TROWS

 

 

While writing the third in the 'BLOOD' series of DI Sonny Russell mysteries I needed to find the name of a piece of equipment used with boats. It's a thick board, two to two-and-a-half feet long with a rope handle woven into one end. Greased, several are placed, sequentially, under the keel of a beach-launched fishing boat, to assist it in sliding down the shingle. As one appears from the back (or front, depending whether the boats is being launched or recovered) it is taken and put under the other end of the keel. This photo gives an idea of how they are used

 

 

Anyway, I wanted to know what they are called - why? - because they are key to the plot in BLOOD ON THE SAND. Without giving too much away they are used to move a heavy object - not a boat - and one gets left behind, which provides a valuable clue for Russell and his team.

 

Oh, and the name of the object? it's called a trow. Thanks to the Hastings Fishermen's museum for supplying the answer.