narrowboatworld

AFTER the death of another teenager in the Avon, this time in the river below Bath, comes again the cry for fencing.

Regular readers will realise this was the 14 years old Aaron Burgess who dived into the river by the weir at Saltford, then failed to surface, and whose body was discovered much later by the weir.

So now comes the ridiculous cry to fence off the whole area, ridiculous, as the normal post and rail fencing that is used is even more of an attraction to youngsters, as was shown when the lock at the top of the Ribble Link was so fenced off after a drowning, only to be used for climbing and a further 'accident'.

Only the 10ft high metal security fencing will stop people, and this is impossible, so yet again it needs to be stated that it is people themselves who are responsible for their own safety—as I may have mentioned before...

Give CART a chance?

That seems to be the battle cry at the moment, but not appreciated by the boaters who have contacted narrowboatworld—they believing that it has lost its chance by it being run by the same people.

We have had quite a few suggestions, but I particularly like the one from Martin Brooks who suggests that instead they should put CART in the hands of a celebrity tycoon such as Richard Branson, Philip Green or Duncan Bannatyne, who would jump at the chance to run the show part-time for a minimal fee, as they would love the publicity.

Or he suggests, Alan Sugar—you're fired! With half an hour later Evans, Salem, Ash, Hales etc. all walking down the road holding P45's.

Good eh?

Lord Evans?

That would surely send these boaters into orbit, but is possible as a result of the proposals by Jesse Norman MP to Patrick McLoughlin, the Tory party Chief Whip and to Cabinet Office Minister Oliver Letwin last week, to allow mass membership organisations such as the CBI, TUC, General Medical Council or even the RSPB—to elect their own peers.

All part of attempts to reform the House of Lords with an 80% elected chamber, that could include CART.

Told it like it is

The Daily Telegraph feature on the launch of CART certainly resulted in great interest in narrowboatworld if the hits are anything to go by, with the newspaper having the guts to tell it like it is, instead of like so many simply publishing the official line.

What has concerned many boaters about the CART propaganda was the emphasis on walkers and cyclists to the detriment of the actual waterways, yet at the same time trying to make us believe that 'every penny received will go towards the waterways'.

What absolute crap.

Out at last

After four weeks held captive by the flooding Trent, we were able to escape up river on Tuesday, but try as we will, we couldn't get Sawley Flood Lock to fill.  Until a CARTER came along and told us that after its recent repair the bottom gates hadn't been hung properly. (What's new? thought I.)  And it needed a person on each gate to close them exactly together to be watertight.

But full marks to the team the following day, for after a 7am start it was all done and dusted just over an hour later!

Over the top

I'm afraid I am of the opinion that the anti-terrorist shambles for the Olympics is a bit over the top.  The draconian rules concerning the waterways that are close to places holding events is somewhat absurd.

Having jets on stand-by at the various city venues in case a plane passes over is ridiculous.  Who will dare give the command to fire missiles over a city to bring a plane crashing down on a thickly populated area?

Mind you when it was first announced that missiles would be mounted on roof tops, the BBC put its usual size nines in by stating it was the first time missiles had been mounted since the war.  Missiles?  Ant-aircraft guns were all they had in those days...

It's not our Thomas

There is a Freedom of Information Act request concerning our Allan Richards, made by one 'Tommasina Crosli'.

It's obviously malicious, with the name being so similar to our Thomas, but I can tell you he has never made a Freedom of Information Act request in his life, though I know he has been sorely tempted.