Greetings from Martinez!

[Dermochelys]

Hello,
I just thought I would introduce myself to the NorCal group here.

I've been away at graduate school for the past few years and I have finally landed a job here in Martinez, CA. I was certified while at my school, but being a good 5 hours from the coast my only dives post certification have been to Hawaii and Cabo San Lucas. Having just moved to Martinez I don't know anybody in the local area and working long odd hours isn't helping any. I'm still very new to diving, but I really want to focus on it more. I want to get into underwater photography, but first I need to get some more experience diving. Which leads me to my first question.

Hopefully I'll be going on a dive this Saturday and I need to rent gear. Does anyone have experience with my three local shops (Anchor Shack, Dive N Board, Nautilus Aquatic Dive Center) when it comes to renting gear. I went to Nautilus today and the owner seemed very nice, the shop was very clean, and the rental rates seemed reasonable (~$75 for the weekend). But they don't rent gloves, is this common? Being new to diving means I have NO idea as to what makes for a good dive shop.

Next question. I hoping to join a club in my general area. Any recommendations?

Well, thanks for reading, and thank you in advance for any information you can provide.

 

[Peter_C]

Sounds like it is time to purchase your own gloves. Read this thread for info on gloves.
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/norcal/170177-gloves-monterey.html

Nautilus has a beautiful store, and I have always been treated well there. I have never been to the other stores.

 

[jer12]

hi. i have rented gear from the anchor shack a few times, no problems. nice people there, and i like the small shop vibe.

prices:
Anchor Shack - Store
dont know how those compare to other stores...


I was searching for dive clubs in this area (I live in Benicia) last night and found this:

Diablo Sea Bears Dive Club

 

[cmburch]

I have never rented gear at these shops, but have done business with them. Most of my purchases were at Dive N Board due to selection and best deals just ask. I got Xcel gloves and O'Niell boots from there. The titanium gloves are thinner and thus more dexterity due to material and design down to 44F.

I have taken classes at Nautilus and may buy my reg there.

 

[Dermochelys]

Thanks for the info everyone. Looks like buying some glove may not be such a bad idea. I went to Dive N Board today, prices for renting were about the same and again no gloves. Very different shop feel than at Nautilus for sure. Hopefully I can go check out Anchor Shack tomorrow before they close at 5.

 

[mrabdiver111]

I have alot of experience with two of these shops. Jim at Dive n Board is awesome, a real fun guy. Kevin at Anchor Shack is very knowledgeable. I was certified there in 89 and am now a rescue diver thru there.

I live in Concord so if you want to get in the water sometime, hit me up. I also belong to North Coast Divers. A real fun group of divers that plan monthly trips. Mainly in the Sonoma and Mendocino county areas. But they also dive the Monterey area too. Check'em out at:

northcoastdivers.org

Hope this helps,

Rob

 

[Dermochelys]

Hey thanks mrabdiver111, I'll let you know the next time I'm looking to go diving.

I stopped by Anchor Shack today to round out my tour. I met Kevin who was very nice. Nice little shop, but the rental rates are a little high. I think for my dive this weekend I'll be renting from Nautilus. I'll let you know how the experience goes. This will be my first dive in just over a year, so I'm really looking forward to it. Now that I'm 3 hours closer to the good diving hopefully this will be the first of many.

 

[Dermochelys]

Well I did end up renting from Nautilus, everything was great and I would definitely rent from them again. If you need to rent gear in the Martinez / Concord area I think all of these shops would do just fine, but at this time I can only recommend Nautilus Aquatics. I'll be sure to rent from the other shops and see how they compare.