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I first met and became friends with Fred about a half a century ago. He had moved from the midwest to California he was already a mini diving hero; he had made a 320 foot dive on air under the direction of Dr. Edgar End, so he was Immediately accepted as a full member of the vintage Orange County, SoCaL dive tribe.
Yes I know Fred Roberts very well,
My home at that time was in Anaheim, a neighbor was Bob Ruetherford, LA Co Underwater Instructor, (see Legends of diving, Sea Sabres Signaling System, Scuba Diving and Recreation Center in Northwest Ohio - Portage Quarry) a short distance south was the home of Tommy Thompson, LA Co Underwater Instructor, then Commander of the Long Beach navy EOD and later after retirement he was employed by US Divers as their PR man. Still a little further south was Fred Roberts home in Garden Grove. So we all socialized and dove together.
Fred had a position with an LA engineering firm for a while-- I recall he had trouble mastering a snorkel, so during his travels he would breathe from a snorkel -- I don't recall why I remember that, since we all had our difficulties...
Willard Voit, a transplanted Hoosier who was also a OC resident, decided to expand Voit Rubber Co into a major dive manufacture, he purchased the Spearfisherman Company from Ken Norris, made an agreement with US divers to produce rubber products and use their hard goods, such as regulators with certain modifications (European covers etc.) He also closed his LA facility and constructed a very large building on Harbor about a mile south of US Divers who had just re located on Delphi, later in February 1962 had a name change to Warner Avenue. Voit was on a move...and moving close to Fred
Fred obtained a position with Voit as an engineer. His mission was to think "outside the box" and immediately began designing new, exciting radical products based on sales and consumer input. Almost every one was a failure...recall the whip reserve? a kink in the cable or drop tank on the cable and the reserve was useless, the universal concentric double manifold , great idea but not accepted by the diving public, the blue fibre glass contour back pack? lay a unit on it and it would crack, (later US Divers made the same pack from injected moulded plastic.) But to Voits and Freds credit he had a certain amount of input on the the MR 12 singe hose or the Titan double hose? Fantastic modular rugged units
I built a large home in rural Garden Grove south of Westmister Blvd, Fred & family lived directly north of Westminister Blvd. So we were closer and dove together more often. Saturday mornings at Corona del Mar, for photography. Fred was producing a series of marine life slide for diving instruction, which I have a mint unopend set. Often off to Catalina at Voit's expense to test equipment...I recall so clearly when we took samples of wet suit neoprene to depth, checking the thickness of the samples with a micrometer every ten feet for compression all the way to 100 feet. Crazy exciting times...
As members of the original Underwater Photographic Society we had been car pooling to LA for the monthly meeting. The OC membership was growning so we all chipped in five dollars and formed the Orange County Underwater Photographic Society, The "OCUPS" which after all these good years is still going strong. We originally held our meeting in the conference room of US Divers, the only dive club with that distinction.. Remember Tommy Thompson was the US Divers PR and I was the offical US Divers company UW Instructor as well as an occasional consultant.
Most of the tribe are now diving in the big reef in the sky now but in the considered diving as a quasi religious sport which only a privileged few were week end and occasional mid week night diving participants, Fred for what ever reason had different goals for his diving activities. Diving was an extra sources of income for his growing family.
Fred also enjoyed writing.
His first venture in to writing was a small black instructional book sixty page 5X8 for US Divers titled "Aqua Lung Diving" published in 1962 when US Divers had relocated from LA to Delhi Avenue in Santa Ana, California.
A few years later while employed at Voit Fred began writing his book "Basic SCUBA." It was certanly not a secret from the tribe and certainly not with out it's detractors; "Who needs or even would buy a book on diving regulators ? When he published the book I was obligated to purchase a copy, which Fred personally inscribed --that means addressed the book to me, wrote a short message and then signed and dated the book,.......... then the second edition, same thing, then the soft cover,same thing. I placed all of them in my library on my bookshelf and never touched them untill a few years ago when a question arose about a unique regulator.
Now the book is the bible of the new crop of collectors and regulator restorers. It is their go to book for their questions and answers it is a bound hard cover version diving "Google" If it can't be found in Basic SCUBA or on Google it didn't happen and can't be done. The demand for Basic SCUBA is increasing exponentially every day and is being sold for ever increasing amounts on the used book market, now into the hundreds of dollars!
Fred obtained a position with a aerospace company, departed from Voit and moved to south Orange county, but did not abandon the diving. He purchased a printing press installed it in his garage and began publishing a magazine titled "Underwater Photographer." Although it was well received locally and nationally it was too soon in the market place and disappered into magophile heaven. (I have a bound set as well as a extra set of "Underwater Photographer" which I will sell "Some Day?" -Any offers ?)
At the same time Fred also produced a Yellow covered 4-1/4 X 8-1/2 spiral bound "Photographers Logbook" which I also purchased a copy thinking I would use..That was 50 years or more ago and it is still mint not one page has been scribbled on and even the price sticker is on the back $ 2.00.
Fred sold his printing press and all his diving equipment, so as was the custom of the era when diving was a quasi religion and not an occasional warm water vacation activity as it is today. Fred had abandoned the flock was no longer a recognized member of the tribe, so we lost close contact.
Fred's new love was flying, which he embraced as he did recreational SCUBA.
I have often questioned how to describe Fred? Certainly very intelligent, certainly one who thought "out side the box,".Certainly ambitious, certainly personable, Certainly likeable...I assume the best way is to describe Fred "as a unique one of a kind friend"
We now live 350 miles distance but I think I will visit my old dive buddy Fred and as old warriors often do, reminisce about old friends and times almost forgotten.
Copyright 2015 by Dr. Samuel Miller,111 & Dr. Samuel Miller IV, may not be used or reproduced by any process with out the express permission in writing by the authors
SDM 111
LA Co UW instructor, NAUI instructor, PADI Instructor, CMAS Instructor and a few others in the Instructor"s Alphabet many long forgotten.....
Yes I know Fred Roberts very well,
My home at that time was in Anaheim, a neighbor was Bob Ruetherford, LA Co Underwater Instructor, (see Legends of diving, Sea Sabres Signaling System, Scuba Diving and Recreation Center in Northwest Ohio - Portage Quarry) a short distance south was the home of Tommy Thompson, LA Co Underwater Instructor, then Commander of the Long Beach navy EOD and later after retirement he was employed by US Divers as their PR man. Still a little further south was Fred Roberts home in Garden Grove. So we all socialized and dove together.
Fred had a position with an LA engineering firm for a while-- I recall he had trouble mastering a snorkel, so during his travels he would breathe from a snorkel -- I don't recall why I remember that, since we all had our difficulties...
Willard Voit, a transplanted Hoosier who was also a OC resident, decided to expand Voit Rubber Co into a major dive manufacture, he purchased the Spearfisherman Company from Ken Norris, made an agreement with US divers to produce rubber products and use their hard goods, such as regulators with certain modifications (European covers etc.) He also closed his LA facility and constructed a very large building on Harbor about a mile south of US Divers who had just re located on Delphi, later in February 1962 had a name change to Warner Avenue. Voit was on a move...and moving close to Fred
Fred obtained a position with Voit as an engineer. His mission was to think "outside the box" and immediately began designing new, exciting radical products based on sales and consumer input. Almost every one was a failure...recall the whip reserve? a kink in the cable or drop tank on the cable and the reserve was useless, the universal concentric double manifold , great idea but not accepted by the diving public, the blue fibre glass contour back pack? lay a unit on it and it would crack, (later US Divers made the same pack from injected moulded plastic.) But to Voits and Freds credit he had a certain amount of input on the the MR 12 singe hose or the Titan double hose? Fantastic modular rugged units
I built a large home in rural Garden Grove south of Westmister Blvd, Fred & family lived directly north of Westminister Blvd. So we were closer and dove together more often. Saturday mornings at Corona del Mar, for photography. Fred was producing a series of marine life slide for diving instruction, which I have a mint unopend set. Often off to Catalina at Voit's expense to test equipment...I recall so clearly when we took samples of wet suit neoprene to depth, checking the thickness of the samples with a micrometer every ten feet for compression all the way to 100 feet. Crazy exciting times...
As members of the original Underwater Photographic Society we had been car pooling to LA for the monthly meeting. The OC membership was growning so we all chipped in five dollars and formed the Orange County Underwater Photographic Society, The "OCUPS" which after all these good years is still going strong. We originally held our meeting in the conference room of US Divers, the only dive club with that distinction.. Remember Tommy Thompson was the US Divers PR and I was the offical US Divers company UW Instructor as well as an occasional consultant.
Most of the tribe are now diving in the big reef in the sky now but in the considered diving as a quasi religious sport which only a privileged few were week end and occasional mid week night diving participants, Fred for what ever reason had different goals for his diving activities. Diving was an extra sources of income for his growing family.
Fred also enjoyed writing.
His first venture in to writing was a small black instructional book sixty page 5X8 for US Divers titled "Aqua Lung Diving" published in 1962 when US Divers had relocated from LA to Delhi Avenue in Santa Ana, California.
A few years later while employed at Voit Fred began writing his book "Basic SCUBA." It was certanly not a secret from the tribe and certainly not with out it's detractors; "Who needs or even would buy a book on diving regulators ? When he published the book I was obligated to purchase a copy, which Fred personally inscribed --that means addressed the book to me, wrote a short message and then signed and dated the book,.......... then the second edition, same thing, then the soft cover,same thing. I placed all of them in my library on my bookshelf and never touched them untill a few years ago when a question arose about a unique regulator.
Now the book is the bible of the new crop of collectors and regulator restorers. It is their go to book for their questions and answers it is a bound hard cover version diving "Google" If it can't be found in Basic SCUBA or on Google it didn't happen and can't be done. The demand for Basic SCUBA is increasing exponentially every day and is being sold for ever increasing amounts on the used book market, now into the hundreds of dollars!
Fred obtained a position with a aerospace company, departed from Voit and moved to south Orange county, but did not abandon the diving. He purchased a printing press installed it in his garage and began publishing a magazine titled "Underwater Photographer." Although it was well received locally and nationally it was too soon in the market place and disappered into magophile heaven. (I have a bound set as well as a extra set of "Underwater Photographer" which I will sell "Some Day?" -Any offers ?)
At the same time Fred also produced a Yellow covered 4-1/4 X 8-1/2 spiral bound "Photographers Logbook" which I also purchased a copy thinking I would use..That was 50 years or more ago and it is still mint not one page has been scribbled on and even the price sticker is on the back $ 2.00.
Fred sold his printing press and all his diving equipment, so as was the custom of the era when diving was a quasi religion and not an occasional warm water vacation activity as it is today. Fred had abandoned the flock was no longer a recognized member of the tribe, so we lost close contact.
Fred's new love was flying, which he embraced as he did recreational SCUBA.
I have often questioned how to describe Fred? Certainly very intelligent, certainly one who thought "out side the box,".Certainly ambitious, certainly personable, Certainly likeable...I assume the best way is to describe Fred "as a unique one of a kind friend"
We now live 350 miles distance but I think I will visit my old dive buddy Fred and as old warriors often do, reminisce about old friends and times almost forgotten.
Copyright 2015 by Dr. Samuel Miller,111 & Dr. Samuel Miller IV, may not be used or reproduced by any process with out the express permission in writing by the authors
SDM 111
LA Co UW instructor, NAUI instructor, PADI Instructor, CMAS Instructor and a few others in the Instructor"s Alphabet many long forgotten.....
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