It hasn’t been smooth sledding lately for the venerable Flexible Flyer brand.
The iconic downhill coaster was invented by businessman Samuel Leeds Allen outside of Philadelphia just over the river in New Jersey. Seems the stern, hard-working Quaker was serious about winter sport. His daughter reports he tested every hill on his property, and finding the right one, would go out every night to ice it after a snow and would begin his days with a morning slide. His business was farm equipment, which was highly seasonal. He began toying with the idea of sled making as a way to keep his staff busy during off-peak months. After years of testing, he applied for the Flexible Flyer patent on February 14, 1889.
Sales were slow, initially. It wasn’t until nearly twenty years of trying that Mr. Allen finally got the Flexible Flyer moving. Sales gained momentum when the Wannamaker’s in Philadelphia and R. H. Macy’s in New York placed orders. By 1915, Allen was selling 120,000 sleds a season. Through the early half of the 20th century, the Flexible Flyer was the king of the hill. In 1968, the Allen family sold the Flexible Flyer business to the Leisure Group, a Los Angeles conglomerate. From then on, it was rough sledding for the brand. In 1993, the bicycle company Roadmaster took it over, yet sales slipped steadily. The brand was sold to Brunswick in 1997 and production was moved to China. Brunswick had little success with it either and production skidded to a permanent halt in 1999.
Ah, but the story has a happy ending. The brand was eventually licensed to Paricon, a small South Paris Maine sledding manufacturer that has been a family business since 1861. Under the careful guidance of true sledding enthusiasts, the classic design is still manufactured. The company has applied the Flexible Flyer brand to modern saucers and plastic toboggans, as well. Another generation of sled lovers now follows in the tracks of that 19th century businessman who never outgrew the thrill of flying down hill fast.
UPDATE: Amy from Paricon provided me with more information on the Flexible Flyer brand: Paricon acquired the U.S. and Canadian license for Flexible Flyer in December, 2005. President of Paricon, Henry Morton, is the great-grandson of the founder of this family firm, dedicated to sledding since 1861.