Inflatable of the Day 4/1
23Thus begins my next installment of daily features, now featuring vinyl inflatable toys! Most, if not all, of them will be cute animals, and a lot of them will be canines. Each post will give specific details about the inflatable (or toy, as we call them) such as size, year of manufacture, original cost, and builder. I hope you all enjoy this feature as much as Diesel of the Day!
Today’s featured inflatable is the G&G Wolf, otherwise known as Fenris! He is a dire wolf, scientific name canis dirus, an extinct species of prehistoric wolf that was much larger than today’s wolves…though not quite as big as Fen is! Some of you may already know of Fen, as he’s my favorite, and I’ve posted pictures of him before. Fenris was part of a limited run of what are called custom inflatables, which basically means they are not mass produced, but rather a small number are made for customers who preorder the design. Fen was made by a company called G&G inflatables, standing for the founders’ last names, Geiger and Golightly. He cost about $400 new in 2010. (He’s almost a decade old!) Fenris is 7 feet tall, and is made of thick, very strong but soft vinyl and can easily support the weight of an adult on his back. For flexibility, each of his legs is a separate air chamber. He has been countless places with me, including fundraisers, charity events, conventions, and other functions. He’s starting to show his age a bit, but isn’t slowing down any time soon! He’s very popular with everyone who sees him.
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And he’s awesome!
@f00l He says you’re awesome, too
POPSOCKETS! ROAD ROCKETS! SONNY CROCKETT! AWESOME!
What a gorgeous creature! Maybe all the long-timers know this, but how did you get started collecting these?
@Kyeh I have always been into inflatable things from an early age, probably because they’re soft and cute. I also really love wolves, so when I learned an inflatable wolf was to be made, it was a no-brainer. Once I had Fenris and saw how amazing he is, I decided he needed friends!
@PooltoyWolf This has to be one of the coolest collections I’ve ever heard of; I’m a collector (of many types of things!) and know several others, but I have never known anyone who collected these!
@Kyeh I’ll take the compliment! Just wait until you see all of the ones I have lined up for the remaining days in April
Yep, you know I love, love, love Fenris!!
@llangley You made him blush!
Me: “Whoa!”
Me: “Whew!”
I’ve asked about it before, but I’m still really surprised at the longevity you’re getting out of your inflatables.
@Limewater With proper care and maintenance, they can last a very long time. One of the toys I plan to feature this month is now over 60 years old!
@PooltoyWolf I think you’ve already incidentally posted a picture of that one.
Do you do anything special for long-term storage? I assume you keep them away from direct light and in a climate-controlled environment, but is there anything else you have to do?
@Limewater The most damaging thing is exposure to oil or oil-based stuff, especially skin oil. As long as you make sure not to get oils on them, they won’t become brittle. Long-term sun exposure is bad because ultraviolet rays break down plastic, and certain strong chemicals, like acetone, damage vinyl. Other than that, they’re pretty resilient. Oh, and of course, as the packaging says, keep away from hot and sharp objects.
@PooltoyWolf When does the inflatable for 4/2 get posted? Or are we just supposed to post to this thread each day?
@therealjrn It’ll be different times of day, due to my schedule, but there will be one each day (in the unlikely event I forget a day, I’ll do more than one the next day)!
@PooltoyWolf Did you know that today is the 2nd day of April?
You can’t April Fool me!
That’s really cool. Love the fact that you are using Fenris, and he isn’t just sitting around deflated all the time. I’m sure he is always ready to come out to play!
@chienfou You know it! He doesn’t enjoy being folded up all the time. In fact, I have to threaten to leave him behind when he doesn’t want to be deflated at the end of a trip
Is he six hundred pounds of sin?
@DennisG2014 More like twenty pounds of sin!