Thanks to modern technology, we currently live in the age of smartphones, autonomous robots, satellite navigation, and ... foldable boats? Well, that’s certainly what it looks like. Just within the past couple of years, we’ve covered a folding rowboat, paddle board, sea kayak and canoe. Now, word comes to us of another boat-to-go, known appropriately as The Transporter.
Unlike the other watercraft listed above, the Transporter doesn’t fold flat. Instead, its modular design allows it to be taken apart and carted around in the form of a box. This means that it could simply be thrown in the back of a truck or on the rooftop rack of a car, as opposed to being towed.
The base package consists of one 4-passenger compartment (which also serves as the transport box), along with two polyurethane-coated closed-cell pontoons and a nose cone – they can reportedly be attached to or removed from the compartment, without the need for tools, in about ten minutes. The pontoons float on their own, so the Transporter should remain afloat even if you run it into an iceberg.
When folded down into its passenger compartment, the stowed boat measures 3 x 4 feet x 20 inches (91 x 122 x 51 cm) – no figures are available regarding its weight, although it's reportedly much lighter than a similarly-sized aluminum boat. A package including an add-on second compartment and two more pontoons is also available, that’s US Coast Guard-approved for up to seven passengers. Buyers of that version can still use just the front compartment and pontoons, when that’s all that’s needed.
The Transporter also includes padded seats on top of the pontoons – it’s reportedly stable enough that this won’t cause any tipping-related problems. Additionally, gear can be stored inside of the pontoons. As a bonus, because the pontoons are made from foam, they provide insulation to keep things like beverages cold.
The single-comportment Transporter is priced at US$2,295, with the two-compartment version going for $2,995. A trolling motor and battery are available as optional extras.
The boat can be seen in use, and being assembled, in the video below.
Source: Better-Outdoors.com
