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Solo boater


petejj1104

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I do get a bit baffled by new boaters panicking about going solo, or taking boats out for the first time. As someone said,  it aint rocket science. Locks are simple creatures with ladders, only dangerous in very few circumstances. Turning a boat is about the trickiest manoeuvre anyone ever has to do outside of a river lock, and once you know you drive on the right what else is there? Lift and swing bridges take a bit of thought on your own, but they're easy enough.

Just try to avoid hitting things, but don't worry too much if you do, that's why boats are made of metal.

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9 minutes ago, Arthur Marshall said:

I do get a bit baffled by new boaters panicking about going solo, or taking boats out for the first time. As someone said,  it aint rocket science. Locks are simple creatures with ladders, only dangerous in very few circumstances. Turning a boat is about the trickiest manoeuvre anyone ever has to do outside of a river lock, and once you know you drive on the right what else is there? Lift and swing bridges take a bit of thought on your own, but they're easy enough.

Just try to avoid hitting things, but don't worry too much if you do, that's why boats are made of metal.

Yes thanks for that advice Arthur, but it's a long time since you bought your first boat.

I met a fully briefed new hire boater who decided that rather than wait til I pulled my boat out of his way, or even hanging back, he would just bash me with his bow, after all it's legal to drive at 4mph. I was not amused.

It's a matter of attitude obviously, but most people are fairly cautious on their first boat, it takes time to learn how to handle them safely and efficiently. 

Edited by LadyG
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1 hour ago, LadyG said:

 I met a fully briefed new hire boater who decided that rather than wait til I pulled my boat out of his way, or even hanging back, he would just bash me with his bow, after all it's legal to drive at 4mph. I was not amused.

 

Had you pulled out in front of them then?

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2 hours ago, Arthur Marshall said:

I do get a bit baffled by new boaters panicking about going solo, or taking boats out for the first time. As someone said,  it aint rocket science. Locks are simple creatures with ladders, only dangerous in very few circumstances. Turning a boat is about the trickiest manoeuvre anyone ever has to do outside of a river lock, and once you know you drive on the right what else is there? Lift and swing bridges take a bit of thought on your own, but they're easy enough.

Just try to avoid hitting things, but don't worry too much if you do, that's why boats are made of metal.

I guess its a very different world now to when many on here started boating. 

Information is everywhere and very easy to be got unlike years gone by. So what youd never know as scary seems that way when you read endlessly about it.

 

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9 hours ago, Arthur Marshall said:

 As someone said, it aint rocket science. Locks are simple creatures with ladders, only dangerous in very few circumstances. 

 

I have to disagree with that. Moving tonnes of water around may not be rocket science but locks can be very dangerous places indeed. I don't have any figures but it's my guess that the majority of people who've died on boats on the inland waterways have died in or around locks.

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18 minutes ago, blackrose said:

 

I have to disagree with that. Moving tonnes of water around may not be rocket science but locks can be very dangerous places indeed. I don't have any figures but it's my guess that the majority of people who've died on boats on the inland waterways have died in or around locks.

Would think alcohol/illness is probably the worse one. Can think of at least ten people straight off that I have known that have died either on or next to their boats and none involved locks.

So by that theory its not doing locks thats the most dangerous.

Edited by PaulJ
I would put a smiley but that seems very inappropriate.
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3 hours ago, PaulJ said:

Would think alcohol/illness is probably the worse one. Can think of at least ten people straight off that I have known that have died either on or next to their boats and none involved locks.

So by that theory its not doing locks thats the most dangerous.

 

Perhaps I should have been clearer. When I said "died on boats" I was talking about boating accidents, not dying from illness or drinking too much while moored up.

Edited by blackrose
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12 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

Had you pulled out in front of them then?

No. But regardless of what I was doing, what would anyone ram another boat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by LadyG
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