Keeping the punt-ers happy
TIMES ARE CHANGING on the Cherwell, with the time-honoured tradition of punting under threat, some believe, from the the pedalo. Magdalen Bridge Boathouse owner, Andrew Howard, has spoken out in defence of his decision to introduce these fibreglass, pedal-powered vessels into his more traditional fleet of punts and rowing boats, following an outcry against the new additions. Critics fear that the new boats represent a worrying trend towards tacky, mass-produced tourism.
Speaking to the Oxford Student he said, "I think it's because they're bright and colourful that some people don't like them. There are still plenty of wooden punts and rowing boats for the purists, but we have to move with the times. If we just relied on the traditionalists and locals we'd be out of business."
He expressed his surprise at the intense media interest in his new arrivals. Purists have little to fear in the short term, as there are only two fibreglass pedalos on the Cherwell. However, Howard has plans for at least another four. The next batch of new boats has been ordered, from Damian Brown in Whitney, and is due to arrive during the summer after most students have left Oxford.
Magdalen College JCR President, Ben Johnson, has increased his opposition to the new boats. Johnson described the new blue and white striped boats as, "a monstrous carbuncle and the first step in the Disneyfication of Oxford."
Howard, however, refused to be fazed by the attacks on his innovations. Mr Howard, whose family have owned the boathouse for around one hundred years, believes its future depends on tourism. Newcomers may be put off by the complicated technique required to punt, and the rather elitist tone of some pedalo opponents, "they worked very well over Easter with the tourists. They can relate to pedalos," he says.
Johnson, however, defends his public remarks against the pedalos. "I am not going to start a campaign to do this man out of business," he said, "all I'm saying is that I wouldn't be seen dead in one. I ask you, would you be seen in one?"
He added, "These pedalos are just the sort of thing you would see in Cambridge, which is the epitomy of tackiness." So far there appear no signs of pedalos appearing on the Cam, but some have voiced fears the trend may eventually spread to England's second oldest university. The only question is, Which end will they peddle from? Answers on a postcard.