Birmingham Trip Boats

[howardang]

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

Nice one - and they aren't all bad I'm sure. They aren't all boaters though either; I suspect for some it's just a driving job.

You raise the perennial question  of “What the heck is a boater?” To some it is to be a mechanical or electrical expert, to others it means an expert on canal history. To yet others it is all about  the continuous mooring way of life, or a just a great way of enjoying a holiday afloat. It just goes to show, I think, that we all have our foibles and pet hates but in the final analysis maybe a little tolerance and consideration goes a long way make up for any lack of knowledge on our own part?

 

Howard

[Wanderer Vagabond]

1 hour ago, howardang said:

You raise the perennial question  of “What the heck is a boater?” To some it is to be a mechanical or electrical expert, to others it means an expert on canal history. To yet others it is all about  the continuous mooring way of life, or a just a great way of enjoying a holiday afloat. It just goes to show, I think, that we all have our foibles and pet hates but in the final analysis maybe a little tolerance and consideration goes a long way make up for any lack of knowledge on our own part?

 

Howard

To try to answer your 'perennial question', to me a boater is the inland waterways version of a sailor, someone who handles a boat competently whatever their other abilities are.

[Sea Dog]

1 minute ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

To try to answer your 'perennial question', to me a boater is the inland waterways version of a sailor, someone who handles a boat competently whatever their other abilities are.

Whilst you may be right, I was using the term rather more loosely than that - I was merely thinking that some of said trip boat helms probably weren't even all that interested in boats or canals, but we're in fact just doing a job.

[David Schweizer]

2 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

Whilst you may be right, I was using the term rather more loosely than that - I was merely thinking that some of said trip boat helms probably weren't even all that interested in boats or canals, but we're in fact just doing a job.

You may be correct in the specific instance being discussed, but when I was one of a group of people who captained the Trip boat, all of them were enthustiastic boaters, and most had their own boat.

 

 

Edited September 19, 2018 by David Schweizer

[Sea Dog]

19 minutes ago, David Schweizer said:

You may be correct in the specific instance being discussed, but when I was one of a group of people who captained the Trip boat, all of them were enthustiastic boaters, and most had their own boat.

 

 

Kind of my point David really.  Once those trip boat helms would've been exactly like you were. Now, judging by the issues being discussed here, I suspect it's a just a job for some.

[pete harrison]

15 hours ago, howardang said:

You raise the perennial question  of “What the heck is a boater?” To some it is to be a mechanical or electrical expert, to others it means an expert on canal history. To yet others it is all about  the continuous mooring way of life, or a just a great way of enjoying a holiday afloat. It just goes to show, I think, that we all have our foibles and pet hates but in the final analysis maybe a little tolerance and consideration goes a long way make up for any lack of knowledge on our own part?

 

Howard

 

13 hours ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

To try to answer your 'perennial question', to me a boater is the inland waterways version of a sailor, someone who handles a boat competently whatever their other abilities are.

To me 'a Boater' is anybody who was born to the working boats and then grew up to work boats for a living. I do not count those who were born to the boats but left as children when their parents packed in, and there are quite a few of these about nowadays who's parents finished boating in the 1950's and 1960's.

 

The term 'enthusiast' covers almost everybody else who enjoys the waterways in their own way, and some 'enthusiasts' get so drawn in that they become 'researchers'. I reserve the term 'expert' for those who think they know a lot and put themselves on a pedestal so they can speak down to 'enthusiasts', but can often be easily caught out when challenged ('experts' often learn from books / internet or other peoples experience but quote these as there own).

 

So where do I fit in with all of this, well I do not really care - I just enjoy what I am doing and if people want to listen to me or read my drivel then that is great