ROOTS            In the sixteenth century, the first ice sleds were built. They were wooden structures, with steep ramps coated with ice, in which people took turns sliding down. Most of the slides were seventy feet tall. Since the slides were so tall, the thrill started before the ride, because you had to climb a seventy-foot tall ladder to get on the slide. The passengers went down on a sled that was two feet wide and one foot in length. A guide accompanied the rider. At the top of slide, when the coast was clear, the guide scooted the sled to the edge of the ramp, then shoved it down the slide. When they finished the ride down one side, the guide and the rider picked up the sled and slid down the other side. When summer came, the ice would melt and the slides were not used until the next year. But then one summer a lady wanted to have as much fun as she did in the winter, so she put wheels on her sled which started ROLLER COASTERS!
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