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Anyone visiting London these days and surveying the River Thames upstream from the Thames Barrier cannot help but notice a relatively new addition to all the traffic on the water. True, there are now many more large river cruising boats similar to Paris’s Bateaux Mouches but in between these wide passenger vessels can now be seen a growing number of rigid inflatable boats or RIBs. These can weave speedily around the waterway avoiding any obstacles and other less manoeuvrable craft. They can also carry a large number of people relative to their size and provide reasonable comfort in choppy conditions. RIBs certainly seem to have gained popularity with the River Police who can be seen darting around much faster than their colleagues in heavier traditional wooden vessels with inboard motors. Also, it is interesting to note that tourists can now take river tours in RIBs courtesy of operators like London RIB Voyages which start from the London Eye. The rise in popularity of rib boats in the capital mirrors similar growth across the rest of the country. The RNLI were one of the first institutions to adopt the vessel and remain enthusiastic users. However, it is private individuals in the leisure market who are powering sales of British RIBs both in the UK and overseas. For those who already own one or have sailed in someone else’s, it is not difficult to see why. With their new aluminium hulls, they are light and easy to handle which makes them ideal for use as a tender or for easy launching where there is no slipway. Small wonder why they are so popular with enthusiasts as an all-purpose runabout. Everyone should have the opportunity to try one out at least once and it is nice to see a major British manufacturer, Ribeye of Dartmouth, offering a try before you buy scheme enabling people to sample the delights of RIB ownership at various locations around the UK. Perhaps the best feature of today’s RIBs in this age of austerity is, of course, the cost compared with traditional speedboats offering similar performance.
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