Tam & Di Posted March 3, 2020 Report Share Posted March 3, 2020 Sadly I hear John Wooley has just died. Some will remember him right back from when he stopped being an accountant to run Iver Boatyard and the hire fleet there, but more importantly for his enormous skill and great knowledge working on wooden boats (indeed one or two here even worked with him on occasion). He put a couple of new planks in the ex-GUCCC wideboat Progress when we had her. Tam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balliol Posted March 4, 2020 Report Share Posted March 4, 2020 You forgot to mention “bravery” Tam. Somebody has to be brave to build varnished clinker hulls for hire boat use. Can’t remember the names. “The Regent” might have been one. “Grand Junction”? Sad news indeed, but obviously all that tar never did him too much harm. RIP. Balliol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Schweizer Posted March 4, 2020 Report Share Posted March 4, 2020 On 03/03/2020 at 12:33, Tam & Di said: Sadly I hear John Wooley has just died. Some will remember him right back from when he stopped being an accountant to run Iver Boatyard and the hire fleet there, but more importantly for his enormous skill and great knowledge working on wooden boats (indeed one or two here even worked with him on occasion). He put a couple of new planks in the ex-GUCCC wideboat Progress when we had her. Tam Very sad to hear of John's demise. He was friend of our Captain Dennis Papworth, and I knew him well back in the 1960's. On more than one occasion, we were commandeered for manual labour assistance with the renovation of an old wooden working boat, and we never got payed !! I remember the clinker boats that Balliol mentions, and John also experimented with concrete hire boats, but I don't think they were very successful. One interesting story about John is that one winter in the late 1960's, he helped collect a wooden Butty from Braunston which my friend had bought. They used Pisces to collect the butty, John was on the front end of Pisces when he slipped and fell off into very cold water. Dennis immediately put Pisces into neutral and they drifted along for some time when John suddenly popped up behind the butty. He had demonstrated extereemly brave will power, lying on the bottom of the canal holding his breath whilst two boats passed over him. Apart from being very wet and very cold, he seemed to suffer no ill effects. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Davis Posted March 8, 2020 Report Share Posted March 8, 2020 I never knew him but heard a lot about his work....what a legacy he left. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roland elsdon Posted March 8, 2020 Report Share Posted March 8, 2020 He did a survey on our composite butty Atalanta back in 1981. Just dug it out, handwritten on yellow lined notepad. Great detail about the elm bottoms, comments on the boards being worn because they were worn, and the elum needing boards. The need for ‘ tingles’ is noted on the Shoe board . with regard to the steel bits. ‘There is no apparent wastage or holes’. There is a man who didnt have time for modern new fangled steel. He finished the survey early and spent a good 90 minutes teaching me how to caulk the bottom boards and put oakum between the chine and bottom. A lovely person. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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