I did DiveQuest at Epcot based on recommendations here. Video inside - Critique me

[00wabbit]

Hi guys,

I asked a while back about diving near Orlando. I had a small amount of time. Based on recommendations I chose to do Divequest at Epcot. It was a lot of fun and the people were great. We got a lot of behind the scenes tour.

The most fun is playing with the kids in the windows. I don't even really like interacting with kids that much, but I remember seeing the divers in the tanks when I was a kid and I always wanted to be them. Now I was and I got to play with the kids in the windows.

I purchased the video.
I'm a new diver so please critique me if you see anything I can do better.

During the dive I think I was slightly under weighted. They had more weights suspended on a rope and I should have taken one. When I was on the bottom of the tank at 25' I was perfectly neutral with no air in the bcd. I spent most of my time at the middle level of the tank because that's where the windows are and I would have to keep a downward angle to keep from floating up. I notice from watching me that I am making huge kicks from my knees. I think I need to make smaller kicks and try to use my whole leg. They put me in split fins. This was my first experience with them and I didn't really like them. I felt like I wasn't doing anything when I kicked. My normal fins are XL Cressi Reaction. They seem to give me more thrust per kick.

FYI": The coral here is all fake and they said it was ok to touch.

Check out the video and let me know if you see any areas I can improve or have and suggestions for me. Skip ahead to 2:37 to see my dive group. I am the last one in the group (#5). I am the big guy. I am wearing a black mask with orange/red trim around the lenses.

Divequest at Epcot Center - YouTube


Overall I recommend it. The fish in the tank are cool, but playing with the people and getting the behind the scenes tour is what it is really about.

 

[TSandM]

I think, for a relatively new diver in gear that wasn't yours, you were doing pretty well. In all the clips, you were pretty close to horizontal, and I saw only a little use of the hands. I'm not unhappy with the kick you were using -- you were keeping your body pretty flat from the shoulders to the knees, and using a good approximation of a cave-type flutter kick from the knee. I'd work on getting your hands and arms out in front of you, because I think it might give you a bit more stability. And proper weighting for any given configuration can only be figured from a formal weight check.

I am a bit sad, though, to watch the video. Encouraging divers to stand on the bottom and sit on the bottom is not a good thing to me, even if it's in the artificial environment of Epcot. All you do is build the association in the diver's mind that it's okay to do those things.

 

[LowDrag]

That was cool 00, we have an aquarium down on the coast that offers diving and you just made up my mind to get something set up for that. I thought you looked pretty good in the video to, you all definitely looked like you were having a great time. Congrat's on getting to do that.

 

[fugly]

very very Awesome!!!!

 

[DukeAMO]

Looks like fun! I just posted a few pictures from my aquarium dive this weekend too. It looks like they were pretty different, actually.

 

[00wabbit]

Looks like fun! I just posted a few pictures from my aquarium dive this weekend too. It looks like they were pretty different, actually.

Were you able to shoot in the aquarium? At Epcot you can't take anything in the aquarium except your own mask. You even have to take of rings and watches. They told us the reason they have people remove rings is that with the bottom being crushed shell its easy for a ring to get lost in it and they wont be able to find it. As far as the other stuff they don't want any contaminants in the aquarium.

They said their filtration system is so powerful that by the end of our 40min dive the water would have been completely exchanged in the entire aquarium. IT's also highly efficient. They have 87% of the same water in the tank that they put in back in 1986.

 

[DukeAMO]

Were you able to shoot in the aquarium? At Epcot you can't take anything in the aquarium except your own mask. You even have to take of rings and watches. They told us the reason they have people remove rings is that with the bottom being crushed shell its easy for a ring to get lost in it and they wont be able to find it. As far as the other stuff they don't want any contaminants in the aquarium.

They said their filtration system is so powerful that by the end of our 40min dive the water would have been completely exchanged in the entire aquarium. IT's also highly efficient. They have 87% of the same water in the tank that they put in back in 1986.

Actually, we don't have an underwater camera of our own yet; the instructor took a LOT of photos, and a few short videos, for us. We were allowed to bring our own camera and masks, but the rest of the gear had to be theirs, and they sanitized our masks before we got in. We were allowed to wear our rings, but we had to wear gloves with our wetsuits.

That's cool about the filtration system! One factoid from the NC Aquarium is that they have to clean it A LOT. I think they said they have 4-5 dives per day, where the volunteer divers are primarily cleaning the tank with scrub brushes. They just started their guest diver program there; we were #28 and #29.

The tank we were in was much smaller than the Seas, but it was big enough to be entertaining for one long dive, and it was just the three of us in there. And like everyone says, playing around with the people outside (in our case, our little girls) is priceless! I was doing fist bumps with lots of little kids, and they were cracking up. We had permagrins when we came out. I would definitely do a dive in another aquarium. Maybe the Seas or the one in Atlanta.

 

[LowDrag]

That is so cool!!! I am definitely gonna put that on the list of dives to do!!! ( I just had to reply again...hehehehe)

 

[00wabbit]

Actually, we don't have an underwater camera of our own yet; the instructor took a LOT of photos, and a few short videos, for us. We were allowed to bring our own camera and masks, but the rest of the gear had to be theirs, and they sanitized our masks before we got in. We were allowed to wear our rings, but we had to wear gloves with our wetsuits.

That's cool about the filtration system! One factoid from the NC Aquarium is that they have to clean it A LOT. I think they said they have 4-5 dives per day, where the volunteer divers are primarily cleaning the tank with scrub brushes. They just started their guest diver program there; we were #28 and #29.

The tank we were in was much smaller than the Seas, but it was big enough to be entertaining for one long dive, and it was just the three of us in there. And like everyone says, playing around with the people outside (in our case, our little girls) is priceless! I was doing fist bumps with lots of little kids, and they were cracking up. We had permagrins when we came out. I would definitely do a dive in another aquarium. Maybe the Seas or the one in Atlanta.

I gave a couple of kids wabbit ears while their mom took a picture of them.

I'll probably do the Atlanta one too at some point. The only downside with it is that it costs over $300 and the dive is 25mins. My family is in Atlanta though, so they will come and watch me in the windows.

 

[Paladin]

Nice job, Wabbit! My sons and I have been thinking of doing the Sea Quest dive, It looks like a lot of fun.