question for you highly intelligent whitewater gurus...

[milo]

i need to get my story straight....what is the difference between a duckie, inflatable kayak and an inflatable canoe? is there a difference at all? or is it kinda like car-vehicle-rig-ride..? the one i borrowed had some concealed styrofoam floor panels....2 seats(to my suprise)... was pinkish in color and it self bailed(and leaked like hell) the side walls(?) were about 9-10 inches tall and rode low in the water...i would like to submit an adventure story( more like a DUMB-OFF) but want to avoid(if possible) sounding unenlightened, uneducated... any info would be appreciated and you will get credited.....

[stiff]

Pretty simple: duckie==inflatable kayak (IK)

I've never heard of an inflatable canoe, but that is probably exactly the same as the other two. An IK is shaped more like an inflatable canoe and I've always though that's what it should be called, but it probably doesn't sound very cool. Also IK's self bailing floor can do big rapids while you can't do big rapids in a canoe.

I guess they also call it an IK because you sit with your behind on the floor. A canoe has seats where you sit higher. I've never seen an IK with an actual seat where you sit higher, but if it exists, I guess inflatable canoe would be more accurate.

I've also heard them called a 2 or 1 man raft. But, that's not quite accurate either. Since raft or IK don't really describe it too well, you might as well give them a new name, like duckie.

These are almost all self bailing. Yea, the cheap ones have water leaking in. Not all. It's also a function of how much weight you put in it.

An IK is a great way to get in to kayaking and a great way to take kids on rivers.

[danger]

"i need to get my story straight..." "the one i borrowed was pinkish in color and it self bailed(and leaked like hell) the side walls(?) were about 9-10 inches tall and rode low in the water..." "i would like to submit an adventure story..."

sounds like you were wasted and hooked up with a fat chick!

[cayo]

milo,
duckie is a deragatory or self effacing term referring to following rafts around like a duckling following its mom all small one and two person inflatables are commonly called duckies some duckies are specifically designed and marketed as canoes paddled kneeling or sitting up on the thwart with a one bladed paddle (although many use a kayak paddle) they are longer and usually for tandem and solo paddling
most duckies are ik's(there are sit ontops seakayaks and packcats too ) paddled kayak style sitting on your ass with two bladed paddle one and two man
some duckies perform more like canoes(long ones including 2 person ik's), some like mini rafts(short wide ones with big, over11", tubes") some more like kayaks length around 10" under 35"'wide less than11"tube diameter you cant go much shorter without lowering wieght capacity too much or making it wider wider =mini raft
generally duckies kick ass for beginner forgivability,ease of storage, travel portability,self supported wilderness trips
highgrade pvc and urethane duckies are great for elfin' and non hairball creekin' (() hypalon grabbs/sticks on rocks alot more but is very tough)
i like iv/iv+ creekin most duckiests prefer popular 3 -4, but i know a guy who runs grand canyon gore and the gorge at 4000+cfs the boats can hang if you can i'm rambling hope this helps milo checkout an old buyers guide issue of paddler or canoe and kayak if you can they have tables of specs classifications ,etc may even have apicture of boat you were in if it had a foam floor it could have been a thrillseeker or aire lynx


















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[milo]

wow! you guys are well informed whitewater gurus....thanks...i guess what i borrowed was a DUCKY...no danger,....no "big boned" girl stories here..."rubber ducky, you're the one".....you made the BLACK CANYON so much fun...."

[Mike B]

Here are a couple of links to some worthwhile runs we used to do in duckies (Thrillseeker IK's) back in the 90's. This is back when creek boats were still 10+ feet long. Point is that a good IK can handle quite a bit. I still have 2 of them in my garage, they just don't see the light of day much anymore.

http://www.cacreeks.com/wooley.htm

http://www.cacreeks.com/brandy.htm

Mike

[Mike Harvey]

I ran the Grand with a German couple that used an inflateable canoe. It looked exactly like a duckie but had a saddle like you would see in a ww canoe. It was a real eye opener for me to realize the full extent that Euros will go to find the dumbest outdoor sports possible.

[Deb O'Keefe]

As you probably guessed, Duckie is the regional term for inflatable, and somewhat insulting, but still used in commmercial settings. Also called a Croc overseas and a few other names I can't recall. Anyway, the floors vary, as you found out you have a foam reinforced floor., others are simply air filled. I use two models from Aire for striding, neither with foam floors, but i know Jeff Snyder has experiamented with foam floors and not been too happy.

So if you own this boat, consider finding the leak (s) and modify it for striding. It is super great fun standing up riding the rapids. Also a great boat to lend to friends who want to try boating. i hope this helps ya out in your fact finding from intelligent sources.
debs