SPEEDTRIPLE

Give us a chance John, i have`nt been to specsavers for a while

Not this time Ian, there`ll be 9 of us. Karen and me my brother Trev and his partner Maria Trevs daughter Sarah + partner Stewart + their daught Isabella Trevs other Daughter Kate, with her son Harry. Trev and me are seasoned veterans of the Broads, with Karen coming in 7 years ago for the first time, then Maria came for the first time about 5 years ago. Sarah and Kate have`nt been on the broads for a few years now, but for Stewart, Isabella, and Harry it`s their first time, and Hary and Isabella are both 3 years old (or should that be young?). Hence why we`ve hired Kestrel. I only hope there`s enough room, or we might have to spring a surprise on John and Linda, and take out Kingfisher or Swaloow if they`re still in?.

Erm,............. no,............ i have`nt actually got one John :oops: . Where can i get one before Friday?.

Although i`m not a father, and never will be, i think this is a very kind thing to say, and would like to echo Graves kind words. Nice one Gracie :wave Regards to all, ................ Neil

I did hear last year that when lined the banks of the Chet, the boards used were called Keratin (or something like that) which is supposed to be extremely durable, and very expensive. I`ve neve heard of it, but does anybody else know anything?.

to return it to its former glory would mean opening it for navigation by the last remaining wherries. I`ve looked on the trusts website where in one section, they`ve removed weed and were preparing to dredge it, but lo and behold, the BA started to get involved, and put a stop to it. If i was in charge of the trust, i`d have told them it`s private property where they have NO authority, and told them to push off.

Hi all as many of you will know, next friday will see us back afloat on Maffett Cruisers Kestrel (friday 29th for a week) Is anybody going to be afloat, and if anybody sees us, please feel free to come and say hello, or give us a wave if underway. Regards and happy cruising to all ........................ Neil

Although i`ve not seen any of the footage, last year (actually, it might have been the beginning of this year) i was working in our back garden when i heard a double "thump". I looked up expecting to see Karen closing the windows in the bedroom, but she was`nt there. Then i remembered a few years back a bird flew into the garage window and broke its neck. When i looked at the garage window, i could see something moving in the bottom corner. When i got there, i found what i thought was a dead pigeon,being grey in colour, but when i picked it up, it was no pigeon, and as i took it out, it started to grip my finger with TALONS, good job i had heavy leather riggers gloves on, as it just got tighter, so this bird clearly was`nt dead, just stunned. I had a good look at it, and realised it was some bird of prey, which i then realised must have been chasing another bird, so back in the garage, and sure enough, there was another bird below the window, this one having a broken neck. When i took it outside, the other bird had come too, and was just taking it easy "mantling" on the ground. When it saw me, it scarpered, so i put the dead bird at the top of the garden for the local wildlife to feed on, which it did, as it was gone the next morning. At first, i though it was a perregrine, but reading one of my bird books i descovered it was actually a female Sparrowhawk, and in the text about their habbits etc, it said "not uncommon to be found dead after chasing other birds down to ground level and flying into windows". So i took great pleasure in knowing this one had survived and regaines its freedom. Karen and i are both interrested in birds of prey, and are always looking for a B o P centre wherever we go on holiday, we went to the one at Stonham barns while in Suffolk a month ago. So imagine the sheer buzz i got from knowing that for a few minutes, i had a wild Female Sparrowhawk in my hands. it`s something i can`t describe, but it really made my weekend. Drugs and alcahol could`nt give me the high i felt afterwards. Regards to all ...................... Neil.

Hi John, Karen and i saw the 2 boats moored to a post in this posting on the Monday we saw you and Mary Jane in Loddon Basin. I don`t want to say anything in open forum YET, but hopefully, when we come back in 2 weeks time, i`l be able to post some more info. What i can say is the red and black tug was called out, because the Alpha it was towing blew its gearbox not long before which was a couple of hours after they picked her up . That Alpha is a 32ft ctr ckpt, with the salloon amidships, and the aft end having an en-suite twin / double conversion, which is a lot more spacious than the standard 35 with a central pokey double en-suite. I had a quick nose aboard her before Karen and i saw you at Loddon, so you must have seen her when you had Friday girls engine serviced. It was in a real state inside, but was sold as "ready to go". Another ex DRL boat too.

We`ll be able to see if it`s there nexr friday Alan, as we`ll be taking their new boat Kestrel out for a week. Does`nt exactly help you now though does it?.

Nothing wrong with a Fuji bridge camera Keith, i`ve got a Fuji Finepix S1500 which i bought in Tesco for less than £120. It does me, and the pictures come out good enough for us. The only downside is i don`t think you can attach any filters, but then i`m just a point and shoot merchant, and don`t know all this photographic arty stuff, so it does`nt matter anyway.

Hi Alan, Any more news on your mum and dads boat?.

Only 8 working days for me though Geoffers :party:

Hi 10B, there`s also a place not far from North Cove, but on the north bank. When we passed it last time, it was full of fishermen, with a guy attempting to get them to move while he was mooring up.

Hi Alan I make a monthly donation to the RNLI, and have done so for around 10 years now. I would imagine it`s less than the cost of 40 cigarettes a month, but if you multiply that by several thousand people, it amounts to a tidy sum for a very good cause. I think ANYBODY that owns a boat near or around the coast should search their hearts and do the same, which would mean the RNLI will ALWAYS be able to buy the latest vital equipment.

Hi Howard, we`ve been past North Cove staithe dozens of times but never stopped there untill 2 years ago, when we stopped off for lunch while en-route to somewhere else. I must admit i liked the peace and quiet of it, so will sometime soon make an overnight stop there. It`s one of many places i`ve got my eyes on for overnighting when all the main areas are full.

Personally, i`d rather not have anything to do with it. I think it`s great to be able to get away from general life when on the Broads, that`s why i love it. Some of the syndicate owners on Lightning are pushing for a wi fi system to be fitted, something i`m against, but we live in (and have syndicate based on) a democratic system, so it looks like i`m yet again going to have to pay for something i don`t want and will more than likely never use. It`s good to be a "ludite". I can never find the laughing smiley.

Steady how you write things John, i thought for a split second you said "your little thingy" :naughty:

Hi John, We`ll be there in 2 weeks (Friday 20th - Friday 27th June). on Kestrel, a blue and white Alpha 42 ctr ckpt, so if you see us, please give us a shout.

ABSOLUTELY SO. I`ve been saying this for a long time now, and have had a lot of adverse comments about it. I think if the BA had to be publicly accountable via democratic elections, we might start to see things done for the benefit of those that earn their livelihoods from the broads, as well as those that fund the BA via tolls etc. This is (in my opinion) long overdue, and should be under discussion by the Governmental department responsible for them aws we speak.

Hi Gracie, the only time i saw the Yorkshire Ouse, it was several miles wide in some places, and in one particulat place, you could see only the cross bar of a goal post sticking out of it. I still can`t find that lol smiley.

Hi Gracie, Are there still any hire boats on the Yorkshire Ouse?. I wanted to go there for years, but never got round to it, but now i think my chance has gone due to a lack of hir boats.

I`m not sure about that Matt, but i`l bring it up next year. I may just keep the whole share and let my brother and his family use itif they want to, as they`re down as co-owners.

Spot on there Iain, I think too many people have allowed themselves to be brainwashed about German engineering being the best in the world. Ask yourself one question, how many F1 cars are built in Germany .................. None, even the Mercedes that Lewis Hamilton drives is built in the UK, and how many BMW`s do you see broken down on the side of the road or on the back of recovery trucks, but most importantly, WHO WON THE WAR?, and NO it was`nt the Americans, all they did was win it in Hollywood. OK, so that was 3 questions. Now where`s that laughing smiley gone?.

Ah Ah, the good old party 7. And if you were skint, or just tight, the party 4. I seem to remember many parties where they were in evidence, and none were ever anywhere near empty, unless they`d been poured down the loo. As for what i`d do, i`ve just thought of two other little projects. No 1-. BLOW UP POTTER HEIGHAM OLD ROAD BRIDGE No 2-. BLOW UP WROXHAM ROAD BRIDGE. Seriously though, i`d pay handsomely to have a civil engineering company come in and lift those two bridges by a foot each, and strengthen the footings and river bed to stop them sinking any further. Then i`d give a grant to anybody who wanted to re-open the village store at Hickling. Regards to all, only 20 sleeps to go .......................... Neil.