🔍 Key Concepts

• Tow configuration terminology on inland rivers (strings, face wires, wing wires) • How the towboat connects to the tow when it is "faced up" • Difference between the center line of barges and the outer (wing) strings

💭 Think About

• Visualize the tow from above: three barges wide, three long, and the towboat made up to the middle row. What is that middle row commonly called? • Ask yourself: which term refers to the row of barges vs. the power unit (towboat) itself? • Which option sounds like the standard term used by towboat crews to describe the middle row that the boat pushes directly against?

✅ Before You Answer

• Make sure you distinguish between the towboat (the power unit) and the barges (strings/rows)** • Confirm which of the choices is commonly used for a row of barges, not for the boat or the whole tow • Check inland towing vocabulary: which term is used for the row directly in front of the towboat’s bow when it is "faced up"?