Mansfield DamDive Report 10.21

[FIXXERVI6]

I found them early in the morning, and when I got up early, I put them on.

 

[Goose75]

Did you ask permission for them back first?

 

[FIXXERVI6]

Nope I keep them under close guard at all times

 

[Daylonious]

I did 120 at Mansfield dam when I was getting my deco / adv nitrox cert.

Here's a hellish situation for ya:

1) Aug 28th, Texas, Mansfield Dam in the parking lot.
2) 7mm suit with hood on.
3) 110 degrees outside.
4) Backplate with doubles, (steel 90's)
5) 40cf deco bottle clipped under one arm.

And THEN we start walking....

I made it to the handicapped basket thing and said "screw it, I'm dying here, that's as good as handicapped" and rode the basket down.

My conscious is clear.. ;-)

D.

 

[O2BBubbleFree]

....

I made it to the handicapped basket thing and said "screw it, I'm dying here, that's as good as handicapped" and rode the basket down.

My conscious is clear.. ;-)

D.

Ya know, when I was out there a while back, just checking things out, I read the sign on the basket and got the impression that it was there for the disabled, but not limited. Looked to me like anyone could use it. But I could be wrong.

 

[loosebits]

Yep, signs also refer to it as a "Diver Courtesy Lift". If I've just finished a deep dive and my tissues are loaded up, I'll be damned if I'm going to hump my doubles up those stairs if I don't have to.

My father's in a wheel chair so I am quite sensitive to the needs of the disabled and would never dream of using a resource for the disabled when there is a possibility that it may inconviencience a disabled person.

Besides, with the lake level as low as it was, it could not have been used by the disabled anyway (or at least not by someone confined to a wheelchair) because at the bottom the ramp was about a 1' drop to a rocky beach.

 

[Crazyduck]

Yeah, lugging 150lbs of weight while wearing a zip lock bag is no fun.

Some folks have been known to use dollies to move tanks/doubles; not a bad idea mind you. Sam’s has a nice dolly for about $80.00. Plus, at places like Balmorhea you can convert it into a cart.

Also that’s why some people went to sidemount or rebreathers. Please be careful with the weight more than a few people have been hurt with neck, nerve, and back damage.

Another option is to move all the gear to the water and have a divemaster watch it while you do final jump into your wetsuit/drysuit- zip lock bag.

Oh, don’t forget to program your computer before you start either- done that too.

Andrew

 

[O2BBubbleFree]

My father's in a wheel chair so I am quite sensitive to the needs of the disabled and would never dream of using a resource for the disabled when there is a possibility that it may inconviencience a disabled person.

I hear ya. My mom had polio when she was 6. Ran everywhere before, walked with crutches after. Now that she's in her 60's she's using a scooter a lot more. As a kid, for my Eagle Scout project I put in a bunch of disabled parking spots around town. I also worked for the Rocky Mountain ADA advising center for a few years. I get pretty irate when I see someone park in a reserved parking spot who doesn't need to use it, or complain that the 'handicap stall' in the restroom takes up too much space, or when a business has crap stacked in the hall so that the isle to the 'accessible' WC is only 18" wide. See, now, you got me started...

 

[TGamel]

Well, we had a nice day of diving on Saturday.

We left the house in Keller about 6:30am, hit McDonalds, filled up with gas $50.00 and headed down to Austin. The drive was nice and XM radio paid for itself in spades. Construction through Austin is getting monstrous- starting to look like Houston which is sad sight. I remember 10 years ago pulling onto FM620 and there was nothing noda, now- wow batman it’s insane.

I still have to resize the pic’s but the lake was down by about 20ft. :11: Walked down the “stairs of shame” and from the bottom step it was a good twenty vertical feet to the water. Wow, nothing like traipsing down 90 steps and then having to climb over boulders to get down to the water. Hopefully the Corp of Engineers will use this time to replace the boulders with rock stairs or pavers- HA…don’t hold your breathe. Windy Point would have been a better selection with at least two sets of deep stairs and platforms and multi levels of entries. Oh well….


All and all a great day of totally recreational diving. Nice seeing the known convicts and meeting some new friends.

Regards, Andrew

Now Sunday was a different matter, it was windy and choppy with a northly wind. I was finishing up my open water certification at Windy Point @ Lake Travis that weekend and it got cool on the surface, but under the water the temp was great. Burn't up a whole tank after dive #4, had quite the time looking for the submerged jetski and sailboat. Vis got worse on sunday, but hey we were in the water and everything else didn't matter. I am looking forward to diving Travis when the water level gets back up maybe the vis will be better.

 

[Aggie Diver]

One minor correction Crazyduck, that was the A&M group from College Station, not Galveston