SPEEDTRIPLE

Yeah, very interesting bridge indeed, and very much like Somerleyton Bridge too.

This programme is based in Poole down here in Dorset. The shop in question is just off the Quay, and I've yet to find it. Every Tuesday evening between Spring and Autumn, they have Bike Night where up to about 3,000 bikes attend. Karen and I have regularly attended it, and it just has to be seen to be believed. I think the record for the number of bikes attended is around the 4,000 mark, and we',ve been down there when it's been rammed. It's a great weekly event with a real mix of bikes, even trikes etc, and the shop where this programme is based (which has a cafe) does really well out the nights.

Hence why Packman is treated with so much suspicion. I don`t think anybody on this forum has ever said the Broads are in a terrible state, but the navigations are in desperate need of dredging in a great many areas, along with the fact several of the navigations are becoming overgrown with reed and tree ingress. Then of course there`s the loss of moorings, and the loss of refuse disposal. Our tolls are supposed to be spent on keeping the navigation open, providing adequate moorings, and to keep the rivers and their banks clean and clear, not for funding misleading lies, ie, advertising the Broads as a National Park in the press and road signs.

Have you ever asked the people of the Lake district how they feel about the situation though?.

Had the BA (who are responsible for the signs) not had the signs installed, this discussion (NOT arguement) would not be taking place, so, nobody would be "having a pop at the BA". As has been said many times by many members of this forum, the vast majority of the BA are decent honest hard working upright members. Unfortunately, there are one or two at the top who forsee a much more (financially?) rewarding future for themselves if the Broads, along with its surrounding countryside, were to become something it is NOT. Have any members of the Norfolk and Broadland public, be they residents / tenants, business owners, farmers, the boating community including fleet operators and private owners etc etc etc, ever been canvassed as to whether they want their livelihoods overseen by yet ANOTHER authority they cannot elect, who also may impose ridiculous rules and restrictions on how they then have to live their lives and work?. I think the answer to that is a big fat NO. And i still stand by my earlier belief that if ANYBODY thinks this branding of the Broads as an NP is NOT a definite back door attempt to bring it into full NP status, they are seriously naive at best, deluded at worse. Talk about the blind leading the blind?.

Yes it was about a sign, but hardly harmless. A sign that has been put up to advertise something false. A falsehood that a certain individual in high UNELECTED authority wants the public to believe is true long enough to allow said falsehood (weii, Lie actually) to be finalised through the back door, enabling Sandford to govern the Broads.

Just having a bit of fun mm, no offence intended. Re Clives brochure, you are 100% wrong on that score. Only yesterday i protested on their facebook advert where they state the Broads are a National Park. I asked them to STOP advertising the Broads as a NP as it is`nt one, and got a limp response all but backing the claim it was. I then stated that if the Broads DID become a full NP, sandford WILL apply, and that might, and i say MIGHT spell the end of boating on the Broads. I`ve yet to have a response. I`ve got a great idea, why don`t we go and stick Rolls Royce badges on the back of packmans Range Rover (or whatever he drives) and tell him he will have to pay more for his insurance because he owns a Roller?.

Only in MY opinion Bill, but read all his posts on every thread about this fictitious subject again and you will see he always defends the BA and the NP. Anyway, I like go fishing with mm

I hope any changes are done sympathetically to the area. If the holiday units are of the log cabin type, and set back in some gardens etc, it would look rather pretty.

Go to bed then and dream of your desire to see the Broads being turned into a national park, where there are no boats, no pubs (not enough customers), no industry, no rivers, and only reed beds and marshes. I bet you`d love that mm?.

I wonder if being the owner and operator for 40 years, his business plan was geared around the way things used to be with limited local food outlets in their hay day, yet lacks experience to compete in the more up to date manner of catering?. With Tesco`s being up the road and selling ready prepared food, and people as a general rule have less disposable income, eating out is becoming an expensive luxury. Also, a great number of pubs don`t actually have chefs or cookers, their food is pre packaged and heated in industrial microwaves. 15 Years ago, a lady who worked with us had a daughter who worked for one of the pub chains who`s advertising slogan was "arguably serving the best pub food in the business". All they had was a food prep area with NO cookers, just a bank of 12 industrial microwave / convection cooking things. With that in mind, it may be that the S S Hotel staff are not either geared up or interested in that type of catering?.

But they WERE there, and they were banned, which is a change, and you`re all for it?. But this change you are totally against, why is that?. It appears in your own words, you obviously only like change when it suits you, i know what that smacks of to me, and possibly to others too?.

And who?

Don't forget Peter back in the 60s and 70s, boats such as Elysian 27s, Seamaster 25 and 27s were often rated for 4-5 berths, with cockpit bench seat being the 5th Berth. Also, a lot boats based on the Bourne 30 Hull had centre saloons and were 6 berth, 5th and 6th being on the saloon settee.

Thanks Alan.

Yeah, it surprised me too. I thought we just turned up, put up the tents etc and got drunk. We'll, not me, I would end up looking like a tea bag 😂.

I have on numerous occasions said in open forum about where we will be, and on what boat, and invited other members to come and say hello. We were also one of the group that met up with Alan and Co at Oulton Broad, a get together mentioned and commented in open forum, and none of the mods had to reprimand any of us for breaking the tos rules. I would imagine it would only break the rules if you bill it as an official meet, or linked it to the NBN in public. Could any of the mods verify that, or correct me on it please,?.

On two consecutive years, Karen and i hired a boat specifically to attend the Autumn meets at the Coldham Hall Hotel. The first year we hired Pacific Emerald, the following year we hired Jay from Maffetts. I think the CHH would be a great venue for an Autumn meet as i doubt you would want a bar b que in October?. We also attended a couple of meets at Beccles, the first in Swallow, and the second as John and Mary Janes guests on Friday girl. We drove up from Dorset especially for that one, a 500+ mile round trip.

With the regular spring meet now under starters orders, I thought I'd suggest that we have an annual Southern meet at some time. What do people think?. There used to be 3 or 4 annual meets, Spring, Summer, and Autumn. They were usually held on the southern rivers, mainly because at that time, a lot of members had large sea going craft. These days however, most members either hire, or own boats which can travel the majority of the network, so having regular meets North and south shouldn't be a problem. What do other members think?.

You think, or you hope?

And the increase in power that he will get.

mm, i will always respect your opinion, but only yours, but in your post here, you say - "when in fact the vast majority of members of this, and other forums may well have a more benevolent view of that organisation". first of all, that point sounds to me (i can`t speak for others) appears you are taking for granted the vast majority agree with you, yet by the use of the term "may well have" means you do not know?. Then in the second paragraph you say - "but my view has always been that you should not moan all the time, or indeed find fault over what IMHO, and i suspect others too", .................. Yet again, you are assuming others on this forum agree with you?. "I shall save myself for the real battles and not imaginary ones". The FACT that the BA said the NP branding is only for marketing purposes, yet are putting up signs claiming it actually IS an NP, that`s hardly imaginary, it`s as your last words say REALITY. The way you always stand up for the BA re their claim that the broads are an NP seems pretty likely to me (i can`t say for others) that you wish it was.

Yes, with you in the house MM, I should have phrased it differently 😂

I don't know why it automatically said partner, I typed BROTHER.

Hi Jeremy, welcome from me too. I believe electric bow thrusters are extremely power hungry, so do NOT connect it to your starter battery. I would NEVER connect anything other than the engine starter motor to your starter battery, as a starter motor itself is power hungry, so anything else connected to it could see a flattened battery and unable to start the engine to "charge up the batteries".