Instructor name??

[Peter Beaudry]

I am trying to identify my Dive instructor from my original diving certificate. I was certified in Sarasota Florida in 1970. I remember the Instructor had a lime green 240 Z and our checkout dives were in Warm Mineral Springs. We had to go to the bottom of the cave to get the depth requirement for the certificate. We used the spring because it was warm and the Gulf of Mexico was cold.

I am trying to get a replacement Dive Card because I am going to the Bahamas in May and have a niece who wants to do a night dive and a shark dive and asked me to tag along. Any information would be greatly appreciated. I can be reach d at splinterconstruction@yahoo.com

Hell while I am at it I also was rectified 1975 by NAUI. I was going to New College and studying underwater archeology and Ichthyology. I had an internship with the Florida State Under Water Archaeology team excavating at Warm Mineral Springs. I don't remember the kind of car this instructor drove, we did dives off of Bradenton Florida, the weather was warmer. I do remember picking up a couple of nice grouper though during that checkout dive.

Thanks. Peter

 

[Chugwhump]

May I ask,
When was your last dive?

Chug
NOT the " SCUBA POLICE"!

 

[diversteve]

You can verify yourself on NAUI's website then apply for a replacement card there. Both under "Divers" https://www.naui.org/SignIn.aspx

 

[Diver0001]

Peter,

If I understand correctly, you have a NAUI certification. Are you able to find your card? Could you post a picture of it?

Sadly, if you aren't able to provide proof that you were certified in 1970 then many operators may not allow you to dive. It's not that people won't believe you (it happens a lot), but if you can't prove it then they will be forced to cover their proverbial patoosh.

Moreover, there may be good reasons for you to re-certify. Gear has changed since 1970. BCD's, octopus use and placement, developments in deco theory/ascents, and emergency protocols have all changed since you learned to dive. It may be in your best interest to take a course again in order to familiarize yourself with modern gear, techniques and theory.

I once had a student who was an instructor for the NOB/CMAS in the late 1960's. He came to us without proof but with a convincing story and when I took him into the pool it was immediately evident that this guy could dive. I brought him up to date on skills, theory and gear (he had never seen a modern BCD.... in fact when he put it on, he did a chicken-wing and said, "Wow, *anyone* can dive with one of these!" LOL). We took him through the OW course at tempo, confirming that he possessed the necessary skills and theory and certified him in a fraction of the time it would take a normal student. Even though he couldn't prove it on paper, not a single one of us doubted his claim, especially after seeing him in the water.

R..

 

[herman]

I will add that most dive ops will not allow you to dive even with a card if you have not recently taken a refresher or dove within the last year and that is on basic OW dives. It is very unlikely they will even consider taking you on a night or shark dive if you can not show some recent diving experience, reguardless of cert. At the very minumum you will want to do a refresher course (1 day) but if it has been that long, a complete course is the best option.
Welcome to the board.

 

[oly5050user]

I too recommend at a bare minimum to do a refresher, would be better to redo ow course. Especially if you seem to have had ow certification with very limited or no experience after being certified.

 

[WheelsUSN]

You can verify yourself on NAUI's website then apply for a replacement card there. Both under "Divers" https://www.naui.org/SignIn.aspx

It is doubtful that the website would verify a certification that old. When I tried to verify my certifications from the mid 80's the website couldn't find my record. When I called NAUI I was informed that back then divers were referenced by their SSN and the current system does it by birthdate. It only took a couple of minutes for the customer service rep that I was talking to to find my certifications and add my birthdate to their records so that they now show up.