Official vintage diving instruction?

[DaleC]

Hard to believe but there already is a (PADI?? ) vintage diving specility. I don't know anything more about it than this add. AQUALUNG VINTAGE - Double Hose Dive System

For what it's worth, I have done several presentations at LSD club meeting and have done several "try vintage diving" days, all of which were well attended. My local vintage buddy and myself had about a dozen or so divers in a LDS pool a couple of weeks ago diving our old gear. The interest is there if you get the word out and into an open forum where people can find you. The last event was hosted by a local dive board, NC Divers. We had around 15 divers attend and a bunch more wanted to but could not make the date. The interest is there if you can find a way to get together.

Like you Herman, I have been trying to do my bit, though in a smaller way. I've brought vintage gear to my club meetings for show and tell and to the pool for dives. I also make my spare DH available if anyone wants to try it out.



I doubt a full on course would be the way to go and would even regret it a bit I think. One nice spect of "our thing" is that it isn't codified and prepackaged with "professionals" telling us what to do.

That being said, I do think there is room for organizations like NAVED to be more proactive in terms of trying to put together vintage events or workshops on the various aspects of VE diving. I also realise there is nothing easier than saying "someone else" should do something.
A problem I see (as others have said) is that we are few and far between, There is a pretty good chance of meeting as a community if you live in Florida, Socal or perhaps the Northeastern seaboard but there are many outliers (such as myself) who will probably never travel that far for a vintage event. This leaves many to learn on their own (IRL). Online video workshops or tutorials would help in that regard (but again, someone has to do the work).
I would hate to see something like PADI step in to pretend to teach vintage but if there is a void someone might fill it. Perhaps this is a discussion that could take place in the NAVED forum in regards to what role the National Association might want to play in this type of education.

 

[simonbeans]

For many years there has been talk of a vintage event in CA. Seems everybody wants one, but nobody steps up to organize. Having been involved in many of the Sand Dogs, getting the event planned is not such a big deal. Interestingly, most of my event planning has been for doings in FL. I live in NY. Recently many of us show up in Ohio for the Portage Quarry doings. Is the diving great? Nope. But just having a group of double hosers there makes the travel worth while. If you are a distance and must fly, just let NAVED members know (most are on VDH) and you will have tanks, weights available once you show up. Traveling is expensive these days. so maybe a year in the planning can make it workable for you.
Getting together once a year is fun. You might just be surprised when you meet these forum names in person a true friendship can develop. Many of my "forum" buddies travel here to NY, we head to the Finger Lakes or the 1000 Islands. Cost is very low, once they get here. They reciprocate and life is good.

I should talk more in metaphors and similes or try to be abstract to impress my Aussie friends.

 

[Nemrod]

Good to see you're swimming both parallel to the plane and perpendicular.

Two axises at the same time.

Now that's DIN doin it Nemrod.
/QUOTE]


I should point out that I was the photographer, not the subjects. I may well have been upside down when I took the shots, who knows, since I am not really there and they are not really there, might not have even been there at all. It is all our imagination because we don't exist.

We are just some bizarre dream in the mind of God anyways and when he wakes up from this nightmare, poof, we are all gone.

N

 

[herman]

And just to prove Nemrod is a photog in vingtage gear, here he is in Freeport Bahama, Sanddog VIII.

 

[Airleron]

Hey N, I call foul....that's NOT a vintage camera.:cool2:

 

[DaleC]

Now here's a vintage camera (the housing anyways):

From: Last of the Blue Water Hunters by Carlos Eyles

 

[Paladin]

Alan,
Are you gonna be at Portage this year for LOD? I'd like another chance to try out that Mistral. By the way, how's that wetsuit doing for ya?

 

[Nemrod]

Hey N, I call foul....that's NOT a vintage camera.:cool2:

Well, how about the fact that my depth gauge was a Voit Navy but actually only a Xerox copy of the face of one and then stuck in a watch case. Fake VIP stickers are nothing, I even do fake depth gauges .

The camera, well, the last place on the planet that did Kodachrome was in Kansas and they closed. What can I say, they took my Kodachrome away .

N

 

[Airleron]

Well, how about the fact that my depth gauge was a Voit Navy but actually only a Xerox copy of the face of one and then stuck in a watch case. Fake VIP stickers are nothing, I even do fake depth gauges .

The camera, well, the last place on the planet that did Kodachrome was in Kansas and they closed. What can I say, they took my Kodachrome away .

N

Hm, Do you think if I tape a picture of Voit Duck Feet fins over my Tusa's, anyone will notice? I'll use duck tape, of course.

Lisa

 

[DaleC]

...but actually only a Xerox copy of the face of one and then stuck in a watch case.

Now that's funny