Banzai Falls Sidewinder Blast

by Manley

Product Features

• This slippery Side Winder inflates in less than 3 minutes with the included continuous-airflow blower motor and easily attaches to any hose!
• Heavy-duty Dura-TechTM construction ensures lasting strength and durability while the constant airflow helps resist small tears and punctures
• Safe Soft-Bottom Landing Pad

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 100 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• ASIN: B000RP5DAK
• Item model number: Sidewinder Blast
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #164,974 in Toys & Games (See Top 100 in Toys & Games)
  • #67 in Toys & Games > Sports & Outdoor Play > Pools & Water Fun > Lawn Water Slides
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)

Product Description

Set up the Banzai Sidewinder Falls in your yard, where kids can scale the climbing wall of this 10 foot tall water slide and ride the banked curve all the way into the base splash pool. Or leap strait through the back portal and slide right in. This slippery Sidewinder Falls inflates in less than 3 minutes with the included continuous-airflow blower motor and easily attaches to any hose. Heavy-duty Dura-Tech construction ensures lasting strength and durability.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

117 of 118 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lots of work, but worth the effort, August 29, 2007

By 

A. Kohmann - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Durability:4.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:3.0 out of 5 stars 

Against my husband's better wishes (he's not the one who has to be home with the kids all summer), I bought the Banzai Sidewinder Blast in June. That being said, the first thing everyone needs to know about this slide is it is HEAVY. Because he didn't approve of the purchase, my husband wanted nothing to do with the slide... wouldn't even help me carry it to the garage for storage.

So, upon recommendations of others on this forum, I bought a huge 55 gallon wheeled Rubbermaid container which I am able to use to drag the slide out in to the back yard. I was surprised to find that no matter how diligently I fold and roll up the slide, I cannot get it to fit in the container with the lid on. So, if you can find a container bigger than 55 gallons, get it. I have a separate Rubbermaid box on wheels that I use to store the hoses, blower, and other equipment that comes with the slide plus tarps I have bought to put under the slide to keep it clean. So, the next thing you need to know is that it is HUGE and you will need a pretty big place to store it. If you would have to take it up or down stairs, it would be a HUGE pain!

Once you get the slide out to a level spot in the yard(must be very level, or all the water will go to one end of the pool), you have to roll out and adjust the slide so that the air tube is the right direction (in my instance, closest to the house so the cord reaches...remember, it is HEAVY).

Then, if you choose, you have to hook up all the hoses to the velcros all the way around the slide... (it's fun... like a puzzle) then hook the slide hose up to your garden hose. So, you also have to make sure the slide is close enough to your house to be sure that a garden hose will reach, too.

Since it was a big expense for me (I work part time, and as I said earlier, there was no way my husband was going to help out), I try to take very good care of the slide which includes laying tarps down underneath, indoor/outdoor rugs and feet-washing bins at the entrances of the 2 slides, etc. I also bought 2 padded exercise mats at Wal-Mart that I place under the end of the big slide so the kids have a softer landing. In all, set up time takes me about 25 minutes, though lately I have omitted the hooking up the hoses part and just let the kids squirt the slide with the garden hose when it gets dry, to that knocks off about 10 minutes.

Then, FINALLY, the kids get to play. The biggest thing you should know about this slide is IT IS FUN!!! SOOOOO FUN!! My two girls (ages 4 and 6) will play for 2-3 hours at a time and much longer if friends are over. It is good exercise going up and down over and over. I thought they would like hanging out in the pool more, but really the big slide is the attraction. I would say if you have younger children, the pool part is nice... plus it is nice for mom to hang out in to cool off. Teenagers who weigh over 180 have been on our slide. It droops a little, but as long as you have the weight sack attached, it doesn't tip over. All 4 year olds and some 3 year olds have been able to climb up the big slide, but most of the younger ones like the little slide and the pool.

When the fun is over, the next big task is draining, cleaning, and drying. Typically, we just let the slide deflate and let all the water run out the side. Then we blow it back up and dry out the pool part with a sqeegie and towels. If you are lucky, there will still be sun left to help dry it out after the kids are done. If not, it takes a good bit of time for it to dry enough to pack up. AND, you do want it to dry completely. I thought ours was dry (I left it out one full day after we used it before packing up last time), but got it out today after a week of not using it, and it had started to get moldy.

Overall, the fun factor makes this slide worth all the effort. It is cheaper than a pool, but certainly not as convenient.

As far as durability, we have had no problems whatseover (hope I didn't just jinx myself). We have used it about 14 times with a multitude of kids, and no leaks or tears that I can detect. It is starting to fade, but hopefully it will last for years to come!

Sorry this is so long, but hopefully it helps!

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for every backyard!, May 26, 2007

By 

Sl Judge "gatormomz" (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

Like the previous poster, we have the other Bonzai slide as well. I have to disagree though. I don't find it a nightmare to clean at all. The kids have a blast on it and enjoy the wading pool at the bottom.

Today, during a bbq, we had 6 kids on it - ages 8 to 19! No worries with the 400lb weight limit!

It was nice to see one toy keep so many children occupied for so many hours. Needless to say, by the end of the day, my children met a lot of new friends who came over to see what this huge slide was all about!

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A lot of fun A lot of water A lot of Supervision, June 13, 2007

By 

C. moore (beaufort, sc United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Durability:4.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:3.0 out of 5 stars 

Ok the kids loves this. I bought it for my sons bday party and we had seventeen kids in and out of this thing. I worried the whole time about the kids being to rough and either sliding down together... backwards... you name it. I even had a few kids who tried to get a jump start at the top of the slide. I thought they were going to go over the side. So you do have to supervise. At one point the power was interuppted and my daughter was at the bottom of the climbing wall going up above her was a bigger girl and above her was my little nephew. Needless to say when the power cut off the slide instantly began to deflate. The big girl fell onto my tiny daughter and my nephew was stuck until someone could get him out and get the power going again. The pump/blower is always on. It was not noisy so it was ok. But make sure you have an outlet close to were you want to set up. or you are going to have to use an extension which is not reccommended. The rock wall was way to steep and some of the bigger kids had a hard time getting up. And some of the kids tried to slide down the wall-- big no no. supervise... The little slide didn't have enough slope so the kids just used that part as a hideout or lounge area. Setup was not that bad. We put it on a very large tarp so dirt and grass wasn't that big of a deal. Once you got it in the general area and turned on the blower it placed itself. Like I said you have to keep the blower and the water running. you cannot leave this setup for the next day. the little guns were ok but of course the kids loved to squirt each other in the face...supervise...the pool was not deep enough so when the kids slide down the complained that there little tooshies hurt. So the pool could have been a little deeper to avoid a hard landing. The kids loved to gather at the top of the slide and its a wonder none of them broke through the little mesh screen....supervise.... now my cousin and I decided to go on this after all the kids had gone and we had a blast...barely got up the slide... and hurt our bums.... well if you want something to use day after day, this is just not economical and not to mention all the supervision. for a one day event it was ok. ours is back in the box and maybe we will take it out for the fourth of July.(only if it is at someone else's house).