Inland Waterways Festival at Beale

[DWT]

We were out last week and saw lots of narrow boats presumably heading for the show. I know the views about NBs on the river, including from some of the lockkeepers, but we went last time and it really is a great show. We have booked a mooring again this year.

It would be nice to see a few more cruisers there. I know there are some Freeman owners with a block booking and last time the Seamasters owners club had a number of boats there. Is anyone else going?

 

[teddington_lock]

What are the lock-keepers saying then ?

We very very rarely have any problems with NB's ....

 

[TrueBlue]

Here's a list of Exhibitors - so many that I couldn't count them up.

Site plan It covers quite a large area.

"Mr. Freeman" will be there - good value boats for those wanting to start boating
Leesan for your poo problems,
Beta Marine for that new engine / genset

It's not all about narrowboats.
Lots to see and do

 

[DWT]

What are the lock-keepers saying then ?

We very very rarely have any problems with NB's ....

To be fair it was only one last week who muttered "Narrow Boats!" as he walked past me to help the boat at the front of the lock which was taking an age to get its ropes sorted. It was just a little aside for my benefit and I think was really meant as a little bit of banter.

 

[DWT]

Here's a list of Exhibitors - so many that I couldn't count them up.

Site plan It covers quite a large area.

"Mr. Freeman" will be there - good value boats for those wanting to start boating
Leesan for your poo problems,
Beta Marine for that new engine / genset

It's not all about narrowboats.
Lots to see and do

Yep, plenty to do. Last time the evening entertainment, open to boaters and those using the campsite, was great as well with two well stocked beer tents.

 

[teddington_lock]

To be fair it was only one last week who muttered "Narrow Boats!" as he walked past me to help the boat at the front of the lock which was taking an age to get its ropes sorted. It was just a little aside for my benefit and I think was really meant as a little bit of banter.

Some NB's can take a while with their ropes , we see quite a few still that still want to use just a centre line when they arrive at Tedders from downstream. Once we explain that they need to have bow and stern lines out , it can take them a little while to get sorted ( if they have to get ropes out of lockers and mounted fore and aft ) ... by and large they all do without any complaining though.

I suspect as you said there was no genuine malice from the lockie , just a bit of light hearted banter as you say.

NB's i find much easier to pack locks with because they are all the same width and you can put them three deep !

 

[boatone]

NB's i find much easier to pack locks with because they are all the same width and you can put them three deep !

I think you meant to say " put them three abreast"

On a more serious note, isn't it time we got over this NB-phobia thing and moved on? They are just people like us who enjoy being on the water but in a different type of boat. Yes, NB's may be more suited to the canals but that doesn't mean they can't (or shouldn't) be used on the Thames. We could argue that many of the cruisers on the river are more suited to being on the sea - particularly those that create significant wash even at low speed.

Many NB's visiting the Thames for the first time need to adjust their thinking and relearn some procedures but that doesn't mean they are some sort of alien beings. Most of us made an absolute pigs ear of handling our boats when we first got them and had to learn the ways of the river. We actually encounter problems with many of the hire boats and their enthusiastic holiday-makers but we seem to tolerate them OK most of the time.

My biggest beef about the river is the severe lack of mooring space and there is no doubt that NB's exacerbate that due to their extreme length. They could assist us greatly by realising this and rafting up in busy places rather than all wanting 'their bit of the bank'. However, just as annoying is the large gaps left between boats, and cruisers are just as guilty of that. At Marlow last weekend their was room for at least 2 or 3 more boats both on the park and below the lock, and we could have stopped at Cookham if a couple of boats had been prepared to shove up a bit.

So what is it that is so detestable abut NB's ? Or is it just a stupid perception that needs to be laid to rest?

As far as Beale Park is concerned I did suggest earlier in the year that a few of us might make an effort to join in. Unfortunately other things prevent me attending. However, for an organisation that calls itself the Inland Waterways Association and has arranged a significant discount on visitors licenses for the event, I do think they do precious little to attract membership from us Thames residents - does anyone know what the relative numbers of canalites to river based members is?

 

[TrueBlue]

Narrowboats are

an easy target for derision:-

Large - well long, mosty.
Not particularly attractive - unless highly decorated
Slow - relatively
not hugely manoeverable
Lots of them around - mostly on BW waters.

So it's not surprising that after everyone has finished with fenders up/down, being nasty to Brooms, beastly to Jelly molds, then the attention moves to LTTTs.

For regulars here it's taken on the chin, after all everyone falls into one grouping or another.

Whereas for most "residents", the season is May to August, intrepid NBers have a much longer season - subject to the inevitable maintenance closures.

By dint of their construction most are fitted with "proper" central heating and some have a wood burning stove as well. If the weather becomes impossible then the crew can retire to the warmth and comfort of the cabin.

They're not stuck with just the length of the River, but can and do venture further afield. From Goldaming or Bristol to Rippon is their cruising area.

NBs are different, doesn't suit all, but it would be awfully boring if boating was one size fits all.

There's a certain smugness - if one wants to be - in being in a minority withe more scope than the majority..

The reason for this reply is to pay tribute to what the IWA is achieving in this year's rally.

450 plus boats converging on Beale Park from all over the country. That number presents huge logistical challenges to a dedicated band of enthusiasts who work exceedingly hard - and are there now, beavering away to make the site secure and habitable.

I wonder, could Thames boaters unite across all sorts of craft to put on such a show?

I'm not denigrating the efforts of the TTBR and ATYC events, who given their size do marvels.

BUT Thames boaters as a whole NEED a focus; subscribers to this forum are in a tiny minority, and the "stakeholders" - RUGs, IWA branches, rowing clubs, trade associations are too many and various to have much impact on the EA.

IWA have tried to extend a welcoming hand to Thames boaters, and have been met with a resounding silence. A lost oportunity.

 

[apollo]

an easy target for derision:-

Large - well long, mosty.
Not particularly attractive - unless highly decorated
Slow - relatively
not hugely manoeverable
Lots of them around - mostly on BW waters.

I started boating as a kid with my parents on the canals and happily wave at every one i pass.

However only one in ten waves back....sorry but its true.

Maybe its cos I am a young(ish) bloke on a Gin Palace or overtaking them at the time (in tickover), I dont know, but an occasional smile would be nice!

Thats what puts me off the rally.

 

[byron]

.
Not particularly attractive - unless highly decorated
.

Saw one this weekend that was absolutely stunning. The decorative paintwork was pure art. The Brasswork gleamed. The 'garden' on the roof was worthy of the Chelsea Flower Show. It was a joy to behold. Even the Skipper looked the part, fat, Father Xmas beard, bobble hat and waistcoat.

He was travelling sedately upriver on the correct side giving ample room for others to overtake. He was a credit to the NB community.

 

[boatone]

BUT Thames boaters as a whole NEED a focus; subscribers to this forum are in a tiny minority, and the "stakeholders" - RUGs, IWA branches, rowing clubs, trade associations are too many and various to have much impact on the EA.

IWA have tried to extend a welcoming hand to Thames boaters, and have been met with a resounding silence. A lost oportunity.

As far as needing a focus is concerned I have been saying the same for ages - far too many small special interest groups where one voice is needed.

There is one very real difference between the canals and the Thames - many of the canals only exist today because of restoration groups formed by, dare one say, fanatical volunteers and the involvement of people like David Suchet and Timothy West as high profile campaigners. They believe in their cause with a passion and we have no volunteer movement of that sort on the Thames.

Is there a Thames representative for the IWA. If so who is it and how about getting them to sign up here? Where has this welcoming hand been in evidence - not being provocative, but I have certainly not seen much evidence of it.

Any ideas on how we could involve/promote the 'Big Society' notion for the benefit of the Thames?

 

[boatone]

I started boating as a kid with my parents on the canals and happily wave at every one i pass.

However only one in ten waves back....sorry but its true.

Certainly not my experience during our two weeks upriver this year. I waved at everbody and pretty much everybody waved back - if anything more NB's than cruisers.

 

[TrueBlue]

Certainly not my experience during our two weeks upriver this year. I waved at everbody and pretty much everybody waved back - if anything more NB's than cruisers.

I think it's a sign of the times. Everyone's so encapsulated in their own world. Listening to their iPod, nattering on the dreaded mobile phone, avoiding eye contact in case one is met with a hail of abuse.

It's probably not a good idea to behave in the street in the way that I do on the river:-

wave at everybody until I get discouraged,
even greet gongozlers and their dogs,
talk to the lockies,
give a hand if I see a boater having trouble with their lines in a lock,
engage others in coversation while waiting in the lock.

It's a matter of sharing a common interest, rathe than thumping a tub. All adds to the experience.

to my mind, too many boaters treat the River as a means of getting from one pub to another (or whatever) rather than enjoying the whole scene.

I'm sure it's much the same in other activities, but inland boating has pauses (locks) where participants are obliged to stop for periods of time, so why not pass that in cheerful banter?

 

[teddington_lock]

I was boating last weekend ( private boat not EA launch ) , and i have to say , everyone i waved at waved back . The general atmosphere was very calm and relaxed , everyone enjoying themselves , which was great.

I also have to say that currently i am liking the idea of when i retire ( many years from now ) , of cruising the length and breadth of Britain on a narrowboat. Sometimes in the winter when i am walking up the layby collecting moorings , i will walk past a narrowboat and i can smell the coal from its fire and i steal a little glance inside as i pass and think 'that looks cosy' .....

I can see the merits of a NB , but i can also see how they can upset the cruiser owners , as you say , the length is one . We had 20 of them ( all 60ft plus ) in the lock cut last night and we managed to breast up a good few of them to try and save some room for anyone else who may have been arriving. All were happy to do so.

Generally i would say that 99% of everyone i meet is very tolerant of everyone else , i see some good banter in the lock between half million pound cruisers and the smallest of NB's , mostly small talk , but all centred about the thing that we all love - boating.

 

[boatone]

We had 20 of them ( all 60ft plus ) in the lock cut last night and we managed to breast up a good few of them to try and save some room for anyone else who may have been arriving. All were happy to do so.

I suspect that you found it easier, as an EA employee, to get their co-operation than I do as a mere boater!

As a matter of interest Howard, do you have the 'Welcome to Moor Alongside' stickers available at the lock and do you actually give them to NB's and other visitors coming into the non-tidal and ask them to help that way?

 

[teddington_lock]

We do have the stickers at the lock , and we do try to give them out. Sometimes the busyness of the lock conspires against us though.

If we have a large queue of customers looking to buy a licence , it can sometimes become a bit of a 'production line' as most want to be on their way as quickly as possible .

Perhaps tonight i shall dig out a leaflet dispenser and put them in it with a note explaining what they are and an invitiation to take one rather than us having to hand them out.

 

[DWT]

I really did not want to revisit the NBs on the river issue again, it has been done to death in previous posts. The large number around at the moment can be a bit of a problem, particularly with mooring space. Many NB pwners seem to be liveaboards and can stay for days on end in one spot which can be a nuisance, but I always wave to them and get a response 99% of the time and am quick to help take a line if they are struggling just as I would for any other boater. Their size and shape make locking through heading upstream a bit of a challenge for many of them.

Having attended the IWA Festival last time it was at Beale I found them all very friendly. It really is a great event and very well organised, but I was disappointed that so few Thames based boaters attended. The perception seems to be that it is geared towards NBs only and if we stay away then that perception will persist.