It's not a rumor, I just got this email from them
:
Breaking News - Cypress Sea is sold
It is with mixed emotions that we announce the sale of the Cypress Sea. The boat will return to being a crew boat, working the most ambitious construction project in California history, the Bay Bridge, busily shuttling workers back and forth. It seems a very short time ago we retrofitted it to transport divers, and pulled into the Breakwater Marina ready to launch our dive charter business. We were filled with heady dreams of helping develop Monterey into a dive destination sought after and flocked to by divers worldwide. Today, Monterey remains a world class dive destination, its stunning beauty wisely protected by sanctuary status. Yet, despite the valiant efforts of dive operators throughout the area, the diving stubbornly remains associated with weekend adventures for mostly local divers, as only a lucky few enjoy the quiet solitude of week day getaways. The irony is that we had our weekend charters for 2010 well organized and planned out for the entire year. The reality is that operating a business two days a week is not a recipe for a profitable endeavor, especially when the business is also highly weather dependent, and the offer we received seemed timely. As such, the charter on Sunday, Dec. 13 will be the final one. Our 22 year journey has been both rewarding and frustrating at the same time.
We have made some incredible and lasting friendships, witnessed several couples meet and fall in love with their future spouses on board, and introduced hundreds of divers to Montereys legendary dive sites, while discovering and naming many other secret spots. Our captains and crew members have been excellent front men for our business, safely transporting divers to the sites, keeping a watchful eye during the dives, while entertaining, feeding, and, when necessary, caring for them between dives. None have done this with more character and style than the one-man-show himself, Phil Sammet. From the early bagel wars, to the bras hung from various antennas, to shenanigans they think I never knew about rest assured Phil was behind them! The memory of Correys bright and mischievous smile also comes to mind and tears still involuntarily well up. Our store staff have manned the phones, answering questions (Whats the weather going to be like this weekend?) and booking reservations. We are deeply appreciative of our crew and staffs dedication to excellence, and we owe a debt of gratitude to them for the favorable reputation we have earned. We are also deeply grateful for our regular charterers: the dive stores and dive clubs who faithfully and enthusiastically coordinated events and classes to bring their divers aboard. Our mutual love of Monterey diving has created a bond that we hope will carry beyond the dissolution of our charter business. Finally, we are grateful for the dive community. None of this would have been possible without divers! What a wonderful assortment of characters we have met over the years from those experiencing their very firsts first boat dive, first night dive, first cold water dive, first time seeing (fill in the blank) to highly experienced divers enjoying Monterey at her finest to everything in between the stories you have generated will be treasured and elicit smiles for a long time
It has been our privilege to have you aboard!
It has certainly been a year of transition, change, and sadness for us personally. To every thing there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven. (Ecc. 3:1) As the Cypress Sea pulls up to the dock one final time and that season closes, we look forward to being able to fully focus our attention on our dive store, Any Water Sports in San Jose - now in our 26th year in business - continuing to provide friendly and professional service and instruction, offering competitive pricing on a well stocked inventory of dive equipment to recreational and tech divers throughout the area, and providing air, nitrox, and tri-mix fills to certified and qualified divers. We, too, will become customers of the other excellent operators who provide boat diving in Monterey, and we will continue to provide a wide variety of travel opportunities throughout the world. We look forward to working with you as your dive store of choice for many years to come.
Ginny and Frank Barry
I called Any Water and they refused to confirm or deny this 'rumor' saying there was nothing appropriate to comment on. I asked that they post here (they are familiar with scubaboard) as soon as there was something to comment on.
