By JO ABI
It was my son who informed me that I had purchased the wrong trampoline for our family.
“Mum, does our trampoline have springs,” he demanded, accusation in his eyes.
“Um, yes,” I responded tentatively.
“Because I just saw an ad on the TV and mum, springs are bad and dangerous and not good.”
Mummy-fail 173,980.
Just as an FYI, this post is sponsored by Springfree. But all opinions expressed by the author are 100% authentic and written in their own words.
I thought I was doing the right thing when I purchased our trampoline five years ago. I made sure to get a large trampoline that could cope with the weight of several children complete with padding and netting. There’s no way they could be injured on it.
Here’s a list of things that have gone wrong so far:
- The padding constantly dislodges, exposing the springs;
- The kids hurt themselves on the exposed springs;
- The netting comes lose and my five-year-old FELL THROUGH IT;
- The padding and netting has to be replaced each year due to wear and tear.
Well so much for that.
Like most parents I had the best of intentions. I did my research, found what I thought was a safe choice and chose a design that fit into my budget. But when you consider the fact my children and nieces and nephews us it daily, I probably should have spent more and researched better.
My son was right when he questioned the choice I had made.
Sometimes I feel like my job as a parent is to imagine all the different ways my children could be injured and killed whenever I make any choice for them, then choose the safest option. But sometimes I don’t even think of some of the dangers that emerge later.
We can never relax. We can never let our guards down. It’s exhausting.
The trampoline I chose may present the illusion of safety, but it’s just an illusion.
Obviously this had to be rectified.
My children could become professional product testers. They play hard, they play fast. They think of ways to use things that I’m sure stunt doubles do on a daily basis.
I have a Springfree Trampoline on its way to my house and I’m looking forward to watching my children try and push it to its limit.
But first I have to get rid of the old one.
They are a pain to dismantle so I did some ‘research’ on YouTube. I think this is how we’ll do it. Easy peasy.
Springfree™ Trampoline – the World’s Safest Trampoline
Springfree™ Trampoline was invented by a Dad who wanted a safer trampoline for his kids. After 15 years in the making, the World’s Safest Trampoline now exists! Recognised globally since 2003, Springfree™ Trampoline is the only trampoline design that has effectively removed the four areas that cause injury:
1) the springs
2) the frame at the jumping surface
3) the risk of falls to the ground
4) the risk of falls into rigid enclosure poles
Springfree™ Trampoline is built to last and truly revolutionary in its design by keeping kids safe in the backyard and out of the emergency wards while still having fun. Check out www.springfree.com.au
Top Comments
Just because you survived your trampolining days relatively unscathed doesn't mean that everyone did. There were still plenty of injuries. I've never had any need for the airbag in my car either, but I'm glad it's there.
Vuli trampolines are just as safe as the spring free but not as expensive. We did a lot of research when purchasing a trampoline for our kids. I had heard enough complaints from friends about the poorer quality of the cheaper trampolines and needed to replace mats and netting every year. Vuli make Olympic trampolines (or so their website said at the time of purchase). They are heavy duty and well constructed with the net residing inside the springs (which are still covered with mats) so are just as safe as the spring free when your kiddies are jumping. Ours is two years old and has been in constant weather (where we live is extreme wind conditions and a lot of rain as we live in a hilly area) and there is not a speck of wear on the net or the mats. Added bonus is that we purchased the trampoline tent at the same time and kids jump around in the darkish environment with head torches and we have camp outs (the springs are sufficient for one nights sleep so only a sleeping bag required). As you can tell I am happy with our purchase. May not be everyone's preference but thought I would put it out there to inform people if they are interested in another option.