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“Canal boating Celebrities”


frangar

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37 minutes ago, blackrose said:

 

So what is "the true way of life on boats" exactly? 

 

Surely we all lead different lives. I think they're gay so their way of life will be different from mine and mine will probably be different from yours. I'm not a fan of their channel but if they live aboard then their way of life is as valid and true as anyone else's.

 

I hate to burst some mythical waterways bubble but there's no such thing as a true way of life on boats.

 

I have lithium batteries so I'm definitely a true boater.

 

Us true boaters carry ourselves with a certain  je ne sais quoi.  

 

(And I am seldom entirely free of mud at this time of year= which doesn't help my je ne sais quoi. )

.

 

Edited by Tony1
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15 hours ago, blackrose said:

 

So what is "the true way of life on boats" exactly? 

 

Surely we all lead different lives. I think they're gay so their way of life will be different from mine and mine will probably be different from yours. I'm not a fan of their channel but if they live aboard then their way of life is as valid and true as anyone else's.

 

I hate to burst some mythical waterways bubble but there's no such thing as a true way of life on boats.

 

Surely there is? Two parents and four kids (without school) living in a 7' long back cabin, water from the can, stove and paraffin lamp, occasional wash-days in a dolly tub on the towpath, working 16 hour days for very little money... 😉

Edited by IanD
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16 hours ago, captain birdseye said:

Personally I think at best, they are well intentioned but ignorant of the true way of life on boats

 

They're liveaboards, so it's a true life on boats. But I kind of get what you mean.

 

Their videos convey a kind of modern floating flat vibe. Whereas, the overwhelming vibes I get of boaters are: half-homeless folk and/or alcoholics with not long left, a lot of retired folk who seem content, natty dreads, shiny boat types (e.g., Cruising the Cut), and hire boaters either having a horrible or a great time.

 

This year's theme for us has been trying to avoid having our gennie or solar panels nicked, and it seems a sentiment from other liveaboards on this stretch.

 

Conveying any of that on YouTube wouldn't be particularly interesting.

Edited by Thomas C King
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8 minutes ago, Thomas C King said:

This year's theme for us has been trying to avoid having our gennie or solar panels nicked, and it seems a sentiment from other liveaboards on this stretch.

 

Conveying any of that on YouTube wouldn't be particularly interesting.

 

But it would be realistic and a proper representation of 'life'.

 

 

 

Dont want to hear the truth.jpg

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I'd concur that most of their avid watchers don't live on boats but think they might like to.  The problem is that these vlogs present a pretty skewed idea of what liveaboard life is like and typically paint a fairly rose tinted picture.  This makes more and more people jump on the bandwagon which causes a few unwanted consequences.  It also creates an idea of the 'proper' way of doing things or the 'proper' equipment needed.  I'm sure the Foxes' composting loo saga initial led to other following suit which then led to CRT's change of rules.  Do the Foxes' feel and responsibility for this?  Who knows?  They changed their boat soon after to a foreign buyer who probably doesn't really understand the issue with the composting loo.

 

I occassional watch youtube videos relating to backpacking/long distance hiking/wild camping.  There's a fair few so called 'celebrities' in that world too.  They often review new kit which has just been released and it's amazing how quickly these are then widely adopted to the point where you suddenly see certain brands being used/worn which were almost unheard of a couple of years earlier.  It may be because those brands are good, but it's also quite possible that it's the same bandwagon jumping and creates a sort of uniform which 'proper' hikers must own.  I suspect a similar thing happens on the canals, but it's less obvious.  Choices of furnishings, toilets, solar installations and all sorts of boating gadgets are likely to be affected, so I can understand how these vloggers can make a decent living.

 

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44 minutes ago, Thomas C King said:

 

That's funny, when I first asked questions about how to install our Lithiums on here there seemed to be so many saying they're dumb etc. etc. (I personally like them). Salt-of-the-earth types probably use Lead Acids.

Real boaters don't have any new-fangled batteries, they start the engine with a starting handle/flywheel peg and use paraffin lamps at night...

 

In more modern times they might have a battery-powered wireless, and maybe visit a Comet Battery Store occasionally (and later Comet Radio Services, who might even rent you the radio too) to swap it for a freshly-charged one, or get one delivered.

 

Of course some real boaters frown on this as too much nasty modern technology 😉

Edited by IanD
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9 minutes ago, IanD said:

Real boaters don't have any new-fangled batteries, they start the engine with a starting handle/flywheel peg and use paraffin lamps at night...

 

In more modern times they might have a battery-powered wireless, and maybe visit a Comet Battery Store occasionally (and later Comet Radio Services, who might even rent you the radio too) to swap it for a freshly-charged one, or get one delivered.

 

Of course some real boaters frown on this as too much nasty modern technology 😉

Engine?  Real boaters use an 'oss

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3 hours ago, doratheexplorer said:

I'd concur that most of their avid watchers don't live on boats but think they might like to.  The problem is that these vlogs present a pretty skewed idea of what liveaboard life is like and typically paint a fairly rose tinted picture.  This makes more and more people jump on the bandwagon which causes a few unwanted consequences.  It also creates an idea of the 'proper' way of doing things or the 'proper' equipment needed. 

 

This is the bit which I find irritating. The Foxes are not the worst for this by a long way - their videos seem to be more about what they are doing than telling people the right way of doing it and I quite enjoy some of them, but there is one particular set of vlogs by another pair of 'waterways celebrities' where the message appears to be that anyone actually wanting to get somewhere is 'rushing' and 'doing it wrong', and that what I would regard as efficient progress is actually dangerous and rude. There is one particular video on the Caldon where they are incensed by the boat behind them which keeps catching them up at every lock. Given that they regard 4hrs of cruising and 6 locks as a hard day, I am not surprised they keep being caught up, but they regard the boat behind as at fault. The problem becomes when 300 of their 30,000 followers also get a boat, and assume that they are correct. Each to their own, but when someone whose sole experience comes from a Youtube Influencer starts telling you you're doing it wrong it gets very galling - see comment earlier today about 5hrs to get through Penkridge!

 

Alec

Edited by agg221
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2 hours ago, agg221 said:

This is the bit which I find irritating. The Foxes are not the worst for this by a long way - their videos seem to be more about what they are doing than telling people the right way of doing it and I quite enjoy some of them, but there is one particular set of vlogs by another pair of 'waterways celebrities' where the message appears to be that anyone actually wanting to get somewhere is 'rushing' and 'doing it wrong', and that what I would regard as efficient progress is actually dangerous and rude. There is one particular video on the Caldon where they are incensed by the boat behind them which keeps catching them up at every lock. Given that they regard 4hrs of cruising and 6 locks as a hard day, I am not surprised they keep being caught up, but they regard the boat behind as at fault. The problem becomes when 300 of their 30,000 followers also get a boat, and assume that they are correct. Each to their own, but when someone whose sole experience comes from a Youtube Influencer starts telling you you're doing it wrong it gets very galling - see comment earlier today about 5hrs to get through Penkridge!

 

Alec

I'm glad I've never seen that vlog.  Could you direct me to the Penkridge comment?

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Surely it is a Good Thing when a boat catches up with you at a lock, because its crew help with the lock procedure and thus you get through more quickly, chugging off with a cheery cry of "See you at the next one".

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1 minute ago, Athy said:

Surely it is a Good Thing when a boat catches up with you at a lock, because its crew help with the lock procedure and thus you get through more quickly, chugging off with a cheery cry of "See you at the next one".

Sadly this seems to be getting less and less common. I can understand those who don’t want paddles raised for them having had some bad experiences myself but it seems even closing gates etc is now considered too much. Sadly I agree with the above that some people new to the cut think that those who blog are experts and know what they are doing…this is rarely the case I find…Mike Askin being a notable exception…and I don’t think he really classes himself as a blogger….

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5 minutes ago, Athy said:

Surely it is a Good Thing when a boat catches up with you at a lock, because its crew help with the lock procedure and thus you get through more quickly, chugging off with a cheery cry of "See you at the next one".

Not always.  Sometimes they just hover about staring at you.

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20 minutes ago, frangar said:

Sadly this seems to be getting less and less common. I can understand those who don’t want paddles raised for them having had some bad experiences myself but it seems even closing gates etc is now considered too much.

Yes, I find it increasingly common that when I am following a boat through locks, whether hopeless and slow, or reasonably competant and efficient, that when I suggest they get on their boat and I will close up behind them, they seem surprised. It used to be standard practice.

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2 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Yes, I find it increasingly common that when I am following a boat through locks, whether hopeless and slow, or reasonably competant and efficient, that when I suggest they get on their boat and I will close up behind them, they seem surprised. It used to be standard practice.

Still is, even for some hire boaters... 😉

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38 minutes ago, doratheexplorer said:

Not always.  Sometimes they just hover about staring at you.

We've occasionally had that. Inexplicably, it has the effect of making me move ever so s-l-o-w-l-y.

 

If it's a hire boat, I sometimes go up to it and politely explain that people on the canals generally help each other through loks. On a few occasions I've given them a bit of tuition in how to do so.

Edited by Athy
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41 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Yes, I find it increasingly common that when I am following a boat through locks, whether hopeless and slow, or reasonably competant and efficient, that when I suggest they get on their boat and I will close up behind them, they seem surprised. It used to be standard practice.

Its the same when sending any spare crew you have to work others through a lock....Ive even been waiting in the queue at say Watford and both me and the OH have worked boats coming the opposite direction while some just sit on their own boats tutting about how long its all taking.....My OH has been known to ask if they might also like to lend a hand...or words to that effect....

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49 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Yes, I find it increasingly common that when I am following a boat through locks, whether hopeless and slow, or reasonably competant and efficient, that when I suggest they get on their boat and I will close up behind them, they seem surprised. It used to be standard practice.

And, of course, it is in your interest as well as it allows you to get on with re-setting the lock sooner!

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