Sponson attachment for airboat

Abstract

A sponson attachment for an airboat allows the airboat to increase its safety and stability very quickly. A method for attaching a sponson to an airboat hull includes attaching first and second flexible tethers to a side of the sponson. The method also includes removably securing the first flexible tether to an exterior of the airboat hull adjacent a gunnel, and removably securing the second flexible tether below the first flexible tether on the exterior of the hull.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A method for attaching a sponson arrangement to an airboat hull, the method comprising:
 attaching a first flexible tether to a side of a sponson;   attaching a second flexible tether to the side of the sponson;   removably securing the first flexible tether to an exterior of the airboat hull adjacent a gunnel; and   removably securing the second flexible tether below the first flexible tether on the exterior of the hull.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising attaching a first tether attachment and a second tether attachment to the airboat hull, and wherein the first and second tether attachments include channels to removably secure the first and second flexible tethers thereto. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising placing the sponson within a sponson holder mounted at the exterior of the airboat hull adjacent the gunnel. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the gunnel is located along a first side of the airboat hull. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , further comprising attaching a second sponson to the airboat hull, wherein attaching the second sponson to the airboat hull includes:
 attaching a third flexible tether to a side of a second sponson;   attaching a fourth flexible tether to the side of the second sponson;   removably securing the third flexible tether to an exterior of the airboat hull adjacent a second gunnel on an opposite side of the airboat hull from the gunnel; and   removably securing the fourth flexible tether below the third flexible tether.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein attaching the first sponson and attaching the second sponson to the airboat hull positions the first and second sponsons in substantially parallel positions along the gunnel and the second gunnel of the airboat hull. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the sponsons include a plurality of baffles. 
     
     
         8 . An airboat hull sponson retrofit kit comprising;
 an inflatable sponson, the sponson having first and second tethers attached to a side thereof, each tether having an attachment cylinder secured to an end;   a first tether attachment including a channel configured to receive the attachment cylinder of the first tether; and   a second tether attachment including a channel configured to receive the attachment cylinder of the second tether.   
     
     
         9 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 8 , further comprising:
 a second inflatable sponson having first and second tethers attached to a side thereof, each tether having an attachment cylinder secured to an end;   a third tether including a channel configured to receive the attachment cylinder of the third tether; and   a fourth tether attachment including a channel configured to receive the attachment cylinder of the fourth tether.   
     
     
         10 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 9 , wherein the inflatable sponson has a first shape contoured to fit along a gunnel of an airboat hull, and wherein the second inflatable sponson has a second shape contoured to fit along a second gunnel of the airboat hull opposite the gunnel. 
     
     
         11 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 10 , wherein the second inflatable sponson has a shape that is a mirror image of the inflatable sponson. 
     
     
         12 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 10 , wherein, when mounted to the airboat hull, the inflatable sponson and the second inflatable sponson are located above a waterline of the airboat hull. 
     
     
         13 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 10 , wherein each of the inflatable sponson and the second inflatable sponson includes a plurality of baffles. 
     
     
         14 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 10 , wherein the inflatable sponson has a tapered end oriented to be attached toward a bow of the airboat hull. 
     
     
         15 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 10 , further comprising a first sponson holder and a second sponson holder rigidly attached to first and second sides of the airboat hull. 
     
     
         16 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 15 , wherein the first sponson holder and the second sponson holder each has a half-moon cross-sectional shape. 
     
     
         17 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 16 , wherein the half-moon cross-sectional shape has a convex shape. 
     
     
         18 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 16 , wherein the half-moon cross-sectional shape has a concave shape. 
     
     
         19 . The airboat hull sponson retrofit kit of  claim 16 , wherein the first sponson holder and the second sponson holder each include a plurality of rails. 
     
     
         20 . An airboat comprising;
 a fan propeller;   a motor coupled to the fan propeller;   a hull, wherein the motor powers the fan propeller, and the fan propeller propels the hull in a forward direction; and   a first and second inflatable sponson secured to the hull, each sponson being selectively removable from the hull and each being contoured to fit along opposite gunnels of the hull respectively, the an inflatable sponsons each having a plurality of tethers attached to a side thereof, each tether having an attachment member secured to an end; and   a plurality of sponson attachments secured to the hull, each sponson attachment including a channel, wherein each sponson attachment is configured to receive an attachment member of a tether.