I Need to Talk to a Shipwreck Survivor...

[ScubaTexan]

SeaJay once bubbled...
I wanted to be just like Jacques Cousteau or Craig Breedlove or the Rutan brothers. They were my heros. They challenged themselves and their surroundings and used ingenuity, hard work, technological advances, and plain ol' guts to fly higher, go faster, and stay longer than anyone else had ever done before.

Man, I haven't seen or heard the name Craig Breedlove in years! I used to love to watch him race the Spirit Of America down the Bonneville Salt Flats.

BTW -- I would love to be a support diver on an attempt like this! It sounds like a lot of fun. If only I could...

Best of luck, SeaJay! I hope you get the record.

 

[detroit diver]

I think Scubaroo is on to something also. Single on your back, heavy weighbelt to keep you on the bottom, breathing from stages or K bottles from a RLH - really long hose! The stage would be nice to cruise around with, but if you're not going anywhere and could hook up a K that would be really optimal. Sets of doubles can get tiresome with what you are attempting.

This is one instance where those in-line humidifiers might be appropriate.

 

[Boogie711]

If you could use a rebreather and still be eligible for the record (and I don't see why you wouldn't) it would be a nice, long supply of air without switching rigs, and would also be warm moist air.

Maybe not when you're sleeping, if you're nervous about it, but it would be something to think about when you're awake and alert, etc.

 

[SeaJay]

These are all really great ideas!

I can't see why, over a period of 14 days, that I wouldn't want to try ALL OF THE ABOVE. Wouldn't it be interesting to figure out which rig worked best?

A rebreather sounds like a great idea, too. I don't have the experience or funding for that, though... Perhaps I could talk to a manufacturer of them and see if they'd be willing to donate...

Marineland is something I haven't even considered! What a great idea...

DD: U.S. Navy dive tables say that at 22 fsw or less, there is no time limit whatsoever to worry about in terms of deco.

Nonetheless, my plan was to drain the facility, rather than have me attempt to get out at the end of the dive. I think it could be drained over a period of a couple of days, effectively giving me days of "deco," just in case the U.S. Navy Dive Tables haven't covered that completely.

Why not be doubly safe?

Shell: Wireless will work to wireless, assuming a short distance, but I haven't seen a system where the wireless signal is capable of traversing the water's surface. In other words, two communicators would be able to communicate if they were both underwater, or both topside, but not if one was topside and one was under. Thus, the idea is to create two underwater units, but have the controls/speaker/mic of the one all topside... With the transmitter/reciever underwater. Something like this would be either an unusual or custom piece of equipment... My idea was simply to modify one of the units that I already have. (Although something like this might be available commercially.)

Thanks for the well-wishes, ScubaTex... Do you remember Charlie Hillard? I met him once when I was eleven. He held the world's record for most continuous loops performed in an airplane. I think it was something like 1200 consecutive loops, in a Christen Eagle. I thought he was the coolest man alive.

Yeah, Craig Breedlove's always been "da man" for me. I cried when I watched his documentary on Discovery or History or whatever channel it was on... He lost his dog, man. ;-0

 

[Waterborne]

Hey SeaJay, this sounds like a sweet plan! I don't think I could do it but it's great that you're up to a challenge like that. Do you have a timeline worked out for this or is it too early still?

Yes... There will be surface support 24/7, and all surface support personnel will be required to be at least OW certified... And then checked out by the leaders of this team. So not only will there be an actual standby diver, but anyone on staff will be able to, in a pinch, act as a sort of "backup" standby diver.

Can you elaborate more on the surface support personnel? Specificaly the types of support teams, size, medical standby, equipment monitoring and repair? I would be happy to volunteer my dive and medical experience if you think it can be of help.

 

[SeaJay]

Unfortunately, still too early to tell. The original plan... Which is still the plan... Is to do this mid-November. However, it's really going to be up to the facility as to when the event can occur. I do want this to happen sometime around the end of this year or the beginning of next year.

Can you elaborate more on the surface support personnel? Specificaly the types of support teams, size, medical standby, equipment monitoring and repair? I would be happy to volunteer my dive and medical experience if you think it can be of help.

Sure I can elaborate!

There will be at least one person available topside at all times, and there will be two people available topside during most of the time. Each Monday and Thursday the entire staff will be there in order to allow for public relations opportunities.

There will be an event leader, directly responsible for the safety of the diver... And that leader will elect three team leaders, responsible for their third of a rotating shift. Each team will consist of three to four individuals, including the team leader.

All of the support personnel will need to be certified divers, and all will need to be capable of minor computer/electronics setup or diagnosis (we'll teach you how to do the "basics," but you need to be capable of learning it), air fills, and most of all, public relations.

From a medical standpoint, each of the three team leaders will need to be first aid and CPR qualified, and understand basic scuba physiology. Rescue certification or higher will be desired for all support staff, and required for team leader or higher. Undoubtedly, we will all get to know each other really well before the dive takes place, so a propensity to bond quickly with other like-minded people is a must.

Certainly your Rescue Diver experience would be a tremendous asset.

There will actually be three seperate dives... The first for a 24 hour stint, and the second a week later, at 72 hours. Within a month from that point, the full 14-day dive will occur. Support personnel will need to be available for their part of all three of the dives... Which leads me to believe that this will require either local divers or divers with the means to leave their jobs for two weeks or more.

Each of the support crew will be strictly volunteer, although sponsorships are looking good, and it is possible that, by the time the dive occurs, help offsetting costs (such as lost wages or travel expenses) may be available.

That's all I have for now... I'll keep you posted.

 

[ScubaTexan]

SeaJay once bubbled...
Thanks for the well-wishes, ScubaTex... Do you remember Charlie Hillard? I met him once when I was eleven. He held the world's record for most continuous loops performed in an airplane. I think it was something like 1200 consecutive loops, in a Christen Eagle. I thought he was the coolest man alive.

Yes, I remember Charlie Hillard. My dad did some welding work on his airplane that he set the world record in. He flew out of Spinks Airfield in South Fort Worth, where my dad was working as a Heliarc Welder at the time. Charlie was almost totally fearless. We all miss him. :flyer:

 

[SeaJay]

That's the coolest thing I think I've ever heard... That your dad worked on his plane. Small world, eh?

What a beautiful airplane. I always wanted a Christen Eagle. Someday.

...So... What... Happened... To Charlie Hillard?

 

[SeaCobra]

Sleeping may be more of a challenge than previously thought. As far as I understand an unconcious person lacks the sufficient respiratory reflex to breathe from a demand regulator. The AGA, the EXO26 as well as standard scuba are demand regs.

Staying awake for 14 days seems like quite a challenge. Gonna have lots of coffee breaks?

 

[detroit diver]

SeaCobra once bubbled...
Sleeping may be more of a challenge than previously thought. As far as I understand an unconcious person lacks the sufficient respiratory reflex to breathe from a demand regulator. The AGA, the EXO26 as well as standard scuba are demand regs.

Staying awake for 14 days seems like quite a challenge. Gonna have lots of coffee breaks?

I believe there are models of these masks that are positive pressure, and not demand type.