craig107
Registered
HI,
Found this forum a couple of hours ago, been reading threads from Graham(K9 FISH).
My name is craig, I have returned from a short break in Mexico with my wife, Yvonne, She is cabin crew and I get cheap deals on her trips
.
Anyway, I have been a keen snorkler for years, Red sea, the Maldives and the Caribean. Always saying Im gunna do this PADI course thing, so I can dive with the flight deck and crew members. Alas, I never got round to it.
Mexico was different. Having been asked everyday "volleyball sir, you look like the fit healthy type." (Was sprawled out on sunbed with fag in gob:blinking My little Mexican nemisis came along one day and said, "Bueno mi amigo grasa" (okay my fat friend) "how do you fancy a try at scuba in the pool". I looked at my wife with a, Im gunna slap him look, to which she promtly replied "yes, he cant run around on the beach like you but he can swim like a brick". Before I new it i was at the pool looking at this gear thinking, Oh no donde la cervaca.
Well,,,,,,,,,,,, It was brilliant. I took to it like a natural. So much so I booked the Discover scuba for the next morning.
Next morning...... Arrived at the dive center early and had a coffee watching the morning joggers thinking you lot are mad. The instructor turns up and a young lady doing her first dive also. Sat down ready to watch the DVD and pressed play, 1 min in and the power went down. Great start. The instructor went through the flipchart explaining what we shold of seen in the vid. Done.
We get kitted out with the required euipment and off to the pool we go. After several basics recover reg, clear mask, equalise ect, the instructor decided were ok to carry on. Next thing I know Im on a boat heading towards a reef to do a 45min dive to a max of 12m.
Must of had a bad experience.
On the way to the reef an American chap was preping his gear and all the time complaining about the safety of the instructors. This gave me the spooks.
Anyhow we're now in the water, myself, the young lady, the American guy and two instructors. There two other groups, we picked up on the way. Experienced divers I believed where on the tether further behind us. Given the signal to go down I released air from my BCD and took my first salt water breaths whilst equalising. Now at 2m under I can see the young lady the two instructors and an expanse of blue and bubbles, I looked down to the floor and there was the missing American 10m down already with my buddy setting off for him.
At this point panic set in and I know now I started to hyper-ventilate. the other instructor grabbed my are and relaxed me:cool2:.
Once on the bottom I could feel the current the pre-dive brief mentioned, god it felt strong but we were to swim with it.
Follow me came the signal and off we set. Absolutely overwelmed with what was there in the first 25m or so. then we where sat on the bottom with one instructor whilst the other went to fetch the American back. after some finger wagging and pointing at this guy the instructor moved us off again, showing us Turtle, Morays Baracuda, parrot fish lobster and so on. Okay back to the bottom and stopped again, Yes you guessed, the American had gone on ahead again. Brought back and off we go being shown more things. This event occured at least five times which was getting me angry and thus ruining my experience.
Eventually (which seemed like minutes) we are given the sign to ascend which we do with the instuctors. once on the surface in the group I look around and see the markers for the other two groups what seems like 200m away, I said to the instuctor they did well getting that far to he replied we should of been down the drift that far but for the stops. Once the boat picked us up I overheard the boat captain complain to my instructor in spannish about how far up we was and why not with the others. What he called the american is not for re-type on here.
Anyway the seed has been set dispite an off putting panic attack. I am now going to do the open water at home, with Bolton Area Divers as i have done my research.
My wife says she will do it with me which is great, but, I now have to wait till October when she has some time off work. Untill then I am going to go for the trydives at diffent clubs just to feed the "can't wait" inside of me.
Im that keen I have already picked out and listed all the equipment Im going to get beforehand, The bank manager is going to have a kitten
PS. Becuase we will do the course in October, would it be best to do a refferal here and then the open waters abroad, or is Capenwray warm enough in a dry suit in autum???.
TIA Craig+Yvonne
Found this forum a couple of hours ago, been reading threads from Graham(K9 FISH).
My name is craig, I have returned from a short break in Mexico with my wife, Yvonne, She is cabin crew and I get cheap deals on her trips
.Anyway, I have been a keen snorkler for years, Red sea, the Maldives and the Caribean. Always saying Im gunna do this PADI course thing, so I can dive with the flight deck and crew members. Alas, I never got round to it.
Mexico was different. Having been asked everyday "volleyball sir, you look like the fit healthy type." (Was sprawled out on sunbed with fag in gob:blinking
My little Mexican nemisis came along one day and said, "Bueno mi amigo grasa" (okay my fat friend) "how do you fancy a try at scuba in the pool". I looked at my wife with a, Im gunna slap him look, to which she promtly replied "yes, he cant run around on the beach like you but he can swim like a brick". Before I new it i was at the pool looking at this gear thinking, Oh no donde la cervaca.Well,,,,,,,,,,,, It was brilliant. I took to it like a natural. So much so I booked the Discover scuba for the next morning.
Next morning...... Arrived at the dive center early and had a coffee watching the morning joggers thinking you lot are mad. The instructor turns up and a young lady doing her first dive also. Sat down ready to watch the DVD and pressed play, 1 min in and the power went down. Great start. The instructor went through the flipchart explaining what we shold of seen in the vid. Done.
We get kitted out with the required euipment and off to the pool we go. After several basics recover reg, clear mask, equalise ect, the instructor decided were ok to carry on. Next thing I know Im on a boat heading towards a reef to do a 45min dive to a max of 12m.
Must of had a bad experience.
On the way to the reef an American chap was preping his gear and all the time complaining about the safety of the instructors. This gave me the spooks.
Anyhow we're now in the water, myself, the young lady, the American guy and two instructors. There two other groups, we picked up on the way. Experienced divers I believed where on the tether further behind us. Given the signal to go down I released air from my BCD and took my first salt water breaths whilst equalising. Now at 2m under I can see the young lady the two instructors and an expanse of blue and bubbles, I looked down to the floor and there was the missing American 10m down already with my buddy setting off for him.
At this point panic set in and I know now I started to hyper-ventilate. the other instructor grabbed my are and relaxed me:cool2:.
Once on the bottom I could feel the current the pre-dive brief mentioned, god it felt strong but we were to swim with it.
Follow me came the signal and off we set. Absolutely overwelmed with what was there in the first 25m or so. then we where sat on the bottom with one instructor whilst the other went to fetch the American back. after some finger wagging and pointing at this guy the instructor moved us off again, showing us Turtle, Morays Baracuda, parrot fish lobster and so on. Okay back to the bottom and stopped again, Yes you guessed, the American had gone on ahead again. Brought back and off we go being shown more things. This event occured at least five times which was getting me angry and thus ruining my experience.
Eventually (which seemed like minutes) we are given the sign to ascend which we do with the instuctors. once on the surface in the group I look around and see the markers for the other two groups what seems like 200m away, I said to the instuctor they did well getting that far to he replied we should of been down the drift that far but for the stops. Once the boat picked us up I overheard the boat captain complain to my instructor in spannish about how far up we was and why not with the others. What he called the american is not for re-type on here.
Anyway the seed has been set dispite an off putting panic attack. I am now going to do the open water at home, with Bolton Area Divers as i have done my research.
My wife says she will do it with me which is great, but, I now have to wait till October when she has some time off work. Untill then I am going to go for the trydives at diffent clubs just to feed the "can't wait" inside of me.
Im that keen I have already picked out and listed all the equipment Im going to get beforehand, The bank manager is going to have a kitten
PS. Becuase we will do the course in October, would it be best to do a refferal here and then the open waters abroad, or is Capenwray warm enough in a dry suit in autum???.
TIA Craig+Yvonne
