"The Moment of Sheer Terror"

By Kelli Rappard

Moving into Lock 6 on the Oswego Canal we all were very confident with the 3 of us handling the Tumbleweed. The wind had other plans for us... The Captain drove us straight into the spot he wanted us to be... I easily grabbed the cable and was in the process of hooking the line to the boat cleat. I heard a thud and looked back to the end of the boat and saw my mother hanging onto a boat hook wrapped onto the cable with HALF of her body hanging OFF THE BOAT!!! The thud was Floyd jumping from the fly bridge to rescue my mom!!! Even with the two of them pulling on the boat hook and trying to get the boat back to the wall, the wind kept pushing us away. All I could do is hold onto the line that was keeping the bow in place... after BOTH Floyd and Linda had the top halves of their bodies hanging off the side of the boat they let go of the "Captain's Favorite" boat hook... and down it went... to the bottom of Lock 6. All I could think was "oh crap, they almost fell off the boat and I have no clue how to drive this thing." At least they had sense enough to let go of the hook. I guess now I know why my mother refers to this trip as "Hours of Pleasant Boredom with Moments of Sheer Terror" and I now know what to get Floyd for Christmas... a new boat hook.