Is it just us that complains about volunteer lock keepers

[magnetman]

25 minutes ago, doratheexplorer said:

A warning:  My experience of the Thames lockies last year is that they're worse than the CRT volockies on the whole.  I took to cruising early mornings so I could do the locks myself, before the lock keepers arrived.  One in particular was downright dangerous.

Thats intriguing. 

 

I've been up and down the Thames in all sorts of boats including narrow boats, single handed for nearly 3 decades and only once had an actual bad experience with a lock keeper. 

 

I don't know what it is that happens but I suspect there is some friction between people who think going through Thames locks is the same as canal locks. 

 

It isn't. There are byelaws around how you must handle the boat. If you don't agree with the byelaws don't come on the River. 

 

I can't see what else is causing the problems. 

 

If course there is personality as well. I suppose people's manner of dealing with disagreement varies. 

[billS]

I've never seen vollies on Claydon either. I am starting to wonder if there is a team of them following Nick around in a minibus...

 

 

 

 

Edited July 7, 2022 by billS

[magnetman]

Maybe they put a tracker on his boat. 

 

 

[Midnight]

1 hour ago, MartynG said:

The sluice on one side only has been  working for some time . So it couldn't be the wrong paddle.

And its "Hazelford".

If it's possible to keep the boat at the downstream end of the locks on the Trent the turbulence is much reduced. 

In that case why didn't he suggest I tie up on the other side? There were only two boats behind. Apologies for the speeling mistake I'll boil my head and sandpaper my eyes if you will forgive me.

[billS]

8 minutes ago, magnetman said:

Maybe they put a tracker on his boat. 

 

 

It may be the advanced CRT training program. They only get awarded their official windlass once they have demonstrated that they have given Nick satisfaction and eased his passage without complaint.

[Rob-M]

31 minutes ago, doratheexplorer said:

Bad lockie experiences that I remember was the utter assholes at Stenson Lock on the T&M and Torksey Lock on the Trent/Fossdyke.  Also the guys on the Atherstone flight are a waste of space.

 

To balance that a bit, I recently cruised the Severn and the lock keepers there were fabulous as usual, especially the husband and wife team who had a lock each.  Last year I was helped up the Marsworth Flight on the GU by a pair of incredibly helpful and polite volockies.

Stenson is the closest I've ever come to putting a volockie in the cut due to the way he was speaking to my wife.

[magnetman]

He has unwittingly become part of an initiation ceremony? 

 

Oh dear !

[doratheexplorer]

8 minutes ago, magnetman said:

Thats intriguing. 

 

I've been up and down the Thames in all sorts of boats including narrow boats, single handed for nearly 3 decades and only once had an actual bad experience with a lock keeper. 

 

I don't know what it is that happens but I suspect there is some friction between people who think going through Thames locks is the same as canal locks. 

 

It isn't. There are byelaws around how you must handle the boat. If you don't agree with the byelaws don't come on the River. 

 

I can't see what else is causing the problems. 

 

If course there is personality as well. I suppose people's manner of dealing with disagreement varies. 

The first problem I had was towards the Brentford end.  Not sure which lock it was (Molesey Lock maybe?).  I was going up.  I asked the lock keeper how he wanted me to tie up since I was new to the Thames.  (I'd come through Teddington the previous afternoon in a lock full of boats so there was no change of moving sideways.)  The lock keeper basically shrugged his shoulders.  I suggested a centre line might be enough since I wasn't aware of how strong the current would be, and I've done that before on the Severn and the lockies then fill the lock slowly.  Again, a shrug of the shoulders.  I tied with a centre line only and before I'd even secured the boat, the lockie had whipped the paddles up and my boat was lurching dangerously sideways across the lock, nearly draggging me in with it.  I shouted to the lockie to drop the paddles and he just stared at me.  I then screamed at the lockie to drop the paddles and he did while my boat was bouncing off the sides of the lock.  I then made him wait while I tied bow and stern and was able to let him raise the paddles again. 

 

I mentioned it to the lockie at the next lock and the response was that it was a fairly typical experience with that lockie and that he was generally a miserable bugger.

2 minutes ago, Rob-M said:

Stenson is the closest I've ever come to putting a volockie in the cut due to the way he was speaking to my wife.

There's a word for the volockie at Stenson.  It starts with a C and rhymes with punt.

[Midnight]

2 hours ago, nicknorman said:

My point was simply that it incorrect to assume that volunteering to do something is always welcome, and I was making that point in a humorous (to me) way.

 

Aside from the sensitivity of others I thought your comments quite funny too, but please desist or I will shag your.... oh maybe not! 😳

Edited July 7, 2022 by Midnight

[magnetman]

9 minutes ago, doratheexplorer said:

The first problem I had was towards the Brentford end.  Not sure which lock it was (Molesey Lock maybe?).  I was going up.  I asked the lock keeper how he wanted me to tie up since I was new to the Thames.  (I'd come through Teddington the previous afternoon in a lock full of boats so there was no change of moving sideways.)  The lock keeper basically shrugged his shoulders.  I suggested a centre line might be enough since I wasn't aware of how strong the current would be, and I've done that before on the Severn and the lockies then fill the lock slowly.  Again, a shrug of the shoulders.  I tied with a centre line only and before I'd even secured the boat, the lockie had whipped the paddles up and my boat was lurching dangerously sideways across the lock, nearly draggging me in with it.  I shouted to the lockie to drop the paddles and he just stared at me.  I then screamed at the lockie to drop the paddles and he did while my boat was bouncing off the sides of the lock.  I then made him wait while I tied bow and stern and was able to let him raise the paddles again. 

 

I mentioned it to the lockie at the next lock and the response was that it was a fairly typical experience with that lockie and that he was generally a miserable bugger.

There's a word for the volockie at Stenson.  It starts with a C and rhymes with punt.

 

As that was the first lock after Teddington I suspect the keeper there can't be arsed to interact too much about how boats are tied up. 

 

Things like centre lines in narrow boats are known to cause quite a lot of arguments. The lock keeper doesn't know the person on the boat. Probably just not interested in potential for conflict. 

 

One should be au fait with the byelaws if using the River. These do require that boats are secured from bow and stern. 

 

It's not optional although due to the large amount of conflict which does occur "I know how to handle my boat!" quite a lot of keepers will not be that interested. 

 

It sounds like you presented as being non confrontational so maybe you did get a bad lock keeper that day. 

 

 

[MtB]

41 minutes ago, billS said:

I've never seen vollies on Claydon either. I am starting to wonder if there is a team of them following Nick around in a minibus...

 

 

Nor have I until Monday morning, when a pair turned up at about 9am on the lock next to my mooring. They hung around for 45 minutes with nothing to do then a posh shiny Braidbar boat came through and they followed it up to Claydon. 

 

I got the impression they were there to work that boat up the southern Oxford, from the way they hung about so long then pushed off once that one single boat passed through.

 

Edit to add: Hang on, it was Tuesday, not Monday.

 

Edited July 7, 2022 by MtB

[Athy]

36 minutes ago, billS said:

I've never seen vollies on Claydon either. I am starting to wonder if there is a team of them following Nick around in a minibus...

 

 

 

 

Thinking of the make of NN's boat, I am surprised that the butler doesn't operate the locks. But then we hear in the news that there are staff shortages in many sectors.

[doratheexplorer]

3 minutes ago, magnetman said:

 

As that was the first lock after Teddington I suspect the keeper there can't be arsed to interact too much about how boats are tied up. 

 

Things like centre lines in narrow boats are known to cause quite a lot of arguments. The lock keeper doesn't know the person on the boat. Probably just not interested in potential for conflict. 

 

One should be au fait with the byelaws if using the River. These do require that boats are secured from bow and stern. 

 

It's not optional although due to the large amount of conflict which does occur "I know how to handle my boat!" quite a lot of keepers will not be that interested. 

 

It sounds like you presented as being non confrontational so maybe you did get a bad lock keeper that day. 

 

 

The official rules on the Severn require bow and stern lines in locks but the lockies know that isn't really the best way for single handers so they usually let you run a centre line round a cable and back to your stern where you can control it.  Then they fill the lock extra slow to ensure it's safe.  The alternative is to tie a loose loop around the cable at the bow and then leave it unattended when you return to the stern.  This risks the bow line snagging.

 

Perhaps I should have memorised the byelaws for the Thames but you'd think asking the Lockie what to do would give the correct answer.  Perhaps he didn't know the byelaws?  And even allowing for all that, it absolutely does not excuse raising paddles before the boat is securely tied or standing there like a gormless mouth-breather while the boat owner is shouting for the paddles to be dropped and the boat is slewing sideways across the lock.  That's just downright dangerous.

[Athy]

1 minute ago, MtB said:

 

Nor have I until Monday morning, when a pair turned up at about 9am on the lock next to my mooring. They hung around for 45 minutes with nothing to do then a posh shiny Braidbar boat came through and they followed it up to Claydon. 

 

I got the impression they were there to work that boat up the southern Oxford, from the way they hung about so long then pushed off once that one single boat passed through.

 

Are you sure it was a Braidbar and not a Hudson?

[Midnight]

1 minute ago, Athy said:

Are you sure it was a Braidbar and not a Hudson?

Virtual smiley😆

[MtB]

4 minutes ago, Athy said:

Are you sure it was a Braidbar and not a Hudson?

 

Yes definitely a Braidbar. And going north too, so not his Normanship.

[haggis]

9 minutes ago, MtB said:

 

Nor have I until Monday morning, when a pair turned up at about 9am on the lock next to my mooring. They hung around for 45 minutes with nothing to do then a posh shiny Braidbar boat came through and they followed it up to Claydon. 

 

I got the impression they were there to work that boat up the southern Oxford, from the way they hung about so long then pushed off once that one single boat passed through.

 

Edit to add: Hang on, it was Tuesday, not Monday.

 

Perhaps those boaters had asked C&RT for help on specific locks rather than just rely on volunteers being on the locks that day. I gather that some volockies are assigned to specific locks on certain days while other volunteers are sent to assist boaters who have asked for help. 

 

Haggis 

[magnetman]

16 minutes ago, doratheexplorer said:

The official rules on the Severn require bow and stern lines in locks but the lockies know that isn't really the best way for single handers so they usually let you run a centre line round a cable and back to your stern where you can control it.  Then they fill the lock extra slow to ensure it's safe.  The alternative is to tie a loose loop around the cable at the bow and then leave it unattended when you return to the stern.  This risks the bow line snagging.

 

Perhaps I should have memorised the byelaws for the Thames but you'd think asking the Lockie what to do would give the correct answer.  Perhaps he didn't know the byelaws?  And even allowing for all that, it absolutely does not excuse raising paddles before the boat is securely tied or standing there like a gormless mouth-breather while the boat owner is shouting for the paddles to be dropped and the boat is slewing sideways across the lock.  That's just downright dangerous.

Are you sure it was a lock keeper? 

 

It does sound very dodgy. I would have put in a report about that. 

 

I did once get someone who I thought was a lock keeper due to their dress code (hi viz jacket rainy day) but they were another boat user and had no idea. 

 

On the other side of the coin I have been identified as a lock keeper on more occasions I can recall, when no lock keeper was at the lock. People seem surprised that I am actually on a boat going through, like they are.

 

I missed my vocation. 

 

 

Edited July 7, 2022 by magnetman

[Athy]

1 minute ago, haggis said:

Perhaps those boaters had asked C&RT for help on specific locks rather than just rely on volunteers being on the locks that day. I gather that some volockies are assigned to specific locks on certain days while other volunteers are sent to assist boaters who have asked for help. 

 

Haggis 

That is entirely possible - though why they should require help through the quite easy (and, incidentally, very pretty) Claydon flight is a mystery.

They may, of course, have accompanied the boat from somewhere further down, such as Cropredy, possibly because of crew illness or disability.

[doratheexplorer]

13 minutes ago, magnetman said:

Are you sure it was a lock keeper? 

 

It does sound very dodgy. I would have put in a report about that. 

 

I did once get someone who I thought was a lock keeper due to their dress code (hi viz jacket rainy day) but they were another boat user and had no idea. 

 

On the other side of the coin I have been identified as a lock keeper on more occasions I can recall, when no lock keeper was at the lock. People seem surprised that I am actually on a boat going through, like they are.

 

I missed my vocation. 

 

 

He was definitely the lock keeper.  And remember the lockie at the next lock wasn't surprised by my description of what happened with him.

[Momac]

1 hour ago, Midnight said:

In that case why didn't he suggest I tie up on the other side? 

Probably because everyone else  tolerates the turbulence without complaint.

You would have received the same service from a paid lock keeper.

 

 

[peterboat]

Well Nick, I was single handed to Castleford so I have been overjoyed to find locks manned by volunteers is all I can say, they made my trip easier and safer, so no complaints from me

[Alan de Enfield]

1 hour ago, billS said:

once they have demonstrated that they have given Nick satisfaction and eased his passage without complaint.

 

 

Oooooo Matron ............................

[peterboat]

Just now, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

Oooooo Matron ............................

Mmmm norty but nice 🤣🤣🤣

[magnetman]

52 minutes ago, doratheexplorer said:

He was definitely the lock keeper.  And remember the lockie at the next lock wasn't surprised by my description of what happened with him.

I have heard from someone else about a problematic keeper at Molesey. There is sometimes an irritating woman part time keeper who lives on a boat but this one was a male. Probably the same person you encountered. 

 

 

15 minutes ago, peterboat said:

Well Nick, I was single handed to Castleford so I have been overjoyed to find locks manned by volunteers is all I can say, they made my trip easier and safer, so no complaints from me

Slightly different to Claydon locks though ! Claydon is one of the tamest set of locks around. Nicely laid out, pleasant little house at the top and no likelihood of problems apart from water level issues. 

 

First time I went up there in 1994 the house by the top lock was for sale. £35k no road access and a diesel generator in a brick shed.