On or around Thu, 19 Oct 2006 01:33:44 +0100, Tom Woods
<
[email protected]> enlightened us thusly:
>On Wed, 18 Oct 2006 22:54:06 +0100, Mother <"@ {mother} @"@101fc.net>
>wrote:
>
>>On Wed, 18 Oct 2006 22:19:20 +0100, Tom Woods
>><[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>>I have a mental image of Austin driving a very large crusty baguette
>>>with a motor on the back! 
>>
>>More like a hot-dog?
>
>I was thinking crustier so that the hull had some strength! 
>
>>>(what is a butty in the boating context?)
>>
>>A trailer.
>
>hmm. never thought that a (residential/recreational) barge would need
>a trailer!
once they fitted working boats with engines, someone worked out that they
could tow another unpowered boat (same as they used to use when they were
horse-drawn, more or less) and haul more cargo. The butty would haul more
cargo than the motor, on account of not carrying an engine, and losing space
to the engine room.
while visiting some friends in Cheshire, on the way to a handy pub, we went
to see this:
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/newmap.srf?x=357820&y=359020&z=3st=4&ar=Y
and found a middle-aged couple with a very nice boat just approaching. took
the opportunity to educate the various small people we had along about how
locks worked, and got them opening and shutting gates. several of the big
kids also played...
the boat was a cracker, with a lovely-sounding engine which I think the chap
said was 80 years old, sounded like a single-cylinder 4-stroke running at
about 150 rpm or so. I was tempted to ask for a look at it, but thought
that was a bit cheeky. His missus did a much better job than I reckon I
would have at getting into the lock through one gate, too, with no sign of
cheats like bow thrusters.
it's rather a short staircase, mind. only 2 locks, but a genuine staircase
even so, with just 3 sets of gates.
--
Austin Shackles.
www.ddol-las.net my opinions are just that
"There is plenty of time to win this game, and to thrash the Spaniards
too" Sir Francis Drake (1540? - 1596) Attr. saying when the Armarda was
sighted, 20th July 1588