An early start…. for others

Woke this morning after being rocked around by the first boat of the day.  We were having breakfast when a group of young walkers passed on the towpath.  Jan though they were participating in some type of event!  Then a boat went past with decals on it and she realised it was some type of sponsored trip.

Jan was immediately onto Google and whilst searching a second boat passed.

OK…… It was a sponsored event for Matt Hampson.  A former England U21 rugby prop who in 2005 became a quadriplegic in a freak rugby training accident.  According to the foundation website <here> this is the foundations 5th sponsored walk.  The participants travel from Rugby to Twickenham over the next eight days.

Jan wanted to see the man who was going to carry the beer keg.  Would it be an old wooden keg and was he going to drink the contents along the way?  Well he managed to pass us without being photographed.  But it turns out the keg is aluminium and empty.  Alastair Robinson has converted it to a collection barrel and hopes to raise £1500 during his walk.

Photo courtesy of the Walk4Matt website

Another unusual contestant is the man paddling the route in an old tin bath tub.  Jan did managed to get a photo after he had passed the side hatch window.

I’m not sure who has the tougher challenge.  Walking the Thames Path with a beer keg, or paddling down the Thames in a bath!

boats started to go past reasonably frequently when Jan suddenly yelled “Insanity!”  I wasn’t sure if she was referring to herself or me.  It was Sheila and Bruce on nb Sanity Again heading south towards Braunston.   Off to the Crick Boat Show we presume!   ( Jan here…. I didn’t yell out “Insanity”……..your ears need cleaning TOM ! )

Bruce way down the sharp end whilst Sheila steered

Hopefully we’ll have a longer meeting at Crick.

Jan was amused by the antics of a couple of hire boats.  The day boat moored on the water point for  hours but didn’t take any water.

I saw them later in the day motoring back to the hire base.  Actually I was expecting to see someone being towed on water skis behind!  The had the throttle fully open and were pushing an enormous amount of water in front of the bow.  The wake at the stern was something to be seen! 

The second hire boat (a “Yellow Peril”) had moored beyond the water point and was partially into the bridge hole on a blind bend. 

It made entertaining viewing as other boats attempted to manoeuvre through the narrow gap.  You would think common sense would have enabled the crew to realise it was a most unsatisfactory mooring.  But then it appears not everyone gets their share of common sense these days!