mwhities
Contributor
**I wasn't sure where to put this exactly. I will dive/have dove with most of you here so, I figured this to be the best area to post in as any others, I'll probably never dive with anyone that'd read it.**
Talking about COMPLETELY different.
First, I'll catch everyone up. I started the day by trying on the dry suit that I bought from Tim (kidspot). I had bought it from him sometime last year or maybe the year before. (Sometime before Tanner was here so at least 16 months ago.) The suit fit a LOT better this time than the first time I tried it on. (Granted, 336lbs compared to 316lbs (this morning) makes a lot of a difference.)
I was happy that I was able to slide it on and actually have enough room (maybe not much) for undergarments. (I only wore thin shorts, the pool is 89F and I figured I'd get WAY to hot.) I was able to pull the suit all the way up so I had no sag in the (__Y__) and it actually fit my legs quite well. (Before I though they were too long but, I could actually get he "middle" of the suit to/past my med-section.) I was able to have the top bunched up around my mid-section (Think DiveRite's suspenders, how people walk around with them around their waist.)
I could sit down and bend over and put my DUI rock boots on (Size 15 with XXL Jets - Perfect match - Thanks Tim) and tighten them up. I then put my arm through the sleeve (since I wasn't sweating yet, I was able to get my hand through the seal.) and then I pulled my head through the neck seal. Well, I was standing there (goodthing it was cool out) in my dry suit with the zipper open in my drive way. Luckly my niece was there.. hehe.. "Sarah, can you come try to zip this up?" Sarah, "Sure Uncle Michael!". (She's upset because it's "not fair" that her older brother Adam (10 years old) can scuba dive and she can't.... So she's always ready to do anything to help or "get a chance" to "scuba". (Too sweet too.)) Yay! After bending WAY back, she was able to pull the zipper all the way across.
So, I asked her if she wanted to go swimming at the local Courthouse (local gym). Of course.. (She's a fish along with her brother.) So I commence getting to trying to get out of the suit and mind you, I started to get hot. Sarah unzipped me and her mother had to come out and help me get my hand through the wrist seal. After that, I sat back down and started peeling my legs out of the suit. The socks (crushed neoprene I assume) are a PAIN to get off. (PLEASE tell me there is a sock I can wear that will help them slide right off!). Finally got both legs out and loaded up the truck.
We arrive at the Courthouse and I go in and pay a 5.00 guest fee for both of us and make our way to the pool. They were kind enough to open the gates by the pool to allow me to park close to the pool and only have to walk 15+- yards to where I'd set my gear up.
Sarah grabbed my fins, boots and other small things. I setup the doubles with the DR classic wing and my back plate. (I put the bolts through the middle grommets (If you know what "spot" that is on a classic wing.) I then carried that and my dry suit to the pool. Funny enough, they had a LOT of tables there, unfortunately, all of them were plastic. So I had to lay a towel out and then squat/sit the double on it. OUCH. Never again.
Sarah (such a wonderful helper) starts putting my mask, fins and regulators by the tank and then jumps in and splashes me. Too funny.
So, I sit there on the ground with the tanks laying there and try to strap this Argon bottle to the tank. HATE IT. I had to lift the tanks and try to fish the straps through the doubles and then velcro it. Argh! I'm already sweating and I know it's going to get hotter when I get the dry suit on.
I finally finish getting the bottle and then start adding my regs. First the left post then the right post. I HOPE I had it right. (I did, I just usually miss the finer details of things.
I did forget to add a SS bolt snap to my long hose! Doh!) I then checked and double checked to make sure the valves were on and working. I breathed from both regs and all was good.
So I go to the rest room and change int my shorts. I make my way out to the pool and start doning my dry suit. It's HOT in there so I open up one of the doors where my gear was. (They have garage size doors on the far walls.) Ahh, good ole cool air. I finally get suited up and have my shoes on. So I try to climb down the ladder but, my dry suit wouldn't allow my legs to bend very well, so I did a half giant stride in.
OUCH... major squeeze in just 3 1/2' of water? My feet were compressed big time. So I pull the towel the doubles are laying on and get the tanks closer to the side of the pool. I have the isolater valve closest to me so I pull the tanks to me and allow the iso bar to rest on mu hip and I grab my crotch strap nearest the back plate and pick the doubles up and then set them in the water. Ahh, another hurdle down. So I ask Sarah to help hold the tanks up while I try the get the straps on over my shoulders. With out a dry suit, it's super easy (I bet you all know that already.. :|) but, WITH a dry suit and the exhaust valve on your shoulder, it's a MAJOR PITA. :| Luckly I was able to get my left nub and the valve through and then "chicken wing" my right arm in through the other strap. *PHEW*.
I then asked Sarah to hand me the Argon bottle hose and I quickly added air hoping it would relieve pressure on my feet. Nope. :| So I quickly get my waist strap strung through my crotch strap and then tighten it up as much as I could. Then I did another air check and made sure everything was working properly. T`was.
I tell Sarah to "pick me up" if I go to the bottom and don't move. She smiles and laughs. So I put the reg in my mouth and "fell over" forward. Wow. it was DIFFERENT for sure. I added more air to my dry suit to relieve the squeeze I had going on everywhere. I then pointed my head down and my feet up (I'll give you one guess why....).. Ahh, much better. I lay there and try to get my buoyancy right in the 3 1/2' pool. Well, Sarah listened to what I said and picked me up. I started laughing... she said "I did what you told me!!" I laughed again and told her just to watch me and I'll let her know if I needed her.
So I go under again and still try to get buoyant. I'm on the bottom, I'm on the surface.. Man, this sucks!! Finally, I get my buoyancy "somewhat" under control but, the tanks feel really wobbly. I could not for the life of me figure out why the tanks kept swaying side to side. I'd stop dead still and they'd still be "lose and wobbly".
After going from one end to the other end of the pool, I come up and there was Sarah. I asked her if she was touching me at all. She grinned and said "I was riding on your tanks!!" and started laughing. I too started laughing. I told her that this was hard enough and to please not do it again. I thought I was going crazy. She laughed and then dove under the water and swam off.
So, I start down again and BAM, it's EASIER.. that turd butt Sarah. I'm able to get my buoyancy under control slightly but, when I do a full exhale and inhale I lose it. I had to "shorten" my breaths so I wouldn't hit the bottom. After about 15 minutes of the 3 1/2 side of the pool, I surface and tell Sarah I'm going to the deeper end. She says okay and swims off.
So I submerge again and make my way to the deep end. It's only about 15' deep. I get over the slant part and I try to head down.. swoosh, there I go to the bottom. Imagine someone belly surfacing a wave or snow sliding on their stomach with doubles on. That was me. WOW. Different.
I finally come up about three feet and start kicking around. I'm actually able to keep my buoyancy somewhat under control. I swim the length of the pool several times adjusting my dry suit with the air bubble and adjust the wing as well. Several times I'd start dropping and a few I'd start popping up. After the next 15 minutes or so, I "feel" like I'm starting to get the hang of it. I'm actually able to breath "normally" and not sink and rise as much. (Maybe because I was at 11-12'.) I noticed a few "weird" things as I was trying to work with my dry suit and wing. I'll ask those questions later. )
I feel comfortable enough that I want to switch to my back up reg. Well, I had noticed that when I put it on (bungee around my neck) that I was "short". I figured it was because I was standing up and the tanks were low on my back. So I didn't think anything of it then. Well, I grab my back up and it's still to short to put into my mouth. So I hover there (at least I think I was.) and try to figure out why it's not reaching. I reach back and I grabbed my first stage on the right post. I feel for the hoses and since I know the primary reg and wing inflater hose is on that one, I trace one of the hoses and in turns out to be my inflater hose. So I grab my first stage again and trace the other.. Better but. wait.. what's the other hose? So I forget the primary hose and I follow this new one. Ahh, my back up reg hose.. I follow the hose back up to my primary reg hose and my back up reg's hose is "behind" the primary reg's hose. THAT'S why it's short! (At least I hoped.)
Talking about COMPLETELY different.
First, I'll catch everyone up. I started the day by trying on the dry suit that I bought from Tim (kidspot). I had bought it from him sometime last year or maybe the year before. (Sometime before Tanner was here so at least 16 months ago.) The suit fit a LOT better this time than the first time I tried it on. (Granted, 336lbs compared to 316lbs (this morning) makes a lot of a difference.)
I was happy that I was able to slide it on and actually have enough room (maybe not much) for undergarments. (I only wore thin shorts, the pool is 89F and I figured I'd get WAY to hot.) I was able to pull the suit all the way up so I had no sag in the (__Y__) and it actually fit my legs quite well. (Before I though they were too long but, I could actually get he "middle" of the suit to/past my med-section.) I was able to have the top bunched up around my mid-section (Think DiveRite's suspenders, how people walk around with them around their waist.)
I could sit down and bend over and put my DUI rock boots on (Size 15 with XXL Jets - Perfect match - Thanks Tim) and tighten them up. I then put my arm through the sleeve (since I wasn't sweating yet, I was able to get my hand through the seal.) and then I pulled my head through the neck seal. Well, I was standing there (goodthing it was cool out) in my dry suit with the zipper open in my drive way. Luckly my niece was there.. hehe.. "Sarah, can you come try to zip this up?" Sarah, "Sure Uncle Michael!". (She's upset because it's "not fair" that her older brother Adam (10 years old) can scuba dive and she can't.... So she's always ready to do anything to help or "get a chance" to "scuba". (Too sweet too.)) Yay! After bending WAY back, she was able to pull the zipper all the way across.
So, I asked her if she wanted to go swimming at the local Courthouse (local gym). Of course.. (She's a fish along with her brother.) So I commence getting to trying to get out of the suit and mind you, I started to get hot. Sarah unzipped me and her mother had to come out and help me get my hand through the wrist seal. After that, I sat back down and started peeling my legs out of the suit. The socks (crushed neoprene I assume) are a PAIN to get off. (PLEASE tell me there is a sock I can wear that will help them slide right off!). Finally got both legs out and loaded up the truck.
We arrive at the Courthouse and I go in and pay a 5.00 guest fee for both of us and make our way to the pool. They were kind enough to open the gates by the pool to allow me to park close to the pool and only have to walk 15+- yards to where I'd set my gear up.
Sarah grabbed my fins, boots and other small things. I setup the doubles with the DR classic wing and my back plate. (I put the bolts through the middle grommets (If you know what "spot" that is on a classic wing.) I then carried that and my dry suit to the pool. Funny enough, they had a LOT of tables there, unfortunately, all of them were plastic. So I had to lay a towel out and then squat/sit the double on it. OUCH. Never again.
Sarah (such a wonderful helper) starts putting my mask, fins and regulators by the tank and then jumps in and splashes me. Too funny.
So, I sit there on the ground with the tanks laying there and try to strap this Argon bottle to the tank. HATE IT. I had to lift the tanks and try to fish the straps through the doubles and then velcro it. Argh! I'm already sweating and I know it's going to get hotter when I get the dry suit on.
I finally finish getting the bottle and then start adding my regs. First the left post then the right post. I HOPE I had it right. (I did, I just usually miss the finer details of things.
I did forget to add a SS bolt snap to my long hose! Doh!) I then checked and double checked to make sure the valves were on and working. I breathed from both regs and all was good.So I go to the rest room and change int my shorts. I make my way out to the pool and start doning my dry suit. It's HOT in there so I open up one of the doors where my gear was. (They have garage size doors on the far walls.) Ahh, good ole cool air. I finally get suited up and have my shoes on. So I try to climb down the ladder but, my dry suit wouldn't allow my legs to bend very well, so I did a half giant stride in.
OUCH... major squeeze in just 3 1/2' of water? My feet were compressed big time. So I pull the towel the doubles are laying on and get the tanks closer to the side of the pool. I have the isolater valve closest to me so I pull the tanks to me and allow the iso bar to rest on mu hip and I grab my crotch strap nearest the back plate and pick the doubles up and then set them in the water. Ahh, another hurdle down. So I ask Sarah to help hold the tanks up while I try the get the straps on over my shoulders. With out a dry suit, it's super easy (I bet you all know that already.. :|) but, WITH a dry suit and the exhaust valve on your shoulder, it's a MAJOR PITA. :| Luckly I was able to get my left nub and the valve through and then "chicken wing" my right arm in through the other strap. *PHEW*.
I then asked Sarah to hand me the Argon bottle hose and I quickly added air hoping it would relieve pressure on my feet. Nope. :| So I quickly get my waist strap strung through my crotch strap and then tighten it up as much as I could. Then I did another air check and made sure everything was working properly. T`was.
I tell Sarah to "pick me up" if I go to the bottom and don't move. She smiles and laughs. So I put the reg in my mouth and "fell over" forward. Wow. it was DIFFERENT for sure. I added more air to my dry suit to relieve the squeeze I had going on everywhere. I then pointed my head down and my feet up (I'll give you one guess why....).. Ahh, much better. I lay there and try to get my buoyancy right in the 3 1/2' pool. Well, Sarah listened to what I said and picked me up. I started laughing... she said "I did what you told me!!" I laughed again and told her just to watch me and I'll let her know if I needed her.
So I go under again and still try to get buoyant. I'm on the bottom, I'm on the surface.. Man, this sucks!! Finally, I get my buoyancy "somewhat" under control but, the tanks feel really wobbly. I could not for the life of me figure out why the tanks kept swaying side to side. I'd stop dead still and they'd still be "lose and wobbly".
After going from one end to the other end of the pool, I come up and there was Sarah. I asked her if she was touching me at all. She grinned and said "I was riding on your tanks!!" and started laughing. I too started laughing. I told her that this was hard enough and to please not do it again. I thought I was going crazy. She laughed and then dove under the water and swam off.
So, I start down again and BAM, it's EASIER.. that turd butt Sarah. I'm able to get my buoyancy under control slightly but, when I do a full exhale and inhale I lose it. I had to "shorten" my breaths so I wouldn't hit the bottom. After about 15 minutes of the 3 1/2 side of the pool, I surface and tell Sarah I'm going to the deeper end. She says okay and swims off.
So I submerge again and make my way to the deep end. It's only about 15' deep. I get over the slant part and I try to head down.. swoosh, there I go to the bottom. Imagine someone belly surfacing a wave or snow sliding on their stomach with doubles on. That was me. WOW. Different.
I finally come up about three feet and start kicking around. I'm actually able to keep my buoyancy somewhat under control. I swim the length of the pool several times adjusting my dry suit with the air bubble and adjust the wing as well. Several times I'd start dropping and a few I'd start popping up. After the next 15 minutes or so, I "feel" like I'm starting to get the hang of it. I'm actually able to breath "normally" and not sink and rise as much. (Maybe because I was at 11-12'.) I noticed a few "weird" things as I was trying to work with my dry suit and wing. I'll ask those questions later. )
I feel comfortable enough that I want to switch to my back up reg. Well, I had noticed that when I put it on (bungee around my neck) that I was "short". I figured it was because I was standing up and the tanks were low on my back. So I didn't think anything of it then. Well, I grab my back up and it's still to short to put into my mouth. So I hover there (at least I think I was.) and try to figure out why it's not reaching. I reach back and I grabbed my first stage on the right post. I feel for the hoses and since I know the primary reg and wing inflater hose is on that one, I trace one of the hoses and in turns out to be my inflater hose. So I grab my first stage again and trace the other.. Better but. wait.. what's the other hose? So I forget the primary hose and I follow this new one. Ahh, my back up reg hose.. I follow the hose back up to my primary reg hose and my back up reg's hose is "behind" the primary reg's hose. THAT'S why it's short! (At least I hoped.)
I admire your perseverance and it was a great thread!!! Tim
I'm pretty tall, ask Rita. I'm 6' 6" so I have at least a 3' and 3" reach. 
