Who is the oldest member?

[Ray T]

These three must be in with a shout.

[RLWP]

If I may say so you are being a little silly. An 85 year old gongoolzer who was being taken down the canal from the age of say 5 will have heard words being used. Suppose you started your 45 years experience at 15 on leaving school that makes you 60. The gongoozler was hearing words used 20 years before you were born.

 

As is frequently said language changes quickly. I will illustrate with my own dialect. I grew up hearing things describes as pussen wet, about 10 years after I started teaching I was on the fells leading a party and one of the lads described himself as pussen wet. Two points from that firstly I said "what was that you said" and he reacted as if he had said something wrong. I asked because it was at least 10 to 12 years since I had heard it used. Second point nobody in the rest of the party had heard the word before. Point being I had heard the word used in every day speech 15 or more years before he was born. He only knew it because he was a farmers son and they had an old lad (past retiring age) who worked for them sometimes and he used it.

 

The same can apply to a gongoozler and there is no need for you to get upset about my suggestion it doesn't detract from your 45 years experience at all.

 

Bear in mind I am not convinced all parts of the canals used the same pronunciation for a word as in Cumbria I could tell you which area often only a few miles apart people came from by accent and pronunciation My wife could even identify which estate people came from in her home town.

 

The OP did ask about pronunciation.

 

Yeah but - what does "pussen wet" mean?

 

Richard

[Jerra]

 

Yeah but - what does "pussen wet" mean?

 

Richard

Absolutely soaking as wet as if you had jumped into a river and got out again.

[mross]

Thanks. I've read every post but still don't know if any members are older than 80! I wasn't really asking about the quantity of experience but the quality. I was interested in who had the earliest experiences, not the most.

[Torquemada]

These three must be in with a shout.

 

Excuse me........

[the barnacle]

i know a few that have been on the canals for 40 yrs and know little yet i know a few who have only been on a couple of yrs and their knowledge is vast - age and time on canals is not relivant to how much knowledge you know and understand.

[Ray T]

 

Excuse me........

 

Certainly, the first door on the right down the corridor.

 

http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=85595

Edited September 8, 2016 by Ray T

[X Alan W]

Respect to you, sir. When did you start on the canals?

The first time I actively engaged with the cut was 1947 when we moved house to near the Erewash at Stanton & I used to sklp school on odd occasions, as well as lunch evening & weekends to see if boats were moving & if I could help & get a ride when I did I used to cycle back home I obtaind a FMC motor & later a "Star" class butty ⊂ contracted for Anderton CCCo & BW Mostly concrete piles from the works at Mk Drayton 58 through 68 & then had converted & Hotel boated until 1972 at which time my wife was ill & could no longer do the cooking etc we left the cut & sold the boats she passed away in 1977

[Dave_P]

 

Yeah but - what does "pussen wet" mean?

 

Richard

Sounds a bit naughty to me.

[mross]

The first time I actively engaged with the cut was 1947 when we moved house to near the Erewash at Stanton & I used to sklp school on odd occasions, as well as lunch evening & weekends to see if boats were moving & if I could help & get a ride when I did I used to cycle back home I obtaind a FMC motor & later a "Star" class butty ⊂ contracted for Anderton CCCo & BW Mostly concrete piles from the works at Mk Drayton 58 through 68 & then had converted & Hotel boated until 1972 at which time my wife was ill & could no longer do the cooking etc we left the cut & sold the boats she passed away in 1977

So, when you started, did people say win ding hole or wine ding hole? Was it your understanding that this referred to the wind as in gust or wind as in winding a clock?

[X Alan W]

So, when you started, did people say win ding hole or wine ding hole? Was it your understanding that this referred to the wind as in gust or wind as in winding a clock?

I only ever recall it being Winding at a winding hole as in the " blowing kind "

[Horace42]

So, when you started, did people say win ding hole or wine ding hole? Was it your understanding that this referred to the wind as in gust or wind as in winding a clock?

 

In my case on the Thames in canoes - a winding hole was irrelevant - we could turn round anywhere.

It is only since hiring a narrowboat where the length was a problem did we use winding holes.

But then I recall it was a simple case of reading the word 'winding' for the first time - as 'wine-ding' - as anyone would if they knew nothing of canal

boat lore.

The same as in windlass.... or in my case I call them lock-keys ..

[X Alan W]

I accept defeat as I am clearly far to young for my opinion to matter. My 45 years of experience with working narrow boats (professional and recreational) not to mention being taught by boaters - leading to 30 years of narrow boat research count for nothing when compared to an elderly 'gongoozler'

Don't give up Pete a least back in the day any conversation with some one from off a boat/s was more than likely to be a worker on/of the cut so probably understood the in's & out's of said life Sadly from my point of view things have moved on & a lot of the ways of doing things to be efficient is now thought of as coming from the dark ages & not relevant to modern boating although the locks & some other bits of kit still work the same as they did when built

[pete harrison]

Don't give up Pete a least back in the day any conversation with some one from off a boat/s was more than likely to be a worker on/of the cut so probably understood the in's & out's of said life Sadly from my point of view things have moved on & a lot of the ways of doing things to be efficient is now thought of as coming from the dark ages & not relevant to modern boating although the locks & some other bits of kit still work the same as they did when built

Thanks Alan. I'm still here, frustrated but still here

[mross]

I accept defeat as I am clearly far to young for my opinion to matter. My 45 years of experience with working narrow boats (professional and recreational) not to mention being taught by boaters - leading to 30 years of narrow boat research count for nothing when compared to an elderly 'gongoozler'

I sincerely apologise if I have offended you. I was interested in the opinion of people who were boating long before me and I started in the 70s. No disrespect to you was intended.

[David Schweizer]

Don't give up Pete a least back in the day any conversation with some one from off a boat/s was more than likely to be a worker on/of the cut so probably understood the in's & out's of said life Sadly from my point of view things have moved on & a lot of the ways of doing things to be efficient is now thought of as coming from the dark ages & not relevant to modern boating although the locks & some other bits of kit still work the same as they did when built

 

I fully understand Alan, I have been questioned by othe boaters for thumblining, for usuing the (rare) strapping posts on lock gates for closing the gate and stopping the boat, and for dropping padddles and running the bar through my hands. Their rational being that it damaged them and was "against the rules"

[mross]

Please could you explain thumblining to me?

[Ray T]

Thumblining is where working boats used a line from the lubby (on top of the mast) to the gate rails to open the bottom gates when descending wide locks. The type of "knot" used held firm when the boats were pulling backwards. On moving out of the lock the "knot" loosened and the line fell into the hold of the boat.

 

The Knot isn't really a knot but the sort of half hitch around the gate rail.

 

I have a picture somewhere I'll go and look for it.

 

Here you go

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo's are not mine, ones found on the net.

Edited September 8, 2016 by Ray T

[mross]

Thumblining is where working boats used a line from the lubby (on top of the mast) to the gate rails to open the bottom gates when descending wide locks. The type of "knot" used held firm when the boats were pulling backwards. On moving out of the lock the "knot" loosened and the line fell into the hold of the boat.

 

I have a picture somewhere I'll go and look for it.

And what is a lubby? Showing my ignorance now!

[Ray T]

And what is a lubby? Showing my ignorance now!

 

The lubby originated on horse drawn boats. It was fixed to the top of the mast and when in its vertical position allowed the horse to tow the boat. The line from the horse was placed over the lubby with a loop. If for some reason the boat overtook the horse the lubby would flop backwards releasing the line so the horse was not pulled into the cut.

 

Again I'll go and look for a picture......

 

 

 

On the butty it is just possible to discern the lubby, on top of the mast tilted backwards.

Edited September 8, 2016 by Ray T

[pete harrison]

I sincerely apologise if I have offended you.

You have not offended me particularly, but clearly I am rapidly becoming a dinosaur - so no apology required

[pete harrison]

 

The lubby originated on horse drawn boats. It was fixed to the top of the mast and when in its vertical position allowed the horse to tow the boat. The line from the horse was placed over the lubby with a loop. If for some reason the boat overtook the horse the lubby would flop backwards releasing the line so the horse was not pulled into the cut.

 

Again I'll go and look for a picture......

 

196949_194660903898610_184474664917234_533289_5437525_n.jpg

 

On the butty it is just possible to discern the lubby, on top of the mast tilted backwards.

And a closer view of a top mast complete with lubby / loobey / luby:

 

copyright = Jeff Anderson - item is exhibit at Stoke Bruerne Canal Museum.

 

The tow line would attach to the shaped metal part at the top (which is hinged) - where the decorative 'mast dropper' is hanging from.

Edited September 8, 2016 by pete harrison

[mross]

Thanks. Some simple ideas are brilliant.

[pete harrison]

Here you go

 

4117thDec77.jpg

 

Photo's are not mine, ones found on the net.

This is my old pair, BADSEY and BARNES about 10 years before my (ex)wife and I took hem on.

[Ray T]

You have not offended me particularly, but clearly I am rapidly becoming a dinosaur - so no apology required

 

Pete, better to be a has been than a never was.