Earlier I had posted that I could see things from the perspective of the Lake Rawlings staff. I said that perhaps during times of large customer influx they might get short with people. Well, after sticking up for them, today was my day to have my own, unwarranted customer service "issue."
Two friends and myself met up at Rawlings, after the boat trip with Lynnhaven got canceled due to weather/low numbers.
At first everything was fine, paid my dues, got in. Friends were a bit late, and unfortunately my dingleberry battery was DEAD and I left my car charger in friends car. While I was contemplating wiring my digital camera battery to power the blackberry to check voice mail to make sure everything was okay, friends showed up.
Did our first dive, everything was fine. It was a pretty light day, there were customers but it wasn't like the normal crazy summer rushes. Clouds were odd.
We prepared to head off to lunch and dropped our tanks off to get a fill. We were the only people there. I ask for an air fill in my nitrox tank, because I figured there wasn't much point in getting a nitrox fill and it's easier. Kevin asks me what is in it now, I reply it is nitrox, 34%. He asks to see my certification card, I present what I've had for two years now... a sticker that SSI supplies with the certification, which is affixed to my PADI card. I also have the SSI open water card which was issued automatically when I completed the Nitrox thing (I have a PADI OW, but did the Nitrox with SSI, long story short the Nitrox course was less cost than loosing the Nitrox rating on the steel tank I bought used from someone looking to upgrade).
So dude gives me crap saying that the card isn't valid, because it's just a sticker. And it's on the PADI card. The sticker you get immediately, the card comes in the mail or to the shop. I've never had issues with this at LDC (which is where I got cert), Dive Quarters, or even Rawlings which I've been to probably 20 times now, perhaps 7 of them getting the same tank filled.
He said that the lack of me having a separate Nitrox specialty card was [Lynnhavens] way of being cheap, and I think he was basically saying I didn't really complete the course or perhaps the dive shop didn't really pay for the full certification on their end. Dana Chapman was who I tested with at Lynnhaven, and I remember in the documentation that SSI does the stickers on the base card. I'm in full confidence that LDC was proper on their side. I've still got all the paperwork.
So he says he needs to bleed it. I say that's fine. His fill station, his liability, his rules, that is fine.
If nothing else it was a bit amusing to me, I didn't smile or laugh at them. Inside I was thinking "I just got accused of having fraudulent nitrox credentials while getting an air fill."
So then he asks if my friends have air or nitrox in their tanks. Really both tanks belong to one person. The tanks are HP steel, no nitrox decal whatsoever. I think there was a piece of yellow tape on each, but it had writing on it (not MOD/MIX info). Kevin decides that they are lying, whips out the o2 analyzer, and in under 8 seconds tells them that they have 23% and that he has to bleed theirs too. My friend says the fill came from Dive Quarters. The attitude was really negative on the quarry side, we never contested it. We wanted food. We were leaving the tanks there so they could take their time, even though there wasn't a soul there at the shop. But the whole episode was just super negative. Unknowingly he basically dumped on Dive Quarters and Lynnhaven, two facilities that probably bring them quite a bit of business. I'm in full confidence that the dive shops were in the right.
So we go to lunch. There was much grumbling. It basically set us up for a negative rest of the day. We took a break from the Nottaway and hit the new Subway.
We get back. Roll through the gate and pull over to the side. Myself and one friend go in. Gave them money and got 2 of the 3 tanks. The other guy didn't realize I had room in my family sedan for all the tanks and he went and got his truck. Since he did it we tossed our tanks in his truck and he was going to grab his. The girl that handles the gate and some guy were hanging out on the easy go (4 wheel utility cart.) So snaps with the most, absolute WORST attitude... "YOU NEED TO MOVE RIGHT NOW BECAUSE YOU'RE BLOCKING THE ROAD." 50% anger, 50% a-hole is what I detected, but maybe my ratio is wrong. There isn't a soul in sight, and she has to know he was just picking up his stuff. I was pretty shocked by the attitude from her, but it fits in with what happened earlier. So he moves his truck immediately. I'm talking to my friend about this very thread, and she huffs into the shop, and out comes Kevin. He starts snipping at ME to move my vehicle because I'm blocking the road. I replied "Uh, I'm not the person she was complaining about" ... so he made up by saying that I was just too close to the roadway (which at that point could pass a RV ?? Granted a wide load might not fit through. All of this happened really rapidly. Cash was paid. I'd easily guess 5 minutes or less from arrival to departure. Once again, not a soul there (it was 2pm, most of the other people were in the water).
Overall, a super duper negative experience.
True story, I was just talking to Dana C, who was my nitrox instructor, Saturday, about the Rawlings thread on here... and pretty much backing them! I could have dropped Dana's name most likely during the Nitrox incident, but there shouldn't be a need to do such a thing.
On the other hand, if anyone knows of a good body of water around Hampton Roads that would make a good dive quarry, I'd be willing to invest CTO functions, creativity and ideas. Some competition for the poor attitudes at Rawlings would be great for the dive community.
My logical guess is that Rawlings bows to the shop owners that brings the bulk business but craps on the individual customers.
For the $30 in gas, and $25 in entrance fee, and $10 for a refill, and $5-$10 lunch if you buy it there... that pays for a trip on the Miss Lindsay!!
