The Conservative Cave

Interests => Hobbies => Topic started by: Strider on December 07, 2008, 05:48:52 PM

Title: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 07, 2008, 05:48:52 PM
Not sure it is  a hobby or an expensive habit.... :cheers2:
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Zeus on December 07, 2008, 06:27:57 PM
Dumpster ?
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 07, 2008, 07:04:05 PM
Dumpster ?
sure...iffin ya wanna strap on a tank and dive into your local dumpster...WHO am I to judge..... :-)

I am sure the vis would be a little better than some of the mud holes I SCUBA dive in around DFW....


Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 07, 2008, 07:06:34 PM
Totally  :cheersmate:  When I was 12-13 or so, there was a company with a dumpster for card board near by.  We'd head out to it, it was clean card board btw, check it out for safety... stack the boxes up... than dive off of a nearby roof into it  :cheersmate:

Fun times... no one lost an eye either... sigh...
We didnt have dumpsters when I was a kid..but there was a nice big barn full of hay in the middle of town...it was an old hardware store with a balcony overlooking half the front area...bust a few bales,pile em up and VIOLA!!!
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Chris_ on December 07, 2008, 08:08:38 PM
I love being on the water or near the water. Just not in it.

When I put on a mask (such as scuba or snorkel), I start to panic.  I have snorkeled in Hawaii, Mexico, Florida and the Caribbean.  But every time it was so uncomfortable for me that I have since given up.

I did do some sort of underwater bell thingy in Cabo that was pretty fun. But it is mostly very limited in distance and I think it is more for the novelty of the experience itself.
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 07, 2008, 08:23:13 PM
Cool cool  :cheersmate:

I've been longing to take lessons, I'm just trying to coincide them with a trip to the Caribbean or Hawaii for the open water portion. 
I see you are from Mich. they have some great diving on the great lakes!!
You just need to jump in there and do it!!!
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 07, 2008, 08:26:23 PM
I love being on the water or near the water. Just not in it.

When I put on a mask (such as scuba or snorkel), I start to panic.  I have snorkeled in Hawaii, Mexico, Florida and the Caribbean.  But every time it was so uncomfortable for me that I have since given up.

I did do some sort of underwater bell thingy in Cabo that was pretty fun. But it is mostly very limited in distance and I think it is more for the novelty of the experience itself.
That is a primative reflex alot of people can never over come so you are by no means alone...
I have the opposite problem..I get so comfortable underwater I have to remind myself not to breath when free diving or when I take the reg out of my mouth... :thatsright:
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Chris_ on December 07, 2008, 08:28:26 PM
That is a primative reflex alot of people can never over come so you are by no means alone...
I have the opposite problem..I get so comfortable underwater I have to remind myself not to breath when free diving or when I take the reg out of my mouth... :thatsright:
I assume you don't have to remind yourself too often. ;)
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 07, 2008, 08:51:18 PM
I assume you don't have to remind yourself too often. ;)

I was inflating a bag once and was so fixed on what I was doing I forgot I didn't have a reg in my mouth and took a big snort..... :o
I started to choke and went into lyryngospasm and thought I had bought the farm..... I was down about 70' and had to work it out at depth, I just held the reg in my mouth and slowly forced myself to breath...little by little it finaly passed...
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Chris_ on December 07, 2008, 09:36:25 PM
I was inflating a bag once and was so fixed on what I was doing I forgot I didn't have a reg in my mouth and took a big snort..... :o
I started to choke and went into lyryngospasm and thought I had bought the farm..... I was down about 70' and had to work it out at depth, I just held the reg in my mouth and slowly forced myself to breath...little by little it finaly passed...
Good to see my instinctive will to survive is solidly grounded in reality.
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 07, 2008, 09:38:10 PM
Good to see my instinctive will to survive is solidly grounded in reality.

Yep...I have yet to meet a  human with gills..... :-)
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Flame on December 08, 2008, 07:06:48 AM
I've done it once, and it was way cool (resort dive).  We didn't go deep deep, and when I looked up, I could still see the surface of the way, so I didn't freak out, but it was pretty cool.


My husband and I would love to get certified, but those silly little things called money and kids always get in the way!
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Toastedturningtidelegs on December 08, 2008, 07:09:13 AM
Muff? :-)
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: dilloduck on December 08, 2008, 07:21:28 PM
Not sure it is  a hobby or an expensive habit.... :cheers2:

I used to in my younger years and miss it. Got NAAUI certiftied on Okinawa and it was liek diving in heaven. Hawaii was boring compared to the awesome reefs and WWII wrecks off Okinawa. Spiney lobster anyone ??? every night ( illegal now I hear )
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Chris_ on December 08, 2008, 09:37:04 PM
I've done it once, and it was way cool (resort dive).  We didn't go deep deep, and when I looked up, I could still see the surface of the way, so I didn't freak out, but it was pretty cool.


My husband and I would love to get certified, but those silly little things called money and kids always get in the way!

Well, kids you can do something about.
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: RightCoast on December 08, 2008, 11:04:13 PM
Not sure it is  a hobby or an expensive habit.... :cheers2:

Yes, though it has been a damn long time - open water and advanced OW while on Okinawa.  Night dives were the most amazing - swimming through the luminescent algae and watching a wake of color from the diver before you was amazing - never really got into again, maybe a handful of dives in the past 13 yrs, Okinawa spoiled me.  Lake diving in New England is nearly a waste of time and cold as ****.


Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: RightCoast on December 08, 2008, 11:08:10 PM
I used to in my younger years and miss it. Got NAAUI certiftied on Okinawa and it was liek diving in heaven. Hawaii was boring compared to the awesome reefs and WWII wrecks off Okinawa. Spiney lobster anyone ??? every night ( illegal now I hear )


I can't possibly imagine that diving is better anywhere else in the world.  I was there in 1993 for 6 months and spent just about every free minute underwater.
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Chris_ on December 09, 2008, 01:48:46 AM

I can't possibly imagine that diving is better anywhere else in the world.  I was there in 1993 for 6 months and spent just about every free minute underwater.
Hey!  Get a room you two!
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: NHSparky on December 09, 2008, 08:12:50 AM
Got my initial certification (PADI) while stationed in Hawaii in 1990.  Have my own gear, certified Rescue Diver, logged about 600-700 dives.  Being statione in Hawaii, Guam, and San Diego will do that for you.  They say that living/being stations in Guam, you do one of three things--drink, dive, lift weights (or a combination thereof).  Also got to dive Chuuk, Saipan, Cabo, etc. 

Don't do much diving anymore--no dry suit.  I only log about 10 dives a year now, and I'm looking to get rid of my now-ancient gear and upgrade to some stuff that is NITROX clean once I bother to pick up that certification.
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: JohnnyReb on December 09, 2008, 12:03:49 PM
I was inflating a bag once and was so fixed on what I was doing I forgot I didn't have a reg in my mouth and took a big snort..... :o
I started to choke and went into lyryngospasm and thought I had bought the farm..... I was down about 70' and had to work it out at depth, I just held the reg in my mouth and slowly forced myself to breath...little by little it finaly passed...

Keep your cool, make yourself swallow 3 or 4 times and your airways will open up.
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Peter3_1 on December 09, 2008, 12:20:11 PM
Been a SCUBA diver since 1959. Raised , with one other diver, a 50 ft. purse seiner from 165 ft down. Dived in the Pacific, Atlantic and Carib. . If you go to the Carib., St Thomas at Saphire Bay has a good Dive Shop.
With little St. John dive trips, etc etc.
If you are over 35, remember to limit your dives that exceed 99 ft..
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 09, 2008, 05:28:08 PM
Been a SCUBA diver since 1959. Raised , with one other diver, a 50 ft. purse seiner from 165 ft down. Dived in the Pacific, Atlantic and Carib. . If you go to the Carib., St Thomas at Saphire Bay has a good Dive Shop.
With little St. John dive trips, etc etc.
If you are over 35, remember to limit your dives that exceed 99 ft..

Why limit dives below 99ft?
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Peter3_1 on December 09, 2008, 09:23:17 PM
Repeted dives will get bone deteriation due to nitrogen in the blood getting into live bone and killing it. Three atmosphers seems the max you can go without any damage .  When we were young, the bone rebuilt easily. After age 35, not so well, and diver's osteo can result. Better safe than sorry, plus, unless you are wreck /salvage diving, past 60 or so frt, it is pretty boring. All aqua, not much color without artifical light etc.
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: LC EFA on December 10, 2008, 04:22:38 AM
While I live right on the Great Barrier Reef in a town that has a very large market for tourist SCUBAseeing , and am all good with snorkeling and spear fishing, I can't correctly equalize the ear pressures so can't really take advantage of SCUBA.  :thatsright:
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 10, 2008, 09:23:14 AM
Got my initial certification (PADI) while stationed in Hawaii in 1990.  Have my own gear, certified Rescue Diver, logged about 600-700 dives.  Being statione in Hawaii, Guam, and San Diego will do that for you.  They say that living/being stations in Guam, you do one of three things--drink, dive, lift weights (or a combination thereof).  Also got to dive Chuuk, Saipan, Cabo, etc. 

Don't do much diving anymore--no dry suit.  I only log about 10 dives a year now, and I'm looking to get rid of my now-ancient gear and upgrade to some stuff that is NITROX clean once I bother to pick up that certification.
NITROX is great stuff....
I rarely use air anymore. Big increase in safety, longer bottom times if you want, personally I don't get that washed out feeling after a two tank dive I usually get on air from nitrogen loading. I cant wait to get my prerequisites over with  and move on to tri-mix. :-)
As for eanx gear, virtually all regs,gauges,integrated computers and so on come out of the box clean for 40%, as for tanks, they come ready for 40% as well but they cant be partial pressure filled, premix only.
 You couldn't find a better time to buy gear than the present, the shops are feeling the crunch and have alot of gear on sale right now. I was at the scuba toys web site yesterday and they have alot of their stuff marked down 40-60%, one reg in particular I noticed was their Dive Rite rg2500 which is a great overbalanced high end reg marked down from over 400 to 299....
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 10, 2008, 09:23:49 AM
Muff? :-)
on cold days.... :cheersmate:
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Peter3_1 on December 11, 2008, 04:39:01 PM
Ancient equipment? My Healthways  mfg in 1959 still works, original hoses and all. Haven't been able to dive since being ill, tho. I thtiought that I'd be able, physically, to dive and Surf all my life. Oisses me off that I can't.

DAN (Diver's Alert Network)  will keep you up to date on the Medical and technical info..
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: ScubaGuy on December 16, 2008, 05:24:58 PM
It's an expensive habit, but damn it's fun.

Up to three years ago I was in the water every other weekend off the NC coast and usually took a couple of dive vacations to Cozumel, Belize or the Bahamas every year. 

Had to take care of some family medical problems the last few years which kept me out of the water and out of cash but I should be back this summer.

Have you ever tried any of the dive cruises?  I did a 7 day with Blackbeard from Miami to the Bahamas.  Kind of like a combination of camping and diving for a week cost less than $1K for the whole week.  I had a blast but now that I'm married I know my wife would hate it. 

Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: Strider on December 18, 2008, 08:37:02 PM
no...I have never gone on a dive cruise but would like to.
There is a 3 day dive charter that runs out of Freeport on the Texas coast to the flower gardens which is a reef about 65 mi off shore. I am trying to book a trip with them sometime in the spring. It is fairly cheap at $650 considering that includes nitrox,food and double cabin and if you do the night dives, you can log 11 to 12 dives.
 With only two of the four of us diving I have to plan my dive trips with the family in mind which means going to a place that has a nice beach and better accommodations.
Title: Re: Any divers here at CC?
Post by: MarshallLaw on January 29, 2009, 02:33:12 PM
Muff? :-)



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C'mon people, you're slacking.