Sheri Daye
Registered
- Messages
- 25
- Reaction score
- 23
Wookie and Johnoly gave good explanations about The Blue Wild, and maybe I can add a little more. The show did start out as a small spearfishing charity event the first year. We are now in our 8th year, and our goal has been to diversify more each year -- and I think you will notice a big change in 2015.
These past couple years we've added speakers and seminars to cover Photography by Craig Dietrich, Presentations by Stan Waterman and Dr. Eugenie Clark, History of Freediving by Robert Croft, Careers in Scuba by Nikole Ordway, PADI Member Forum by PADI, Lobstering by Johnoly, Saltwater Aquarium Setup, Safety at Sea, US Coast Guard Stories and Advice, The Search for Pearls, several DAN Presentations by Dr. Neal Pollock, Fitness for Divers, and more. I'm always interested in new and interesting topics (non-spearing), and I would love to hear suggestions.
So far, for next February, we have a Whale Expedition presentation by Rob Torelli (films for BBC, Discovery, etc), Under the Bridge video by Diane Randolph, Recent Shipwreck Discoveries by Mike Barnette, a couple Photography/Videography Workshops, Stan Waterman is coming back, and a few more things in the works. We are also covering Kayaking and Stand up Paddleboard -- we have a new outdoor section with a Kayak Pool (by Bass Pro), and a SUP/diving pool in case anyone wants to give it a try. We have Contender Boats displaying their latest products. And we are always very proud of our Marine Art Exhibit -- I believe we may have one of the largest gatherings of famous marine artists in one place (you can see their bios on the website) -- Pascal, Carey Chen, KC Scott, Don Ray, Randall Scott, Jason Mathias, and more. As Wookie said, we will have a dedicated Travel/Resort Pavilion (non-spearing) exhibitors including: Spree, Blackbeard's, Bimini Big Game Club, Blue Water Explorer in Tonga (whale watching expeditions), UNEXSO/Grand Lucayan, and more. We had a Photo Contest year before last which was sponsored by Divers Direct/Blackbeard's/Coco View and it was a great success -- a lot of work, but a lot of fun, so we're planning to do it again. Divers Direct has already committed (with great enthusiasm) to sponsor it again for 2016 and beyond, and I predict the Photo/Video section of the Expo will keep increasing more too.
All that being said, I understand if some are turned off by the spearfishing, but I think we are providing more new and interesting activities/speakers that everyone can enjoy. By the way, I got rave reviews on Johnoly's lobster workshop last time -- he was kind of enough to share some of his top secrets. Anyway, feedback/suggestions are always welcome and appreciated.
These past couple years we've added speakers and seminars to cover Photography by Craig Dietrich, Presentations by Stan Waterman and Dr. Eugenie Clark, History of Freediving by Robert Croft, Careers in Scuba by Nikole Ordway, PADI Member Forum by PADI, Lobstering by Johnoly, Saltwater Aquarium Setup, Safety at Sea, US Coast Guard Stories and Advice, The Search for Pearls, several DAN Presentations by Dr. Neal Pollock, Fitness for Divers, and more. I'm always interested in new and interesting topics (non-spearing), and I would love to hear suggestions.
So far, for next February, we have a Whale Expedition presentation by Rob Torelli (films for BBC, Discovery, etc), Under the Bridge video by Diane Randolph, Recent Shipwreck Discoveries by Mike Barnette, a couple Photography/Videography Workshops, Stan Waterman is coming back, and a few more things in the works. We are also covering Kayaking and Stand up Paddleboard -- we have a new outdoor section with a Kayak Pool (by Bass Pro), and a SUP/diving pool in case anyone wants to give it a try. We have Contender Boats displaying their latest products. And we are always very proud of our Marine Art Exhibit -- I believe we may have one of the largest gatherings of famous marine artists in one place (you can see their bios on the website) -- Pascal, Carey Chen, KC Scott, Don Ray, Randall Scott, Jason Mathias, and more. As Wookie said, we will have a dedicated Travel/Resort Pavilion (non-spearing) exhibitors including: Spree, Blackbeard's, Bimini Big Game Club, Blue Water Explorer in Tonga (whale watching expeditions), UNEXSO/Grand Lucayan, and more. We had a Photo Contest year before last which was sponsored by Divers Direct/Blackbeard's/Coco View and it was a great success -- a lot of work, but a lot of fun, so we're planning to do it again. Divers Direct has already committed (with great enthusiasm) to sponsor it again for 2016 and beyond, and I predict the Photo/Video section of the Expo will keep increasing more too.
All that being said, I understand if some are turned off by the spearfishing, but I think we are providing more new and interesting activities/speakers that everyone can enjoy. By the way, I got rave reviews on Johnoly's lobster workshop last time -- he was kind of enough to share some of his top secrets. Anyway, feedback/suggestions are always welcome and appreciated.
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