Life on a Tow Boat

[@danross9824]

Thanks for sharing..i operate a 1200hp tug in a fleet on the Illinois river....far removed from your river..

[@TheTruthoftheword]

always seem like such genuine happy people on these boats. a shame most ppl in the world cant be this happy and harmonious at work

[@MayorGoldieWilson825]

"Seem" like is the keyword. Most boats are full of miserable a-hole people. Nobody wants to be there, captains are neurotic psychotic ego tripping weirdos, everyone talks trash about everyone, bunch of drama queen like school girls, and bitching and moaning. I'm a pilot on these towboats and it's an extremely boring lifestyle, although at some points can be exciting when you make a mistake and almost T-bone a bridge pillar or get run over by a ship. Other than that I get paid handsomely and the deck guys get paid pennies for busting their asses. Lots of backstabbing deck guys that want to be the captains little pet. Lots of uneducated idiots working decks that have zero braincells and make life really hard when you're trying to get a job done. Genuine and happy people? I've worked for 13 years as a pilot and relief captain and I'd say 95 percent of people are miserable a-holes just trying to make it through the hitch.

[@johnemery587]

6 on and 6 off was the same schedule on the sub except we had 3 watch sections so the day was dogged. Returning to a 24 hour schedule was tough after 30 days submerged.

[@TheJim91303]

28/28 On a 5000hp pushing 15 to 25 23 yrs on the ole river ! Crew of 9

[@tcschenks]

Deck Mechanic I’m not familiar with. Is that what they used to call Engineer? Also six is a very small crew.

[@timothyboone5003]

Now that would be interesting to go there and work. See how they accomplish their task and maybe learn a few tricks of their trade compared to how we do it in the East. I can see many similarities in this short video. But there are differences too, such as barge and lock size.

[@lundion]

Love the video thanks

[@alfcarjackstheclown7849]

14 on 14 off wouldn't be to bad. I do 14 on and 6ish off. I always get called back early. It becomes your life. Unless you have a family it's pointless to rent a house you never use. Kinda sucks

[@smokingjoe9864]

Only 6 guy? We always ran 11.

[@thebear6529]

hey TO ANY RECRUTERS LOOKING FOR HELP,IM IN CANADA AND WANT TO WORK.