Sledding in the South: Where to Buy a Sled, or Try These Sled-Like Objects

Think it’s going to snow? Might be time to dig out that sled!  What? You don’t have a sled? Not to worry. Here’s a list of items that can be suitable for stand-in sleds. And then if you want the real thing, we’ve got some places where you might be able to buy a sled in Charlotte, NC.

Where to Buy a Sled in Charlotte

These Charlotte area stores often have sleds during snow events:

• Davis General Store, Charlotte
• Potts Hardware in Charlotte
• College Park Pharmacy, Belmont
• Ace Hardware
• Costco
• Dicks Sporting Goods
• Drug stores: CVS

Have you picked up a sled in 2026? Let us know where in the comments!

Sled Alternatives

The forecasters are calling for snow. It only happens a couple of times a year around here. And up until I picked up two sleds at Costco, my family had lived 12 years in the South sans sled. I never could bring myself to spend the money on something we’d use only a couple times a year. And I always had it in my head that if I bought a sled I’d somehow affect our chances of getting snow.  You know, I’d buy it, the kids would get excited, and then it would sit in our already crowded garage completely unused.

While we left Upstate New York 12 years ago because the winters in Syracuse were completely ridiculous, I do still enjoy a bit of snow now and then. So when it snows, we go out in the yard and play! My house is on a hill, and we’ve gotten some pretty good sledding out of rather interesting objects.

The first recommendation is a boogie board. You know, the kind you would use in the ocean. We bought three in the Outerbanks four years ago, and since we only drive to the beach maybe once a year, they’ve actually gotten more use as sleds.  That string that attaches to the board actually works pretty well at pulling a child across the snow, and once that snow is matted down and maybe a tiny bit icy, they go pretty fast. They’ll even hold an adult. Ask me how I know.

My second recommendation is kind of similar. Check your pool floats. A tube that floats will glide across slippery snow. Just be prepared that the pool float may meet its untimely demise on the sledding slopes. They aren’t made of material as thick as their cousins, the snow tube. But when there’s snow out there and you’re sled-less, sacrificing the $5 pool float from last year’s pool season seems pretty worth it.

Lastly, look for anything with a flat bottom. Back in the day, way, way back in the day, I do remember gathering with some friends and a few dining hall trays up in the snowy metropolis of Syracuse, NY. They made for some pretty good sledding.

While we at Kidding Around do not condone the theft of said dining hall trays, you might have something equally flat-lying around at home that will work. My kids have successfully used a toy box lid. We tied a rope to the handle of the lid and that worked to pull the kids around and get the snow-packed down.

Objects that failed as sleds

Then there were the things that failed as sledding and sliding devices. Kidding Around’s Jennifer Curry reports that large Amazon boxes are NOT in fact suitable sleds. Her husband discovered this last year when they left their sleds at Grandma’s.

Kristina, another Kidding Around contributor, can also attest that cardboard boxes only last so long as sleds – as in, only a couple runs:

Update: A helpful reader pointed out that cardboard wrapped in a trash bag works pretty well. If you try this modification and it works out for you, let us know!

My kids thought they would be really creative and take the wheels off their skateboard deck. My husband dug out the wax he used to use on his skis. Yes, we still had wax from skis he last used in New York 13 years ago, but that’s another story. They put the wax on the bottom of the skateboard and attempted to snowboard. This was a complete flop and resulted in a very wet skateboard deck, which eventually split and peeled as it dried. So, keep those wheels on the skateboard, safely tucked away in the garage.