Seriously, though, all I'm saying is what would it take to translate the enthusiasm people have for quarries to the ocean setting?
And, although your post stimulated a few 'animated' responses in a couple of cases, I think you made clear that your goal was to better understand why some might prefer quarries, when the ocean is readily available - it really wasn't a general 'dissing' of quarries by any means.
The divers I'm referring to often live on the coast (I mean nearer to the ocean than a quarry), so it's a longer drive to the quarry than the boat dock. What I was having difficulty understanding was why these folks almost NEVER dive the ocean.
I have the same difficulty. To be fair, I thoroughly enjoy diving quarries - close by, easy shore access, inexpensive, great place to check gear configurations, good for practicing skills, no seasickness issues (to speak of), etc. And, the one that is closest to me (30 minute drive) is a membership quarry with $40 annual dues, 24/7/365 access, 90 ft depths, good viz, etc. Plus, it has a large picnic shelter right next to the water, where we go after we dive and stow our gear to have some snacks, a few refreshing adult beverages, and a cigar. Very relaxing.
But, given a choice, I would prefer the ocean. Now, I am a bit biased at the moment. I just experienced last week the two best days of NC coastal diving I have ever spent, on the Tarpon, the Abrams and the Dixie Arrow, with fantatstic visibility, warm waters (bottom temps above 76 degrees), and some great company on a great boat operation (JT).
Drewski:
The look on my 13 year old niece's face as we lay motionless near the stern of the Dixie Arrow off Hatteras after other divers had left the wreck and more than 20 sand tiger sharks moved in right next to us, some more than 10 FT long, floating effortlessly only inches away.
My dive buddy and I did the same thing last week - lots of BIG, beautiful sand tigers. But, what made the Arrow dives so wonderful - I had never seen so many rays on the site before, and there were seemingly dozens of them swimming in toward, and along, the wreck, big and little. The two of us just hovered along the edge of the port side near the stern watching them for probably 5 minutes at the end of the dive.
Drewski:
The U.S.S. Tarpon bathed in blue topaz water so beautiful that it sparkled like jewelry when baitfish caught the beams of sunlight.
The viz on the Tarpon was easily 70 feet last week, and the sand tigers were in abundance. You couldn't ask for better conditions. The only 'negative' - we were swimming from bow to stern, along the port side, behind a big sand tiger who was hogging the left lane and moving slowly. I motioned from him to move over but he didn't 'take the bait'.
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From what's been posted here, cost and convenience (i.e., weather, availability, sea sickness, etc.) seem to be the big factors.
I would agree. For me, it is a 5 hour drive to Hatteras. OK, only 2.5 hr to Wilmington or Morehead. But, it is only 30 minutes to the quarry, and I probably won't get weathered out. So, I don't necessarily even fall into the category of divers with which you were initially communicating. Nonetheless, there is an element of predictability of quarry diving. I drive 30 minutes, get in the water, decide I don't care for the conditions, or my mind isn't in it, and I pack up and leave. Last month, my wife and I got up at 5am to drive to Wilmington, only to get a call from the charter op at 6:45 am as we neared the city limits, saying the charter had to be cancelled because of rising seas. Not a big deal in reality, but an example of the convenience issue.
I'll also bet - although only a few said this - that most of these people did all their certification dives in quarries. You often dive where you train.
And, that's a good point. Our shop does all our OW training in quarries, primarily because of being able to predictabily complete the classes on the assigned schedule. If we didn't, we would end up with a huge backlog of incomplete training at the end of the summer, not to mention the possibility of lower student numbers because of greater expense. But, we have started doing New Diver coastal charters in the last couple of years, where several instructors arrange a charter for their newly certified students on a good coastal site (e.g. the Hyde), and are there diving with them to help the students transition from the fresh water quarry to the open ocean - fun for us, great for the students.
So, kudos for the original post. Hopefully it will stimulate some thinking. Diving is fun wherever you go. And, one way to find that out is to experience as many venues as possible, and not just stick to one because it is convenient, or it is where you trained.
