Inflatable castle

The first inflatable structure was designed in 1959 by John Scurlock in Shreveport, Louisiana who was experimenting with inflatable covers for a government request for proposal when he noticed his sons enjoyed jumping on the air structure. He was an electrical engineer and liked physics. Scurlock was a pioneer of inflatable domes, inflatable tents, inflatable signs and his greatest achievement was the invention of the safety air cushion that is used by fire and rescue departments to catch people jumping from buildings or heights.

The first space walk manufacturing company was in New Orleans in a leased warehouse that also sewed horse pads. His wife, Frances, started the first inflatable rental company in 1966 and in 1976 they built a custom facility for the production and rental of the products. They marketed the space walks to children's events such as birthday parties, school fairs and company picnics. These original inflatables did not have the enclosure of today's inflatables.

Their son Frank Scurlock expanded their rental concept throughout the United States under the brand names "Space Walk" and "Inflatable Zoo” starting out while he was in High School. He was inspired by his parents New Orleans location and saw a National opportunity. He grew it to 200 privately owned locations before transferring to family in 2013 when he retired at 50 to focus on other projects.

In the early 1990s Frank designed the Aqua Tunnel which was the first Inflatable Water Slide and now the mainstay of the inflatable industry.

Frank also opened an all inflatable indoor play park called "Fun Factory" 1986 in Metairie, Louisiana on Thanksgiving Day. Frank had worked on the initial Pizza Time Theatre restaurant chain with video games suppling Ball Crawls and Bounce pillows while in his early 20s. Frank traveled the United States visiting several kiddie parks such as Nathan's Physical Whimsical in Englewood Colorado in 1982 & Nathan's Physical Whimsical in Houston Texas in 1984. He also visited Penny Whistle Park in Houston and Sesame Place in PA. He realized the need for a totally “Soft” non mechanical park with an Education component. Mr. Scurlocks second location was opened in Memphis Tennessee called "Fun Plex" in 1987 which was the largest indoor park in the country at the time as it was 4 indoor tennis courts. A third unit was opened in the Plaza Mall in New Orleans called Play N Place that was 5400 sq ft. The locations closed after the value of the property became too great as they were retail locations. Newer versions started popping up in Warehouses for less operational cost. Frank kept the admission price at only $4.50 plus tax so everyone could afford. Ultimately the design was copied and thousands of locations were opened independently under various brand names. Franks inspiration came from his parents giving him business cards that said “Future President” while he was in 5th grade at 10 years old. While Frank was President of his inflatable dynasty he ran as an Independent Candidiate for President of the United States in 2020.

The first inflatable was an open top mattress with no sides, called a "Space Pillow". In 1967 a pressurized inflatable top was added, it required two fans and got hot in the summer like a greenhouse. That version was called "Space Walk" and was adopted as the company name.

In 1976 a design change was made to column structure with Netting windows called the Jupiter Jump.

From their graphics were added for theming which is commonplace to this day.

Much larger Interactive pieces were designed to create an inflatable revolution which continues to grow Globally.

More people jump on inflatables annually than attend theme parks and it all started in New Orleans by the Scurlock family.

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In 1974, to solve the heat problem, a new product line called "Jupiter Jump" was created that has inflated columns that supported netting walls which allowed the air to pass through. Further enhancements of this style were developed such as a line of castles and animals which are referred to as the "Inflatable Zoo". In the early 1990s, Frank created the first commercial inflatable water slide called the "Aqua Tunnel". Space Walk was the first company to bring an inflatable to the IAAPA convention, Showmen's Club and the American Rental Association.

The 1975 Neiman Marcus catalog included a closed inflatable trampoline called 'The Moon Walk'. It was designed to increase children's safety.[4]

The other story which has not been written about is the actual creation of the Moonwalk. This was designed and invented by the Regehr family in the 1960's. It was after that the Scurlock family said it was there creation back in the 1959 which cannot be documented. This simply is not true. Vern and Bob Regehr were years ahead of the other family and have been recognized as such many times over. The families fortune was derived from this invention. They also were the family that designed the many themed moonwalks over the decades such as Spiderman or Waterslides. With the help of Randall Paul in Michigan, the idea to market these for children parties brought this business to another level. Thanks to Randall and his ingenious marketing strategies to bring this into the homes at an affordable price parties for kids are just not the same without a moonwalk!.

John Scurlock is considered the Father of the Inflatable for Amusesments and Recreation use and documented with the filing of his first patent in 1960s. https://patents.google.com/patent/US3137307A/en

Later on England started building “Bouncy Castles” which usually had open fronts.

The main difference between Scurlock’s design is that his were engineered using physics and technology from NASA and building inflatable structures prior to 1960. The Moon Walk required substantial number of ground anchors to work and used a tuck system for the play area. These were more common place at Carnivals. Scurlock’s designs used a Rib system with anchors in the corners and built with portable uses in mind such as birthday parties, fairs and picnics. The later proven more beneficial for the rental industry.

Today most inflatables are made offshore however a few firms still make domestically.

Space Walk remains the largest organization that is focused on the rental industry which continues to grow.

With COVID 19 home use of inflatables greatly expanded while the indoor play parks suffered with the operational expenses.

A new large scale sealed inflatable playground for floating on water is the newest trend in the industry.

The surfaces are typically composed of thick, strong PVC or vinyl and nylon, and the castle is inflated using an electric or petrol-powered blower. The principle is one of constant leakage, meaning small punctures are not a problem - a medium-size "bouncy castle" requires a fan with a mechanical output of about two horsepower (about 1.5 kW) and consumes around 2 kW of electrical power, allowing for the efficiency of the motor.

UK and Australian bouncy castles have specifications calling for fully inflated walls on three sides with an open front and foam "crash mats" to catch children who may jump or fall out of the structure.

Modern moonwalks in the US are typically supported by inflatable columns and enclosed with netting. The netting allows for supervision as adults can see in from all sides.

Another type of home-use inflatable has evolved, with a blower pumping in air continuously. Pores in the seams and material allow air to escape as children play, while the blower continues to inflate the unit. This category has emerged as a response to parents who wish to buy an inflatable for home use.

A child-sized inflatable obstacle course

There are also inflatable obstacle courses that allow for participants to have races/sword fights and compete against one another. These are commonly rectangular in shape, but can also be square if the course is maze-like. Most obstacle courses have two lanes, but some can have three or four. They feature various such as pop-up obstacles, climbing areas, slides, and tunnels. These are the best choice for very large events since participants move through them quickly.

Some inflatables are designed to allow games such as boxing rings, water football, penalty shootouts, basketball, rumbling, tug of war, and gladiator duels. These interactive inflatable games are made out of the same material that a continuous airflow bounce house is made of. Quad tracks are also popular and provide the perimeter for Quad bike racing.

According to U.S. studies published in the journal Pediatrics in 2012, injuries caused by inflatable rides have been on the rise in the United States. In 2010, "as many as 31 U.S. children per day were treated for injuries sustained in a bounce house, or one child every 46 minutes". That is an estimated 65,000 children under the age of 17 that have been injured from 1990 to 2010.[8] From 2000-2015, there were 64 bounce house accidents in the United States caused by wind, resulting in 271 injuries and 10 deaths.[9]

In May 2001, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission released a bulletin outlining the dangers and recommended safety precautions for operating an inflatable structure.[10] In 2015, after studying the incidents of injury the Consumer Product Safety Commission released a revised bulletin for the recommended safety precautions for operating an inflatable device.[11]

• List of inflatable manufactured goods

• Media related to Bouncing castles at Wikimedia Commons