I tried plastic bag sledging in a Sheffield park, and this was the biggest surprise

And if you go out on a winter’s day after snow, the chances are you’ll see this great tradition being carried out on the slopes of any of Sheffield’s parks.

So with a thick covering of snow on the ground today, I headed out to take pictures and video of people enjoying the first snow of 2025, and, sure enough, there were people practising the noble art of plastic bag sledging.

“Can I film you coming down on your sledges?”, I shouted out to a couple of young adults., who had just come down a slope.

They agreed, and explained that that they didn’t have sledges. One, a young man, was zooming down on a plastic bag. The other, a young woman, said she had brought a tray out from her kitchen.

The young woman explained they needed a moment, as her friend on the bag had just hurt himself on a kerb that was hidden under the snow at the bottom of his run.

But game lad that he was, he was quickly back up, and heading back up the slope for another run. “It’s really quick’” he said. “The conditions are great.”

So I filmed the pair of them hurtling down the slope - a quick-fire seven seconds from top to bottom.

Getting up, the young man said: “Would you like a go?”

It’s years since I’d sledged on a bag - so of course I agreed. And you can see the experience in the video attached to this write-up.

He passed the bag over, and I started up the hill. It was steep, as you’d expect in Sheffield, and there were a couple of times I slipped on the way up.

The bag was great. It was a fairly robust ‘bag for life’ style carried, with a couple of sturdy handles. And despite its usage, it remained reasonably dry.

I sat down on the bag, holding the handles with both hands to raise the front of the plastic off the ground, keeping as much polythene behind me as possible. I placed it down at the top of an area of squashed down snow, thinking that it should be clear of any hidden hazards.

And off I went! Acceleration was faster than I expected, and down I travelled. I had little control of where I was going, and my legs were all over the place, as I struggled to keep any sense of dignity.

Reaching the bottom of the slope, I ground to a halt, at the end of my quick adrenalin boost.

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The slide finished I got up, fearing the bag would have left me soaked. That was when I had the happy surprise that I remained dry, despite the low-lying transport.

So, how was it? Compared to sledging, it felt like there was very little control over where you’re going. Was it fun? You bet!

Should it be in the Olympics? Bring it on!