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Traditional Boats... a sense of entitlement?


Derek Porteous

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On 11/06/2019 at 17:53, dor said:

A few years ago I was waiting to go down at Maureen's lock (Wardle lock) in Middlewich.  It was quite busy with a few boats waiting to go up.  A "working" boat turned up and the crew put the boat straight into the Middlewich Branch under the bridge, just below the lock.

As one of them came up all smiling and swinging his windlass, complete with waistcoat and neckerchief, Maureen told him in no uncertain terms to get to the back of the queue and don't ever try and pull that "working boat" stunt again.  Crew went back sheepishly to the boat and it backed out to wait its turn.

Lovely to watch!

The canal needs more Maureens.  We still miss her. If anybody knew about working boats it was Maureen.

 

 

14dlzme.jpg

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1 minute ago, catweasel said:

The canal needs more Maureens.  We still miss her. If anybody knew about working boats it was Maureen.

We came though Maureen's lock on one occasion behind a boat full of what looked like rugby players. One of the chaps was struggling to lift the bottom gate paddle so Maureen walked over and whipped it up with ease. She then turned to him in front of his mates and just said "Have you not had your Weetabix this morning?" and asked back to her front door. As you can imagine all his mates just fell about laughing.

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On 14/06/2019 at 12:42, MoominPapa said:

The rudest person I've ever met on the cut was in charge of an unconverted historic boat. He was even ruder than the second rudest person I ever met on the cut, who had a clonecraft.

 

MP.

 

 

The rudest person I have ever met on the cut, and possibly in my life, was operating an historic horse drawn boat a few years ago. A truly awful person. A lady in a moored pleasure boat on the Coventry was a close second.
Other than the horse boat, I have always got along with owners of historic/working craft. 

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4 hours ago, furnessvale said:

I thought Allchins were 1.5" so there you go, there's always someone to look down on.

 

Anyone got a Mamod? ?

 

George

Aye I've still got my Mamod traction engine that I got when I was 10. Rebuilt it completely a few years ago for its 50th birthday in fact. Still goes well at 54 years old.

 

 

12794516_10204190414199712_2281436574021323381_n.jpg

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1 hour ago, catweasel said:

Aye I've still got my Mamod traction engine that I got when I was 10. Rebuilt it completely a few years ago for its 50th birthday in fact. Still goes well at 54 years old.

 

 

12794516_10204190414199712_2281436574021323381_n.jpg

Thats an old one, reverse lever a brass tap and the burn your fingers whistle. None of the 1970 heath and safety insulated stuff. I stripped one of mine to bare as well

nice. I must not not rebuild my collection that I sold in oz.

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34 minutes ago, roland elsdon said:

Thats an old one, reverse lever a brass tap and the burn your fingers whistle. None of the 1970 heath and safety insulated stuff. I stripped one of mine to bare as well

nice. I must not not rebuild my collection that I sold in oz.

Bought new on 21st February 1966. One careful owner, never raced or rallied. ;)

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13 hours ago, Rob-M said:

We came though Maureen's lock on one occasion behind a boat full of what looked like rugby players. One of the chaps was struggling to lift the bottom gate paddle so Maureen walked over and whipped it up with ease. She then turned to him in front of his mates and just said "Have you not had your Weetabix this morning?" and asked back to her front door. As you can imagine all his mates just fell about laughing.

That is an old trick, and I'm not above (below?) Playing it on occasion!

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1 hour ago, Mike Todd said:

That is an old trick, and I'm not above (below?) Playing it on occasion!

Not quite sure what you mean. The chap couldn't raise the paddle but with her years of boating experience the ageing Maureen whipped it up showing it isn't about brute force but having the correct technique.

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A lock-keeper told me that the secret is to put your windlass on the spindle and give it a feeble tug.  This lulls the paddle into thinking that you are not serious.  Then take it by surprise and yank it up.

Try it - it works!

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8 hours ago, Rob-M said:

Not quite sure what you mean. The chap couldn't raise the paddle but with her years of boating experience the ageing Maureen whipped it up showing it isn't about brute force but having the correct technique.

Surely it must have happened to most boaters before long. You try to lift a difficult paddle and manage but a turn or two. As you draw breath, someone else comes along, "Let me do it for you" at which point the paddle lifts quite easily. Of course, what has happened is that the first turn or so drops the level the quickest and by the time the takeover has happened, some of the pressure on the paddle has been diminished, making it much easier to move.

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11 minutes ago, Mike Todd said:

Surely it must have happened to most boaters before long. You try to lift a difficult paddle and manage but a turn or two. As you draw breath, someone else comes along, "Let me do it for you" at which point the paddle lifts quite easily. Of course, what has happened is that the first turn or so drops the level the quickest and by the time the takeover has happened, some of the pressure on the paddle has been diminished, making it much easier to move.

A friend helped me for a fortnight on the Leeds Liverpool. I caught him out by doing this on countless locks. He never twigged. And I never told him. 

 

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5 hours ago, Chris Williams said:

A lock-keeper told me that the secret is to put your windlass on the spindle and give it a feeble tug.  This lulls the paddle into thinking that you are not serious.  Then take it by surprise and yank it up.

Try it - it works!

:clapping:

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On 12/06/2019 at 10:40, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

Actually, I've had that happen to me too. I challenged them and they came up with a feeble-sounding justification, something to do with long-lining IIRC.

 

But the deed was done and the lock refilling while I was arguing about it. Can any of the historic boaters here offer a reasonable explanation for this behaviour? 

 

 

Long-lining (proper) is only used on flights, where the line goes between locks. What was probably meant is that they were using a long line to tow the butty into the lock from the motor. If so it's possible to drop the line and let another boat through, but it then involves moving the motor boat out of the way, getting the other boat in, and then reversing the motor back into the lock mouth. By the time this has happened you could have got the butty through anyway.

 

On 13/06/2019 at 19:54, Jim Batty said:

We also accompanied a real, loaded, working boat through half a dozen locks on the GUC traveling north from Apsley ... whose skipper insisted we leave every set of top gates open as we proceeded. This finally irked us enough to resort to stopping for 'an early dinner' ... and let him continue on his own. And he was off with a snort! 

They would know (hopefully) which locks leaked, or which sections were river fed. Anything lower than Sewer Lock usually has plenty of water, though I try and shut the locks that only go up to a non-fed section.

On 15/06/2019 at 18:01, alan_fincher said:

If this were true, surely they would all leak to empty if left full.


Quite a few left emptyand with all gates shut will self-fill quite quickly.

So unless you know which is which, on an individual lock basis, surely it is best to close everything?

In a perfect world, with all gates shut, all locks should fill, as the top weir on these locks is set into the ground paddles, and then into the locks. However where the bottom gates leak badly this doesn't happen. There are a couple of examples where locks do leak so badly at the top (and this needs more local knowledge than most have) so it's not possible to assume bottom gates can always be left open.

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Saw this posted on the 22nd on the Braunston Historic boat rally topic.

 

"Yes, Chertsey andAldgate are there. Been there on the 48 hour moorings for nearly a week. Hasty is likewise. Hampton and Cyprus went through Norton Junction early afternoon."

 

If these boats have been on time restricted moorings, well over a week before the commencement of the rally, what is the justification?

just asking.

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Braunston, Grand Union Canal

Please be aware of restrictions in Braunston between Saturday 22 June and Friday 5 July 2019

for the Braunston Historic Boat Rally which is being held on Sat 29 June and Sun 30 June 2019

Please note the following mooring and cruising restrictions to accommodate the Rally:

Moorings

All the 48-hour moorings in Braunston will be suspended. This includes all the moorings from Braunston Turn to the Marina ladder bridge.

The suspended moorings will be in force as follows:

Braunston Turn to Bridge 91 (A45 Bridge) - From Wednesday 26 June until 1800 hours Sunday 30 June for the use of historic and non-historic boats booked into the rally (staff and stall holders).

Between Bridge 91 (A45 Bridge) and the Stop House - From 0800 Hours Saturday 22 June until 1800 Hours Sunday 30 June – historic and non-historic boats booked into the Rally (staff and stall holders - excludes permanent moorings).

Marina bridge to the ladder Bridge (Braunston Marina) - From 0800 Hours Saturday 22 June until 1800 Hours Sunday 7 July - historic boats only (unless spaces become available after the show

They are taking the Mickey and illustrating a "Sense of Entitlement ".

 

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1 minute ago, johnmck said:

Braunston, Grand Union Canal

Please be aware of restrictions in Braunston between Saturday 22 June and Friday 5 July 2019

for the Braunston Historic Boat Rally which is being held on Sat 29 June and Sun 30 June 2019

Please note the following mooring and cruising restrictions to accommodate the Rally:

Moorings

All the 48-hour moorings in Braunston will be suspended. This includes all the moorings from Braunston Turn to the Marina ladder bridge.

The suspended moorings will be in force as follows:

Braunston Turn to Bridge 91 (A45 Bridge) - From Wednesday 26 June until 1800 hours Sunday 30 June for the use of historic and non-historic boats booked into the rally (staff and stall holders).

Between Bridge 91 (A45 Bridge) and the Stop House - From 0800 Hours Saturday 22 June until 1800 Hours Sunday 30 June – historic and non-historic boats booked into the Rally (staff and stall holders - excludes permanent moorings).

Marina bridge to the ladder Bridge (Braunston Marina) - From 0800 Hours Saturday 22 June until 1800 Hours Sunday 7 July - historic boats only (unless spaces become available after the show

They are taking the Mickey and illustrating a "Sense of Entitlement ".

 

Same as pretty much any festival or trading event for all or any type of boat. Book into one and give yourself a sense of entitlement.

 

JP

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When i went past chertsey it had a big sign saying please feel free to moor alongside. 

 

I used to work 10 day stretches and if i was planning on doing something like go to a rally i used to have to go early and leave the boat,  I sometimes used to make an arrangement. Maybe these boats have who knows.

 

i can just see it, sorry hospital you will have do without me for , someone is objecting to my mooring patterns.

 

course i could just get one of those special permission to stay signs..( im anxious about going through the next lock, ) like the heap moored near my moorings on the towpath since who is into the white good breaking business on the bank.

Since february 

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I posted because normally, any infringement of mooring regulations would be jumped upon.

But this has been ignored on the associated post. Just wondered why.

Personally, I would moor out of the busy hub that is Braunston, until it was time to occupy my designated spot..

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5 minutes ago, johnmck said:

Personally, I would moor out of the busy hub that is Braunston, until it was time to occupy my designated spot..

That's fine for those who can move boats during the week maybe.

However in my pre-retirement days when taking a boat to festivals, it was not unusual to have to move it there over the proceeding weekend, and take it away the weekend after.

 

There are many who would be excluded from bringing their boats without the arrangements that CRT put in place to facilitate it, but at the end of the day its CRT's decision,and anybody who is unhappy with it is free to register a complaint with them.

 

It's not really about "historic boaters  sense of entitlement" though, is it, as many other canal events not involving "historics" do exactly the same thing?

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2 minutes ago, alan_fincher said:

However in my pre-retirement days when taking a boat to festivals, it was not unusual to have to move it there over the proceeding weekend, and take it away the weekend after.

Sure, but would you moor on a 48hr mooring a week before the mooring was reserved for the event, or would you moor somewhere nearby then move the last bit to the event at the appropriate time?

 

 

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1 minute ago, alan_fincher said:

That's fine for those who can move boats during the week maybe.

However in my pre-retirement days when taking a boat to festivals, it was not unusual to have to move it there over the proceeding weekend, and take it away the weekend after.

 

There are many who would be excluded from bringing their boats without the arrangements that CRT put in place to facilitate it, but at the end of the day its CRT's decision,and anybody who is unhappy with it is free to register a complaint with them.

 

It's not really about "historic boaters  sense of entitlement" though, is it, as many other canal events not involving "historics" do exactly the same thing?

But it is.

If I moored on a 48 hour mooring for ten days, and you noted my prescence, you would comment on here. Because it's a historic boat, it's ok.

There are miles of moorings outside of Braunston. Why the need to abandon the boat contrary to the mooring restrictions. Its double standards.

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