Becoming an Instructor around Tampa

[Knockout Diver]

Hello Tom,

Good Luck on your Move to the Tampa Area, where you will find some awesome dives and divers. In regards to diving off Tampa (gulf in general), the major issue is you have to go way out to get over the shelf. I have taken 2-3 hour boats rides just to get to the site. North of Tampa you will find Cave, Caverns, Springs and Grotto Heaven. The wide experience you will get is awesome. Get to know the right folks and you can hike through the Swamps to Grotto Gems like Bufford or Eagles Nest.

If time is not an issue, and you wish to commit to a shop for 3-5 years, they will cover your training for free and some will cover NAUI/PADI/ETC fees as well. Find a shop, start diving and spending time with them. I have had 2 shops offer me this option over the last 3 years. I choose a different route as I needed to be independent for tax reasons.

Once you are in a shop, you can accumulate extra gear FAST. A family of 6 certified at a shop I was diving at about 4 years ago, bought everything for the family. They went on a trip to the Caribbean's, wife almost died, made the husband sell all the gear. My buddy picked it all up for 1/4 of the price.

Thank you for your reply! Great tips. Good idea about the gear except for the scary event! Any shops you recommend? I might need to work something out for tax purposes too .

 

[Knockout Diver]

Well it sounds like you at least know a little about what you are trying to get yourself into!

Re Depth Perception, lack of ability to tell the truth was the major issue. Which resulted in me buying a rebreather from them and it never even being ordered, despite multiple claims of it having been shipped, then damaged in delivery, then shipped back to get fixed, etc, etc. Good thing I payed with a credit card! I know someone else that paid in cash, last I heard they were looking into a lawsuit after literally getting a box of used parts as their rebreather.

-Chris

Oh that's very tricky! Dishonesty is just not right. I'll steer clear of them. I think it's important to point out bad experiences with shops so that others will learn and not get screwed. Hopefully this will weed out most of the bad ones and leave the good ones. I rather have NO SHOP than an dishonest shop.

 

[MikadoWu]

Thank you for your reply! Great tips. Good idea about the gear except for the scary event! Any shops you recommend? I might need to work something out for tax purposes too .

I am located in between Tampa and Orlando, so the shops I use, would be a good 90-120 minute drive for you. There are a lot of older divers that are flat brilliant in the area, though they can seem salty. Being from the west coast, it just took me some time to understand the Florida mentality. If you are interested in Cave Diving, you will find some good friends. If you never done them, Devil's Den and Blue Grotto can be done on the same day. Both open water. Paradise Springs is in a guys backyard (literally) and is an Awesome cavern dive. If you want an Intense experience, try Hudson Grotto. My son came out of Hudson, white as a ghost.

Just bounce in a lot of shops till you find one you like, sit in on their classes to see how they do things, befriend them. There may be a number of volunteer hours, but if patience is worth it.

 

[Knockout Diver]

I am located in between Tampa and Orlando, so the shops I use, would be a good 90-120 minute drive for you. There are a lot of older divers that are flat brilliant in the area, though they can seem salty. Being from the west coast, it just took me some time to understand the Florida mentality. If you are interested in Cave Diving, you will find some good friends. If you never done them, Devil's Den and Blue Grotto can be done on the same day. Both open water. Paradise Springs is in a guys backyard (literally) and is an Awesome cavern dive. If you want an Intense experience, try Hudson Grotto. My son came out of Hudson, white as a ghost.

Just bounce in a lot of shops till you find one you like, sit in on their classes to see how they do things, befriend them. There may be a number of volunteer hours, but if patience is worth it.

Haha. I've lived all over the country and I have a west coast mentality too. I will probably be living in Brandon. I'm not sure I'm ready for cave diving. We'll see. I guess if properly trained but there's just something about it that doesn't appeal to me. Anyhow, thank you for your reply, I'll look into all these places!