Scuba Diving

Shipoke

Shipoke

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shipoke
went diving with nav8tor and his son last weekend. We were wondering how many pilots are also Scuba Divers
Dave G
 
I mentioned to my wife about getting scuba certified before our honeymoon to Hawaii last December, but she is claustrophobic and doesn't handle deep water very well. So we decided not to do it.

She even got a little spooked when we were snorkeling off of Big Beach in Maui b/c the water visibility wasn't very good. Oh well... maybe some day...

-Chris
 
I got my certification when I was 16, but I've never actually used it.
 
FlyNE said:
I got my certification when I was 16, but I've never actually used it.
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The wife and I are both divers, last time I was in the water though was
6 or 7 years ago in the Cayman's.
Don
 
I've been open water free diving since about 5, strapped on my first tanks at 8, certified at 14, Master Open Ocean at 18. Haven't dove in 2 years. I use to snear at those who just went out to blow bubbles but right now sitting on the sandy bottom in blue, warm, clear sounds great to me.
 
Took Scuba I and II during college for PE courses. Got certified there PADI for Basic and Advanced. I mainly did it to play with the girls in class, which worked out really well. Turns out I like scuba diving too. I just kept telling myself during class, "Things look larger in scuba masks underwater." :)

Brent
 
SSI Advanced Open Water. Also a blue-carded diver for the National Park Service, was on the dive rescue team at Yellowstone and Lake Powell. No longer current with either, started experiencing some sinus-related health problems on dives that fortunately have not replicated themselves in my flying.
 
Got NAUI certified in Florida about five years ago and do a dive trip about once a year.
Jon
 
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Both certified about 20 years ago. Don't dive often. We live 15 minutes from word class sites in the Bahamas. We have gear and a boat. Going to be living there full time soon so maybe we'll get back into it.
 
Also PADI certified. My wife would like to get her cert as well, but gets seasick too easily.

Remember not to fly right after a dive or 2.

Phil
N5722Q
 
I'm PADI certified and usually dive about every other year on vacation.
 
I'm not certed but we really enjoyed our first dive experience last year. :)
 
P.A.D.I. certified in 1976. Haven't been diving in a while though. Need to get my tanks hydrostated.
 
Greebo said:
I'm not certed but we really enjoyed our first dive experience last year. :)
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Was any water involved? :rolleyes:



:D
 
I was certified in 1973 - YMCA believe it or not! My first job as a teenager was doing scuba shows in a large tank of loggerhead turtles for touists. I still skin dive once in a while, but after diving reefs, it is hard to get excited about fresh water diving enough to keep current.
 
Got my NAUI advanced open water certification in May. Haven't had a chance to use it yet, though! Might fly down to the Bahamas this November and, if so, I hope to do a dive.

Leslie just doesn't feel comfortable diving, so didn't join me on this adventure. Then again, she took up golf, and I've not taken that up.
 
I don't see SCUBA in the aerobatics guide. What sort of maneuver is it?
 
N2212R said:
I don't see SCUBA in the aerobatics guide. What sort of maneuver is it?
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It's one where, after it's over, you feel all wet, but the pressure is off. It's also performed at close to 0 G throughout if you're properly bouyant!
 
YMCA also back in mid 70s. Took a military dive deal with no certification.

There was some new group coming out then called PADI or somethin! Seems the Y card doesn't mean much now. On and off over the years I 've occassionally done a dive; mostly snorkel now. In Hawaii this year, rentin the stuff to dive would have been over $500 each--kinda nutso. We brought our own mask and snorkel.

Hauling all the stuff to dive wouldn't have worked on the commercial flight. Even renting just tanks and getting out on a rental boat is pretty pricey; so, we just snorkel. In Cozumel last year we were gonna dive when some hurricane named Francis ruined it!!

Best,

Dave
 
Anthony said:
Was any water involved? :rolleyes:



:D
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As a matter of fact, yes :)

We were on a cruise in the Carribean and went on two beginner dives. We only went down to a max depth of maybe 20' but it was incredible!
 
Well for those interested , I have Open Water, Advanced Open Water, Nitrox, (all Padi) and Drysuit (SSI) certs. I dive mostly Quarries,but have done one Ocean dive in Delaware on the wreack of the Manhatten (90 ft.).Planning on going to Florida this winter and swimming with the Mannatees at Crystal River.Also hoping to get more ocean dives in,Maybe in NJ,NC,or elsewhere
Dave G.
 
Greebo said:
As a matter of fact, yes :)

We were on a cruise in the Carribean and went on two beginner dives. We only went down to a max depth of maybe 20' but it was incredible!
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Well chuck i know lots of people that got thier start that way, those dives will count if you logged them towards your Cert with PADI. GO FOR IT and join us .
Dave G
 
N2212R said:
I don't see SCUBA in the aerobatics guide. What sort of maneuver is it?
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Page 702, article 257.84 subsection 3c, to wit:

Warning....as with all maneuvers the starting altitude is above 3000 ft AGL. Do not attempt during Thunderstorms, or Hail

Begin by checking air regulator, then don the Anti Temperature Loss (ATL) suit. Since you will be experiencing negative "G's", be sure to add a few pounds of lead weights, to stabilize. All your thrust, will come from the control surfaces at your feet. ( the Flippers, so named, after a certain cetacean, who could fly thru the air for short distances....UNAIDED!)

Add another 80 pounds of optional brackets, belts and a tank (where you'll store enough residual air for the maneuver)
Don't forget to file a dive plan, and do a weight and balance check.
You wouldn't want to stall, tip over and NOT get back up... It does happen to first timers...sadly...!

Check your compass. reset your flight timer to zero, and be sure that one push of the button will start it. You wouldn't want to forget timing here, like you did on the IFR checkride.....

Your density altitude meter, will erroneously record positive pressures. Worry not.... some quick button pushing on the electronic EB-6, will give you the corrections, if the batteries stay dry.
If not, there is a hand held, manually operated computer available, that will suffice, in a pinch.

Usually this is a sterile cockpit maneuver, but, advances in technology have now made communication with your safety pilot possible. However it is expensive, as is all things in this past time. You could use writing impliments, but then cockpit resources, become overttaxed, and confusion will grow..quickly


Above all never try this alone! Always have a safety pilot with you.
We call it the "Buddy" system.

To begin, find proper altitude, enter slow float, (sort of like ground effect), while you build the intestinal fortitude to take that first big step. Take a deep breath, to avoid loss of conciousness, But remember to breathe normally. Adjust your Foggles. ( not the same ones you use for IFR)
This set will have to be cleared occasionally using some of the surplus air in the tank you carry on your back, after it has been cycled once.
Remember recycling saves!

To begin the maneuver:
Lower your nose and add thrust. Control your dive attitude with minute corrections of your flexible fuselage, adding aileron, with the Phalanges controller, is also slightly helpful. Be sure to make clearing turns before maneuvering. You wouldn't want to end the maneuver on a bad note.
The best part, is that you can go as fast as you want! No one, will give you grief on the ramp, and there is no ramp check

This is a fun exercise, so remember to look both ways before crossing the threshold. And watch for other maneuveree's if it is a popular practice area. It is very easy to become disoriented, or suffer from Nitrogen narcosis, in this maneuver.

The maneuver has ended when you return to starting altitude, OR, when you start feeling giddy.
Get photos of yourself as soon as possible, to see the exhillaration, and the exuberant smile, before it wears off. ......or if unconcious, photos in the emergency room's recompression tank.


Chache
PADI, and YMCA certified, winter 1975
PADI Open water certified, Spring 1976
Last dive, approx 1985.
Still have my original "Farmer John's"!
..................And, I still fit into them!
.

FYI... for non divers...... "PADI" is the acronym for Professional Association of Diving Instructors
 
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gprellwitz said:
Leslie just doesn't feel comfortable diving, so didn't join me on this adventure. Then again, she took up golf, and I've not taken that up.
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Ooh, golf, now that's adventurous. :rolleyes: I think you came out ahead on this one, Grant.

I'm not certified, never done it, but would like to someday. Certain underwater things give me the willies but I'd love to dive around Hawaii or other such places.
 
Brent Bradford said:
Took Scuba I and II during college for PE courses. Got certified there PADI for Basic and Advanced. I mainly did it to play with the girls in class, which worked out really well. Turns out I like scuba diving too. I just kept telling myself during class, "Things look larger in scuba masks underwater." :)

Brent
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Hey, I did about the the same thing. There was a pre-requisite of "Water Safety Instructor" or something like that but you could get that waived if you could swim a mile in the pool. I could swim but not well and it took me over two hours to swim that mile but I did it. The class instructor said he never saw anyone swim so poorly yet go that far. Because I actually had some scuba experience (and my own gear) I was asked to help teach the course as an assistant which was fun, but the best part was I also got asked to participate in a synchronized swimming demonstration (my part was under water with scuba) which put me in the pool with about 20 good looking girls in bikinis twice a week for one semister. Never got any of them to go out with me though.

I haven't been diving for about 20 years though, but every now and then I think about getting back into it.
 
Dave Siciliano said:
In Cozumel last year we were gonna dive when some hurricane named Francis ruined it!!
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That's a shame, because Cozumel has some of the best diving anywhere. Spectacular drop-offs, 4 kt drift, massive and multiple reefs not too far off-shore and a great variety of fish (large and small). I got my deep-water/final NAUI certification there, just had a wonderful time. Since then (8 yrs ago) I only dive once a year at most more's-the-pity, but now sometimes snorkel instead for reasons of convenience/marriage.
For those who fear the creatures in the big blue when bobbing about on top, like I sort of did - as soon as you jump off the boat the first time in all the gear, descend to about 10ft and look around, you may find them completely gone, forever. No guarantees of course, but it happened to me.
 
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I was certified in 1977 and really got into diving after that. In the early 80's I was diving nearly every weekend of the summer on the wrecks off the Jersey Coast. Then I started flying in 1984 and pretty much gave up diving at that point. I couldn't afford two expensive hobbies, and flying won out.

Until last Sunday I hadn't gone diving in nearly 20 years, but my Son was recently certified and talked me into going to a local quarry dive spot with him. I had forgotten how much fun it is. Its amazing how much the technology has changed too. Not just with regulators and dive computers either, even with something as basic and mundane as fins there have been advancements. Dave had a pair of fins that are split in the middle to simulate a whales tail. They have less resistance than standard fins, but give just as much power. I had trouble keeping up with him.
 
I'm NAUI Open Water certified. Did my checkout at Dutch Springs Quarry the day before Thanksgiving in about 1985 Brrrrrrrrr. Dave if your diving mostly quarrys and are Nitrox cert you must be able to stay down for hours.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Ooh, golf, now that's adventurous. :rolleyes: I think you came out ahead on this one, Grant.

I'm not certified, never done it, but would like to someday. Certain underwater things give me the willies but I'd love to dive around Hawaii or other such places.
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Let's see, golf, the game of Scottish origin which is an acronym for Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden or works to that effect.

My, how things have changed.

Best,

Dave
 
Dave Siciliano said:
Let's see, golf, the game of Scottish origin which is an acronym for Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden or works to that effect.
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Which is a shame IMHO because now we have ABSOLUTELY no place to go to get away from them. :rofl:
 
Not yet...but that is my promise to the wife.

So next summer we will be getting certified.....we love the ocean, I love sailing almost as much as flying, and hope to spend our time combining all of my loves.
 
My wife was a navy brat and went through the navy to get certified when she was 15. (Dad being an officer helped, I think.) I have done "resort dives" about 10 times, most recently when we chartered a sailboat in the BVI and our galley slave was also a divemaster. So then I decided to get certified, and Cath was going to take a refresher. We scheduled a trip to the Keys to do the training during lobster season, but the friends we were going with had a death in the family at the last minute, so we canceled.

I have the PADI stuff sitting right here on top of my desk. I keep saying I gotta do this, but I keep running out of time. After this thread, I gotta do this!!
 
Shipoke said:
went diving with nav8tor and his son last weekend. We were wondering how many pilots are also Scuba Divers
Dave G
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I'm a diver and an scuba instructor, typical progression with my hobbies. I've been hesitant to go the CFI way with aviation. I've experience much burn-out with scuba.
 
AdamZ said:
I'm NAUI Open Water certified. Did my checkout at Dutch Springs Quarry the day before Thanksgiving in about 1985 Brrrrrrrrr. Dave if your diving mostly quarrys and are Nitrox cert you must be able to stay down for hours.
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Staying down for hours is Tech Diving. Recreational divers, even with Nitrox, can't stay down for hours. :)
 
AdamZ said:
I'm NAUI Open Water certified. Did my checkout at Dutch Springs Quarry the day before Thanksgiving in about 1985 Brrrrrrrrr. Dave if your diving mostly quarrys and are Nitrox cert you must be able to stay down for hours.
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Adam, you should come along the next time Dave and I go to the quarry. If you havent' been to Dutch Springs in a while you'll be amazed at how clear the water is. There's been an overgrowth of zebra muscles which filter the water. The result is visiblities upwards of 30 feet. The clearer water also means warmer water temps. It's like a different quarry than the one you dove in back in 1985.
 
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I have been a diver since 1982. I am a PADI Master Instructor, Emergancy First Response Instructor, cave certified, and can teach many (almost all) of the speciality courses. Just finished doing three days of diving down in the Florida keys.
 
Kelly said:
I was certified in 1973 - YMCA believe it or not!
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YMCA and PADI 1972
Haven't been in a long time though.
My best friend in class and I are still close, and he still dives for a living, and has owned dive charter boats and a dive shop in Panama City, FL. (He's a PPASEL too)
We foolishly cut our teerh on cave diving in the North Florida springs as teenagers. No wonder Mom has grey hairs. I can't imagine how much I'd worry if MY kids did what I did.:hairraise:
 
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