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News Archives
Sunday, Dec. 6th
Photo of the week.
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Marine life Attractants
The question that nobody seems to have a definitive answer to, Does peeing in the water attract sharks or other marine life?
I guess since I still live and dive with hardly ever spotting a large shark, urinating in the water does not seem to attract sharks, thank goodness -- I guess. Real experiments carried out in the oceans show that urination in the water can arouse marine life and get their curiosity to bring them in to investigate.
Sharks have a keen sense of smell and large appetites, they are most tempted by the sweet smell of your bodily fluids -- urine, blood or both can smell tasty. Most sharks prefer fish, and we'll take Science Journal's word when it writes that urine does not smell or taste like fish, but what about other animals? Who’s to say what attracts most marine life?
If you ever find yourself swimming in the Amazon there is a fish known as the candirú that was urinophilic and could swim up the urethra or into the vagina of the unwary that urinated while in the Amazon River.
There are two types of divers -- those that pee in their wetsuit and those who lie about it.
Frozen
Thinking about going somwhere cold for the holidays check out these photos sent in by Shaun and Trista from C-A-N-A-D-A, eh...
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Slow times
Who says the economy is turning around? We are going on two weeks without a single dive day, the phones stopped ringing, and emails are looking at the end of the month before diving resumes to being busy. Slow times indeed!!!
Sunday, Nov. 29th
Photo of the week.
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Calamari anyone...
Like something straight out of a Jules Verne novel, an enormous tentacled creature looms out of the inky blackness of the deep Pacific waters.
"Titanic" Director Uncovers "Aliens of the Deep" "Colossal Squid" Revives Legends of Sea Monsters but this isn't science fiction. A set of extraordinary images captured by Japanese scientists marks the first-ever record of a live giant squid (Architeuthis) in the wild.
The animal—which measures roughly 25 feet long—was photographed 2,950 feet beneath the North Pacific Ocean. Japanese scientists attracted the squid toward cameras attached to a baited fishing line.
The scientists say they snapped more than 500 images of the massive cephalopod before it broke free after snagging itself on a hook. They also recovered one of the giant squid's two longest tentacles, which severed during its struggle.
Surfs up
Monday and we are diving the west side of the Island, big surf was predicted and it didn't disappoint. This should have been a surf day not a dive day, visibility on the LCU and at Turtles was lets just say if you stopped to take a photo and then looked up your buddy would be gone. Luckily we had divers from California and Alaska with us so they were use to this type of vis. Mother Nature can be mean to divers...
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Flat as a Pancake
Tuesday and we are diving out of the South with Eric who is visiting his brother stationed on Island. Two excellent dives for the day with the 1st going to the YO-257 and followed by a shallow dive at Horseshoe reef. We had eaglerays, turtles, frogfish and did I mention Octopus the size of Subs. OK maybe not that big, or was it the Narcosis?
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Blast from the Past
Wednesday and we are diving the South side with Roger, he actually lives on Island and use to dive with ODC on a regular basis before there closing. Excellent time to get back into the water with surface conditions staying calm and water visibility in the 100+ft range. Happy Thanksgiving...
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Sunday, Nov. 22nd
Photo of the week.
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2012: Should you be Scared?
Okay, after you watch earthquakes and humongous tidal waves wreck planet Earth in the new end of the world film 2012, you might wanna know... uh, is this gonna happen or will it just be a "galactic realignment"?
Are we all going to become Zombies or what?
And the Nutty award goes to; Brooks KY resident John Kehne who doesn’t exactly know why or how, but evidence convinces him that the world will change on Dec. 21, 2012.
Now for you scuba divers out there, I pose a question.
What happens if you are on say a 40ft dive Dec. 21, 2012 and then there is a wave that is over 1000ft in height. Are you at that point thrust to 30atmosphers of pressure if you can survive the initial tumbling? I would think that being underwater may be the safest place to be on that day, except for the fact that you’ll get ripped apart by the currents and then turn into a Zombie, but AS A Zombie you would survive. Unless you loose your head…
Happy Thanksgiving
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Congrats Advanced Divers...
Congratulations go out to Matt and Tyler for there completion of the Advanced diver course this past Sunday. Last day and we are diving out of Hawaii Kai, large swells, wind and rain really made this a advance dive day. The Corsair and Corner Pocket were the sites for the day.
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South side...
Thursday and we are diving the Wreck of the YO-257 with Bassam getting in his last morning dive before leaving the Island. Instructor Randy was also on hand enjoying a B-Day dive, yes that's right he is now 25years old. I know he really looks old for his age must be all the nitrogen and pressure.
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Nite Dive...
We ended the week with night dives on Friday and Saturday night. Bassam was able to get in his last day of diving and complete his 1st night dive ever, Scary... Blade was on Hand, no really at hand, ok holding hands with Instructor Randy. E-beach made for a couple nite's of great diving with Night Octopus, Squid, Puffers in there puffyness, Lobster, crabs, turtles, frogfish, and very rare
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On the Sat dive we had a bigger group with Amber, Matt, Tyler, Helena, Blade again, Charlie, Sandi, Bobby and the car watchers. Again the dive was excellent with all kinds of marine life, to many divers though it seamed like a disco night show with all the neon glow tubes...
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Sunday, Nov. 14th
Photo of the week.
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Minnesota
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Thinking about the cold
Depths, sub-zero temperatures, frozen lakes, icebergs… for many, reason enough to stay indoors with a good book and a hot cup of cocoa. For others reasons to don their wet suits and gloves and to jump right in – the colder, the better. Welcome to the cool world of ice diving!
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Ice diving is considered an advanced type of diving – some would say extreme – because it means diving in a closed environment with only one entry or exit point. This kind of diving without a direct, vertical ascent or access to the surface is called penetration diving, which also includes cave and wreck diving.
Needless to say, this makes ice diving more dangerous than recreational diving and requires special training. Ice divers need to know about different types of ice and how it forms; they need to be able to recognize and avoid unsafe ice conditions, and they need to know how to prepare a dive site and what special equipment they will require.
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Some ice divers wear a dry suit, and then there are the nutty divers who prefer just a thicker wet suit. A hood and gloves are essential and some ice divers also wear a face mask to avoid any direct contact of the skin with the water that is usually 4 degrees Celsius or colder.
Each ice diver also wears a special harness so that one end of a rope can be secured to the diver and the other end to the surface. Ice diving is a team sport that requires support under the ice but also a safety diver on stand-by on the surface.
Anyone toying with the idea of trying out ice diving should also know that each ice diver learns about what to do if the weight belt falls offs that’s keeping him or her under the ice. What would you do if you started ascending towards the ceiling of ice above, fast and beyond your control? Not panicking might be a good idea.
In really cold climates, ice divers will also have to deal with frozen air supply systems – in which case hopefully a back-up system is available! Losing contact with the line can also be a problem that divers have to deal with.
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After the world freezes over this is how we will be diving...
Sunday, Nov. 8th
Photo of the week.
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Gagging for it
It can make you dread stepping on board a boat. It can dehydrate you and it can ruin your dive. Throwing up is no laughing matter (unless of course someone else is doing it...!)
It could strike at any time or at any moment, the dreaded curse of the seasickness monster could affect any one of us... it has no mercy and certainly couldn't care less about your boat creed. If there is a head on board, don't lock yourself away. You'll feel worse and after a while everybody else will be ready to kill you. Avoid engine fumes they can ruin your dive even if the sea is reasonably calm.
I've mentioned feeding the fish on the surface but what about the vomiting issue under water. You can throw up into your regulator the possibility to clog it and render it inoperable is very minimal. Removal of the regulator could result in the inhalation of water remember that when you are sick everyone has a tendency to gasp, this is involuntary and you have no control over it. Keep the REG in!!!
Last, don’t be a weenie. Once you relieve some of the excess food don’t curl up and stay on the boat, get in the water as soon as possible and never skip the second dive because you’re feeling ill. You will make matters worse by just sitting on the boat…
Advanced
Sunday and we are out diving with Advance students Matt and Tyler, Bassam was also able to get in on the fun. 1st dive at the YO-257 with excellent visibility and games for the advanced course, followed by a shallow dive at Kewalo pipe.
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Private dive
Monday and we are diving the west side of the Island with Stephanie, after a last minute cancellation she ended up with a private dive charter. Excellent day in the water...
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Surfs up...
Friday and we are diving off the south side with Dan and Julie visiting the Island from San Francisco. With big surf we made the best of the conditions at the YO-257, limited visibility and large swells made for a bumpy ride.
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Closing for a week...
Yes that's right we will not be diving over the next week. All the Octopus can come out from hiding because Instructor randy wont be in the water. Off to Minnesota we are a going. Cold just thinking about it. Burr.....
Sunday, Nov. 1st
Photo of the week.
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No Football...
Sunday and we are diving out of the South with Dave and Vickie visiting the Islands from Utah. Seasoned divers with hundreds of dives under their belts gave us plenty of bottom time at the wreck of the Seatiger followed by a shallow dive on the Pipe. Eaglerays, Frogfish, Turtles, and Octopus were just a few of the creatures to amaze and surprise these divers. We missed out on football, darn!!!
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No Swell...
Wed we took advantage of great conditions on the North shore with a single dive out to Sharks cove. Instructor Randy and Bassam had a 99min dive, yes that's 1hr and 40mins almost. With the parking lot empty and only a hand full of divers entering and exiting the water we felt overjoyed to live in such a beautiful place. No snow or cold, No Surf.
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The Wall
Thursday was suppose to be a dive out of the west side but a last minute cancellation from the boat left us with thumbs in the air hitching a ride on the Nori-Z out of Hawaii Kai. Conditions actually were better than expected with clear waters at the Corsair and a Monk Seal at the Wall. Not!!! Wishful thinking though. DM Eric and his dad Mike got the day away from their girls -- Diving, Beer, Burgers and fun...
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Happy Halloween to all
Sat. Morning and we are diving off the south side with Stephanie visiting the Island from Colorado. Nice conditions at the Seatiger and Kewalo Pipe.
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Sat. nite and we are out partying in Waikiki, we started out at Pacific Beach hotel for the annual dive show with costumes involved. Who is that masked man or woman, mermaid, merman? Why, that's Bob dressed as Gene Simmons --NO not the workout guy. Then there is Amelia as, um, not sure. The crowd for the walk around waikiki was amazing, not too many Michael Jackson costumes though.
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Sunday, Oct. 25th
Photo of the week.
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Congratulations
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Hi Guys & Gals!
I thought I'd share this photo of our latest addition to the Mueller family. Excuse her poor mask fit; she is only about an hour old in this photo! She has 9 years, 354 days to figure it all out. Plenty of time!
Melissa connived to get them both sprung today, so all of us are at home. I had a martini and a videogame-a-thon last night, so I have refound my "chi."
My folks arrive Tuesday, so I'll be slapping on tanks with you soon! Aloha,
Eric the Soon to Be Tired!
XXX Large Group...
Sunday brought out divers from under rocks, crevices, off the couch, out of state, all over. We had Jen, Hugh, Matt, Tyler, Bassam, Will, Mary, Charlie, Arnie, Blade, Emily, Amber, Bob, Gary, Rhonda, Mary, Oscar, Gerry and of course Randy. Wow, what a group!!! From Advanced students to DM's, Instructors and snorkelers. Sorry to anyone who didn't get the personal attention that you normally get when diving with us in smaller groups. YO-257 was the wreck for the day and Kewalo pipe was the shallow dive. Little choppy with a south swell and strong winds, we actually pulled loose of the mooring from the YO with Bassam, Amber, Oscar and Arnie still on the line. Hang on for the ride, Yeah...
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Surf's up...
Tuesday and we are diving on the West side of the Island with the surf prediction on the rise. Luckily for us all was calm and we got in a couple of great dives with students Jen and Hugh. Bassam also tagged along but on our last dive outing his camera flooded, so I gave up the reigns and made Bassam the photo guru for the day. Nice shots Bassam!
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Scary Nite...
Wednesday and we are getting in a single tank nite dive on the west side at E-Beach. Scratch that!!! West side swell came in and with 6ft faces we decided that a dive on the south side at Kakaako would be better for the students. With Amber guarding the vehicle and being the official marker light on shore Jen and Hugh were in for a scary, dark and wet dive. DM Charlie tagged along to hold hands but we told him only Blade holds the instructors hand during the dive. Fun was had with squid touching and all.
Certified Advanced Divers...
Final dive and it's the best; Thursday and we are diving off the South side on the wreck of the Seatiger with the Pipe for the shallow dive for the day. Congratulations go out to Jen and Hugh on their advanced certification completion. DM Eric and his dad Mike were at hand for the congrats also. Excellent dives and great skills, but remember to hold onto the dive slate that you are putting the information onto. Now some turtle is going to be writing love notes to everyone.
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Ending a busy week...
We ended the week on Friday and Saturday diving with Claire visiting the Island from Baltimore. While here she will be working on the genetics conferences. Conditions worsened from the beginning of the week and the surf was up. Visibility on both days was at less than 100 percent with averages around 40ft. Instructor Randy still found plenty of animals to keep them happy. Bassam also joined in on the Friday dive getting a little needed daddy time.
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Sunday, Oct. 18th
Photo of the week.
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Burn calories while scuba diving...
Ok since water sucks away body heat at a much higher rate than air one burns a lot of calories when in the water right? Does this mean that swimming or other forms of submerged exercise like scuba diving burn more calories with less strain than say biking or jogging?
So what if I spent an hour bobbing around in the water, but not necessarily swimming laps, maybe a leisurely dive. Would that use more or less energy than if I went and rode my bike for an hour?
According to the NutriStrategy Nutrition and Fitness Calculator
Body Weight Calories burned, 130lbs 155lbs 190lbs
Snorkeling, Scuba Diving, 1hr 413 493 604
Compared to running 472 563 690
5 mph (12 min mile)
Not too far off; let's dive longer and eat more, or, maybe drink more beer. So, yes, going down is a workout...
You Burn More Calories diving than,
Running, wheeling, general
Sailing, boat/board, windsurfing, general
Sailing, in competition
Scrubbing floors, on hands and knees
Shoveling snow, by hand
Shuffleboard, lawn bowling
Sitting-playing with child(ren)-light
Skateboarding
Skating, ice, 9 mph or less
Skating, ice, general
Stair-treadmill ergo meter, general
Standing-packing/unpacking boxes
Stretching, hatha yoga
Surfing, body or board
Sweeping garage, sidewalk
Swimming, treading water, moderate effort
Table tennis, ping pong
Tai chi
Teaching aerobics class
Tennis, doubles
Tennis, general
Volleyball, competitive, in gymnasium
Volleyball, noncompetitive; 6-9 member team
Walk/run-playing with child(ren)-moderate
Walk/run-playing with child(ren)-vigorous
Walking, 2.0 mph, slow pace
Walking, 3.0 mph, mod. pace, walking dog
Walking, 3.5 mph, uphill
Walking, 4.0 mph, very brisk pace
Walking, carrying infant or 15-lb load
Walking, grass track
Walking, using crutches
Water volleyball
Weight lifting or body building, vigorous effort
Weight lifting, light or moderate effort
Whitewater rafting, kayaking, or canoeing
Daddy time...
Sunday and we are diving on the South side with Patrick and Bassam. Patrick is actually sneaking in some dives while on Island for work and Bassam, long time friend and customer recently had a Baby. OK, his wife had the baby, but he was there in support and has been awaken every two hours or so thru the nights since. This was Daddy time.
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Certified diver...
Monday takes us out on the Midday boat with Katie, James and Mark for a couple of shallow dives. For katie this was her final set of dives and she is now a certified diver -- Congrats Katie! James, her boyfriend, thought it would be good to see how she is as a diver since they are now dive buddies and Mark is visiting the Island for a week, on something called a Vacation.
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November
Speaking of Vacations, we will be closed from November 7th till the 14th. Hearing time is fast approaching. Instructor Randy and DM Amber will be in Minnesota for a week; not really a fun vacation more of a gut wrenching trial. We hope all goes as planned in the end.
If you know of someone who might be willing to be a house/dog sitter for a week let us know. The pay is not that great but you get to enjoy lovable Boots, with walking, feeding and walking...
E-Beach
Tuesday and we are on a shore dive at E-Beach with Shaun from Canada and snorkeling around us was Trista. North shore looks like it may be out for the rest of the winter with large swells rolling in a couple of weeks ago and still more on the way. But on the west side visibility was excellent giving Instructor Randy 100ft vis to find 1octopus, 2octopus, 6octopus, I love to count. Throw in a couple of Turtles and a whitetip the day is complete.
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Intro diver...
Wednesday and we are on the Midday boat out of Honolulu for a couple of shallow dives with Pavle. He is visiting us from California but originally from Yugoslavia and after a long time away from diving he thought why not get wet. He was a certified diver back way back, when your dad walked ten miles to school thru the mangrove bushes in 4ft deep snow, all the time carring his 50 books on his head. Pavle was back in the water with no problems and had a great time.
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Sunday, Oct. 11th
Photo of the week.
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Photographers...
| Some basic common sense for photographers… You are not the only diver in the group. Having a camera does not entitle you to hold up the group while you fiddle with your gear getting into and out of the water. You do not have sole propriety over any object in the water that holds your fascination. If a Divemaster points out an interesting critter he did not point it out for you alone… Having said that I will show a diver with a camera an interesting critter but this is usually after I have had a chance to show others first.. “Photographers” are not the only divers in the water and having a camera does not mean your “right” to take photos excludes my “right” to enjoy my dive… It takes a bit of practice and a little luck to get really good underwater photos – please don’t think that every shot you take is going to make the cover of Sport Diver magazine. |
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In the photo above you will see DM Blade taking a photo of a pretty girl when the Eagle Rays swim under him, Oops.
No School
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Openwater student
Wed. and we are hitting Makai Pier for a confined water session with Katie. After getting the jitters out of the way the morning went very smooth and with confined completed we are onto Openwater dives tomorrow.
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Ohhhh Canada....
Friday and we are getting in a dive out of the south with Shaun and Blade. Can you say lake like conditions except for the vis. Surface calm and no current but the vis was a little hazy. Shaun however is used to diving lakes in Canada where the visibility is worse and don't even mention the cold.
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Economy
Slower than last month for dives, but we are looking up into the future at the crystal ball and we think we are seeing good fortune in the future. Did I just say that? What I meant was Blade is looking into the toilet bowl and sees a happy future, after all he does have a girlfriend now.
Sunday, Oct. 4th
Photo of the week.
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Zombie Hunting...
Zombie hunting is not for the faint of heart nor the ill equipped. We are talking about a dangerous quarry that can make your life a living, if not undead, hell. Zombie hunting should not be undertaken as a wanton activity; only engage zombies if it determines your immediate survival or satisfies some critical objective. Your plan of attack must consider your weapons, mobility, geographic and tactical situation as well as your risk of alerting zombies or other, possibly hostile, humans to your location.
Since zombies don't need oxygen, they can withstand staying underwater until they literally fall apart. If a zombie gets caught up in a river, it can be swept downstream until it tumbles onto a bank, hungry for flesh. If a zombie wanders into the Ocean, or is swept into a Ocean via river, it can resurface along the edge at any time. It is not recommended that you go into the water chasing the damn things, remember you loose mobility underwater. As a scuba diver you will be able to stay out of arms reach by hovering above them. Good Buoyancy skills are a must. If you spot a zombie, try to lure it out and dispose of it. #1 way to kill a zombie, shoot them in the Head but guns don't work underwater. So it might be best to stay out of the water!!!!!!
Congratulations Bobby...
Completion of his IE this past weekend makes him the newest Dive Instructor on the Island. After a grueling couple of weeks and with much distaste for Dive Oahu he completed with three 100 percents on the written exams. Way to go Bobby, look for him under the water pulling all that hair out. Oh, wait, he's bald already.
Leaving the Island
Sunday brought us out to the wreck of the Seatiger followed by a shallow dive at Horseshoe Reef. Beth, who is leaving the Island, and Delores who is visiting for the dental convention made this little dive possible. With DMs Blade and Sandi also joining in, visibility at 100+ft gave the whole group and excellent dive.
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Busy day
Monday and we are diving the south side with Delores and her final day of diving wasn't all that great. The dives were stupendous with the wreck of the YO-257 and Deep pipe there to greet us. The bad news --missing camera. It seemed to have slipped off her wrist during the dive. We searched far and wide from the boat to no avail. Look on the bright side, somewhere there is a turtle taking photos of themselves for National Geographic.
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Also on Monday we welcomed Ken and Adele to the Island with a couple of Intro dives in the Afternoon. The dentists are coming, the dentists are coming. This entire week is filled with dental reps from around the world; so now is the time to have that root canal or maybe a teeth whitening.
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Tsunami Warning
Tuesday and after the initial scare of the impending doom, we talked Ilya and Elena into going diving with a warning in the air. They are actually speeding across the Pacific on a Carnival cruise as you read this, a 14day trip from Oahu to Mexico. But at least they are leaving after experiencing a dive with the best Instructor in the world. OK 2nd Best.
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Scuba Diver
This certification doesn't always mean bad diver. And on Wednesday we were out with Ken and Sophi for a couple of shallow dives. Sophi who recently completed a course was given this card by her instructor and said she needed more work. I personally think she is a better diver than some Instructors, and yes they are too in Dentistry.
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Dentists every where/ 1 year anniversary
Thursday brought out divers Angela, Jenny and DR. Ingle on a morning dive from the south side. Visibility was great at the wreck of the seatiger but deteriorate by the time we hit horseshoe reef. The eagle rays at the wreck are still hanging around and surprise, surprise, a Hawaiian Ray was on the sea floor. Beautiful day of diving except for the rain at the end.. Forgot to mention this was the 1 year anniversary of Barefoot Scuba, thank you to all who have made it great..
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Aloha Friday
Ken and Adele Joined us again for another Intro dive, visibility ended up getting worse over the week but half way through the 1st dive currents pushed the crap outa there. They said they couldn't get enough of being with their Instructor before leaving the Island... Nice couple of dives.
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Group activity
Aloha Friday field trip planned, we were supposed to have a group photo from windward mall theaters, but in the end Sandi set the camera wrong. We had a large group that wanted to see Zombie Land and lets just say divers are not always the best dates...Stop throwing the popcorn! Who's arm is that!!! Thanks for the good times Amber, Sandi, Blade, Charlie, Crystal, Helena, Emily. Nut up or Shut up!!!!
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| Missing Photo!!! Sandi |
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Sunday, Sept. 27th
Photo of the week.
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Beautiful woman or just ugly men...
FOR the female half of the population, it may bring a satisfied smile. Scientists have found that evolution is driving women to become ever more beautiful, while men remain as aesthetically unappealing as their caveman ancestors.
One finding was that women were generally regarded by both sexes as more aesthetically appealing than men.
In men, by contrast, good looks appear to count for little, with handsome men being no more successful than others in terms of numbers of children. This means there has been little pressure for men’s appearance to evolve.
The findings coincide with the bicentenary of the birth of Charles Darwin, whose theory of evolution first described the forces that shape all species.
Women may take consolation in the finding that men are subject to other types of evolutionary pressure.This stands to reason why more men scuba dive than women.
Congrats Katie!!!
We ended the week with congratulations going out to Katie on her recent Openwater diver course completion. What a grueling day on Sunday with light trades, no surf and some of the cleanest water for diving.
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Long day...
Tuesday and we welcomed back Peter for an excellent day of diving. We were planning on getting out to the YO-257 but in the end conditions were just not cohesive to make the trip. But the Seatiger awaited with 100ft vis...
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Cancellation!!!
Lesson learned on Tuesday afternoon with a last minute cancellation. Nice guy, usually I am and last week when a group of four called and booked a midday boat but wanted to pay cash at the boat, I forgo the usual deposit on her word. Then Tuesday comes around and they cancel, Dumb A-- me!!! Lost money that day...
Back in town..
Wednesday and we are welcoming back Bassam to the Island, his wife is just about to pop with the wee little diver. But who says he cant have fun while waiting, so no trade winds, no south swell, clear sky and two beautiful dive sites to choose from. The least dove sites on the Island, what a special treat. Lanai lookout and the Blowhole awaited our adventure and excitement.
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Devil Scorpion waiting to pounce, Octopus and Hawk fish,
rarely seen Saddleback butterfly fish.
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Swells...
The West side awaited Bassam and I for a bumpy ride on Friday, with swells in 7 to 8ft range. We got in a couple of dives while everyone else was just a little queasy. The wreck of the Deep LCU awaited with blue waters, Not!!! vis was around 40ft at the beginning of the dive and by the end around 10ft. This was the 1st time either Randy or Bassam had been to the Deep LCU before so it was still a treat and then there were five frogfish and four eaglerays, 2nd dive at 2min Out had a good reef to explore, with a couple of Octopus to keep us busy.
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Congrats!!!!!
Last minute congratulations go out to Bassam and Kathy who have a new baby Boy, who should be named "Octopus hunter Randy" or some version of that but they dont think that would be a good name. So congrats and we will update with photos as soon as the octopus hunter is cleaned up and ready for the photo shoot.... Photos have arrived.
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Aloha friends and family!
Tipping the scales at 7 pounds (3.2 kg) and measuring 20 inches (51 cm) from head to heel, Ilyas Nguyen Hage plooped out at his mother's home at 2:30 am on September 26, 2009.
His arrival into our world could not have been possible with the unflagging and unequivocally patient support of his father Bassam (childbirth coach and tub-filler extraordinaire) and grandmother Quynh (an excellent masseuse and cheerleader) as well as the talented midwife and doula who guided his mother through the interminable I-can't-I-can't-I-don't-want-to-be-here transition period.
Mother and child (and father) are all eating and sleeping well!
Sunday, Sept. 20th
Photo of the week.
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Stupidity - The Cause Of Most Dive Accidents!
On Wednesday 3 September 1997, five divers went to dive the wreck of the SS Tuggerah off Royal National Park on the southern outskirts of Sydney. The Tuggerah lies at a depth of 47 to 49 meters. There was a fair current running as the first two divers entered the water. The current was probably 1 to 1.25 knots from the north. There was also a strong wind from the south-west and this was increasing all the time. It was agreed that the divers would do a maximum of 12 to 13 minutes on the bottom to reduce the decompression required (due to the need of the first divers to hang on in the current while the second lot of divers were doing their dive).
Agreement was also reached that the second group (of three) would enter the water about 10 minutes after the first divers slipped below the surface. All of the divers in the second group were using 88 cubic foot main tanks with 20 cubic foot pony bottles.
After checking that the first two divers were still on the wreck, the second group entered the water and with a bit of effort made their way to the anchor line. They each submerged as soon as they gained the rope and went down a dozen or so meters before checking on each other. No problems. The lead diver was the most experienced of the group with more than 1100 dives and over 240 dives deeper than 30 meters and more than 140 dives deeper than 40 meters. As he descended, he was working hard and found his Sea Hornet Command Air regulator a bit hard to breath so he adjusted the settings as he went. That was better. He also thought that the air he was using was a little bit off, but nothing to worry about. To assist him along, he used his hands to pull himself down the line.
Just as he saw the wreck, the first two divers passed him on the way up, their bottom time completed. They signaled everything was okay (if they had not been seen, the second group would have ascended almost immediately). As he approached the wreck he started inflating his BCD and noted that it inflated as normal, possibly even a bit quicker than usual. He hit the bottom soon after, just over three minutes after leaving the surface. This was more than twice as long as he normally took to get to the bottom on this wreck.
He looked back up the anchor line (just as he did a number of times on the way down) and saw one buddy. The other could not be seen. He was feeling quite good, suffering little from nitrogen narcosis. He then swam a few meters to the stern and shone his torch on the dozens of Port Jackson sharks that were lying everywhere on the sand. He then swam a few meters to where he had spotted a numb ray which he uncovered by blowing the sand off its back. He looked up again and saw the third buddy coming down (this buddy is always a lot slower descending).
Five minutes had passed since leaving the surface. All of a sudden, he noticed that his regulator was getting harder to breath. He checked his Aladin Air-X dive computer and saw that he still had more than 195 bar of air in his main cylinder. He took another breath and it was harder again. This was a problem, the air was running out. He signaled to the second buddy that he was out of air and began swimming towards him. As he did, he checked the reg by taking it out of his mouth and purging it. Only a dribble of air came out. He the grabbed his alternate air supply (not his octopus) and took a breath. It worked perfectly. He indicated to the buddy that this reg was working okay and that they all needed to ascend. The buddy quickly checked the valves on the two tanks to make sure that they were both fully opened. They were.
He then indicated to the third buddy that there was a problem and that they needed to ascend. He also indicated to the second buddy that he should quickly remove the anchor from the wreck so that they would not be stuck in the current while doing their safety stop. The second diver quickly removed the anchor and dragged it around to the down-current side and dropped it on the sand. As this went on, he and the other buddy started their ascent, keeping close together but also making sure the second diver was okay.
The three divers ascended without problem to the deco line where there was a 63 cubic foot tank as well as a 72 cubic foot tank of oxygen. Arriving at the deco stop, the diver then had time to think more about the problem. He again checked the second stage of his regulator and found only a dribble of air. He then tried the power inflator and found that it still worked normally. This was puzzling. He then reached behind and grabbed his octopus and breathed off it. To his amazement, it worked correctly. Why?
All of a sudden, a light went on above his head. What an idiot!!! He checked his Aladin Air-X and found that the contents of his 88cf tank had dropped from when he checked it on the bottom. No doubt, he was a complete and utter imbecile. He had solved the problem.
Instead of descending on his 88cf tank, he had used his 20cf tank and drained it dry in the seven minutes taken to swim to the anchor, descend and spend the first two minutes on the bottom. He had then grabbed the regulator for the main tank and used this for his swim to the anchor line and ascent. How had this happened?
As the divers had prepared to enter the water, the diver had put his hand down to grab the main reg which should have been hanging by itself at his side. Instead, he had grabbed the regulator connected to the pony bottle. Despite glancing at it, he did not notice the difference as up until a couple of months ago, this regulator had been his main regulator (all three regs were identical except for the color of the covers). He distinctly remembered that the previous night when he set up his gear, he had put this regulator in a clip attached to the bottom of his BCD as normal. Somehow, the reg had come free and instead of grabbing the expected main reg, he had taken the pony bottle regulator. Story By Michael McFadyen
What to learn from this?
- First, that no matter how experienced, how much care is taken, accidents can happen due solely to carelessness.
- A method of attaching regulators for second or spare tanks must be so unique that they cannot be mixed up in the heat of the moment.
- This is even more critical when using/carrying nitrox or oxygen for decompression (as you could suffer oxygen toxicity at depth due to the high partial pressure of oxygen).
- It is also critical if using mixed gases for bottom mix, especially if the percentage of oxygen in one is far less than normal (as you could become hypoxic on the way down, especially if working hard in a current).
- At depth, thought reasoning is impaired due to nitrogen narcosis, no matter what you may think (notice how the diver could not solve the problem on the bottom but did immediately he got to the five meter mark).
- The importance of being correctly equipped when diving at depth (that is, carrying spare air, although in this case, of course, it did not make any difference and in fact contributed to the incident).
- The importance of buddy pairs when diving, especially at depth.
- The importance of diving with very experienced and correctly equipped divers.
- Do not dive beyond your experience level, because accidents do happen and it is important to be able to respond appropriately.
- Finally, that an experienced diver, when confronted with an emergency, can react calmly and correctly.
Beginning of the week..
Sunday and we are getting in a morning dive on the south side of the Island. Beth a military contractor here for a few weeks is getting her 2nd taste of diving in Hawaii. Also joining for the morning is DM Amber who hasn't been on a morning boat in quite a long time and we believe may have forgotten how to set up her gear. The reason Instructor Randy had to set it up for her. Excellent dive with 4 frogfish on the Seatiger.
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Back into diving...
Wed and we are out on the midday charter for a couple of shallow sites and we welcomed Diane to the Island. Long time out of the water -- 12years to be exact. Beautiful dives at Turtle canyons and horseshoe reef.
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Island visitors...
Excellent day of diving on Thursday with past guest Diane and we welcomed Peter to the Islands. The wreck of the Seatiger awaited, and yes, the eagle rays are still hanging around. Second dive at kewalo pipe with critters a plenty.
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Openwater course
Friday and we are ending the week by starting an openwater course with Katie and Katie. At least I know I won't get their names mixed up. The real problem will be when I say Katie now you do out of air drill and underwater they both do it at the same time.
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Sunday, Sept,.13th
Photo of the week.
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PADI Scuba Diver – Certification
Embarking upon the PADI Open Water Diver Course can lead to two possible certifications: PADI Scuba Diver and PADI Open Water Diver.
The PADI Scuba Diver (S/D) Qualification is earned by completing only a portion of the Open Water Course. The Scuba Diver course is a pre-entry level certification and qualifies you to:
- Scuba dive under the in water supervision of a PADI Divemaster (or someone with a higher professional rating) while applying the knowledge and skills that you learned in the course, within the limits of your training and experience. You shall be licensed to dive to a maximum of 40 ft.
- Get air fills, scuba equipment and other services for scuba diving while under direct supervision.
- Plan, conduct and log open water no stop (no decompression) dives when equipped properly and accompanied by a buddy in conditions which you have training and or experience.
- Continue your scuba dive training to the PADI Open Water Diver certification and some selected specialty courses.
Remember this does not mean you have failed the openwater portion. It does mean however that their skills or areas of your diving knowledge that are incomplete. You may not have had enough time to complete the whole openwater course or the instructor thought you could use additional dives before achieving the openwater certification.
Week Begins...
Sunday and we went out on the South side of the Island for a couple of beautiful dives, 1st to the wreck of the Seatiger followed by a shallow reef dive at Turtle canyons. We were welcoming back Benny and Rob, joining in on the fun was Bridgett from northern California. This was her 1st Deep, Wreck, Warm water, Boat dive. WOW!!!
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Labor Day..
Monday and we are taking in the possibly last of the great north shore dives. What a group- we had Jason and Erica from last week with their friend Matt, then Benny and Rob from Belgium getting in their last dive before leaving the Island. With Randy, Bobby, Amber, Eric M and Helena joining in just to make sure no one lags behind.
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Starting from the top, Rob, Benny, Erica, Jason and Matt.
Photo of the dive guides at sharks cove.
Orange cup coral, Spanish dancer egg sack and a Triton Scorpion fish.
Openwater Class..
Middle of the week openwater class for Joel from Massachusetts. Tuesday and we went a little over for time which pushed back the confined water to Wed. First day of openwater dives on Thursday from a midday boat and excellent visibility was there to greet us along with turtles, eels, a whitetip shark and an octopus. We finished up the class on Friday with a shore dive on the west side of the Island. We wanted to get in a dive on the North shore but, as luck would have it, the swells have come back in and the fires were burning along the H2.
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Welcome back...
We welcomed back to the Island Keith and his wife Vicki. Thursday we went out on a south side trip to the YO-257 and the Nautilus reef. Sharks, turtles, eagle rays, octopus and excellent visibility were there to greet us.
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Keith and Vicki visiting their daughter on Oahu and getting in a couple days of diving.
Anyone missing a boat?
On a sad note...
A scuba diver died Thursday while diving at around 100ft of water off of the Waianae Coast on Thursday the 10th.
"The man appeared to be in his 70s", said Bryan Cheplic city Emergency Services Department spoksman.We have been told that the diver's companions were able to get him into the boat, begin CPR and call for an ambulance at about 1p.m.
The diver in question was brought to Waianae boat harbor where an air med chopper was waiting to take him to the nearest hospital. "The man was pronounced dead a short while later." Cheplic said. The diver in question was on a charter trip with Aaron's dive company on the Hapa. Identity of the victim and cause of death is unknown at this time.
Sad day in the scuba world for Hawaii.
Sunday, Sept,.6th
Photo of the week.
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Excuses...
There is no worse feeling than waking up in the morning or afternoon rested from good sleep or nap, and glancing at the clock, only to do a double-take: You're late!
For most people, knowing they're running late strikes the fear of God within them and as a result, they move like there's a fire under their feet to get ready. They hustle, scramble, frantically throw things into a bag and are out the door trying to ensure a timely arrival.
But for a smaller group people, knowing they are running late for work does absolutely nothing except stimulate their creative juices in order to make up the best excuse as to why they are late -- again.
If you've decided honesty is not the best policy for you, don't try using any of the following excuses as the reason why you're late -- they've been heard before.
Some interesting diving excuses, please feel free to email your best excuse.
1. My heat was shut off so I had to stay home to keep my tanks warm.
2. My husband thinks it's funny to hide my prescription mask before he goes to work.
3. I walked into a spider web on the way out the door and couldn't find the spider, so I had to go inside and rinse all my gear again.
4. I got locked in my trunk while checking my dive gear.
5. My left fin is missing so I had to get a spare.
6. A diver on a gurney fell out of an ambulance and delayed traffic.
7. I was attacked by an octopus and had to stop by the hospital to make sure it wasn't rabid.
8. I feel like I'm in everyone's way when they're gearing up on time.
9. My father lost my defog. “Can you spare any?”
10. A dog bit my BCD and made puncture holes. “Can I borrow one?”
11. My tanks floated away in the rain last night. “Do you have a spare?”
12. I’ve gained weight since I last used my Wetsuit 5 years ago. “Do they shrink?”
Intro's
It's Sunday and with the whole week ahead we are starting with a shore dive for a couple of long awaited divers. What I mean is Ricky, Helena's son, has finally come to his senses and went on an intro dive. Also joining in on the fun was Noella, Ricky's girlfriend. We think there will soon be a new diver in the family.
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Traveler...
1st Friday of the month not only brings us out to Chinatown tonight but also starts out the busiest week for us at Barefoot scuba. Jason and Erica now from Phoenix, but travelers at heart, are joining us for a day of diving on the South side of the island.
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Belgium..
Ending this week, Saturday brings us out diving with Benny and Rob from Belgium. They have traveled to our little Island to partake in a few days of diving--Really they are diving every day and we just happen to be their host. I have been trying to put Benny to work since he is a Divemaster, but in the end we're getting in some great dives.
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Sunday, Aug 30th
Photo of the week.
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Who says all training is equal…
Randy –
Thanks again for your patience with me, you're a great teacher and all-round great guy! What you taught me may have just saved my life today, or at least helped me tremendously. I signed up with ----- Dive Center here on Maui to do my advanced. From what I can tell (from my very limited experience) the diving here, at least in northwestern Maui, sucks, but admittedly my view is skewed. My teacher, this guy name Rich, is a total douche-bag, who seems to have no regard for PADI regulations or safety precautions in general, but thinks’ he's "so safe it's sick" ... our first dive was a deep dive, off mile marker 12 here on Rt 30. He decided to combine the DPV and deep dives, and was insistent on taking me to 101 feet to break the 100-foot barrier. We got out there on the DPV's, and sure enough his got stuck on, at 91 feet. we managed to fix that, and then it died completely, so he took mine! We had to bail early because HE ran out of air! He hit 1200 psi around 91 feet when the DPV died, gave ME the low-on-air sign, and we had to ascend more quickly than we should have, and didn't do the full safety stop at 15 feet... on top of his DPV dying, he ran out of air while we were about 350 yards off-shore fighting a fairly strong current with two of us on one DPV. He decided to lay on his back so I locked arms with him and kept my facedown as we made it to shore. Eventually I ran out of air as well because of the current we were fighting, and we had a long and exhausting swim to shore. We hardly saw anything out there. And I was fitted with the wrong size BCD (too large) so it was riding up on me the whole way. I switched to a medium before the next dive... Second dive was the navigation dive, which we did off of Airport beach, this beach about a mile north of black rock... the beach dropped off VERY sharply, visibility was atrocious, and the surf was intense (for me) ... he had me do the out and back, but waited so long to knock on his tank that i could not hear him, and could not see him, so I ended up having to surface to find him... we eventually managed to do the square, but my SPG was not working properly, and my depth still registered at 15 feet even at the surface, and again we skipped the safety stop. In all 3 dives I think he inquired about my air maybe twice, MAYBE... I was the one who was checking repeatedly, remembering my experience with you as an example to check often ...again, didn't see hardly anything, maybe two butterfly fish. Third dive was a night dive, worst of all of them. We went to Mala, some ruined pier in south Lahaina. We entered at a boat ramp which was SUPPOSEDLY not used by boats at night (but was)... water was like mud, no visibility whatsoever, current was incredibly strong. Rich insisted swimming out sooo far before dropping down that both me and the other guy who went with us were exhausted. We finally went down, lost the other guy so we had to surface, and there was nothing of interest to see (even during the day I would guess), and we shouldn’t have been diving there, with the boats. Current was so strong that we could barely maintain our position, we had maybe 10 minutes total bottom time and had to spend the next 45 minutes swimming against the current to get back. All of our time and energy was spent just trying to get back to where we started. I'd had it by that point. I wouldn't go diving with this guy again, even in a kiddie pool. In between each dive he was smoking like a chimney, even in the car with me (no wonder he was going through air faster than a newbie), we didn't bring any reference line with us on the dives, didn't do anything the book suggested doing for the night dive (lights offshore, bringing someone with you who was staying on land, etc), and he picked lousy dive sites with lousy conditions for all of the dives. I remembered to inflate my BCD as soon as I got to the surface, I always ascended slow (checking my gauges), almost always slower than Rich, and remembered to exhale slowly (small bubbles) when I had to take my regulator out at 91 feet during our deep dive... all the safe practices you helped me with. I am lucky to have had such a great teacher for my open water training. The contrast with this guy is like night and day. Having good fundamentals and the sense to err on the safe side has been a blessing. Knowing what a douche-bag this guy is has been an eye-opener, I called off tomorrow's dives, I don't want to go out with him ever again, he is ruining the fun (and safety) of diving. Thanks again for your emphasis on safety and good fundamentals, and for always looking out for me.
I appreciate it today even more than yesterday! -jack
1st day of the Week...
It's Sunday and we are heading out on the southside for a morning dive to the YO-257. With a rowdy bunch of newbie divers (not)--We welcomed Carol, Will, Helena and Amber, with Instructor Randy taking the reigns. Strong current was there to greet at the wreck but excellent visibility, bottom time of 42min air hogs.Not!!!
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End of the week...
Sat. and we're taking a large group out in the afternoon for a couple of shallow dives. All certified divers with Noel being the newbie in the bunch. No really, she was just certified on thursday and a group of friends thought, get together, go diving, make fun of the newbie. So joining Noel were boyfriend Casey, James B and James T and with a last minute cancellation from Rich.Visiblity was not the best but can you say "turtles, turtles, turtles?"
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Sunday, Aug 23rd
Photo of the week.
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Here are my tips for handling a long layover because trust me, I've, "been there, done that."
Go into those stores they have in the airports and read every single magazine. For some reason, the magazines are never in shrink wrap, so they are there to be read. Put your carry-on between your legs and stand there and read. If the store is big enough and there is nothing valuable in your carry on, sit on your carry on and just sit there and go through all the magazines. Go from store to store, reading the magazines and books that weren't available in the other stores. I never touch the newspapers because they get a little messy when you have to reassemble them, so just stick with the magazines and the books.
Go into the chocolate and perfume stores. Act like you are going to buy something. Smell all the perfumes and the various fragrances. Pick up every box, read it and put it back. Most also have fragrance testers and chocolate samples. Look at every SWATCH watch and just admire the way it ticks. Don’t forget the Duty free store.
Survey the terminal area you are in. Try to find a good corner where you would be able to safely rest your bag and your back. Let’s face it- those airport chairs are HIGHLY uncomfortable. Why haven't the airports installed better chairs- I do not know? But until they do, you are better off sitting on the floor. If you were smart, you have a sheet of cloth in your bag that you can spread out on the floor and lay down on it in case you get really tired. When its time to take care of the daily hygiene, go into the family restrooms, they lock and you can practically take a sponge bath in there.
Stand next to the arrival and departure screen and see where people are coming from. It's neat seeing that a plane has arrived and seeing all the people get off the plane. In January, when I arrived in Minnesota, the plane unloaded hundreds of people but I was the only one in shorts, what a fool.
Stand in a corner of the airport/terminal and stand still like a mannequin. Adults will barely notice you but watch how many kids do. It is amazing you will see little kids looking at you and some of them will even try to approach you. Just find a wall, lean up against it and don't move. I did this in the Heathrow Airport and it was neat.
Buy some food- even if you are not hungry, buy some food. You will have to wait in line for your food and wait for your food to be cooked, therefore wasting time.
Watch TV If you are located in a quiet terminal, sit down and enjoy the TV show that is being broadcast if you can hear it over the loud speaker.. "John Marshall, Please report to Terminal 8, Terminal 8. Por Favor, Donde es John Marshall. John Marshall, venga aqui, terminal ocho!?!
End of summer vacation with Manny...
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Sunday, Aug 16th
Photo of the week.
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When Lightning Strikes during a Dive
While 75 percent of fatalities by lightning strikes in the U.S. are in open fields or near trees, 12 percent take place in or near the water, in boats and on docks. So potentially, lightning is the biggest weather danger for divers. Fortunately in Hawaii lightning happens on rare occasions.
Florida gets more lightning strikes than any other state, and its most recent victim was diver Stephen Wilson, 36, who died in July when a lightning strike hit his tank. Despite a severe thunderstorm warning being in effect, Wilson went diving with three friends in a small boat near Deerfield Beach, 40 miles north of Miami. Wilson had resurfaced 30 feet from the boat when the lightning bolt struck his tank and knocked him unconscious. The other divers struggled to get Wilson back into the boat and radioed for help, but to no avail. He was pronounced dead from electrocution minutes later.
Oceans rarely attract lightning because the surface water does not heat up enough to cause the positive charge needed for lightning to occur. Also, water is always the lowest object around, compared to land's higher elevations and warmer temperatures. But the main problem for divers is that water is a good conductor of electricity, therefore the current of a lightning strike can be carried through water for significant distances. The last jump of a forming lightning bolt is only 100 to 150 feet long, so lightning can strike water more than 150 feet from shore and even if you are considerably below the surface, you can still get electrocuted. However, because the surface of a lake isn't covered with dead fish after it's struck suggests the current weakens in short distances
But what precautions should a diver take while caught in a storm? Are you safer in the water than in the boat? If shore diving, should you stay in the water or go ashore? When I took my basic certification course in the 70's, we were told to get out of the water in a lightning storm and, better yet, didn't dive if lightning threatened. Today, however, diving courses are shorter than ever so the question of what to do about lightning is often ignored. PADI's Open Water manual has no reference to lightning or storms.
Jed Livingston, vice president of training for NAUI, says it's an obscure risk so there's no need to cover it in courses. "It might be in our First Aid book but it discusses how to treat an electrical burn. We assume divers already learned what to do a long time ago during their swimming class in school." Scuba Schools International leaves it up to the instructors' discretion, says training director Dennis Pulley. "Those who live in areas more affected by lightning are more likely to discuss it with students than those who don't."
Lightning is likely to strike the highest thing around so if you're on the water during a storm, the boat and everyone in it are prime targets. Diving underwater may not be an option because lightning can be even more deadly when its electricity flows through the waves. Underwater caves can be an especially dangerous location. Two cave divers were shocked by lightning while diving in Florida's Ginnie Springs Cave. They were 900 feet from the entrance when lightning struck - - twice - - but they survived.
If the forecast is for thunderstorms, don't go out on the water. Or you should return to shore before the storm arrives. If you're out diving and can see lightning or hear thunder, you're already at risk for a lightning strike. If the clouds are coming your way, it's time to head for shore. If you see lightning, the flash-to-bang method can also help determine whether lightning is moving closer (sound travels about one mile every five seconds).If you're in a boat during a storm, David Sawatzky, M.D., medical columnist for the Canadian magazine DIVER, says it's best to huddle in the middle of the boat as far as possible from water, electrical equipment, radios and anything metal. Lower the antenna and anything else sticking up on the boat, if there is a lightning protection system on the boat, don't touch it.
The ultimate advice is to avoid diving or being in or near water during a storm, and 30 minutes before and after it hits. And don't sit out on the dock or climb to the top of the boat to enjoy the lightning show.
Intros..
Sunday and Monday and we are diving the south side of the Island; with a supposed storm moving in we are getting in a couple of dives during the calmest conditions all week. Most divers were a little worried and the calls were coming in, canceling dives and wondering what the conditions would be. We took the chance and booked a couple of Intros for both days hoping that the storm would hold off. In the end the storm was a drizzle that didn't affect diving except for the fact that the boats were empty-- it seems most divers decided to stay away. Both days we had excellent visibility with calm waters and marine life galore: turtles, eagle rays, and huge octopus.
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Adventures with Manny
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Sunday, Aug 9th
Photo of the week.
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How to loose a wedding band...
"We went snorkeling on our honeymoon. The instructor told us all to remove our jewelry to keep from losing it in the water. My wife ignored the warning and lost her ring as soon as we got in the water. I was extremely mad (to say the least)! She felt I shouldn't have been upset because it wasn't intentional. The ring was not insured...and I replaced the ring the same day we returned from our honeymoon."
As divers went into the water at E Beach today, I floated with my buoy and reminded them one by one to, “inflate their bcd’s and make sure all gear was in place.” The water was a surprisingly clear 60 feet of visibility in spite of the gentle wind swells that rolled through. Whenever we approach the reef at the end of the outlet, I like to look into the water to check for pirate treasure. Today the water was a beautiful turquoise exposing the sandy bottom and the distinct boiling of water at the outlet.
About ten minutes into the dive, a diver who we’ll call (Bob) signaled to go to the surface. “Hypothetically, what would someone do if his wedding band slipped off in the water?” It turned out that the question was not hypothetical, after all.
The bottom of the ocean floor can be a treasure trove of items that people have lost. With daily snorkel charters coming to this area(E-Beach), passengers have jumped into the water with wallets and cell phones in their pockets. People have lost track of their waterproof cameras which float off with the ocean's current. Often times we recover these items to our delight, but not always. This was not the first time I had heard of someone losing his or her wedding band at the reef, and unless it’s a calm, clear day and he knows exactly where it slipped off, the chances of recovering it are slim. In the end the ring was not recovered. Metal detector anyone!!
Honeymooner.
Sunday and we are diving on the south side with a little swell and green water conditions. The conditions kept most divers away for the day, and the boat was ours. Amy, who is visiting the Islands on her honeymoon, decided she had enough of the hubby and since she is a certified diver wanted to get in a day of diving.
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Water park...
Thursday and we are on an excursion to Wet and Wild theme park. Manny is bringing out the kids in all us divers. Joining in on the fun were Amber, Helena, Randy, Sandi, and, of course, Manny. Would you believe that out of 4 adults not one could bring a camera. Amber recently (two days ago) sent another camera to the electronic grave, caused by what else? water!!! We did purchase this water proof camera that you had to wind this dial and push this lever thingy to take a photo. But where do you plug it into the computer? Old school cameras -- I wonder if they will ever disappear? We'll keep you updated on those pics when they become available.
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Sunday, Aug 2nd
Photo of the week.
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“I’m going to get back into it!”
Many divers take a long break at some stage during their scuba diving career. There are many things to consider before taking the plunge again.
What a common saying. Many divers drop out of diving for a multitude of reasons. Some divers do their basic course and never dive again. Others dive regularly for many years then stop diving. With the high price of diving equipment and expensive boat diving it is no wonder many people give diving away for a while. But with the sheer exhilaration of being underwater it is not surprising divers will want to go back down.
For someone who hasn’t dived for a time it is easier said than done. Depending on a diver's confidence and the elapsed time since the last dived determines how a diver restarts a diving career.
Check Equipment
First thing, check the equipment. The tank may be out of test and it may be a while since the regulator was serviced. There’s no sense going diving if cockroaches have eaten mask straps or the diaphragm in the regulator's second stage has perished. Check the wetsuit, not only for condition, but ensure it still fits! If it’s been a number of years, maybe it has shrunk around the midriff!
Physical Check
Before hitting the water, a diver should be physically ready for scuba again. Scuba diving is a physical activity and needs a certain level of fitness. Depending on each diver's circumstances, maybe some aerobic training might be worthwhile. Also a medical check-up should be done. Consideration also needs to be given to a diver's mental approach. If previously an anxious diver, the stress levels may have to be addressed before dipping below the surface again.
Most dive shops provide refresher courses where rusty divers should be able to latch onto one of their classes for a nominal fee. This will provide all the benefits of an instructor, dive-masters and students who are starting from scratch. The classes might even come in handy as a bit of a revision on some theory aspects is always useful. Most reputable dive-shops will offer this service.
Make the First Dive Simple
After the cobwebs have been cleared and the diver is physically and mentally ready, the first dive should be in an easy location. A simple shore or shallow dive will suffice. Plan the dive to take things slow and easy, especially on the descent. The ears will not be used to such a dramatic change of pressure. For someone diving fairly regularly, say two or three dives a month, the ears get accustomed to the pressure changes, but when they haven’t popped for a while it can be a painful process. Also take it easy on the ascent.
Return to the Depths
After an easy dive it will be time for more advanced diving; gradually working up confidence to try deep dives, night dives, wreck diving or whatever.
For divers thinking of getting back into it, take the challenge. Anyone who has dived before knows that underwater is another world, divorced from the one on the surface with all its problems and tension. So take the plunge!
Back to diving
Sunday and we are out on the South side fro a early morning dive to the YO-257 and then Turtle canyon. With a little south swell still hanging around visibility wasn't the greatest but the dives made up for that. With turtles, eagle rays, frogfish, octopus and numerous fish all was well. We were welcoming Steven, Jae Ho, and Jae Yo to the Island, visiting from Korea and after not diving in many years they thought what better place to get back into it.
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Beach time
Also on Sunday we stopped at the beach for a few hours of fun in the sun with Helena, Amber, Randy and Manny.
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Sat and another beach day at sharks cove, Instructor Randy DM Blade, Charlie and Eric also Helena went fro a dive while Manny and Amber stayed at the tide pools. During gear cleanup we discovered the newest up and coming Dm, Manny took to the bucket like a pro.
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Intro's
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Tuesday and we are welcoming Victoria to the world of diving, her boyfriend Alden was suppose to join in but wasn't feeling well and had to cancel at the last minute. Also joining in on the fun was mom Lea and Dave, both certified divers that wanted to get the kids wet. With a slight south swell things were a little green but all went well with the skills and we had a excellent day of diving.
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Sunday, July 26th
Photo of the week.
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How To Snorkel - Teach Kids to Snorkel
“Under the Sea"-- that's where you should be, when you travel to places with coral and beautiful fish-life. Everyone should snorkel, and with a little effort, kids as young as five or six can have a fun experience.
1.Start your snorkel lessons in the bath-tub, before your trip. Kids will love this idea.
2.Let your child play with the snorkel, and get the hang of breathing through it.
3.Now, try the face-mask-- without the snorkel. Have your child position just the front of the face-mask on his/her face.
4.Make sure the face-mask fits well-- kids can't stand it when water leaks in! (See Tips, below.) Have your child inhale through the nose: the mask should stick on his/her face.
5.Be sure to smooth back all stray hair! Water will leak into the face mask via any strands of hair.
6.Now, pull the strap section of the mask over your child's head, and into position. This is the hard part: kids hate to feel the rubber strap pull against their hair. Pull the strap in a way that minimizes rubbing the hair.
7.If your child is frustrated, stop and try another time. Once the child is comfortable with the mask, try adding the snorkel.
8.The snorkel doesn't need to be attached properly, i.e. threaded through the loop on the face-mask. You can just tuck it between the face-mask and your child's face.
9.Once on your vacation, do some snorkel practicing in a pool.
10.When you finally try real-life snorkeling in the sea, try to find a calm place, like a lagoon. Wave action can un-nerve a child, at first.
11.Bring along water-wings, so that your child's energy isn't used up just staying afloat while you're snorkeling.
Morning dive..
Tuesday the 21st and we are diving on the South side of the Island, with this being Instructor Randy's 1st dive in a week he was trembling at the knees and sweating bullets. Laura and Ron visiting the Island from Utah thought since they recently were certified and now in Hawaii why not get in a couple of dives. 1st dive of the day was at the Seatiger wreck followed by a shallow reef dive at Horseshoe reef. Excellent viability at both sites with turtles, frogfish, octopus and a gaggle of other divers.
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Manny on Island
As some of you know Instructor Randy went to Minnesota for a week and came back with a rug rat tucked in his suitcase. OK really we let him fly next to the weirdo and he love it, this was Manny's 1st time flying and his first time to Hawaii. After getting over the time change and opening all the cool toys we had here, he met Blade. Manny says what a weirdo but he loves the dinosaur Blade gave him, and thanks for the movie Transformers.
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Sunday, July 12th
Photo of the week.
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New Site...
Launching of the new site took place a little earlier than planned. Instructor Randy is off Island for the week trying to bring his son Emmanuel back to Hawaii for a month long visit. While away there wont be any site maintenance.
While visiting the new site please if there are problems remember it is new and we are addressing them. A simple email could alert us to problems that haven't been brought to our attention yet.
Last dive
The last day of diving for Instructor Randy before he leaves the Island for a week. Joining in on the fun was Charlie and DM Blade, also visiting the Island for a week for a work project, Keith and his lovely wife Vicki.
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Free Board, score...
Last Sunday after a wonderful dive on the North shore we are heading home when we notice something flying thru the air. DM Bobby was driving, Jay was the copilot with Helena and Amber acting as back seat drivers. DM Blade and Instructor Randy drew the short straws and were relaxing in the 60mph winds in the bed of the pickup. Is it a bird or a plane no its a 10ft surf board that came loose from the back of a SUV, did they stop? No way, we sure did though and we are now the proud owners of a great board with only a few bumps and bruises. After giving the board to all mighty surf god Bob for the blessing and repairs. Good as new...
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Sun., July 5th
Picture of the week.
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Happy fourth of July
Some interesting facts about the San Pedro.
Pedro is approximately 111' in length and 30' wide. Built in Japan and operated by a Korean fishing company. Age is not known. There is much argument about whether the name should be pronounced Saint or San. Many argue that the name should be San due to Pedro being a Spanish name and that would be proper Spanish. Others argue whether that has any bearing since Pedro was not owned by Spanish speakers and Asian translations into English are often creative. However, the name on the stern was St. Pedro #36.
From Mike Doyle, ABS surveyor:
Ship was carrying cargo to be delivered to the fishing fleet in the Pacific, included was bait and foodstuff. In 1975 the ship caught fire off of South Point on the Big Island. All extinguishers were used and then the crew started to use the cargo to attempt to put out the fire. The soy sauce was used on the fire to the detriment of the crew. The fire was eventually put out but with extensive damage to the ship. The ship was towed by the USCG to Kawaihae on the Big Island. After a few days of no refrigeration; the bait and burnt soy sauce began to stink and the people of the area began to call the St. Pedro the "Teriyaki Boat". The boat was bought off of the insurance company by a gentleman of the name of Matt Andrade with intentions of turning her into an inter-island freighter in the south Pacific and had the boat towed to Keehi Lagoon where it stayed for the next two decades. It eventually sank in about 10' of water.
In 1993 State boating workers discovered an incredible mess. The deck was littered with hundreds of containers leaking toxic material. The state began clean up on the boat shortly there after with funding from the EPA "Super Fund" clean up money to handle the toxic material. The Coast Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers assisted the state when it cleaned the St. Pedro of fuel oil, refrigerants, insulation foam and asbestos, flushed the engine and filled 21 roll-off containers with junk. The state intended to tow the derelict 12 miles out to sea and sink it until Atlantis Submarines stepped in to pay for the increased expense of meeting strict EPA, Coast Guard and state health department standards for sinking the ship in shallow water. Atlantis also reimbursed the state Boating and Recreation Divisions for money it had spent to clean up the ship. Atlantis acquired the ship from the Department of Land and Natural Resources on 12/21/95. The ship was sunk on January 11th 1996. Atlantis spent $360,000 on the project.
Sorry for the delay
| Last week and we completed a Openwater class with Jay who is visiting the Island for a few weeks, and taking a refresher course in Korean while here .Excellent job Jay |  |
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We also welcomed Charlie Roskoz out for a wonderful day of diving with Dean, Amy, Morgan and of course Charlie, excellent day to be on the water. Congratulations again Morgan.
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Intro diver
We also had Matt and Heather diving with us all week, thank you very much and on Sunday we went out for there last dives on Island and Matt had his son Chris join in for a Intro dive.
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Sun., June 28th
Photo of the week.
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Gabe Watson pleads guilty to diving wife's death
A man charged over the death of his new wife on a Barrier Reef diving holiday won't face a murder charge after the Brisbane Supreme Court accepted his plea of manslaughter.
The Courier-Mail reports that US national David Gabe Watson, 32, appeared in the Brisbane Supreme Court this morning charged of murdering his bride, Tina, 26, while diving on the Great Barrier Reef near Townsville in October 23, 2003.
Three weeks ago Mr. Watson voluntarily traveled from the US and arrived at Brisbane's International Airport and immediately surrendered himself into police custody.
He appeared in court on the same day and was ordered to be held in custody.
Mr. Watson's wife of 11 days died on their first dive of a 10-day scuba-diving expedition on the Great Barrier Reef, off Townsville, in October 2003.
Tina's death and the six-year fight for justice by her parents attracted worldwide media coverage for what was allegedly a brutal crime of passion, or a crime motivated by a modest life-insurance payout.
Mr. Watson, a bubble-wrap salesman, has since remarried a woman who bears a striking similarity to his late wife Tina.
In mid-2008, coroner David Glasgow found that it was likely Mr. Watson killed his 26-year-old wife by holding her under water and turning off her air supply.
Prosecutors late last year filed an indictment in the Townsville Supreme Court against Mr. Watson over the death of his wife.
When Mr. Watson returned to Brisbane, his US solicitor said he had returned so he could enter a formal not guilty plea.
Today he pleaded guilty to manslaughter and will not face trial for murder.
He will be sentenced immediately.
Sentencing
David Gabriel Watson was sentenced to 4-1/2 years in prison on Friday June 5, 2009, for causing the death of his wife while they were on their honeymoon in Australia six years ago. In a plea bargain, he will only serve one year for manslaughter, enraging Tommy Thomas, father of the deceased Tina Watson.
Thomas said, “I’m sure that the entire Australian nation as well as our country back home shares in the shock at what we’ve just seen, because it’s a total injustice…it’s ludicrous. It’s an embarrassment to everyone involved. We believe that Gabe Watson murdered our daughter.”
Bassam
Excellent week of diving despite big surf. Tuesday and we are starting a 5-day dive feast on the west side of the Island. We were welcoming Bassam back to the Island from Africa, andalso joining for the day was Brian from Canada. That's C-a N-a D-a, cold up there. Excellent day of diving especially since we were the only people on the boat. Airplane canyon followed by turtles.
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Wed and we are off diving on the south side of the Island with big surf coming in but the visibility was still good. YO-257 and Turtle canyons were the sites for the day. Bassam had a blast and joining in was DM Charlie who thought why not, especially since he had the day off from turd herding.
Thursday and we are on our way to the North shore for a quick dive at Shark's Cove. This was Bassam's 1st time completing a dive there and also his 1st time doing a shore dive. We cruised thru all the swim throughs, exiting after an hour and 10mins. Excellent vis with turtles, octopus, and a spanish dancer.
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Friday and Bassam and Instructor Randy made the trip for the second time to the west side. Airplane canyons and black rock were on the slate. It's been a long time since we had seen sharks at blackrock but this was Bassam's day, 3 whitetip reef sharks were cruising under the ledge after spending almost 25 mins watching them we started our assent, but low and behold, Bassam's dive computer went into deco and we had a long deco/safety stop.
Saturday and the last day of diving for Bassam, joining in on the fun was DM Charlie, DM Amber, DM Blade, DM Sandi and Instructor Randy. We wanted to make sure he was covered from all angles, the dive was out of Hawaii Kai. For most of you that know the area we were expecting the worse especially since there was a big swell hitting the Island, but in the end the wind died down and it wasn't bad at all. Corsair and drift dive on Fantasy reef ended Bassam's vacation with a smile.
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Wedding Bells
Congratulations go out to Eric and Annie, who tied the knot on Saturday as well. So we ended the dive went home showered changed into these things over our toes and thingies covering our legs. What an experience! No, not the wedding, but having to were shoes again. It was held at the Pacific Aviation Museum on Ford Island and was a very beautiful and moving ceremony. So, yes of course, Blade and Randy were sure to get into trouble. The ceremony is over and they wanted a group shot so why not have us stand by and on the stage that is supporting a real Zero -- just asking for trouble. So they got their picture and we started getting our photos; there was a little touching involved of the plane, but we were very respectful. Let's see the tiger pose, a little closer, a little closer, oops in trouble! Fun was had by all. . . .
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Sun., June 21st
Happy 1st day of Summer 2009
Photo of the week.
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Buoyancy Checks...
Once in the water, perform a buoyancy check at the end of a dive when the tank is around 1000-500 PSI. This is as instructed in your open water class, or as follows:
Starting in water that is too deep to stand up in, float on the surface with an inflated BCD. Do not kick or use your hands throughout this procedure. With your regulator in your mouth, take a lung full of air and release all the air from your BC. You should notice your body start to sink but remain at eye level with the water line. If you sink below the water line you are too heavy; remove 2 lbs and repeat.
Next blow out the air you held in your lungs. This should cause you to drop below the surface and initiate a normal descent. If you still float, be sure you have got all the air out of your BC and lungs; otherwise you may not have enough weight. Add 2 lbs and repeat.
Caution: You can do this at the beginning of the dive and may get perfectly weighted but an aluminum tank becomes positively buoyant as it empties. Meaning you become floaty. Be sure to add 5 lbs for this fact if you do the weight check at the beginning of the dive instead of the end.
This is a starting guideline for salt water and an inexperienced diver should round up. Most divers start heavier just in case as air can be added to the BCD but you wont be able to add weight if you are already in the water.
For a 3mm Shorty wetsuit: body weight (165 lbs) x 7% = 11.55 or 12lbs
For a 3mm Full wetsuit: body weight (165 lbs) x 8% = 13.2 or 14lbs
For a 5mm Full wetsuit: body weight (165 lbs) x 10% = 16.5 or 18lbs
For a 7mm Full wetsuit: body weight (165 lbs) x 12% = 19.8 or 20lbs
If you are wearing a 7mm farmer john remember there is actually 14mm on your chest
Body weight (165 lbs) x 14% = 24.75 or 26lbs
Using 80 cu ft aluminum tank.
Mokule'ia Beach Park.
This long, white sand beach is located west of Wailua, past Dillingham Airfield, on the northwestern tip of the island. It is very popular with local Hawaiians and provides an excellent place to windsurf and fish. Most divers will realize that the entrance and exit is more difficult than the entry and exit through the channel on the left. On a recent Sunday outing with Helena, Divemaster Bobby, Divemaster Amber, Instructor Randy and Roy (well, actually Roy was unable to dive because of the issue discussed in this week's dive tip) we experienced this very shallow dive site with a max depth around 18ft at about 300yds off shore. This dive has some swim throughs and a feeling of adventure.
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Referral course...
Thursday and we are diving at Shark's Cove with Charlie, Dean, Amy and referral student Morgan. Excellent visibility and no swell made great dives to start her course. I almost forgot Dive Master Blade the tresure hunter came along for the fun.
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Saturday and we were out on the South side for a couple of shallow dives. After completing all the required skills we are glad to anounce the newest diver from Barefoot Scuba Divers -- Congratulations Morgan!
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South Swell..
Excellent dives on Aloha Friday on the South side, the YO-257 greeted us with some of the best visibility but the surge was unreal. Back and forth, back and forth 1,2,3 divers leaning over the rail 4, 5, 6 divers bringing in the fishies with breakfast. We were welcoming Adrian to the Island for the day, excellent!!!
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Happy Fathers Day
A husband and wife had four boys. The odd part of it was that the older three had red hair, light skin, and were tall, while the youngest son had black hair, dark eyes, and was short.
The father eventually took ill and was lying on his deathbed when he turned to his wife and said, "Honey, before I die, be totally honest with me - is our youngest son my child?"
The wife replied, "I swear on everything that's holy that he is your son."
With that the husband passed away. The wife then muttered, "Thank God he didn't ask about the other three."
Sun., June 14th
Photo's of the week.
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nice waves dude - - they were really big.
Fatal diving accidents...
A Navy SEAL died during night dive training in Bremerton, Wash., a Navy spokesman confirmed.
Chief Special Warfare Operator (SEAL) Eric F. Shellenberger, 36, died Thursday. He was assigned to SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 1 based out of Pearl City, Hawaii.
Shellenberger “encountered difficulty in the water and did an emergency ascent,” said Lt. Cmdr. John Daniels. After coming to the surface, Shellenberger was unresponsive, Daniels said. He was treated for an hour in a recompression chamber, but did not survive.
This goes to show you that no matter how much training you have there can always be an accident.
Big surf all over the Island..
Surfers around Oahu scanned the horizon Monday and saw the first big south swell of the season roll in with wave heights forecasted at 5 to 8 feet.
"I'm itching to get out there," said Ken Lykes, a surf instructor at Hans Hedemann Surf School in Waikiki. "It will be nice."
The waves are forecast at advisory levels, which mean high waves could produce rip currents and localized beach erosion, according to the National Weather Service.
The swell was decent all this past week along Oahu’s south shores and west shores, making for very bad diving conditions. Most of the shallow site were all washed out - - brown colored water, yuck…
Intro's
After a very slow beginning of the week we are ending Saturday with a group from Oklahoma. Amber's twice removed brother's sister from a third cousins son's friend of a nephew's grandmother..., NOT!!!
Really it's Amber's sister in-law, Bri, that's in town visiting her brother who's in the military. We thought why not get them out diving, but did you read the article before this? Poopy water... We welcomed Bri, Quinn, Amanda and mom Pam to the Islands for frolicking fun in the water. Oh, and yes divemaster Amber joined in with her family.
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Sun., June 7th
Photo's of the week.
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Dive Incidents...
"I completely ran out of air 70 feet under, my dive buddy was over 50 feet away. I almost died. It was a horrible experience, one that wakes me up at night reliving and reliving it again and again."
"Diving in Tel Aviv, the guided dive leader ran out of air, due to an 'o' ring failure. he showed me the out of air sign and I handed my Spare Air to him. we all surfaced and ended the dive."
"Diving in low visibility, strong current conditions, I lost my buddy immediately after the descent. At the same time, probably when struggling with current, I lost both integrated weights packs (the most probably I inserted them in the wrong way when preparing the dive). My buddy found the weights, stopped the dive and return to the boat to warn of possible emergency accent. I continued the dive (as we usually do in case of buddy loss) and paid no attention on missing weights (the depth was 30m). I paid attention that the weights are missing only when starting accent to the surface from the depth of 30m. To prevent the uncontrolled accent I turned against the current working with fins and keeping the horizontal body position. This allowed me control the accent and perform safety stop."
"During our first dive in a week-long vacation on Maui, we descended to about 70 feet in pristine conditions. About 10 minutes into the dive, my first stage blew out, resulting in a forceful loss/leak of air from where the first stage attaches to the tank. The impact of the blowout forced the second stage from my mouth, the resulting forceful loss of air from the tank felt like a jackhammer was going off in my ear, and my second stage was free-flowing like crazy. My buddy told me later that when he looked over he could not see me - as my body was covered in the escaping bubbles from the tank. We rushed over to each other, and buddy breathed to the surface, dazed, but unharmed."
Slow times no diving...
HONOLULU—In its latest quarterly economic report, the Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism (DBEDT) says it expects the national recession to continue to affect Hawai‘i’s economy throughout 2009.
Based largely on downward revisions in national economic forecasts, the Department now expects a 1.6 percent decline in the state’s 2009 real gross state domestic product as well as a 2.1 percent decline in the average job count for the year.
While the forecast for visitor arrivals was unchanged from the previous forecast, visitor expenditures will likely be negatively impacted. In the current forecast, DBEDT expects visitor expenditures will decrease 7.9 percent in 2009.
“National and international economic conditions continue to negatively affect Hawai‘i’s economy and this will likely be the case for most of 2009,” said DBEDT Director Theodore E. Liu. “We are hopeful the situation will improve late this year, but recovery is likely to be a gradual process. We expect that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 will also have a positive impact beginning in the latter half of the year and will allow the State to make investments in some transformational changes, especially in the area of energy.
