If you read this blog, you know that there are many uses for inflatables. One use is particularly dumb and it’s seen often, at least in the movies. In almost every mainstream college party movie out there, someone jumps off a roof into a bounce house that has been rented for the occasion. This is not something that bounce houses are made for and we do not condone this activity and strongly recommend that you do not allow this at your parties. However, in certain instances, bounce houses have been used in this way for good reasons, like rescuing a bear trapped in a tree.

Huffington Post reports that a bear was stuck in a tree in Little Rock, Arkansas, recently. Once it was apparent that the bear was not going to leave the tree, a bounce house was brought in to help:

“Foster the Bear – named for the residential street where he holed up in a tree – wouldn’t budge from his branch Monday. So, authorities turned to a local hardware store owner who rents inflatable houses and castles for children’s birthday parties. They asked him to set up two of the bouncy contraptions beneath the tree. Then, wildlife officials shot the bear with tranquilizer darts.”

The article says that the bear was knocked out, but didn’t fall from the tree when shot. Then firefighters were brought in to hose the bear, who then fell onto the bounce houses that were set up. Luckily, Foster wasn’t hurt:

“The bear, about a year old, wasn’t hurt, though he did land in between a blow-up castle and the other inflatable house – kind of “like if you get something stuck between the wall and the bed,” as [Conway police spokeswoman La Tresha Woodruff put it]. Spectators who had been watching the bear in the tree for hours cheered and clapped, Woodruff said.”

The whole idea behind having a custom inflatable developed is based around making your business / company promotion as integrated with your mission as possible. For instance, if you own an athletic company, you’ll want to have an inflatable designed to look like a basketball or other sports-related product. Once you have an inflatable specific to your company, you’ll want to start bringing it to certain events that your business takes part in.

Here are some events you should feature your custom inflatable at:

Trade Shows – Trade shows are a great way to get out the word about your company’s product or services, especially since attendees are looking for specific types of businesses. However, being part of trade shows is a sometimes scattered affair, especially if the other companies there are in the same type of industry. Having a custom inflatable to go along with your booth (if they are allowed) is one definitive way to stand out from the other business owners there. If you sell children’s toys and clothing, installing a custom jumper branded with your business logo will bring over kids and parents in droves.

Amusement Parks – Every summer, hundreds of thousands of people flood through the gates of theme parks, looking for family fun and thrill rides. A lot of these parks sell prime reality to companies looking to advertise along the paths leading to the hottest new ride. How do you pull in attention in this setting? With a custom designed sky dancer or inflatable game, of course! Imagine the line of park-goers waiting to try their hand at shooting basketballs or throwing a fastball at an inflatable catcher.

There are hundreds of other places you should bring your custom inflatables to, especially when you want to expand your brand’s reach. Don’t forget how quickly a custom inflatable will pay for itself, particularly if you keep it up at your brick-and-mortar location all-year-round!

Every year, there is an onslaught of stories around various holidays (namely Christmas, Halloween and Easter) where a local couple is featured, showcasing a large number of inflatables on their front lawn. This blog has covered a few of these stories, primarily around Halloween, where one man was found having close to 60 inflatable decorations strewn around his home.  Having such a collection is something of an achievement, much like beating your party guests on an inflatable obstacle course. One question remains though – what do you do with all of the inflatables when the season is over?

One couple has found a solution, even if it isn’t exactly a happy end. According to the McPherson Sentinel, a couple has decided to sell their massive collection of holiday inflatables:

“Large inflatable decorations have become an expected sight in the yard of Susan and Michael McVicker during the years, but the couple is calling it quits on the collection they’ve been working on since 2003. A bright orange sign with the words, ‘All inflatables for sale’ stands next to their two nylon Easter bunnies, two of only 83 left in their stash. The couple began selling in August and hopes to empty the additional storage shed they specifically bought for the decorations.”

The article says that Susan and Michael started the collection in 2003 and have been amassing inflatables ever since. At various times of year, their yard has been host to assorted groups of the 190 inflatables that have been making a home with the McVickers:

“For Halloween, the McVickers have displayed up to 45 inflatables, including dancing ghouls and a spook house, two of which they claim are the most unique in their collection. For Christmas, the couple can boast a count of 95 inflatables, spilling out from the front yard into the sides and back.”

Since beginning the sale, more than 100 of the original inflatables have been sold.

Spring is finally here! If you’re anything like me, you’ve already starting thinking about the warmer weather and everything that comes with it. For one, I can’t wait for the first party of summer, complete with an inflatable slide or two. Is there anything better? However, there are other things happening in the world of inflatables we’ll be talking about something decidedly colder than the balmy weather.

An avalanche that claimed lives recently brought inflatable backpacks to the forefront of the sports safety industry, as I mentioned in a post a month ago. These backpacks would inflate in case of an avalanche, increasing the likelihood that snow wouldn’t fully encase a skier or snowboarder. Now, inflatable snowshoes are becoming a reality, primarily to help out stranded snowmobilers lost in the woods. According to an article in Mobile Magazine:

“[Signal Snowboards] came up with the idea after hearing reports about stranded snowmobilers. In one case, two snowmobilers reportedly ran out of gas and got stuck in deep snow only about a mile from a lodge…they were unable to get back to safety before night time and were found frostbitten the next day. The inflatable snowshoes could be helpful as anyone can end up in such a situation.”

The article says the snowshoes can be easily carried along with other tools and equipment. Made from sturdy material, you can inflate the snowshoes by mouth or pump and will provide a lot of benefits for anyone who needs support while hiking in the snow:

“Each inflated snowshoe will give you more than 540 sq in of surface area for walking on snow without getting too tired. It can be inflated by mouth, although the company says that a bike pump or CO2 inflator should be used for best results, and will work fine for people weighing up to 250 lbs.”

Beyond this, the snowshoes also provide users with increased traction as well. The uses for inflatables continue to amaze me.

Inflatables like bounce houses and obstacle courses are always a good time and bring a level of fun to your parties, charity events and other places where entertainment is needed. Although inflatables are usually considered only as a means of entertainment, we have looked at other uses in this blog that have contributed to safety causes, the medical world and a plethora of other fields. This week, we will be looking at three distinctive uses of inflatables as educational tools.

Inflatable Brain – The Pekin Daily Times has a story about The MEGA Brain, which is the world’s only walk-through inflatable brain. The size of this brain truly is MEGA, judging from the specs listed in the article: “measuring 18 feet long, 14 feet wide and 12 feet high.” Visitors don’t just walk through – they can also see what happens when brain injuries occur and also see what new medical treatments are being developed.

Inflatable Planetarium – A staple of many schools, the inflatable planetarium at Bronxville School is a huge hit with students. According to a story on lohud.com, one teacher went above and beyond to bring this educational inflatable to his school: “[Sixth-grade science teacher Frank] Viggiani wanted it for his students, and sat down and wrote a grant request to the school’s educational foundation. Viggiani applied for the $40,000 the Digitalis planetarium cost (including teacher training) and was one of 17 projects that got the go-ahead for the 2011-12 school year.” The students already love the planetarium and so do the teachers, the article says.

Inflatable Colon – Kentucky’s NBC14 has a fun story about an inflatable colon, which is being used to raise awareness for issues involving colon cancer. Furthermore, the 10 foot colon will also inform people about how to care for your digestive system and get screened for cancer. The article says that the colon is currently making its way around Kentucky.