covediver
Contributor
ISBN 9622269-5-5
This book is an “as told to” narrative of Harvey Grohs, founder of Harvey’s diving company, manufacturer of exposure suits. This book belongs on the shelf with other narratives of diving by pioneers such as Bill McBride’s “Taking the Plunge”, Bill Tillman’s “I Thought I Saw Atlantis” and Lance Kenka’s “Back in ’02.”
In reading this book, which opens with an account of Grohs diving to recover the body of a logger trapped under a log raft in the Columbia River. Grohs was a Harbor Patrol Officer in the Portland of the early 1950s after being part of that city’s police force.This is not the Portlandia of today, it was a very different city in those days.I had heard of Harveys wetsuits over the years and recognized the company’s Orca-H logo.Other than that I knew little of the company.
The adage that “the only thing new on earth is the history you don’t know” certainly applies as I read the book. Turning the pages I learned that Harveys was the originator of the Skin Diver mail order wetsuit, the order form for which was a fixture in the magazine up from the early days up until the time it initially ceased publication.He pioneered development of the wetsuit in conjunction with his old school acquaintance Jack Oneill—hence the subtitle of the book “The Cold Warrior.”Harvey concentrated on the diving side of the business while Oneill concentrated on the surfing aspects of the market. Both recognized that the lifestyle changes of the mid-50s to late-60s with its concentration on ocean sports and leisure would ensure an ever expanding market for wetsuits and related equipment.Harvey in fact started in a small shop Washington and expanded when the large equipment manufacturers and distributers would not meet the terms of doing business he thought he deserved. He recognized three facets that were going to make diving a universal sport:1) There was a certain thrill and romance in being adventurous and the underwater world held mystery. 2)Diving extended the scope of human experiences and had an attraction as compelling as the starts. 3) The idea of bravery attached to diving impressed non-divers, the opposite sex and companions. Hero worship was a sound principle of selling. He also recognized that the market for diving wetsuits would not sustain the company’s growth, so he expanded into related markets such as exposure/survival suits, windsurfing, and jet skiing.
The book describes Harveys entrepreneurial innovation, always looking for opportunity, looking to find a need and fill it. The book, written in 1995 at the end of Grohs reign as head of the company (it still remains a family run company).Even recognizing that autobiographies cast the subject in the best light, this is a book that tells the story of the evolution of diving as seen through the eyes of one of its pioneers “Fairly Honest” Harvey Grohs.
This book is an “as told to” narrative of Harvey Grohs, founder of Harvey’s diving company, manufacturer of exposure suits. This book belongs on the shelf with other narratives of diving by pioneers such as Bill McBride’s “Taking the Plunge”, Bill Tillman’s “I Thought I Saw Atlantis” and Lance Kenka’s “Back in ’02.”
In reading this book, which opens with an account of Grohs diving to recover the body of a logger trapped under a log raft in the Columbia River. Grohs was a Harbor Patrol Officer in the Portland of the early 1950s after being part of that city’s police force.This is not the Portlandia of today, it was a very different city in those days.I had heard of Harveys wetsuits over the years and recognized the company’s Orca-H logo.Other than that I knew little of the company.
The adage that “the only thing new on earth is the history you don’t know” certainly applies as I read the book. Turning the pages I learned that Harveys was the originator of the Skin Diver mail order wetsuit, the order form for which was a fixture in the magazine up from the early days up until the time it initially ceased publication.He pioneered development of the wetsuit in conjunction with his old school acquaintance Jack Oneill—hence the subtitle of the book “The Cold Warrior.”Harvey concentrated on the diving side of the business while Oneill concentrated on the surfing aspects of the market. Both recognized that the lifestyle changes of the mid-50s to late-60s with its concentration on ocean sports and leisure would ensure an ever expanding market for wetsuits and related equipment.Harvey in fact started in a small shop Washington and expanded when the large equipment manufacturers and distributers would not meet the terms of doing business he thought he deserved. He recognized three facets that were going to make diving a universal sport:1) There was a certain thrill and romance in being adventurous and the underwater world held mystery. 2)Diving extended the scope of human experiences and had an attraction as compelling as the starts. 3) The idea of bravery attached to diving impressed non-divers, the opposite sex and companions. Hero worship was a sound principle of selling. He also recognized that the market for diving wetsuits would not sustain the company’s growth, so he expanded into related markets such as exposure/survival suits, windsurfing, and jet skiing.
The book describes Harveys entrepreneurial innovation, always looking for opportunity, looking to find a need and fill it. The book, written in 1995 at the end of Grohs reign as head of the company (it still remains a family run company).Even recognizing that autobiographies cast the subject in the best light, this is a book that tells the story of the evolution of diving as seen through the eyes of one of its pioneers “Fairly Honest” Harvey Grohs.
