Shop offers scuba kit and skillsShropshire StarBritain's newest dive centre and the only one in Shrewsbury has opened to give scuba fanatics the opportunity to brush up on their skills and pick up the ...and more » […]
Scuba Diving Releases Stress: SulaimanBernamaKUALA LUMPUR, July 3 (Bernama) -- Scuba diving could be the best therapy to overcome depression which is on the rise in the country, said Deputy Minister of ...and more » […]
Who needs scuba gear when glasses will do?Globe and Mail... fragile places so we won't wreck them. After 40 minutes behind 3-D glasses watching rare aquatic creatures, why bother with airline tickets and scuba gear?and more » […]
KATURescuers find man's body in Lewis RiverThe ColumbianPolice, firefighters, boats, rescue swimmers and scuba divers late Thursday found the body of a 28-year-old man who was last seen swimming in the East Fork ...Man drowns in east fork of the Lewis RiverKATUall 2 news articles » […]
Cheerleader of the Week: Georgia's MandyCNNMy friends would be surprised to know that I: I have been a certified scuba diver since I was 14 years old, and have dove in the Pacific, Atlantic, ...and more » […]
Divers swim in mysterious San Diego currentSan Jose Mercury NewsAP SAN DIEGO—Lifeguards and experts are puzzled by an unusual deep-water current that slammed into a group of scuba divers off the La Jolla shores in San ...Powerful current takes divers by surpriseSan Diego Union TribuneLa Jolla diver recounts 'underwater tornado'Del Mar TimesMysterio […]
Zeagle Systems of Zephyrhills, Florida, mostly know for their fine line of very customizable BCDs recently acquired Pinnacle Aquatics of Livermore, CA, known for their line of very well constructed wet and drysuits (many with Merino wool linings). Current dealers for either will now have an easier path to carrying the other brand.
Harry Truitt, owner of Lighhouse Diving in Seattle said he has not noticed any changes yet. He also said that he does not have much room for more product lines, but he is hopeful that the acquisition will allow him to better server his customers.
Dennis Bulin, president and founder of Zeagle Systems said that one of the great benefits to both Zeagle and Pinnacle customers will be faster shipping from their now bi-coastal facilities. They also hope to infuse Pinnacle Aquatics with the Zeagle customer service model.
Couple #2
TheUnderwaterChannel.tv with its “all scuba all the time” library of online video is partnering PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) to bring inspiring and informative videos to a wider audience. More at http://www.padi.com/scuba/video
Due to the military coup on Sunday, June 28, 2009, the US State department issued the following warning. “The Department of State alerts U.S. citizens to the current unstable political and security situation in Honduras, and recommends that American citizens defer all non-essential travel to Honduras until further notice. This Travel Alert expires on July 29, 2009.”
They do also point out that while the resort and outlaying areas are calm, scuba divers traveling to Roatan Island typically enter and leave the country through the big city airports, leaving them susceptible to potential violence. See the report here http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/pa/pa_honduras.html
For not much more than an air fill you can virtually dive the waters of Palau and Australia. The Scuba Gadget team saw Under the Sea 3D IMAX film this weekend at Seattle’s Pacific Science Center. We give it 2 thumbs up for divers and everyone else.
The experience is as close to diving these magnificent sites as it gets with out a getting wet and spending a small fortune. It feels real enough you may want to bring your log book. I found myself getting so engaged that it was physical shock when a scene change struck without warning. Additionally the 3-d was excellent, causing both children and adults to reach out to try to touch the sea creatures “floating by.”
While there were a few worthwhile tidbits in Jim Carey’s narration, as well as a few of the usual “we are harming the sea with our excesses” statements, I could have easily done without the narration. I would have been just as happy with a soft musical background or a bubbles track. But do not let anything discouraging you from having this experience. The up close perfect experience with the critters are what makes this film a must dive.
Most people who see this film will not understand the Sisaphean accomplishment of the filmakers, Howard and Michele Hall. The IMAX 3D camera weighs 1200 pounds and holds only 3 minutes of film. The process of shooting is unimaginably impractical even if you just think through the steps. You prepare the camera, crane its 1200 lb mass into the water, set it up in the right place to catch a mating squid, shoot for just three minutes, take it back to the surface, hoist it onto the boat, change the film, then do it all over again and again. If you find the this fine 3-d acccomplishment is in your area – see it. It’s well worth the time and money.
Here is a video snippet of the process and the film.
The folks at DUI claim their new “Limited Edition” overlay designs will get DUI known as the “Armani” and “Versace” of drysuits. What do you think? Will Versace roll over in his grave before Armani shoots himself?
APS Mantary Fins just annouced a “stimulus package” price drop of there fins to $99 retail. This new price is even below current online prices including Leisure Pro. We use and like these fins. They are small, light and still powerful. You can see our full review at http://blog.wetcatscuba.com/?p=106
With most drysuit undergarments that keep you really warm in cold waters you can expect a suit that has lot of bulk or fluff. If you want thin flexible, it usually means you not going to as warm in the low water temps. With the Fourth Element Arctic you get both warm and thin, and for a bonus you get flexible and not bad looking. Before we tested the Arctic on a dive, we were surprised we don’t see more of these undergarments on divers in our area (the Pacific Northwest).
The technology
The full Arctic set consists of a two-piece garment and warm socks. The pieces can be purchased separately. They are constructed using a unique combination of low volume, high insulation materials including high density fleece. The Arctic’s two layer structure is designed to hold air next to the skin and wick away moisture from suit leaks or perspiration. The outer layer is high stretch, abrasion resistant material, which will not interfere with the operation of auto dump valves (a problem we have heard from many Weezle undergarment owners). Fourth Element makes the bold claim that even when a “drysuit has flooded; the Arctic continues to provide thermal protection”. This may sound hard to believe, but the Arctic owners’ we interviewed as well as those commenting in web forums say it is a fact.
Recently, while awaiting the arrival of our demo sets, we were on a dive on the Hood Canal (Sund Rock). It was an unseasonably cold day in early spring and the water was particularly cold because of the mountain run-off. During our prep, we noticed a pack of Weezle divers on surface interval. Mixed among the males of the pack was one petite woman. Unlike all of the others who were wearing identical puffy Weezle undergarments, she was wearing a set of the the Fourth Element Arctic top and bottoms. John was intrigued and approached her for a quick interview. He asked why she was the only one wearing Fourth Element. She explained that she previously owned a Weezle like the others, but was always too cold. With the Fourth Element suit she was always warm. Then, to his amazement Continue reading Fourth Element Arctic Undergarment a rare mix of warm and thin.
The West Coast’s big SCUBA show is May 30-31. California Diving News, the promoters of the show are not humble about it either. In true P.T. Barnum style they actually trade marked the name, ”THE Diving Event of the Year!™, SCUBA Show 2009“. It does have the stats to prove it. The size of the exhibit hall is 76,000 square feet which makes this the largest consumer dive expo in America.
Show events include, an ongoing film festival on a 3-story tall mega screen, over 200 exhibitors, 33 seminars with top dive experts, a casino party to benefit the non-profit California Ships To Reefs, and the marine artist Wyland doing a live painting during the show.
The Events exhibits are open from 10:00am to 6:00pm on Saturday, May 30 and 10:00am to 5:00pm on Sunday.
We at ScubaGadget invite all attendees to send us tweets and full reports from the show for us to publish. Send to: john@jmckenzie.com.
The most common line heard used to describe of the form fitting Whites Fusion drysuit is that it looks somewhat like a Star Trek uniform. Now it is official! The new “Roddenberry Dive Team,” founded by Rod Roddenberry, son of Gene Roddenberry and the creator of Star Trek has the adopted the enhanced Whites Fusion drysuits for the team.
The official launch of the team will be in conjuction with the 2009 Long Beach Scuba Show on Saturday, May 30th. Both Rod Roddenberry & Greg Martin will present an in-depth presentation, they will discussing the origins and philosophies behind the RDT as well as explaining the numerous facets to the organization and benefits of membership. The “Roddenberry Dive Team” will be stationed at booth #355 for both days of the show.
Last week DUI (Diving Unlimited International) week announced that they are coming out with a new “ActionWear™ Professional” drysuit undergarment which is a true “multi-use” garment. The two-piece (pullover and pants) is made from heavy stretch fleece with a pill resistant and water shedding outer jersey and a velour lining. The basic black outfit with accent stitching and embroidered logos give it a look that DUI claims will make it, “the hottest thing on land, too.” For their sake, we hope its performance rises well above that cliché line. The design is certainly a step up from the pajama style look of many undergarments. We have friends whom we hardly know when we see them in street clothes but would easily recognize them at a slumber party.
Our immediate impression was that the ActionWear suit both looks and sounds like a lot like the Fourth Element Xerotherm Arctic undergarment set which is popular in the EU (and which we are currently testing for an upcoming review article). DUI CEO, Susan Long did agree that the style was comparable to the Fourth Element product. There is not much more we can say for sure about this new undergarment as it will still be a month or so before the ActionWear production units arrive at DUI. Susan said they are offering dealers incentive to get it into stores quickly.
If in fact the ActionWear undergarment is close in design to the Fourth Element Arctic, this is a good one to flatter with imitation. Fourth Element is also not yet well known in the US. The design offers much greater benefit than just being stylish or multi-use. A more important advantage is that it should be both flexible and warm without a lot of bulk. The outer layer should also make it easier to slide into your drysuit than with exposed fleece undergarments. We also applaud DUI for the break from their traditionally high pricing as this suit is expected to be in the very competitive range of $300.
We will bug DUI for a demo as soon as they arrive and let you know if the “New ActionWear™ Professional DiveWear Insulation by DUI” is the next great and must have undergarment.
Deep Sea Charters (that would be the Emerald Sea) is a dive charter which departs out of Cap Sante Boat Haven, in Anacortes, WA. When we saw the Deep Sea Charters booth at the Tacoma Dive Show they promised that customers would be “spoiled rotten” with hot lunch and great care. Who doesn’t like to be spoiled? We scheduled our next weekend to try it out.
We personally prefer smaller “6 pack” boats and do not like crowds. So when we were informed that there would be 14 divers plus crew on this boat we got a little nervous. Owner Mark King gave us an option of switching to the next day with only 8 others booked. However, we decided to give it a try to see how the crew and the boat handled the larger group.
We recently learned that the owner’s of God’s Pocket Resort have made some upgrades which include two new cabins and heated floors. For more details on the upgrades take another look at the article “Booking the Best Diving at any Temperature – Browning Pass’ Quirky Dive Vendors“ and see the UPDATED section on God’s Pocket. If you been diving with any of the these vendors please send us your comments.
SSI (Scuba Schools International) is the first of the major SCUBA certification agencies to offer “FREE online training”. Now don’t get too excited. While it is truly free training. This is not great online training and you still have to pay the same to get a certified; but it is a significant and innovative approach to bring new divers into SCUBA.
Susan Fletcher of SSI marketing told ScubaGadget that the move to add the free training offering was made as way to dispel the “intimidation factor” that they found prevents people interested in SCUBA from actually coming into a dive shop and signing up for a course. An un-referenced survey from the SSI press realease is quoted saying that 24% of Americans would like to try diving. Susan said they found many prospects were just “passing by the dive shop” because of misconceptions about diving or just because they did not know what questions to ask about dive training or the equipment. The free online training, while it Continue reading FREE online dive training from SSI reduces the intimidation factor for potential divers.
When we were at the Tacoma Dive Show, I became intrigued when I saw the Icaro Tech and Icaro Dive Wing by an Italian dive gear company, founded in 1971, called SEAC. The Icaro line, entirely made in Italy as is all the SEAC gear, is coming to the U.S., to be sold exclusively in dive shops, not online in any way shape or form.
We dive DiveRite Rec Wings and love the freedom and flexibility that a dive wing affords. I dive an 80′ short steel tank, though, and when the wing was set up initially, the top strap barely reached the top of the tank – and that with persistent tugging and prodding to get it down far enough. When I took a look at the Icaro, I noticed that the back plate was much shorter than my dive wing steel plate. Also, the plate looks much lighter. I was informed that it is made of a lightweight naval-aviation alloy. There are also little pads at the top and bottom of the plate to give a little comfort to the back. We dropped the wing over a steel 80 tank and it settled just right, with plenty of room to secure the straps.
Minimalist in design, the Icaro and Icaro Tech have plenty of D-rings and material loops, plus, pouches and pockets are available for purchase. There are 4 dump valves on the Tech wing, making it easy to dump air from any position. The Icaro Tech has a lift capacity of 55lb, while the Icaro Rec wing lifts about 35lb.
Super light at just under 6 lbs, this dive wing makes for easy traveling. With a variety of accessories available, this dive wing could be a practical and comfortable option. Available on May 15 through Blue Steel, dealers are being sought. Contact Bud at Blue Steel LLC if interested in finding out more about the “Italian Alternative.”
Whenever I talk with a dive shop or dive charter owner about their business it is rare not to hear the following two sad clichés. Both allude to why they are not getting rich in the SCUBA biz. One is the simple phrase, “It is a labor of love;” which could be translated as, “I am not making money doing this.” The second is the rhetorical joke, “How do you make a million dollars in the SCUBA business? You start with four million.” There is a rope of negativity that is pervasive throughout the scuba industry that ties together pessimistic business owners and gives them communion with their floundering colleagues. It is like they are sporting a badge of honor to show that they are all still in the poor dive shop owners club for which their only comfort is realizing that everyone else is also struggling. It calls to mind the phrase from the old Pogo comics, “We have met the enemy and it is us!”
“The SCUBA business if tough,” is another mantra muttered from the collective unconscious of dive shop owners. But pay attention. What business is easy? If you can think of one business that is easy to own and manage, then you have never talked with anyone in that business.
Sure, even during the boom economy, there were a lot of proprietors struggling and some that never should have gotten into the SCUBA business. But now it is again as Thomas Pain said of previous times, “These are the times that try men’s souls.” And, SCUBA shop men (and women) are all undergoing a forced stress test. During a recent phone campaign to invite SCUBA retailers to a DEMA (Diving Equipment & Marketing Association ) meeting to help them learn how succeed in the SCUBA business, callers found that many numbers were already disconnected. Paradoxically however, they did reach many dive business and very few attended this valuable seminar.
The second year of the Northwest Dive and Travel Expowas twice as big than its premier last year. The over 3500 attendees had a smorgasbord of 246 exhibitors. As he did last year, Rick Stratton of Northwest Dive News (NWDN) succeeded in booking a purposeful and pleasant balance of dive equipment manufacturers, local dive shops and dive clubs. The attendance on Saturday alone was more than they entire show last year. The show also included a film festival, the Deep Ambitions program and three days of seminars. The Deep Ambitions program provides middle and high school students (12-18) an opportunity for students to learn about and experience scuba diving and aquatic-related careers.
Your dive boat may not have nitrox (EAN) but the airplane you flew in on, likely does (or soon will).
The terrible explosion of TWA Flight 800 off of Long Island on July 17, 1996 caused investigators to realized that they needed a way to make the air/fuel mixture in fuel tanks inert to prevent similar explosions. The answer was a system strikingly similar to the nitrox membrane system dive shops and boats use to fill SCUBA tanks. This system is now in use on large jets and being implemented on all commercial US airliners. Both the scuba and airliner systems use a membrane that allows nitrogen molecules to pass through but holds the oxygen molecules back. This creates a reservoir of oxygen enriched air on one side and nitrogen on the other side. The difference between the scuba and the jet membrane systems is that the jet system draws gas from the nitrogen side of the system and pumps the inert nitrogen into the fuel tanks to minimize the chance of explosion. Now all that good Enriched Air Nitrox (EAN) on the other side is just wasted when it could be used to fill SCUBA tanks.
You cannot oversell the diving in Browning Pass (BC, Canada). Divers who have been there, including Women’s Diving Hall of Famer Jill Heinerth, call this area the best diving in the world at any temperature. It has been regularly listed in Scuba Diving magazine as the best diving in North America. But these divers are saying it is even better than all of those superb tropical dive sites everyone is longing to dive. We listened to what they were saying. We heard the descriptions of life covering every inch of the walls and the brilliant colors. We trusted these people and we were excited to see it. To our amazement, and even with all that hype, it was much better than we imagined. Our dive buddy Katie Morgan says it simply, “my God, the beauty is humbling.” Browning Pass must be on your list of places dive before you die.
On top of all of that underwater spectacle, the surface beauty is equally humbling. Your accommodations are in the serene and remote wilderness of glacial cut Queen Charlotte Straits, which are lined with peaceful forests and packed with eagles and bears.
Because there are already dozens of articles out there that can make you salivate just thinking about diving this magnificent area, we have no doubt you will enjoy the diving. But even if you use a re-breather, you still have to spend a significant amount of time on the surface. We want to take a different approach with this article Continue reading Booking the Best Diving at any Temperature – Browning Pass’ Quirky Dive Vendors
The Contenders – a pairing of “uniquely similar” drysuits.
In this corner we have the little disputed and long reigning champion of its class, the custom fit DUI CF200 drysuit. In the far corner we have a new comer aching to challenge the status quo in drysuit diving, the Whites Fusion.
The folks at both Whites and DUI were not immediately sure why we were comparing these two suits. When DUI president Susan Long first heard the idea of a comparison article she replied, “They are so different that other than the fact that they both have seals at the neck and wrist, and a waterproof zipper, there really isn’t much that is the same.” I too considered if this was a good and fair pairing, but when you look at the overall drysuit market these two suits are “uniquely similar.” Both suits are targeted at and purchased by customers that want a form fitting, low drag, durable, drysuit with flexibility and little or no buoyancy characteristics.
If the evolution of desktop computers were as slow as dive computers you would be reading this on a DOS computer and seeing nothing more than green type on the screen. Almost all dive computers displays today are ancient technology; monochrome LCD screens with a contrast ratio so low that it is not worth mentioning. On a bad viz day you need to use a flash light to read the screen. And all the while you can get cheap MP3 players and phones with extreme definition and color.
That is about to change. Two companies (Uemis and Liquivision) are selling dive computers with OLED ultra-bright displays with giant fonts that are easily readable in complete darkness.
With most drysuit undergarments that keep you really warm in cold waters you can expect a suit that has lot of bulk or fluff. If you want thin flexible, it usually means you not going to as warm in the low water temps. With the 
The West Coast’s big SCUBA show is May 30-31. 
The most common line heard used to describe of the form fitting 
When we were at the Tacoma Dive Show, I became intrigued when I saw the Icaro Tech and Icaro Dive Wing by an Italian dive gear company, 
What do our stories teach us?
The second year of the 
Your dive boat may not have nitrox (EAN) but the airplane you flew in on, likely does (or soon will).
If the evolution of desktop computers were as slow as dive computers you would be reading this on a DOS computer and seeing nothing more than green type on the screen. Almost all dive computers displays today are ancient technology; monochrome LCD screens with a contrast ratio so low that it is not worth mentioning. On a bad viz day you need to use a flash light to read the screen. And all the while you can get cheap MP3 players and phones with extreme definition and color.