Placing blame on others is just not helping the situation and prevents others from participating in such an activity.

The group of injured people I see with trampoline injuries often result from unsafe behavioural practices that can be modified. That of course does not mean others cannot safely enjoy using them.

Too bad the video link of The Apprentice is now down...boy, was that hilarious!!!