AquaSafari

[Gamehunter]

I am glad everything has been worked out. I am staying at the Palace in March and was looking at using Aqua Safari for my diving with my daughter. I had emailed Bill in regards to my concerns and decided to take a back seat to see how it all played out. I can say that I am waiting to here back from Bill or Donna to book my trip if possible for my scheduling.

 

[tlmainer]

I agree with your comment also.
But had the Op gone to owner first, the thread would have not have named "A.S. is irresponsible."
He certainly could have posted his story under a different title and it would have been a completely different thread. It might have gone something like...I had and experience with a dive boat driving unsafe (tell his story), I was very pissed off, went to the owner and he stepped up and fixed the problem.
What should also be mentioned here is that if Op (and anybody else) continues to dive that area they should keep an eye out for that boat/captain to make sure that he gets his head screwed on straight. If not, he should have his boat and or captaining license taken away from him!

 

[Fatboy rider]

Thank you all for an interesting lunch break. It' amazing the soap operas one can find on the Internet!
4 weeks to Cozumel
Now back to seeing Patients

 

[tlmainer]

Gamehunter:
I dove w/Aqua Safari in Jan 2007, 5 dives in 3 days and had nothing but a very positive experience with them. They were very helpful as my wife was having sinus problems that week (and she ended up not diving) and my diving schedule kept changing (due to not knowing if my wife could dive daily).

 

[ggunn]

What should also be mentioned here is that if Op (and anybody else) continues to dive that area they should keep an eye out for that boat/captain to make sure that he gets his head screwed on straight.

IMO the OP should not continue to dive that area without a local guide, as that is a violation of the Marine Park rules.

 

[ckofabq]

Thank you all for an interesting lunch break. It' amazing the soap operas one can find on the Internet!
4 weeks to Cozumel
Now back to seeing Patients

Good Heavens. You must have half a day for a lunch break.
But, yes, glad to see a reasonable outcome.
Craig-

 

[dave4868]

I guess that is one way of looking at it. The original tittle was, perhaps, harsh. I believe the OP's intent was to motivate the resolution of the incident. And that does seem to be what has occurred.

But I also understand that, as a business owner, you would rather have the opportunity to deal with problems in a more discrete manner. OTOH, as a customer, I like it when business owners are fully motivated to avoid unnecessary unpleasant and unprofitable incidences.

And the internet is so much more effective than BBB or a letter to the editor.

Yes, the internet is very effective retaliation, too.

In this case, it seems to me, jumping right to a widespread internet smear campaign was unwarranted and unfair to the dive op, since it appears they would have handled this incident perfectly had they been given a chance. They didn't need to be "motivated" to address the issue responsibly.

In describing the eventual face-to-face meeting, the OP has made an effort to rectify the impression people will have of this incident and of the reputation of the dive op. I respect him for that. He's even suggested that his posting of the issue on multiple forums may not have been "ideal".

That's helpful to hear, but won't do much to reverse the damage that has been done unfairly to this dive op. Just Google the dive op's name and, within page or two, the very damaging posting titles on other forums begin to appear. Will those titles be changed as here on ScubaBoard?

This appears to have been an isolated incident of human error compounded by defensiveness on the part of the boat driver when confronted, followed by retaliation by the aggrieved party who smeared the dive op in several forums on the internet. That smear clearly was not intended as a constructive pressure tactic.

Unfortunately, that smear will now have a long life of its own on the internet and will continue to be unfair to the dive op.

"You can't un-ring a bell", especially on the internet.

Dave C

 

[DandyDon]

That's helpful to hear, but won't do much to reverse the damage that has been done unfairly to this dive op. Just Google the dive op's name and, within page or two, the very damaging posting titles on other forums begin to appear. Will those titles be changed as here on ScubaBoard?

How about a poll? Are you more or less likely to dive with Aqua Safari in the future? I'd vote more.

 

[Aqua Safari]

I had breakfast with Jonathan Knight and his friend Morgan this morning,
along with Ernesto Witzil the Captain of the Ocean 2, and Ricardo Gutierrez;
the instructor on the swim platform with three students with whom Jonathan exchanged words.

I would like to provide you amazingly avid readers a full report; I have followed it as I would do an accident report, and though urged by several people in the last few days to rapidly respond to the board, I'd rather get it right than get it in quickly.

For now, let me say I wish Jonathan and Morgan were my customers, and that more if not all my customers were like them. The are young, fit, eloquent, centered and polite; ideal humans for scuba diving.

Captain Ernesto Witzil, better known as Chivo, has an appointment to get his eyes checked on Wed - late afternoon, with Dr. Conchita Planas. He is now 40 years old, and what better time or motivation to get his sight checked? For now let me just say Chivo has been with Aqua Safari for 28 years, 18 of those years in command of one of our boats, if the wind kicks up, he's an experienced Captain that any operator would envy having, and when I showed him this forum on the internet, he was shocked. It was a shocking intro - his first time on the internet.

I humbly hope you will all stay tuned for just a bit longer.
Sinceramente,
Bill Horn

 

[Mawg]

[QUOTE

I humbly hope you will all stay tuned for just a bit longer.
Sinceramente,
Bill Horn[/QUOTE]

Bill,

Let me first say that I am very impressed with the way you have handled this unfortunate occurence. I've seen things happen in the last 15 years that no one intended. I've been diving in Cozumel since 1993. Dove with you guys once in 1994. We did 11 dives in 4 days and had a very good time as I recall. We'll be there in June and I plan on giving you a call.


Patrick