lashing packrafts together for running bigwater?

Tips & Technique
#1

Anyone tried this before? I was thinking of the possibility of using cordage and sticks to lash 3 or 4 packrafts together.

For the 3 raft configuration: lash two side by side, and then lash another up front with its stern between the bows of the others. The two rear paddlers could each take one of their blades off and paddle like rafters.

For a 4 raft configuration link two sets of two rafts together one in front of the other, then link these two new tandems side by side. Everyone would remove one of their paddle blades and paddle like rafters.

#2

By “bigwater” I assume you mean big waves, big hydraulics, and big holes. Seems like a bad idea to me. To many fulcrum points which would make the paddling extremely difficult, maneuvering would be slow and anything from precise. I`v seen “bigwater” snap a aluminum frame on a full size raft in half, so “sticks” are probably not the best idea. If and when they break you now have broken pointy sticks tied to your boat if in is still inflated and has not popped yet, and try not to poked your eye out or anything else. Give it a try if you want and post how it goes, but I feel this is far from a safe technique especially for “big water”.
Not meant to be offensive toward your idea, you may find a way to make it work safely, but in my 20+ years paddling, guiding, and instructing whitewater I have seen a number of bad ideas have life threatening consequences when it goes wrong.
Just my thoughts

#3

An alternative to sticks would be pairs of mating lash points on the outside of the tubes of the rafts. For example on rafts to be used side by side. On the left side of one raft fore and aft there would be high and low strap plates matching right side high and low strap plates on the other raft. tighten them together before inflating so that when inflated the two rafts share a vertical wall section of hull held together by air pressure. Similarly done for the bow-stern rigs, although differently done for tandems. The trick is having tubes smashed against one another so the boat is rigid. Have to work around the inflation valves on the front boats. No sticks to break, not much of a weight penalty and quick to rig.

Probably would be a good idea to be prepared to rig a long boat this way on any multi-raft crossing of big water or when traveling big flat rivers, so the motors can take turns.