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The Thames Barge Driving Race

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File:Lighter under tower bridge c1928.jpg
Lighter.


Westminster Bridge.

The Thames Barge Driving Race or TOW Barge Driving Race is a river race that was set up in 1975 by a charity called The Transport On Water Association (TOW) with the backing of Members of Parliament and Members of the House of Lords in the United Kingdom.

The Race

The race constists of about 11 teams of between 4 and 8 members who steer and row 30 ton barges over a seven mile course for about 90 minutes from Greenwich to Westminster Bridge. Considerable skill is needed to pilot unpowered barges 'rowed under oars' or sweeps and ride tidal river currents alone, up river. The event commemorates the skills of Lightermen who moved freight this way along the Thames up until the 1930's and in a wider context it encourages ongoing interest in moving cargo via water and as a way to recruit younger people back into river trades.
The teams are normally made up of employees of Thames Lighterage companies, Port of London Authority or are sponsored by local businesses. The best places to view the race are Tower Bridge, London Bridge and Westminster Bridge.

Historical context

During the 1970's Britain had suffered a major energy crisis and many politicians in the UK and USA were astutely looking at alternative ways to transport freight in ways that could reduce dependency on oil. With the closure of the upriver docks a decline had started in the traditional London lighterage business. Between 1967 and 1976 over 40 lighterage firms closed down. At the same time the UKs domestic central heating market was emerging to replace coal. The race reflected a more pragmatic political ethos and was a way of keeping alive a dying industry and its river skills as the energy crisis deepened further.

Other Thames river races

See also

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