I guess they don't call them Jet Fins for nothing!PerroneFord:
I've spent my share of time swimming around underwater without my contact lens and I've never been able to swim fast enough to feel it.
Christian
Chasing Dragons with Plastic Swords
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I've spent my share of time swimming around underwater without my contact lens and I've never been able to swim fast enough to feel it.
Christian
OP
PerroneFord
Contributor
[hijack]
Meng, what part of FL are you in, and what are your diving plans for the next 4-6 weeks? Just wondering if I might run into you sometime.
[/hijack]
Meng, what part of FL are you in, and what are your diving plans for the next 4-6 weeks? Just wondering if I might run into you sometime.
[/hijack]
I am in the Lake Mary/Orlando area. Dont know my dive plans for the next few weeks yet. If the weather is good and vis is good in the ocean (east coast), I normally do research dives with the Uni here..... if vis is bad (so we can not film), I go north to the caves.... so it all depends...
OP
PerroneFord
Contributor
I attended the Conch Divers event at Ginnie Springs, FL. My new buddy and I had tried to make it to Troy springs which is some 30 minutes northeast of Ginnie, in time to get in a quiet dive before finishing the trek. Shortly after getting our wetsuits on, the range came out and informed us there was no diving atter 5pm. It was around 10 after. My elusive first dive back in Open Water would have to wait.
We went to Cave Excursions, I picked up a replacement SPG for my broken one, and headed down to Ginnie. Met all the gang, ate some dinner, told some tales. Several went on night dives. I waited my time.
This morning, with SB members Vayu and SuprBugMan, I renewed my relationship with the water. Eleven years of waiting came to an abrupt halt. I made mistakes, my trim was ok for short periods, buyoancy was ok for a while in the shallows. We decided to play in the ballroom, which is an O/W safe cavern. Well, we entered the ballrom about 10-12 minutes into the dive. You have to swim down to get into it. As I descended into the cavern, I was becoming a bit too negative. I tried to put a puff of air onto the wing... No go. I had forgotten to connect the inflator! DOH! I filled my lungs as best I could to arrest my descent, but it was only slowing down the inevitable. Bugman came to the rescue and hooked me back up. The bad part was that I missed an easy part of my gear setup, no doubt being in a hurry and a bit nervous. The good news was that it took me over 10 minutes to figure it out! Meaning that I was controlling my buoyancy easily with just my lungs for 12 minutes!
After this snafu, we swum out to the Santa Fe river. My two buddies descended into the tannic water, I tried to follow. Unfortunately at about 25ft, I couldn't get my ears cleared and needed to stop. My buddy was just out of reach for me to contact. I was in the middle of tannic water with no frame of direction for up, down or sideways. My ear was SCREAMING at me. I took a gulp of air, and started to rise slowly out of the murk, saw the surface, and inflated my wing. My buddies realized within a few seconds I wasn't there, turned and came to look for me. Good job guys. Vayu was concerned because they had "lost me". In truth, there was little he could have done differently unless he was holding my hand in that murk. My backup light did not penetrate it at all. Another reason for planning on that HID can light. The rest of the dive was uneventful. Just swimming in the shallow basin, essentially doing a swimming deco stop. And we excited.
Durin the Surface interval, Bugman and I took the 15 minute ride into High Springs to shop for food, and visit the Mecca. Extreme Exposure is a VERY nicely done store. Everything you'd expect. Nothing you wouldn't. Drysuits new and used, SP gear, Apeks, Suunto, and of course everything Halcyon. I was surprised not to see any scooters. I picked up a few items, and jawed a it with the guy at the counter.
My second dive of the day was different. Vayu had taken off, I'd gotten rid of my jitters, and felt far more in control. We picked up two new dive partners, both experienced divers. We headed straight for the ballroom. This time, my trim was cleaner (though just decent, not good) buoyancy was MUCH improved but I still pinned on the ceiling twice, but I was able to helicopter, drop into some crevices, hold still a bit, and keep my breathing under control. I had one moment of "fear" when I said to myself "I'm 50+ feet underwater and it's kinda dark in here!". We were never outside the light zone, and I was very comfortable the entire time and never felt in danger. In fact when we left the cavern on thirds (me of course) I led out. Unfotunately, I screwed up and vented too late so I corked. Lesson learned.
We piddled around for a while in the shallow basin again, doing essentially a swimmnig deco stop, and my buddy escorted me to the exit ladder. I said goodbye to my new friends and my excellent dive buddy. On the walk to the car, I thought about my day, and what had gotten me there. There were three primary factors.
1. My desire to get back in the water after a long hiatus, and having the willpower to overcome the obstacles that had stopped me for so long.
2. A certan "friend" local to me who's been giving me a gentle push when I really needed it.
3. DIR/SB. Finding DIR rekindled my fondness for SCUBA again. It gave me a path back into a terrific sport/activity. ScubaBoard allowed me to connect with DIR trained divers and that bond grew. It's not ONLY DIR divers that I've connected with, but the DIR divers here have been incredibly supportive of me, and I appreciate that greatly. Pat yourselves on the back guys. You've brought a long lost sheep back into the fold.
It felt good to get in the water today. Damn good. Tomorrow, Morrison Springs with my local dive club. Wish me luck.
We went to Cave Excursions, I picked up a replacement SPG for my broken one, and headed down to Ginnie. Met all the gang, ate some dinner, told some tales. Several went on night dives. I waited my time.
This morning, with SB members Vayu and SuprBugMan, I renewed my relationship with the water. Eleven years of waiting came to an abrupt halt. I made mistakes, my trim was ok for short periods, buyoancy was ok for a while in the shallows. We decided to play in the ballroom, which is an O/W safe cavern. Well, we entered the ballrom about 10-12 minutes into the dive. You have to swim down to get into it. As I descended into the cavern, I was becoming a bit too negative. I tried to put a puff of air onto the wing... No go. I had forgotten to connect the inflator! DOH! I filled my lungs as best I could to arrest my descent, but it was only slowing down the inevitable. Bugman came to the rescue and hooked me back up. The bad part was that I missed an easy part of my gear setup, no doubt being in a hurry and a bit nervous. The good news was that it took me over 10 minutes to figure it out! Meaning that I was controlling my buoyancy easily with just my lungs for 12 minutes!
After this snafu, we swum out to the Santa Fe river. My two buddies descended into the tannic water, I tried to follow. Unfortunately at about 25ft, I couldn't get my ears cleared and needed to stop. My buddy was just out of reach for me to contact. I was in the middle of tannic water with no frame of direction for up, down or sideways. My ear was SCREAMING at me. I took a gulp of air, and started to rise slowly out of the murk, saw the surface, and inflated my wing. My buddies realized within a few seconds I wasn't there, turned and came to look for me. Good job guys. Vayu was concerned because they had "lost me". In truth, there was little he could have done differently unless he was holding my hand in that murk. My backup light did not penetrate it at all. Another reason for planning on that HID can light. The rest of the dive was uneventful. Just swimming in the shallow basin, essentially doing a swimming deco stop. And we excited.
Durin the Surface interval, Bugman and I took the 15 minute ride into High Springs to shop for food, and visit the Mecca. Extreme Exposure is a VERY nicely done store. Everything you'd expect. Nothing you wouldn't. Drysuits new and used, SP gear, Apeks, Suunto, and of course everything Halcyon. I was surprised not to see any scooters. I picked up a few items, and jawed a it with the guy at the counter.
My second dive of the day was different. Vayu had taken off, I'd gotten rid of my jitters, and felt far more in control. We picked up two new dive partners, both experienced divers. We headed straight for the ballroom. This time, my trim was cleaner (though just decent, not good) buoyancy was MUCH improved but I still pinned on the ceiling twice, but I was able to helicopter, drop into some crevices, hold still a bit, and keep my breathing under control. I had one moment of "fear" when I said to myself "I'm 50+ feet underwater and it's kinda dark in here!". We were never outside the light zone, and I was very comfortable the entire time and never felt in danger. In fact when we left the cavern on thirds (me of course) I led out. Unfotunately, I screwed up and vented too late so I corked. Lesson learned.
We piddled around for a while in the shallow basin again, doing essentially a swimmnig deco stop, and my buddy escorted me to the exit ladder. I said goodbye to my new friends and my excellent dive buddy. On the walk to the car, I thought about my day, and what had gotten me there. There were three primary factors.
1. My desire to get back in the water after a long hiatus, and having the willpower to overcome the obstacles that had stopped me for so long.
2. A certan "friend" local to me who's been giving me a gentle push when I really needed it.
3. DIR/SB. Finding DIR rekindled my fondness for SCUBA again. It gave me a path back into a terrific sport/activity. ScubaBoard allowed me to connect with DIR trained divers and that bond grew. It's not ONLY DIR divers that I've connected with, but the DIR divers here have been incredibly supportive of me, and I appreciate that greatly. Pat yourselves on the back guys. You've brought a long lost sheep back into the fold.
It felt good to get in the water today. Damn good. Tomorrow, Morrison Springs with my local dive club. Wish me luck.
detroit diver
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One of the things you'll learn in your Fundy's class is the buddy equipment check before getting into the water. That would have alleviated your no-hose inflator problem.
Also, not a good idea to do a valve drill without a buddy around ready to donate his reg. I know you were just in a pool, but don't get complacent and do it alone in deeper water.
During one of my fundy's classes, I had my mask "removed" for me, and my teammates were very slow to get the situation sorted out. I spent the next 10 minutes or so without a mask. It was a really strange feeling, and it plays some funny tricks on your mind. The funny thing was, it was VERY relaxing because the stress was not on me, but on my teammates, so I just "sat back" and enjoyed the ride. It really built my confidence knowing that I could handle that skill for that period of time, and actually enjoy it.
Also, not a good idea to do a valve drill without a buddy around ready to donate his reg. I know you were just in a pool, but don't get complacent and do it alone in deeper water.
During one of my fundy's classes, I had my mask "removed" for me, and my teammates were very slow to get the situation sorted out. I spent the next 10 minutes or so without a mask. It was a really strange feeling, and it plays some funny tricks on your mind. The funny thing was, it was VERY relaxing because the stress was not on me, but on my teammates, so I just "sat back" and enjoyed the ride. It really built my confidence knowing that I could handle that skill for that period of time, and actually enjoy it.
Zero
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Your post is very much appreciated! Coming from a martial arts background were I was trained to breathe through my nose instead of my mouth, breathing underwater without a mask was a new challenge. I had a similar experience with my second complete mask fill at the bottom of a pool. I didn't have my head tilted forward enough to prevent the water from entering my nose. This sensation reminded me of sitting upside down in my kayak before executing an Eskimo roll. Needless to say, I bolted 12’ to the surface throwing my mask on the deck in disgust. I decided that afternoon that this had to be dealt with or I would never become a diver. Thankfully, I had a very patient instructor who spent the most the afternoon working on breathing without a mask. I hope to never forget that day. It has a taught me some very fundament lessons about diving – A very hostile environment can be explored with proper training, a stream line set of equipment, a good buddy and complacency kills.
Thanks again & good luck with the diving experience!
Thanks again & good luck with the diving experience!
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