Hello from Rockville, Maryland

[andykmd]

Hi
By way of introduction, I've been certfied since 1972. I learned the old fashioned way from ex-military instructors, w/ lots of harassment and intimidation. My wife was certifed in 1992 w/ the warm/fuzzy philosophy. I just registered to this board to get some info on St. Thomas dive operators. My wife (Grace) and I wil be dreaded "cruise ship" divers on a 7-day Caribbean cruise on Holland America next week. We are signed up for a dive on the Rhone in Tortola and are looking for a good operator in St. Thomas. This trip is a compromise to get our two daughters (10 & 12 yrs old) and my mother-in-law (it is her 80th birthday) on the same vacation. Grace and I have done a fair amount of dive only trips together: Grand Cayman, Nassau, Roatan, Cozumel, FL Keys, North Carolina wrecks, and Turks & Caicos . . . see a pattern... warm water diving. I'm a little more hardy on dive conditions, cold water wreck dives off MD and VA. Kelp forests in CA Channel Islands. Some dives in Aegean off Turkish coast.

Almost 52 yrs old now, not sure how much longer I'll stick w/ sport. Everytime I go diving, I'm good for a few more years. If anyone has recommendations for St. Thomas operator, please let me know.

 

[DandyDon]

Howdy!

Welcome to SB!! :happywave Put us in your computer's favorites and check in often. This is a great place to learn, compare, argue Look around our various forums - everything from New-To-Scuba to Instructors-Only to Dive Medicine.

It felt weird packing for Florida last month and only taking Snorkel gear, but I had my daughter's family. At least you get some diving, whether it's the best or not. Hope you'll find SB interesting enough to hang out with us hear; I'm sure we have a lot to learn. Oh - I didn't start until I was 53; with any luck at all, I'll be 57 next week.

don

BTW - Did you set up your Profile? Some ideas for your Profle might be taken from looking at mine. Click on my Username to the upper left, then click on my Profile, and see what I've done. For your's, click the [CP] in the upper left of the screen, then click [Edit Profile]. If you need any help, PM me direct.

 

[murphdivers286]

Welcome Aboard!!!

It's addictive, but who cares?!?!?

Good friends and good info. What could be better???

P.S. - If you have not already done so, please fill out your profile.

I don't have any advice on St. Thomas, but I do have advice with;

"Almost 52 yrs old now, not sure how much longer I'll stick w/ sport."

You are only as old as you feel. Never put a limitation on your love of the sport. Keep diving until the day you don't come back up.

 

[baitedstorm]

Heya and welcome to the Board.... My husband and i did the cruise ship dive thing, it wasn't terrible, but not wonderful either.. Alot of rushing and not much time topside at each port. I wish I could offer you info on your planned dive locations, but I haven't been there yet. Sounds like you have a wealth of knowledge to add to the board, I look forward to reading some of your threads.

 

[headhunter]

Welcome to ScubaBoard!

I learned in much the same way you did, but in 1979. It was still a pre-warm/fuzzy era.

I'm not sure about dive ops in St. Thomas, but that question might be better asked in our Greater Carribean & Bahamas forum.

Don't forget to fill out your profile, so that we can add context to your future posts. Also, once we know where you are geographically, you may find that you'll have a whole bunch of new dive buddies to choose from.

Dive safe!

Christian

 

[GrierHPharmD]

Good luck finding your info. Haven't done St. Thomas yet.

Welcome to the board,
Grier

 

[Matt the Aquaman]

Hi
By way of introduction, I've been certfied since 1972. I learned the old fashioned way from ex-military instructors, w/ lots of harassment and intimidation. My wife was certifed in 1992 w/ the warm/fuzzy philosophy. I just registered to this board to get some info on St. Thomas dive operators. My wife (Grace) and I wil be dreaded "cruise ship" divers on a 7-day Caribbean cruise on Holland America next week. We are signed up for a dive on the Rhone in Tortola and are looking for a good operator in St. Thomas. This trip is a compromise to get our two daughters (10 & 12 yrs old) and my mother-in-law (it is her 80th birthday) on the same vacation. Grace and I have done a fair amount of dive only trips together: Grand Cayman, Nassau, Roatan, Cozumel, FL Keys, North Carolina wrecks, and Turks & Caicos . . . see a pattern... warm water diving. I'm a little more hardy on dive conditions, cold water wreck dives off MD and VA. Kelp forests in CA Channel Islands. Some dives in Aegean off Turkish coast.

Almost 52 yrs old now, not sure how much longer I'll stick w/ sport. Everytime I go diving, I'm good for a few more years. If anyone has recommendations for St. Thomas operator, please let me know.

Hello from Matt,

Welcome to SB! :scatter: I came here to look for help with my scuba diving dream and the response has been fantastic. So, I know you will enjoy being a member here.
There are a lot of nice and informative scuba divers. It's a good place to meet other divers and share experiences and dreams. Take care from Matt.

 

[Scott Riemer]

Welcome to Scubaboard! It's great to have you join us!

 

[baltimoron]

hiya and welcome to the board!!

eyyy! another marylander! Twice welcome! here you can get all your questions answered, hear some cool stories about dives, or you can just chill and socialize with the other scubaphiles. and dont be discouraged by age! my granfather is 74 and he dives almost every other week!

oh yes- and save my school and dont vote for erlich next time around. if you would.

Zack

 

[Afraid_of_Fish]

Welcome to Scuba Board!! It's great to have you as a member! PM me if you need anything.

<33 Jess