Singlehanded. Asked to do swing bridges, not in a nice way.

[LadyG]

4 minutes ago, Jerra said:

Out of interest how far apart along the system do you think Life Rings should be spaced.

 

Does it matter, the most dangerous areas are locks, 

How many notices are needed ? We have read one,. No need for ten tbousand

Edited July 12, 2022 by LadyG

[jupiter1124]

As a single hander (in more ways than one ) I'm also frustrated by the way swing bridges always seem to be operated from the off side. It just seems like a strange design! They often do have a single bollard either side on the offside so what I do is park my boat with one end attached to the bollard on the offside and tother attached to a bollard on the towpath side, then I use the boat as a bridge. It's not easy but so far I haven't found a swing bridge that stumped me, even on the L&L, not sure if that's just luck with other boaters happening along at the right (impossible) bridges. The only real problem is doing ones where there is road traffic because my method does take quite a bit longer and I feel rushed. But can't really be helped.

 

To the OP, doesn't sound reasonable that they were upset with you. Devils advocate, do you think they were maybe expecting you to offer more help with the locks you were sharing?

Edited July 12, 2022 by jupiter1124

[Jim Riley]

5 minutes ago, Jerra said:

Out of interest how far apart along the system do you think Life Rings should be spaced.

2  lengths of orange string apart?

[Jerra]

1 minute ago, LadyG said:

Does it matter, the most dangerous areas are !locks, 

So nowhere else on the system would be considered dangerous enough to merit a Life Ring?  There are two problems in my opinion.

 

1.  You can guarantee that when somebody else got into difficulties away from a lock e.g. somebody fell in and the friend couldn't get them out there would be wails of "there were no life rings"=, but we saw one a mile back what good is that"

 

2.  Life rings are prone to vandalism at least they are up here in the watery environment of the Lakes. 

 

Adult supervision of the youngsters (I think you said one was eight but I was also thinking they were called toddlers)  would be a much better safety system.

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

1 minute ago, Jim Riley said:

2  lengths of orange string apart?

😂😂

I was trying to work how to say the same. 
😂😂

[Jerra]

4 minutes ago, jupiter1124 said:

As a single hander (in more ways than one ) I'm also frustrated by the way swing bridges always seem to be operated from the off side. It just seems like a strange design! They often do have a single bollard either side on the offside so what I do is park my boat with one end attached to the bollard on the offside and tother attached to a bollard on the towpath side, then I use the boat as a bridge. It's not easy but so far I haven't found a swing bridge that stumped me, even on the L&L, not sure if that's just luck with other boaters happening along at the right (impossible) bridges. The only real problem is doing ones where there is road traffic because my method does take quite a bit longer and I feel rushed. But can't really be helped.

 

To the OP, doesn't sound reasonable that they were upset with you. Devils advocate, do you think they were maybe expecting you to offer more help with the locks you were sharing?

I sometimes wonder if they are set up on the off side to reduce casual interference by towpath folk.

[Tony1]

6 minutes ago, Arthur Marshall said:

A friend of mine chopped two of his fingers off with a circular saw and half cut through the rest, went round to his neighbours with his fingers in his hand and passed out.  Ambulance arrived three hours later.

 

And bear in mind the official response time target for a cat 1 call is 7 mins. 

 

https://inews.co.uk/news/health/ambulance-response-times-region-new-data-nhs-postcode-lottery-south-sest-1690746

 

 There is a vast and almost hidden crisis in our A+E provision, but it very rarely makes national news. How the mighty NHS has fallen. 

 

[LadyG]

1 minute ago, Jerra said:

So nowhere else on the system would be considered dangerous enough to merit a Life Ring?  There are two problems in my opinion.

Tben

1.  You can guarantee that when somebody else got into difficulties away from a lock e.g. somebody fell in and the friend couldn't get them out there would be wails of "there were no life rings"=, acbut we saw one a mile back what good is tha

2.  Life rings are prone to vandalism at least they are up here in the wategeg e off tnery environment of the Lakes. 

 

Adult supervision of the youngsters (I think you said one was eight but I was also thinking they were called toddlers)  would be a much better safety system.

I shouted at them to get the kiddies off the beam as i came through.

They then let them play in by wash.

Do I then say you re an idiot or tell them that if kiddies get a temp get the. To A and E LEPTOSPIROSIS?

 

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

1 minute ago, LadyG said:

I shouted at them to get the kiddies off the beam as i came through.

They then let them play in by wash.

Do I then say you re an idiot or tell them that if kiddies get a temp get the. To A and E LEPTOSPIROSIS?

 

You should have engaged with them and had them work the lock for you. 
 

Or did you manage one on your tod?

😃

[Jerra]

9 minutes ago, LadyG said:

I shouted at them to get the kiddies off the beam as i came through.

They then let them play in by wash.

Do I then say you re an idiot or tell them that if kiddies get a temp get the. To A and E LEPTOSPIROSIS?

 

I would certainly warn them about Weil's disease.  No need to call them an idiot because they don't have your knowledge.

[Arthur Marshall]

One of the vlockies told me she had refused to help one boating family down a lock when they told her to eff off when she suggested they should stop their couple of little kids playing on the boat's roof as it went down. 

I'm with Arthur Ransom's duffer advice.

[Tracy D'arth]

43 minutes ago, Arthur Marshall said:

A friend of mine chopped two of his fingers off with a circular saw and half cut through the rest, went round to his neighbours with his fingers in his hand and passed out.  Ambulance arrived three hours later.

I'm not surprised.

 

If he was showing 2 fingers to the ambulance he was luck to get one at all.

 

This post contains no rudeness, swearing or nastiness, just an elevated sense of humour. If you feel insulted its your problem not mine. 

Edited July 12, 2022 by Tracy D'arth

[LadyG]

2 minutes ago, Arthur Marshall said:

One of the vlockies told me she had refused to help one boating family down a lock when they told her to eff off when she suggested they should stop their couple of little kids playing on the bobeenkat's roof as it went down. 

I'm with Arthur Ransom's duffer advice.

 

19 minutes ago, Goliath said:

 

Or did you manage one on your tod?

😃

It has been known.

I think it's a good idea to get help, they enjoy working the powered swing bridges, and its quite a challenge for all concerned, lol

 

 

[LadyG]

I remember taking a lad to A&E, chainsaw removed his thumb. We , iced it up, tupperware, I believe it was fixed. He went very white at the time.

 

 

[jupiter1124]

  

On 11/07/2022 at 10:50, Dav and Pen said:

Single handed was much harder before lock ladders were installed

I had no idea that lock ladders were a new invention, I assumed that locks always had these! So back in the day the only way was to hop off the moving boat with the centreline, up the steps, and brake it on the bollard? This method often isn't possible these days with the split bridges often having the two halves connected now, not sure how you could keep hold of your rope. I actually heard somewhere on this forum recently that centrelines are themselves a relatively recent invention, so I actually can't picture how the locks were handled.
 

Singlehanding, if up to me entirely I'd use the engine only when positioning myself in a lock. But if you are alone in a broad lock, reversing the engine kicks out the stern into the middle and you can't reach the ladder. And if you are with another boat, they might not be so keen on the bump and scrape. So normally I leave the boat unattended, climb up the ladder and use the rope on the bollard nearest the centre of the lock. And since I'm off the boat, I may as well help with the paddles, and besides I need to make sure the rope remains tight enough and/or doesn't hang me up, definitely not trusting strangers with my centreline in a filling/emptying lock.

 

If the lock isn't deep, I can sometimes throw the rope over the bollard and keep hold of the end on the stern and use that to keep me against the wall. In that case I might let the other crew operate the lock but most times I get off the boat regardless of whether there is crew enough on the other boat or not.

 

Oh and with diesel the price it is I take every opportunity to shut the engine off, especially in locks.

[alias]

43 minutes ago, Tony1 said:

 

And bear in mind the official response time target for a cat 1 call is 7 mins. 

 

https://inews.co.uk/news/health/ambulance-response-times-region-new-data-nhs-postcode-lottery-south-sest-1690746

 

 There is a vast and almost hidden crisis in our A+E provision, but it very rarely makes national news. How the mighty NHS has fallen. 

 

 

Cat 1 response times haven't drifted all that far above the target, but it looks as though achieving that has been at the expense of dramatically increasing the wait for Cat 2 responses.

 

The NHS seems to be struggling with a number of underlying problems that don't seem to be of their own making.  Ambulances can't come to you because they can't unload ... because there's no A&E space ... because there's no space on the wards ... because wards can't discharge someone who needs care ... because there's a crisis in social care capacity ... all exacerbated by high levels of sickness absence.

 

 

 

 

Edited July 12, 2022 by alias

[LadyG]

26 minutes ago, Jerra said:

I would certainly warn them about Weil's disease.  No need to call them an idiot because they don't have your knowledge.

The point is that they brought kiddies to a place where people drown.

This is not a place for recreation. There are swimming pools, where children are supervised. Take them there.

[Mike Todd]

10 hours ago, Tony1 said:

,

This could easily be a case of someone pulling my leg, but if its was, the woman was a very good actor. 

I got talking to a woman at a lock, probably on the Llangollen I think, and she was warning me to be careful. Perhaps I appeared to be a bit cavalier in my movements around the lock. 

She said that she had once fallen into an emptying lock, and had been sucked through one of the paddle holes in the lock gate, and came to the surface again out in the pound. 

I had no idea the holes were large enough to allow the passage of a person, even a small and slender person, but she seemed deadly serious about her story. 

Was I being gullible, or could this happen?

 

I believe it happened on Foxton flight with  lady ending up in side pond, and survived. Can anyone recall more?

[alias]

Just now, Mike Todd said:

I believe it happened on Foxton flight with  lady ending up in side pond, and survived. Can anyone recall more?

 

She slipped down the slope into a side pond and was sucked into the lock. Fortunately there was a short boat in the lock, so she came to the surface rather then emerging underneath it.

[haggis]

3 minutes ago, LadyG said:

The point is that they brought kiddies to a place where people drown.

This is not a place for recreation. There are swimming pools, where children are supervised. Take them there.

So parents should never take children to the beach because people drown there.

[Mike Todd]

56 minutes ago, jupiter1124 said:

As a single hander (in more ways than one ) I'm also frustrated by the way swing bridges always seem to be operated from the off side. It just seems like a strange design! They often do have a single bollard either side on the offside so what I do is park my boat with one end attached to the bollard on the offside and tother attached to a bollard on the towpath side, then I use the boat as a bridge. It's not easy but so far I haven't found a swing bridge that stumped me, even on the L&L, not sure if that's just luck with other boaters happening along at the right (impossible) bridges. The only real problem is doing ones where there is road traffic because my method does take quite a bit longer and I feel rushed. But can't really be helped.

 

To the OP, doesn't sound reasonable that they were upset with you. Devils advocate, do you think they were maybe expecting you to offer more help with the locks you were sharing?

Because there were not single handers way back. However CaRT and BW gave spent quite a bit either moving electric controls to towpath side and adding extra landings on the off side.

 

We were a but miffed on the L&L at a lock we recalled 3 years ago using such an off side landing only to find no exit and the controls moved to tte towpath side! Not helped by the landing having clear white bollards but the towpath ones not6 painted and with uncut grass hiding them. We also picked up a lot of rubbish on the prop!

 

[Paul C]

1 hour ago, jupiter1124 said:

As a single hander (in more ways than one ) I'm also frustrated by the way swing bridges always seem to be operated from the off side. It just seems like a strange design! They often do have a single bollard either side on the offside so what I do is park my boat with one end attached to the bollard on the offside and tother attached to a bollard on the towpath side, then I use the boat as a bridge. It's not easy but so far I haven't found a swing bridge that stumped me, even on the L&L, not sure if that's just luck with other boaters happening along at the right (impossible) bridges. The only real problem is doing ones where there is road traffic because my method does take quite a bit longer and I feel rushed. But can't really be helped.

 

To the OP, doesn't sound reasonable that they were upset with you. Devils advocate, do you think they were maybe expecting you to offer more help with the locks you were sharing?

 

It is said, that the first few years of canalmania, they put the swing/lift bridge operating mechanism on the towpath side, but the horses got fed up with the towropes constantly tangling so they moved them to the offside. Since then, the horses have been unhindered and much happier, but in the last 10 years or so operating mechanisms (now electric) have started appearing on the towpath side again, eg Wrenbury.

 

Re ladders in locks, "singlehanding" is a relatively new phenomenon - probably since the 1970s, alongside the new phenomenon of living on a boat and generally being moored more often than actually moving. Everything is set up for a crewed boat, as they were for hundred of years etc.....

[Jerra]

32 minutes ago, LadyG said:

The point is that they brought kiddies to a place where people drown.

This is not a place for recreation. There are swimming pools, where children are supervised. Take them there.

People take children to places people drown everyday.   The lakes for example, not to mention the seaside, or walking by rivers.   Do you expect people with children to only walk the towpath as far as the first lock then turn round?

[Alan de Enfield]

1 hour ago, LadyG said:

I nearly dislodged two tiny tots on a beam as I went in to a lock, being pbotographed.

 

Maybe you should have concentrated on the 'tots' instead of posing for the pbotographer.

 

Saw an ad in the local paper the other day :

"Wanted, table for lady with Queen Anne legs." - it wasn't you was it ?

[David Mack]

1 hour ago, jupiter1124 said:

As a single hander (in more ways than one ) I'm also frustrated by the way swing bridges always seem to be operated from the off side. It just seems like a strange design

 

1 hour ago, Jerra said:

I sometimes wonder if they are set up on the off side to reduce casual interference by towpath folk.

Canals were built for boats towed by horses from the towpath. So lift and swing bridges were all set up so the open bridge structure is on the offside, to give a clear passage for the towrope.

That said, for bridges which have been mechanised in the era of motorised craft, it makes more sense to put the control pedestal on the towpath side, which has been done in some cases, but not others.