So, you’ve decided to buy a boat. Congratulations! Now you can organize your free time in the way you always wanted. Please read this article and maybe you’ll find something useful for you.

First of all think of the conditions in which you will use the boat, how many people it must accommodate,  how much luggage it will take. For fishing, hunting and boat trips a single rowboat is enough. More experienced users say that to feel comfortable in a boat there should be a place for the crew and one extra seat.

The size and weight of an inflatable rowboat affect primarily on the convenience of its transportation and storage. Inflatable boats can be easily transported in a car’s trunk, carried to the water in hands and kept in the apartments or garage. When folded, they take up very little space.

When choosing the model of your rowboat please pay attention to the following details:

Diameter of the tube

The optimum diameter of the tube is 34 cm. The high diameter increases the windage and creates additional air resistance to the rower. The smaller tube diameter is a serious risk, even for one person onboard.

Width of the boat

Everybody knows that narrow boats are quicker but they are easy to wamble. That’s why the boat width should be enough to feel in it comfortable and safe. Let’s determine the minimum sufficient width of the boat together.

The average man’s femur width is 35-45cm. In order to feel comfortable in the boat, we shall add at least 1/3 of that figure. It’s 60 – 65 cm. Let’s add the width of each tube 34 cm. So, minimum comfortable width of the boat shall be 130 cm. If we apply the shipbuilding formula for calculation of safe payload under the width 130 cm, length 250 cm and tube diameter 34 cm, we’ll get the bearing capacity per side 80-90 kg. It’s enough for the boat.

If we make a boat 10 cm wider, the parameters of payload, stability and insubmersibility will increase by 10 – 15%, but the boat will loose up to 20% of speed. You will have to row 1 hour 15 minutes instead of 1 hour. But if we make the boat 10 cm narrower and decrease the tube diameter up to 30 cm, the bearing capacity per side will be 25-30 kg only. We shall be very careful. That’s why the optimal width of the boat is 1,3 m.

Weight of the paddles

This feature is very important for the rowing boat! The weight of sport paddles is measured in grams. Your paddles also shall be as light as possible. When you make a choice between several boats, please check the weight of paddles before making your decision. It will be much harder to row with heavier paddles.

The shape of paddles

This small detail is really important for a rowing boat. Handbreadth-shaped paddle looked bigger and more powerful. It looked more sophisticated than straight paddle. But such paddle is also heavier than straight paddle. Simple paddle with a narrow flat blade is smaller and lighter. The lighter the paddle construction, the longer you will be able to row without fatigue.

So, let’s leave big handbreadth-shaped paddles to the well-trained professionals and take classical paddles with straight blades. Such paddles with the area of approximately 600 cm² will perfectly fit for the long and comfortable rowing.

Prow lifting

Usually people are rowing backwards. They can’t look forward all the time. And in case it’s winding and head sea, the prow shall be able to climb any wave. The prow of AQUASTAR rowing boats is lifted correctly. The lifting angle is 20⁰. The water doesn’t get inside and no splashes even in case of high waves.