Snorkelling trivia

[David Wilson]

Vancouver's statue of a Girl in a Wetsuit

I thought I'd start a new thread about snorkelling-related trivia, particularly things I've found online which have interested me and may, or may not, be of interest to others. Apologies in advance in the likely event that you are already familiar with my finds. Please feel free to add your own.

First up is an example of snorkelling art, Elek Imredy's statue of a "Girl in a Wetsuit":

This sculpture was erected on 9 June 1972 in Burrard Inlet, just off the shore of Stanley Park, Vancouver, British Columbia. Unable to obtain permission to reproduce Copenhagen's Little Mermaid statue, the Canadian city commissioned a modern version with diving mask, wet suit, and swim fins. No snorkel, though!

According to the sculptor's wife, Peggy Imredy, "She represents Vancouver's dependence on the sea and the necessity to use the sea for the benefit of all."

 

[David Wilson]

Snorkelling fins as a fashion statement

Next up is another example of snorkelling art, in the guise of fashionable footwear.

"High Tide Heels", a combination of high heels and full-foot snorkelling fins, attracted plenty of international critical attention when they were created by Belgian artist Paul Schietekat for an exhibition in 2006:

"High Tide Heels" have their own website at
http://www.hightideheels.be/
"High Tide Heels Pro", a similar design with a different blade, was added to the line in 2008:

Other recent combinations of full-foot fins with high heels in the name of art include:


Apparently, these items cannot be purchased in any retail outlet, online or otherwise. I expect the health and safety authorities in most countries of the world have already banned pedestrians from wearing them in the street. I wonder, however, whether they may eventually find a following among fashion-conscious aquatic enthusiasts when they go snorkelling?

 

[David Wilson]

Snorkel masks: relic or workaround?

According to the German proverb, "alle guten Dinge sind drei", all good things come in threes, so here's my third contribution to the thread.

The image above (click it for a larger view) shows what I think is the last in a long line of snorkelling gear: the snorkel mask. It does not even come with a model name, only the stock code 107S. The Greek diving equipment manufacturer Majorca Sub features it in the mask section of its website at
Majorca Sub
Until recently, I believe, another Greek underwater swimming equipment maker, EuroBalco, also manufactured a snorkel mask:

Snorkel masks were plentiful in the 1950s when "skin diving" began growing in popularity. The Historical Diving Society of Italy has an interesting illustrated document about vintage diving masks, entitled "Viaggio nelle attrezzature sportive degli anni '50 (1^a puntata)" at
http://www.hdsitalia.com/articoli/20_attrezzature.pdf
This article lists, and illustrates, no fewer than nine different snorkel masks, the most famous of which is probably the Cressi Medusa:

The snorkel mask, which covered the mouth, allowing the snorkeller to choose whether to breathe through the nose or the mouth, lost popularity over the years, largely due to fears about the safety of the valves at the end of the snorkel(s) mounted on the mask. Recently, however, on another forum, one contributor was interested in researching snorkel masks as an option for surface snorkellers unable or unwilling to tolerate the presence of a mouthpiece in the mouth. Maybe the snorkel mask can live on, not just as a relic of the past, but as a workaround for people who just want to watch underwater life from the surface of the water. What do you think?

And there I'll pause, waiting patiently for your kind response!

 

[jwc3]

David,

Thanks for your post. I've seen the "High Tide Heels" before and think they're a great piece of pop art sculpture. I'd love to have a pair to display as art in my house.

The snorkel mask, however, is new to me. I guess the only thing about this that won't work is that you can't pinch your nose to equalize your ears. I love the floating "flaps" that will close the snorkels when they are submerged.

I wonder if monofins will one day be viewed as humorous fads from the past?

 

[David Wilson]

Thanks, jwc3. Yes, I expected the first, 2006, edition of High Tide Heels to be already well known, although it came as a surprise to me to learn that at least two newer variations from the original version had appeared since then! I too like the design, particularly because I think that the classic solid-colour full-foot snorkelling fins of yesteryear are a more elegant design than today's multicoloured, over-engineered and over-featured offerings.

I agree that the snorkel mask presents ear-equalising problems. However, as an aid to the surface swimmer, floating and watching what is happening below, it may still be of benefit, particularly to those who dislike gripping a snorkel mouthpiece between their teeth.

As for monofins, I'll leave any speculation about their future to the finswimmers and freedivers who use them. They've been around since at least the 1960s, so there's a good chance they'll be around for a good time to come. I do wonder about one particular addition to Finis's line in monofins, though, the Mermaid:

They are meant for the under-twelves, I suppose...

 

[Will]

I wonder if monofins will one day be viewed as humorous fads from the past?

The toy ones - yes probably - but the real professional level monofins - don't think so. I use one for my freediving and it definitely is not just a "fad item" - sure there may be better designs to come - but it is pretty darn efficient when used properly. Monofins have helped freedivers reach depths of hundreds of meters on one breath alone - I find that anything but humorous

 

[David Wilson]

I'm going to leave freediving to freedivers and return to the subject of snorkelling, this time focusing on fins. What to call these foot appendages has generated endless debate. Owen Churchill, who first marketed them in the USA before World War II named them "swim fins" and that name has more or less stuck as the official term. The word "flippers" for the same "footwear" seems to be generally frowned upon by many divers, who when they hear this popular expression often crack the very old joke that "Divers wear fins. Flipper was a dolphin".

However, the use of the term "flippers" for "fins" isn't entirely populist and unofficial. There are at least three countries with National Standards for fins: Germany, Russia and Malaysia. The two that are written in languages other than English have subtitles in English. Germany's (1980) reads: "Flippers, dimensions, requirements and testing", while Russia's (1977) says: "Swimming rubber flippers". Of course, these countries should perhaps have checked their English translations more carefully, but no correction has been made to either document in their almost three decades of validity. There are probably more important things in the world to think about...

 

[David Wilson]

And now for fins in other languages.

1. The Spanish word for fins, "aletas", means "little wings".
2. The French word for fins, "palmes", also means "palms".
3. The Turkish word for fins, "paletler", also means "palettes".

 

[David Wilson]

And FINally...

The image below is of a musical celebrity who shares his surname with the word for "fin" in one of the world's major languages. Who is he and what is the language? No prizes, I'm afraid, just the personal satisfaction of solving the puzzle!

 

[JVanste]

I'm working with the guy in Greece on reproducing these masks in silicone for people with disabilities. I'm making improvements.