초록 ▼

An inflatable kayak having a multi-position footrest spaced from the seat of the kayak is disclosed. The multi-position footrest allows the kayak to accommodate operators of various sizes. The kayak may also include front and rear recessed cargo compartments which allow a significant quantity of car

An inflatable kayak having a multi-position footrest spaced from the seat of the kayak is disclosed. The multi-position footrest allows the kayak to accommodate operators of various sizes. The kayak may also include front and rear recessed cargo compartments which allow a significant quantity of cargo to be carried on the kayak without significantly raising the center of gravity of the kayak and without causing the kayak to become unbalanced.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A sit-on-top kayak comprising:an inflatable hull; a seat; and a plurality of inflatable footrests incrementally spaced from the seat. 2. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 1,said plurality of footrests being recessed relative to the inflatable hull. 3. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 1,said inflatable h

1. A sit-on-top kayak comprising:an inflatable hull; a seat; and a plurality of inflatable footrests incrementally spaced from the seat. 2. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 1,said plurality of footrests being recessed relative to the inflatable hull. 3. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 1,said inflatable hull defining first and second spaced-apart recessed openings, said plurality of footrests being disposed in the recessed openings. 4. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 3,said plurality of footrests including a first set of the footrests disposed in the first recessed opening and a second set of the footrests disposed in the second recessed opening, said first and second sets of footrests including more than one footrest each. 5. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 4,said first and second sets of footrests having separate inflatable bladders. 6. The sit-on-top kayak f claim 4,said inflation hull being elongated along an axis of elongation, said first and second recessed openings being spaced from one another in a direction which is substantially perpendicular to the direction of extension of the axis of elongation. 7. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 6,said recessed openings being elongated in a direction which is substantially parallel to the direction of extension of the axis of elongation. 8. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 4,each of said footrests presenting a respective foot-contact surface facing generally towards the seat, each of said foot-contact surfaces having a width in the range of from about 3 to about 12 inches and a height in the range of from about 2.5 to about 12 inches. 9. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 8,each of said footrests including a crest representing the uppermost point on the footrest, each of said footrests presenting a severely sloped portion and a moderately sloped portion, said severely sloped portion and said moderately sloped portion being located on generally opposite sides of the crest, said severely sloped portion presenting the foot-contact surface. 10. The sit-on-tap kayak of claim 8,said foot-contact surfaces of the first set of footrests being spaced from one another on about 3 to about 18 inch centers, said foot-contact surfaces of the second set of footrests being spaced from one another on about 3 to about 18 inch centers, each of said foot-contact surfaces having a surface area in the range of from about 6 to about 24 square inches. 11. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 1,said inflatable hull including an inflatable main body and a inflatable center section, said center section being at least partially surrounded by the main body, said center section presenting an upper surface, said footrests being recessed at least 1 inch below the upper surface. 12. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 11,said center portion including a lower seat support member, said lower seat support member defining a bottom portion of the seat, said lower seat support member being recessed relative to the upper surface. 13. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 1,said inflatable hull defining a front recessed cargo compartment, said inflatable hull defining a rear recessed cargo compartment, said seat being disposed generally between the front and rear recessed cargo compartments. 14. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 13; anda front cargo cover releasably coupled to the hull and configured to cover at least a portion of the front recessed cargo compartment; and a rear cargo cover releasably coupled to the hull and configured to cover at least a portion of the rear recessed cargo compartment. 15. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 1,said inflatable hull including a recessed lower seat support member, said lower seat support member defining a bottom portion of the seat. 16. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 15,said seat including an inflatable back support coupled to the inflatable hull, said seat including a pair of spaced-apart inflatable side supports coupled to the inflatable hull and the inflatable back support. 17. The sit-on-top kayak of claim 16,said lower seat support member being disposed generally between the inflatable side supports, said inflatable back support extending generally between the inflatable side supports, said lower seat support member being disposed generally between the inflatable back support and the inflatable footrests. 18. An inflatable watercraft comprising:an inflatable hull elongated along an axis of elongation; and a plurality of spaced-apart footrests, said hull including an inflatable main body and an inflatable center section substantially surrounded by the main body, said center section including a lower seat support member, a first recessed opening, and a second recessed opening, said lower seat support member, said first recessed opening, and said second recessed opening being spaced from one another, said plurality of footrests including a first set of footrests disposed in the first recessed opening and a second set of footrests disposed in the second recessed opening. 19. The inflatable watercraft of claim 18,said first and second recessed openings being elongated in a direction substantially parallel to the direction of extension of the axis of elongation. 20. The inflatable watercraft of claim 18,said footrests of the first set of footrests being spaced from one another in a direction substantially parallel to the direction of extension of the axis of elongation, said footrests of the second set of footrests being spaced from one another in a direction substantially parallel to the direction of extension of the axis of elongation. 21. The inflatable watercraft of claim 20,said center section including first and second recessed floors defining the bottom of the first and second recessed openings respectively, each of said footrests of the first and second sets of footrests extending at least about 2 inches above the first and second recessed floors, respectively. 22. The inflatable watercraft of claim 21,said center section presenting an upper surface, said first and second recessed floors being recessed at least about 2 inches below the upper surface. 23. The inflatable watercraft of claim 22,each of said footrests presenting a respective foot-contact surface facing generally towards the lower seat support member, said foot-contact surfaces having a width of at least about 2 inches and a height of at least about 2 inches. 24. The inflatable watercraft of claim 23,said foot-contact surfaces of the first set of footrests being spaced from one another on about 3 to about 18 inch centers, said foot-contact surfaces of the second set of footrests being spaced from one another on about 3 to about 18 inches centers. 25. The inflatable watercraft of claim 23,said first and second recessed floors being recessed about 3 to about 24 inches below the upper surface, each of said footrests of the first and second sets of footrests extending about 2.5 to about 12 inches above the first and second recessed floors, respectively, said foot-contact surfaces having a width of about 3 to about 12 inches and a height of about 2.5 to about 12 inches, said foot-contact surfaces of the first set of footrests being spaced from one another on about 5 to about 15 inch centers, said foot-contact surfaces of the second set of footrests being spaced from one another on about 5 to about 15 inch centers. 26. The inflatable watercraft of claim 18,said inflatable hull defining a front recessed cargo compartment, said inflatable hull defining a rear recessed cargo compartment, said footrests being disposed generally between the front and rear recessed cargo compartments. 27. The inflatable watercraft of claim 26; anda front cargo cover releasably coupled to the inflatable hull and configured to cover at least a portion of the front recessed cargo compartment; and a rear cargo cover releasably coupled to the inflatable hull and configured to cover at least a portion of the rear recessed cargo compartment. 28. An inflatable watercraft comprising:an inflatable hull including a front portion and a rear portion; and an inflatable sear positioned generally between the front and rear portions and arranged so that an operator of the inflatable watercraft sits in the seat with the operator's legs being exposed on a top of the inflatable hull, said front portion including a recessed front cargo compartment, said rear portion including a recessed rear cargo compartment. 29. The inflatable watercraft of claim 28; anda front cargo cover releasably coupled to the front portion and covering at least a portion of the front cargo compartment; and a rear cargo cover releasably coupled to the rear portion and covering at least a portion of the rear cargo compartment. 30. The inflatable watercraft of claim 29,said front and rear cargo covers being cargo nets. 31. The inflatable watercraft of claim 28,said front and rear cargo compartments each defining an internal volume of at least about 20 cubic inches. 32. The inflatable watercraft of claim 28,said front and rear cargo compartments each defining an internal volume in the range of from about 50 to about 500 cubic inches. 33. An inflatable watercraft comprising:an inflatable hull including a front portion and a rear portion; and an inflatable seat positioned generally between the front and rear portions, said front portion including recessed front cargo compartment, said rear portion including a recessed rear cargo compartment, said front portion presenting a front upper 3 surface and a front compartment base surface, said rear portion presenting a rear upper surface and a rear compartment base surface, said front and rear compartment base surfaces defining the bottom of the front and rear cargo compartments, respectively, said front and rear compartment base surfaces being recessed at least about 0.5 inches below the front and rear upper surfaces, respectively. 34. The inflatable watercraft of claim 33,said front and rear compartment base surfaces being recessed about 0.75 to about 12 inches below the front and rear upper surfaces, respectively. 35. The inflatable watercraft of claim 33,said front upper surface and said front compartment base surface being defined along substantially parallel planes, said rear upper surface and said rear compartment base surface being defined along substantially parallel planes. 36. The inflatable watercraft of claim 28; anda plurality of inflatable footrests disposed generally between the seat and the front portion. 37. The inflatable watercraft of claim 36,said footrests being incrementally spaced from the seat. 38. The inflatable watercraft of claim 37,said plurality of footrests including a first set of footrests and a second set of footrests, said first and second sets of footrests including at least 2 footrests each, said first and second sets of footrests being laterally spaced from one another. 39. The inflatable watercraft of claim 38,said watercraft being a sit-on-top kayak. 40. An inflatable sit-on-top kayak comprising:an inflatable hull including a front portion and a rear portion; a seat disposed generally between the front and rear portions; and a plurality of inflatable footrests disposed generally between the seat and the front portion, one of said front and rear portions defining a first recessed cargo compartment. 41. The inflatable kayak of claim 40,said first cargo compartment defining an internal volume of at least about 20 cubic inches. 42. The inflatable sit-on-top kayak of claim 40,the other of said front and rear portions defining a second recessed cargo compartment. 43. The inflatable kayak of claim 42; anda front cargo cover releasably coupled to the front portion and covering at least a portion of the first cargo compartment; and a rear cargo cover releasably coupled to the rear portion and covering at least a portion of the second cargo compartment. 44. The inflatable kayak of claim 40,said footrests being incrementally spaced from the seat. 45. The inflatable kayak of claim 44,said inflatable hull defining a pair of spaced-apart recessed openings, each of said recessed openings receiving at least 2 of the footrests. 46. The inflatable kayak of claim 40,said inflatable hull including a lower seat support member defining a bottom portion of the seat, said seat including an inflatable back support coupled to the hull, said seat including a pair of spaced-apart inflatable side supports coupled to the hull and the back support, said lower seat support member being disposed generally between the side supports, said back support extending generally between the side supports.