Its go time here, California... I need your help

[Mo2vation]

As NetDoc spoke to recently, there is lots of good stuff on the horizon for the board, and for our little section.

Some of this stuff requires decisions be made rather quickly. A few of the more urgent and essential decisions include:

#1) A name for the entire California Group. The current California Dreamers name will stick if we don't make a move over the next week or so. We've had some suggestions so far (some good ones actually)... but we'll need to wrap it up by next week.

#2) To make the No Cal / So Cal thing work, I need to provide a proper dividing line. Please provide your suggestions as to where to draw the line, geographically. Sorry Central Cal, we're only diving this great state into two parts for our purposes here. Please suggest a city or other easily identifiable border...no GPS coordinates, you wacky people.

So you know - the archives are currently in the No Cal board. I'll be moving the last few months of So Cal stuff back here soon. I will not endeavor to sift it all. AFTER I make the move, if there is a So Cal thread that you have a special fondness for, PM me and I can move it to the So Cal room.

Ken



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[Brian Gilpin]

The most logical line would be south of Monterey. Big Sur would be a good choice. Most Norcal divers dive Monterey & Carmel but most Socal divers probably do not. Please consider not only miles of coastline but also population density. Very few people both live in and dive the Big Sur area so less people would be disturbed.

By the way hard core Northern California separatists refer to our area as the State of Jefferson. Really.

Good Luck
Brian

 

[kevjl2]

I say South of Big Sur.

Names could be

California Kelp Raiders

California Vis Junkies

 

[Mo2vation]

In a million years, I never would have drawn the line that far North. wow. I'm such a So Cal.

Thanks so far. This is good.

K

 

[Dryglove]

Yea i think south of big sur would be a good cutoff line and would even consider going as far south as montana de oro, morro bay and cambria. Although those are central Ca dive spots there can be some decent diving there on good days. They are not near as popular as dive spots from big sur up through monterey though.

As far as names, i suck at picking names so ill leave that to someone else

 

[Mo2vation]

So when I had my two perfect dives this weekend, one at Big Sur and the other off of Monestary beach, I had one dive in So Cal and one dive in No Cal?

Hmmm... Who knew?

I'm actually thinking much further south - becase So Cals (myself included) are pretty ignorant to anything north of SB or SLO. Basically San Diego to SB was my initial thought, as Ventura is about as far as any self-respecting So Cal will likely drive for a dive.

Is going to SLO way too far south? Would throwing you Central divers into the No Cal group be too weird?

I dunno. Still smoking on matters...


K

 

[Dryglove]

Mo2vation once bubbled...

Is going to SLO way too far south? Would throwing you Central divers into the No Cal group be too weird?

I would say go to montana de oro which has spooners cove. Its a very popular spot amongst the locals and a lot of boat divers and kayak divers go there to dive. It has also been a spot for great white sightings not to long ago When i dive locally its usually at montana de oro, morro bay, and cambria. All are decent dive spots.

South of those are avila beach and pismo which i have never dove except for avila a few times. I dont dive avila as its not that great of a dive and somebody recently got eaten by a shark there.

There is a dive shop in morro bay, SLO, and atascedero for air fills and other scuba needs.

 

[cliffdiver]

Well, as you can see, I don't post much, but I have feedback on this one...

As an original Southern Californian (raised just south of LA) who later on lived for 13 years in Santa Barbara, and then progressed even further north - I've now lived in San Francisco for over a half-dozen years - I think I've got some perspective:

I think that once you hit Oxnard or so and especially Santa Barbara, most of the Central Coast won't or don't want to think of themselves as Southern Californians... or Northern Californians. I think the mindset/way of thinking/what-the-heck-ever-you-want-to-call-it of those on the Central Coast, however, more closely resembles "Southern" than "Northern," and people probably don't think of themselves as Northern Californians until you hit the Bay Area - say, Carmel/Salinas north.

Of course, lots of "Northern Californians" head south on Channel Islands dive trips....

So, anyway, I say we go with anything south of Carmel/Big Sur, or if we have to pick a biggish town, then you start Southern California at Morro Bay, with the understanding that that includes sites around it. So, I guess I'm agreeing with lal7176...

 

[sapphire]

I vote for Santa Barbara or SLO as the dividing line...

How about:

"California Kelp Creepers" or "California Kelp Crawlers" for something a little lighter... if not, I like "California Kelp Divers" as was suggested earlier...

peace

sapphire

 

[rjens]

I like California Kelp Divers,

As to dividing line, I agree with Cliffdiver, anything south of Carmel isn't NorCal (not No Cal). The problem is that Santa Barbara is realistically the northern coastal boundary of SoCal. So I would recommend splitting on either Big Sur or SB so you don't split Central Coast.

Just my $.02

rj