EA vs CaRT.

Why the angst against narrow boats? I keep a boat on the east coast so have no axe to grind. However, for sure, the Upper Thames would be a more attractive river with narrow boats. Rather than being full of high rise, all white, plastic boats?

Great. As long as you stay on the East coast. In reality, the Thames is littered with dirty scruffy Narrow boats and Barges who stay for ages, not optimising moorings or rafting, spoiling the experience for any other kind of vessel. You need to understand that a 'long vessel' takes up two or three spaces in real terms, and most groups of cruisers are more than happy to raft.

Go figure :nonchalance:
 
Get used to and embrace the narrow boats. Without their contribution to registration and visitors fees the funding position would be even worse !

Explain.

I'm sure it will be in your normal nonsensical way which bears no resemblance to reality, but I would love to hear your pathetic reasoning :disgust:
 
Agreed, on the East Coast you would pay mooring by the length of the boat, not here where its a flat rate for everything.

Wouldnt be so bad if they rafted up to let some of the rest of us get a look in.
 
No, no, no-the true Upper Thames is not quite as bad as you say in regard to high rise, all white plastic boats.

Some of the bridges above Oxford are too low to allow the big ones to pass. During an easter back in the '70's we almost scraped the roof of our narrowboat passing under the Osney railway bridge. The Thames-or Isis as its known around there by oldtimers-had plenty of water in and was running fast.

Below Oxford, not too bad.
 
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Last I analysed the statistics of visitor licences bought at Teddington in 2015, more than 80% were bought by NB owners who pay proportionately more than annual licence buyers.

Like them or not, and the red-velveted Commodore of Bray Cruiser Club clearly does not, NBs are part of the landscape and probably contribute more per square metre than cruisers.

I've been volunteering on the K&A for the last 6 weeks and there's no snobbery or sense of entitlement amongst boat owners. I don't miss the petty admirals on the Thames with their ridiculous made up club officer titles - quite pathetic and pitiable.
 
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You have just been nasty to another poster for lack of "live and let live"....but in your post you are also lacking in "live and let live".
I really hope i dont meet you out on the river.
 
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Quite correct. The Thames makes a nice round trip. Come in from the GU at Brentford, up to Oxford, join the South Oxford canal and back on the canal system. A visit down the Wey could be fitted in too. Or the K&A from Reading.

Why would narrowboats not use the Thames? They have done for years, many pairs of working boats based at Abingdon-the Hones IIRC, Bablock Hythe, Reading and Oxford.

Once reliable engines became available a pair of boats was a good bet for moving goods around, and the Thames was a very useful link. Especially when several now disused canals were still navigable.

I remember fishing during the school holidays at Canbury Gardens, Kingston about 1960 when a non stop procession of working canal boats, mostly in pairs worked down the river to catch the ebb down to Brentford.

And very colourful they were too!
 
Last I analysed the statistics of visitor licences bought at Teddington in 2015, more than 80% were bought by NB owners who pay proportionately more than annual licence buyers.

Like them or not, and the red-velveted Commodore of Bray Cruiser Club clearly does not, NBs are part of the landscape and probably contribute more per square metre than cruisers.

I've been volunteering on the K&A for the last 6 weeks and there's no snobbery or sense of entitlement amongst boat owners. I don't miss the petty admirals on the Thames with their ridiculous made up club officer titles - quite pathetic and pitiable.

Congratulations on your charitable acts, but you clearly don't understand what the 'red velveted' flag officers as you rather spitefully put it (who are also unpaid volunteers) actually do behind the scenes to encourage good safe boating to members, some of them new to boating, organise events, some of them fund raisers for good causes such as the RNLI and Swan rescue, and optimise mooring space so more people, whatever type of boat they choose.

You suggest snobbery, but many of us happily take lines for other boats to speed lock movements, and assist single handed boaters without qualm, even CaRT Gold registered narrow boats who do not pay a licence fee to the EA.

It would be far easier and cheaper not to be a Commodore of a fifty year old, and highly respected club, but I always like to reciprocate for what the club gave to me all those years ago when I was a new member, and enjoyed all the benefits of shared knowledge and all the kind help our club gave so generously.

There is only one pathetic and pitiable person in this case, and it's not me :encouragement:
 
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Ahem....
Anybody doing anything to do with your actual boating in the near future ? :p
RCC has folks getting ready for cruises to France and Holland and before that our big event of the the year,the Admiral of the River Cruise over weekend of June 23-24th.
http://msba.org.uk/?p=4397
In July we are holding our grudge match Crab Fishing Competition.
Then of course (sotto voice) rumour has it OG will be quitely sneaking through Teddington lock, probably under cover of darkness flying a fake club burgee and with temporary Bayliner or Sealine stickers on the side.
 
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Congratulations on your charitable acts, but you clearly don't understand what the 'red velveted' flag officers as you rather spitefully put it (who are also unpaid volunteers) actually do behind the scenes to encourage good safe boating to members, some of them new to boating, organise events, some of them fund raisers for good causes such as the RNLI and Swan rescue, and optimise mooring space so more people, whatever type of boat they choose.

You suggest snobbery, but many of us happily take lines for other boats to speed lock movements, and assist single handed boaters without qualm, even CaRT Gold registered narrow boats who do not pay a licence fee to the EA.

It would be far easier and cheaper not to be a Commodore of a fifty year old, and highly respected club, but I always like to reciprocate for what the club gave to me all those years ago when I was a new member, and enjoyed all the benefits of shared knowledge and all the kind help our club gave so generously.

There is only one pathetic and pitiable person in this case, and it's not me :encouragement:

Ooo, think I touched a nerve! You need to go boating and calm down!
 
Oh, I think we both know what you tried to do, but failed.

The point is, you enjoy your little digs and sinister private messages to me and other forumites from the safety of your keyboard, hiding behind your anonymity, but you need to fact check your bile before posting, or you end up looking churlish :nonchalance:

Which, by the sound of things you have a perfect right to :encouragement:
 
Old Crusty does have a point though-some Thames boaters are what I and others call " Weekend Admirals ".

Some years ago I was in the office of a chum of mine who ran the largest hire fleet above Reading. A very large motorboat was in the fuel berth and was trying to leave the boat there on turnaround day. When my chum told him why it was not possible, but if he came back at 6PM he would find him a berth, the old " Dont you know who I am " came trotting out.

My chum, a very straightforward chap gave him the old " I dont care who you are, get out of my fuel berth! "

Some weeks later, in another freinds narrowboat the same chap, in the same motorboat shared Abingdon Lock with us, going down.

His crew and a woman-wife perhaps-stood ready to push the narrowboat away with those chrome spike ended boathooks should we approach too near.

" Dont you scratch my nice black paint with those " said the narrowboat owner, after which we were told to " Bugger orf back to your ditch! "

I must say, they existed then, and no doubt exist now.

All boats are good, especially in times where the future is uncertain and responsible owners comply with licencing and put their hard earned into the communal pot.
 
Please define a 'Weekend Admiral' so I can begin to understand your point?

It sounds a derogatory term, which doesn't really fit in with your last sentence....
 
Oh, I think we both know what you tried to do, but failed.

The point is, you enjoy your little digs and sinister private messages to me and other forumites from the safety of your keyboard, hiding behind your anonymity, but you need to fact check your bile before posting, or you end up looking churlish :nonchalance:

Which, by the sound of things you have a perfect right to :encouragement:

My word, you do take yourself very seriously. Re the anonymity of the keyboard, if you can't take disagreement on social media then don't dish it out, just try to be cordial, after all, we are all on the same side believe it or not. When you point the finger, three point back at yourself. For the record and those reading this nonsense, I've never sent you private messages to this moniker and couldn't be bothered anyway.

The sun is up, sky is blue, get afloat time.
 
My word, you do take yourself very seriously. Re the anonymity of the keyboard, if you can't take disagreement on social media then don't dish it out, just try to be cordial, after all, we are all on the same side believe it or not. When you point the finger, three point back at yourself. For the record and those reading this nonsense, I've never sent you private messages to this moniker and couldn't be bothered anyway.

The sun is up, sky is blue, get afloat time.

And you were running the EA for a while with an attitude like that? No wonder its in such a mess. Agree with others "bile" is the only word for it.
 
And for others here, crusty has sent me personal messages stating my name, where i live, where i work and boatname. Not cordial.
 
The sinister private messages sent from the total anonymity of your hiding place were sent to another forumite who left the forum. You know who it was.

As for being 'cordial' perhaps you might want to look at your original post which was a clear insult, and then Google 'hypocrite' which you may want to include in your profile. I have been dealing with people like you for many many years of various fora, and you're not even very good at it. :nonchalance:
 
Please define a 'Weekend Admiral' so I can begin to understand your point?

It sounds a derogatory term, which doesn't really fit in with your last sentence....

If you have to ask, you might not understand the answer.

There are, among the hundreds of really nice people using the Thames, a few, often using high horsepower twin engine large and shiny boats who wear yachting caps, fly ensigns and often, by their demeanor, act superior to others.

I have met a couple, and found it ammusing watching them interact with others on the river.

I will admit it is many years since I held a Thames licence, but I have lived for 47 years on the Thames between Abingdon and Wallingford and often use the Thames path as an amenity. Culham and Abingdon locks are often visited, and as " Gongoozlers " with an almost professional take on things, much of interest is noted from time to time. When the river is running high and fast, it can be quite interesting!

They are in a minority, but it is quite clear that those in hire craft and narrowboats are not on their Christmas list.........................
 
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So do you:

1/Object to people using twin engined boats, that can travel the entire length of the Thames, regardless of tides, because the sole reason I bought our latest boat was to travel beyond Teddington without having the dogs on board for 12 hours at a time?

2/ Have an issue with well kept vessels? Perhaps you need to have a chat with all those nasty people in their shiny Wooden boats, immaculate Barges and beautifully polished Narrow boats while you're at it!?

3/ Reject the approved UK ensign? Should we all fly Skull and Crossbones, or perhaps you're a 'george cross' kinda guy?

4/ Think people without much hair should suffer sunburn, because you don't like hats?

Do you see how ridiculous you appear to be making such astonishingly churlish statements?

You in fact, appear to be 'acting superior to others' by your judgemental attitude. I see why you like crusty so much.... :ambivalence:
 
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