A couple of weeks ago I was in a marina that had a locked entrance. The
lock was small (4-6 boats), and there was hardly any wind.

Coincidentally, a customer, who has a 40 ft power boat was visiting the same
marina. On the Sunday morning I noticed that he was standing on his
flybridge alone. I wandered over to his boat and went aboard.

He told me that he was watching the "fun" in the lock. He was moored no
more than 100ft from the lock, with a view straight in. He said that nearly
every boat that went in was getting into difficulties.

We chatted for a few minutes, and saw one 30 ft yacht try to wedge itself
between the lock walls. Later, we watched a 40+ foot old wooden motor boat
get into difficulties. The bow seemed to be secured, but the stern was
drifting away from the wall. There was lots of shouting, and we were smugly
commenting on their incompetence when there was a splash!!

I'd like to think that I react quickly in an emergency. However, the brain
doesn't work that way. I said that I thought that someone had fallen in.
Roger said that he thought so too. Roger then said that maybe we should go
to help. It was only at that point that we realised that a real emergency
existed, and we ran like mad.

It only took a few seconds to cover the 50 yards, but when we got there the
lockeeper was already in the water, supporting the 65(?) y/o woman who had
fallen in. They were holding onto a vertical rope on the lock wall. The
motor boat's stern was about 4-5 feet from the wall - and it was threatening
to come in and crush the pair in the water. I sat on the wall and was able
to get my feet into a position to stop the boat coming against the wall.
Roger is shouting at the skipper to switch his engines off. The skipper
seems to be more concerned with getting his boat alongside the lock wall-
and doesn't seem to have figured out that he might kill his wife (and the
lockeeper). At this point, I have a rope from the boat, and I also have my
feet on the stern -holding it off. I'm now also shouting at the skipper to
"turn the Fu*king engines off".

The engines got switched off, and we pulled the boat against the wall, a
couple of feet forward of the pair in the water. They pulled themselves
over to the boarding ladder of the boat. The skipper (husband) leaned over
the stern and told his wife to climb up the ladder. She tried, and said
that she couldn't. The skipper told her again to climb up! At this point I
said to him (our heads were only a foot apart) "she's in shock from the fall
and the cold". The husband didn't seem to understand.

Anyway, the lockeeper pushed her up onto the ladder, and he followed.

The lockeeper then got onto the wall - and expected a "thank you" from the
skipper. He was dissappointed. He even passed a comment about "seeing you
next week".

The keeper went up to the controls and closed the inner gates, then opened
the outer gates. The motor boat sailed off without a word of thanks.



With hindsight, I realised that the lockeeper had gone straight into the
water - without hesitation. He didn't have time to empty his pockets.
When *we* started to run, the lockeeper was still in his observation tower,
and less than 10 seconds later he was in the water. I suspect that he had a
wallet in his pocket - any money in it was ruined. He wasn't even offered a
bottle of wine.



This page shows the lock in question.
http://www.island-harbour.co.uk/getting.html


Regards


Donal
--

Which goes to confirm the general incompetence of the motor head.

Cheers MC

Donal wrote:

A couple of weeks ago I was in a marina that had a locked entrance. The
lock was small (4-6 boats), and there was hardly any wind.

Coincidentally, a customer, who has a 40 ft power boat was visiting the same
marina. On the Sunday morning I noticed that he was standing on his
flybridge alone. I wandered over to his boat and went aboard.

He told me that he was watching the "fun" in the lock. He was moored no
more than 100ft from the lock, with a view straight in. He said that nearly
every boat that went in was getting into difficulties.

We chatted for a few minutes, and saw one 30 ft yacht try to wedge itself
between the lock walls. Later, we watched a 40+ foot old wooden motor boat
get into difficulties. The bow seemed to be secured, but the stern was
drifting away from the wall. There was lots of shouting, and we were smugly
commenting on their incompetence when there was a splash!!

I'd like to think that I react quickly in an emergency. However, the brain
doesn't work that way. I said that I thought that someone had fallen in.
Roger said that he thought so too. Roger then said that maybe we should go
to help. It was only at that point that we realised that a real emergency
existed, and we ran like mad.

It only took a few seconds to cover the 50 yards, but when we got there the
lockeeper was already in the water, supporting the 65(?) y/o woman who had
fallen in. They were holding onto a vertical rope on the lock wall. The
motor boat's stern was about 4-5 feet from the wall - and it was threatening
to come in and crush the pair in the water. I sat on the wall and was able
to get my feet into a position to stop the boat coming against the wall.
Roger is shouting at the skipper to switch his engines off. The skipper
seems to be more concerned with getting his boat alongside the lock wall-
and doesn't seem to have figured out that he might kill his wife (and the
lockeeper). At this point, I have a rope from the boat, and I also have my
feet on the stern -holding it off. I'm now also shouting at the skipper to
"turn the Fu*king engines off".

The engines got switched off, and we pulled the boat against the wall, a
couple of feet forward of the pair in the water. They pulled themselves
over to the boarding ladder of the boat. The skipper (husband) leaned over
the stern and told his wife to climb up the ladder. She tried, and said
that she couldn't. The skipper told her again to climb up! At this point I
said to him (our heads were only a foot apart) "she's in shock from the fall
and the cold". The husband didn't seem to understand.

Anyway, the lockeeper pushed her up onto the ladder, and he followed.

The lockeeper then got onto the wall - and expected a "thank you" from the
skipper. He was dissappointed. He even passed a comment about "seeing you
next week".

The keeper went up to the controls and closed the inner gates, then opened
the outer gates. The motor boat sailed off without a word of thanks.



With hindsight, I realised that the lockeeper had gone straight into the
water - without hesitation. He didn't have time to empty his pockets.
When *we* started to run, the lockeeper was still in his observation tower,
and less than 10 seconds later he was in the water. I suspect that he had a
wallet in his pocket - any money in it was ruined. He wasn't even offered a
bottle of wine.



This page shows the lock in question.
http://www.island-harbour.co.uk/getting.html


Regards


Donal
--

I would have bitch slapped the owner of the boat at the first sign of
incompetence... refusal to comprehend enough to turn off the engine.....
then very loudly humiliated him and question his ability to be allowed to
venture onto the water.

You acted quite civil Donal.... it appears he was fleeing a very
embarrassing moment. Make sure the incident, party and the boat get
mentioned in the local paper.

CM



"Donal" wrote in message
...
| A couple of weeks ago I was in a marina that had a locked entrance. The
| lock was small (4-6 boats), and there was hardly any wind.
|
| Coincidentally, a customer, who has a 40 ft power boat was visiting the
same
| marina. On the Sunday morning I noticed that he was standing on his
| flybridge alone. I wandered over to his boat and went aboard.
|
| He told me that he was watching the "fun" in the lock. He was moored no
| more than 100ft from the lock, with a view straight in. He said that
nearly
| every boat that went in was getting into difficulties.
|
| We chatted for a few minutes, and saw one 30 ft yacht try to wedge itself
| between the lock walls. Later, we watched a 40+ foot old wooden motor
boat
| get into difficulties. The bow seemed to be secured, but the stern was
| drifting away from the wall. There was lots of shouting, and we were
smugly
| commenting on their incompetence when there was a splash!!
|
| I'd like to think that I react quickly in an emergency. However, the
brain
| doesn't work that way. I said that I thought that someone had fallen in.
| Roger said that he thought so too. Roger then said that maybe we should
go
| to help. It was only at that point that we realised that a real emergency
| existed, and we ran like mad.
|
| It only took a few seconds to cover the 50 yards, but when we got there
the
| lockeeper was already in the water, supporting the 65(?) y/o woman who had
| fallen in. They were holding onto a vertical rope on the lock wall.
The
| motor boat's stern was about 4-5 feet from the wall - and it was
threatening
| to come in and crush the pair in the water. I sat on the wall and was
able
| to get my feet into a position to stop the boat coming against the wall.
| Roger is shouting at the skipper to switch his engines off. The skipper
| seems to be more concerned with getting his boat alongside the lock wall-
| and doesn't seem to have figured out that he might kill his wife (and the
| lockeeper). At this point, I have a rope from the boat, and I also have
my
| feet on the stern -holding it off. I'm now also shouting at the skipper
to
| "turn the Fu*king engines off".
|
| The engines got switched off, and we pulled the boat against the wall, a
| couple of feet forward of the pair in the water. They pulled themselves
| over to the boarding ladder of the boat. The skipper (husband) leaned
over
| the stern and told his wife to climb up the ladder. She tried, and said
| that she couldn't. The skipper told her again to climb up! At this point
I
| said to him (our heads were only a foot apart) "she's in shock from the
fall
| and the cold". The husband didn't seem to understand.
|
| Anyway, the lockeeper pushed her up onto the ladder, and he followed.
|
| The lockeeper then got onto the wall - and expected a "thank you" from the
| skipper. He was dissappointed. He even passed a comment about "seeing
you
| next week".
|
| The keeper went up to the controls and closed the inner gates, then opened
| the outer gates. The motor boat sailed off without a word of thanks.
|
|
|
| With hindsight, I realised that the lockeeper had gone straight into the
| water - without hesitation. He didn't have time to empty his pockets.
| When *we* started to run, the lockeeper was still in his observation
tower,
| and less than 10 seconds later he was in the water. I suspect that he had
a
| wallet in his pocket - any money in it was ruined. He wasn't even offered
a
| bottle of wine.
|
|
|
| This page shows the lock in question.
| http://www.island-harbour.co.uk/getting.html
|
|
| Regards
|
|
| Donal
| --
|
|
|

An interesting story. Clearly, the man was beating a hasty retreat ... hopefully he had
second thoughts about his ungracious behavior.

BTW, you said "I suspect that he had a wallet in his pocket - any money in it was
ruined." Does your local currency dissolve in water? That doesn't seem like a good
idea, especially given your damp climate. In the States we run old bills through the
washing machine to make them look new again! I hope the Republicans don't realize the
fiscal benefits of dissolving money.

-jeff



"Donal" wrote in message
...
A couple of weeks ago I was in a marina that had a locked entrance. The
lock was small (4-6 boats), and there was hardly any wind.

Coincidentally, a customer, who has a 40 ft power boat was visiting the same
marina. On the Sunday morning I noticed that he was standing on his
flybridge alone. I wandered over to his boat and went aboard.

He told me that he was watching the "fun" in the lock. He was moored no
more than 100ft from the lock, with a view straight in. He said that nearly
every boat that went in was getting into difficulties.

We chatted for a few minutes, and saw one 30 ft yacht try to wedge itself
between the lock walls. Later, we watched a 40+ foot old wooden motor boat
get into difficulties. The bow seemed to be secured, but the stern was
drifting away from the wall. There was lots of shouting, and we were smugly
commenting on their incompetence when there was a splash!!

I'd like to think that I react quickly in an emergency. However, the brain
doesn't work that way. I said that I thought that someone had fallen in.
Roger said that he thought so too. Roger then said that maybe we should go
to help. It was only at that point that we realised that a real emergency
existed, and we ran like mad.

It only took a few seconds to cover the 50 yards, but when we got there the
lockeeper was already in the water, supporting the 65(?) y/o woman who had
fallen in. They were holding onto a vertical rope on the lock wall. The
motor boat's stern was about 4-5 feet from the wall - and it was threatening
to come in and crush the pair in the water. I sat on the wall and was able
to get my feet into a position to stop the boat coming against the wall.
Roger is shouting at the skipper to switch his engines off. The skipper
seems to be more concerned with getting his boat alongside the lock wall-
and doesn't seem to have figured out that he might kill his wife (and the
lockeeper). At this point, I have a rope from the boat, and I also have my
feet on the stern -holding it off. I'm now also shouting at the skipper to
"turn the Fu*king engines off".

The engines got switched off, and we pulled the boat against the wall, a
couple of feet forward of the pair in the water. They pulled themselves
over to the boarding ladder of the boat. The skipper (husband) leaned over
the stern and told his wife to climb up the ladder. She tried, and said
that she couldn't. The skipper told her again to climb up! At this point I
said to him (our heads were only a foot apart) "she's in shock from the fall
and the cold". The husband didn't seem to understand.

Anyway, the lockeeper pushed her up onto the ladder, and he followed.

The lockeeper then got onto the wall - and expected a "thank you" from the
skipper. He was dissappointed. He even passed a comment about "seeing you
next week".

The keeper went up to the controls and closed the inner gates, then opened
the outer gates. The motor boat sailed off without a word of thanks.



With hindsight, I realised that the lockeeper had gone straight into the
water - without hesitation. He didn't have time to empty his pockets.
When *we* started to run, the lockeeper was still in his observation tower,
and less than 10 seconds later he was in the water. I suspect that he had a
wallet in his pocket - any money in it was ruined. He wasn't even offered a
bottle of wine.



This page shows the lock in question.
http://www.island-harbour.co.uk/getting.html


Regards


Donal
--

On Mon, 15 Sep 2003 22:15:27 -0300, Capt. Mooron wrote:

I would have bitch slapped the owner of the boat at the first sign of
incompetence... refusal to comprehend enough to turn off the engine.....
then very loudly humiliated him and question his ability to be allowed to
venture onto the water.

I can understand questioning his competence, but bitch slapping a 65 year
old?

You acted quite civil Donal.... it appears he was fleeing a very
embarrassing moment. Make sure the incident, party and the boat get
mentioned in the local paper.

CM



"Donal" wrote in message
...
| A couple of weeks ago I was in a marina that had a locked entrance.
| The lock was small (4-6 boats), and there was hardly any wind.
|
| Coincidentally, a customer, who has a 40 ft power boat was visiting
| the
same
| marina. On the Sunday morning I noticed that he was standing on his
| flybridge alone. I wandered over to his boat and went aboard.
|
| He told me that he was watching the "fun" in the lock. He was moored
| no more than 100ft from the lock, with a view straight in. He said
| that
nearly
| every boat that went in was getting into difficulties.
|
| We chatted for a few minutes, and saw one 30 ft yacht try to wedge
| itself between the lock walls. Later, we watched a 40+ foot old
| wooden motor
boat
| get into difficulties. The bow seemed to be secured, but the stern
| was drifting away from the wall. There was lots of shouting, and we
| were
smugly
| commenting on their incompetence when there was a splash!!
|
| I'd like to think that I react quickly in an emergency. However, the
brain
| doesn't work that way. I said that I thought that someone had fallen
| in. Roger said that he thought so too. Roger then said that maybe we
| should
go
| to help. It was only at that point that we realised that a real
| emergency existed, and we ran like mad.
|
| It only took a few seconds to cover the 50 yards, but when we got
| there
the
| lockeeper was already in the water, supporting the 65(?) y/o woman who
| had fallen in. They were holding onto a vertical rope on the lock
| wall.
The
| motor boat's stern was about 4-5 feet from the wall - and it was
threatening
| to come in and crush the pair in the water. I sat on the wall and was
able
| to get my feet into a position to stop the boat coming against the
| wall. Roger is shouting at the skipper to switch his engines off. The
| skipper seems to be more concerned with getting his boat alongside the
| lock wall- and doesn't seem to have figured out that he might kill his
| wife (and the lockeeper). At this point, I have a rope from the boat,
| and I also have
my
| feet on the stern -holding it off. I'm now also shouting at the
| skipper
to
| "turn the Fu*king engines off".
|
| The engines got switched off, and we pulled the boat against the wall,
| a couple of feet forward of the pair in the water. They pulled
| themselves over to the boarding ladder of the boat. The skipper
| (husband) leaned
over
| the stern and told his wife to climb up the ladder. She tried, and
| said that she couldn't. The skipper told her again to climb up! At
| this point
I
| said to him (our heads were only a foot apart) "she's in shock from
| the
fall
| and the cold". The husband didn't seem to understand.
|
| Anyway, the lockeeper pushed her up onto the ladder, and he followed.
|
| The lockeeper then got onto the wall - and expected a "thank you" from
| the skipper. He was dissappointed. He even passed a comment about
| "seeing
you
| next week".
|
| The keeper went up to the controls and closed the inner gates, then
| opened the outer gates. The motor boat sailed off without a word of
| thanks.
|
|
|
| With hindsight, I realised that the lockeeper had gone straight into
| the water - without hesitation. He didn't have time to empty his
| pockets. When *we* started to run, the lockeeper was still in his
| observation
tower,
| and less than 10 seconds later he was in the water. I suspect that he
| had
a
| wallet in his pocket - any money in it was ruined. He wasn't even
| offered
a
| bottle of wine.
|
|
|
| This page shows the lock in question.
| http://www.island-harbour.co.uk/getting.html
|
|
| Regards
|
|
| Donal
| --
|
|
|

thunder wrote:

On Mon, 15 Sep 2003 22:15:27 -0300, Capt. Mooron wrote:

I would have bitch slapped the owner ....

I can understand questioning his competence, but bitch slapping a 65 year old?


Right up the man's alley.

"Jeff Morris" jeffmo@NoSpam-sv-lokiDOTcom wrote in message
...
An interesting story. Clearly, the man was beating a hasty retreat ...
hopefully he had
second thoughts about his ungracious behavior.

BTW, you said "I suspect that he had a wallet in his pocket - any money
in it was
ruined." Does your local currency dissolve in water? That doesn't seem
like a good
idea, especially given your damp climate. In the States we run old bills
through the
washing machine to make them look new again! I hope the Republicans don't
realize the
fiscal benefits of dissolving money.


Actually, we have had tougher new notes here for a few years. They are
probably waterproof. The keeper's clothes would have need cleaning. He
should have been offered something.


Regards


Donal
--

I would have bitch slapped the owner of the boat at the first sign of
incompetence...=20

Donal already satated that the woman was in her 60's...chances are the =
man was probably even older, has lost his reaction time, and possibly is =
already suffering from dementia. Bitch-slapping people does nothing to =
improve a situation, but does tend to inflame others, especially when =
they perceive that the elderly are being abused (hint-hint....taking a =
walk in your own shoes). I am not defending the man's actions or lack =
thereof, but different people react in diffrent ways and he, too, could =
have been suffering from shock or disbelief. The thankful part is that =
there was someone there to act, there was someone there, to assist the =
old man, and that no lasting damage seems to have occurred. =20

Shock is a weird thing. People act totally out of character when it =
strikes. Some people are lucky and have had training to react =
immediately...if a person has never been in a bad or dangerous =
situation, they may not even realize how bad things really are, even =
staring at it right in the face. It's wasy to condemn people. It is =
much harder to understand them. It is always better to at least try to =
understand than to condemn. (unless of course, you're talking about a =
few jaded individuals that we all know...)

--=20
katysails
s/v Chanteuse
Kirie Elite 32
http://katysails.tripod.com

"Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax
and get used to the idea." - Robert A. Heinlein

He
should have been offered something.


Regards


Donal
You don't know that he wasn't after all was aid and done. After the man =
took his wife home and got over it all, it is very possible he came back =
and recompensed the lock keeper. =20
--=20
katysails
s/v Chanteuse
Kirie Elite 32
http://katysails.tripod.com

"Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax
and get used to the idea." - Robert A. Heinlein

"thunder" wrote in message

| I can understand questioning his competence, but bitch slapping a 65 year
| old?

I know some 65 year olds that could kick your butt. Why is it people think
that when someone reaches 65 ... they're automatically a feeble imbecile?
Yeah I'd bitch slap a 65 year old just as quick as I would a 25 year
old.....

I didn't say beat him into a friggin' coma!
GET A GRIP!

CM