Stepping back in SCUBA time....

[drbill]

Ah, the 60's... plastic backpacks, no BCD's, no octopus (at least on the reg), beaver tails, "Jim Bowie" dive knives (to kill the great whites of course), J-valves, etc. Didn't use a BCD until 1989 (and didn't like the experience at all). Did my first post-certification dive with one of my students to 90' to photograph a worm he'd seen. We pulled our two tanks off the "filled" rack but no pressure gauge to test them. Arrived at depth and felt the tanks draw hard. Reached back to pull J-valves and... they were already down. Buddy breathed on what little air was left in my tank til we both surfaced scared as hell.

Yes, it is a wonder that 42 years later I'm still diving. And I'm even more alive than I was then.

Biggest positive change other than the equipment? The increasing number of women who have joined what used to be a "man's" sport.

Dr. Bill

 

[texdiveguy]

I remember in pool training in 1971 having to go down and ditch what little SCUBA we wore,,,,,CESA to the surface,,,THEN free dive back down and put the gear back on and come up using our SCUBA....gee

 

[The Kraken]

Ah, those were the days !!!
God, I'm glad it's safer now.
But, then, it didn't concern me too much back then because I was just about to head off to sunny southeast Asia to fly helicopters for Uncle Sam's green machine.

Too my scuba training from a guy by the name of Bill Snow down in Panama City, Florida back in '69.

 

[Rick Inman]

In the 70's in S. CA, we easily bagged up with Scallops, Abalone, Lobsters, Sheepshead and bass. And everyone thought it was a GOOD thing.
We had big, manly knives strapped to our caves.
We pee'ed in our wet suits.
The most popular diving locations almost never had other divers.
The Voit company made volleyballs and scuba gear.

 

[The Kraken]

Oh, man !!!!

Voit !!! Black rubber, testosterone, uuurgh, uurgh, urgh ! ! ! ! ! !

 

[freediver]

Yea, well I remember swimming thru a 12 knot current with bread sacks on my feet! Not really, I just felt left out.

 

[donclaypool]

In the 70's in S. CA, we easily bagged up with Scallops, Abalone, Lobsters, Sheepshead and bass. And everyone thought it was a GOOD thing.
We had big, manly knives strapped to our caves.
We pee'ed in our wet suits.
The most popular diving locations almost never had other divers.
The Voit company made volleyballs and scuba gear.

You DON'T pee in your wetsuit anymore!

Dry diving is great. Anyone want to swap a shell for a 7mm Bare?

Don

 

[Kestrell]

I remember in pool training in 1971 having to go down and ditch what little SCUBA we wore,,,,,CESA to the surface,,,THEN free dive back down and put the gear back on and come up using our SCUBA....gee

I did that in '91 when I was certified. I don't think "they" make you do that any more though, which is too bad, I liked that skill.

 

[STOGEY]

LOL!! I also remember in those early 70's, it was a sport mainly partc. by young males/macho I think!! LOL Also I had a Dacor knife as big as a sword. My buddies and I had no SPG or depth gauges,,,,so we took a 60' rope and painted hash marks every foot,at the bottom of the rope was tied an OLD anchor we found---gee it is amazing we all survived some of those dives!

Are you saying that you surived only some of those dives? Where are you wrting to us from now? Or should we ask.

 

[STOGEY]

You DON'T pee in your wetsuit anymore!

Dry diving is great. Anyone want to swap a shell for a 7mm Bare?

Don

No I like the ability to pee when I want to. I get a little chuckle when I hear of women wearing dry suits and not havinga pee valve.