Looks like it's the Dodgers vs the Padres starting Tuesday at Dodger Stadium . . .
ZOOM SEEKERS SCHEDULE CHANGE - And because of that baseball game (I have tickets which may create a time conflict), we're going to move our Zoom Seekers gathering to Monday night (10/10 - also my sister's birthday), still starting at 7:30PM. But this way, I don't have to worry about fighting traffic from Elysian Park to get back to Westwood in time (or be "stuck" at Dodger Stadium in the middle of the game). So . . .
ZOOM SEEKERS, MONDAY NIGHT, OCTOBER 10 - This is going to be an interesting and unusual one. Our guest speaker is Dr. Mark Legg, a geologist who I first met in 1996 when I did a dive in the Alvin submarine. One of the things we were looking for was evidence of earthquake faults on the backside of Catalina and Mark was the reason we were doing that. Mark will be talking about seafloor faults and underwater landslides, a major one of which happened at Arrow Point (NE Catalina) a number of years ago. Mark may also touch on the training he's done with astronauts about collecting rocks on the moon and Mars as much of that took place at Catalina as well. He's done a lot of research on some of the faults that run through Palos Verdes and he may be touching on some research that was done at White's Point, where it was thought that the warm-water vents there might be used as earthquake predictors. So there's a lot for him to offer and for you to digest. We'll start at 7:30PM and will take your questions when Mark's presentation is done. Here's the link plus you'll get an e-mail reminder Monday afternoon around 3PM.
LOBSTER DIVING FATALITY LAST WEEK - When I wrote TWARS last week around 6PM and said we had made it through the lobster opening weekend without any mishaps, I was correct. But then things turned south. Sometime after midnight a diver complaining of problems was evac'd from a boat and evaluated, but it turned out to be not dive-related and he was fine. There was a report shortly after that of PV police response to a diver needing help at Flat Rock but it may have been something like a twisted ankle as opposed to a diving injury like bends or embolism. But a bit after 2AM (now Monday), a call came in about a missing diver at Catalina who was overdue. Despite the combined efforts of the boat, Baywatch, and the Sheriff's Department, he wasn't located until 14 hours later, dead on the bottom. There aren't a lot of details available but the timing in not unusual in that for opening weekend lobster dives (this was a three-day trip - Sat/Sun/Mon) much of diving is done at night. So it wouldn't be unusual for divers - and I'm speculating about the time here - to jump into the water sometime around 1AM and the diver isn't discovered as missing until 2AM when everyone else is back and a roll call is taken. It's also not unusual with lobster dives - and again I'm speculating - for divers to jump in by themselves or to go with a buddy and separate underwater. The point of all of this is that - again, my speculation and educated guess - when all is said and done, this will turn out to have been a preventable fatality but in the heat of getting a limit of lobsters, people don't pay as close attention to safety issues as they should. So if you're out bug hunting, let this be a lesson to you as don't make yourself the next victim. As I say frequently when we do the "Why Divers Die" panel at the Scuba Show, we really don't want to see your name come across our desk.
EASTER ISLAND FIRE - I'm sad to report that there was what sounds like a fairly major fire on Easter Island, near the main quarry where m,any of the Moai (giant heads) are located. The smoke and ash from the fire has irreparably damaged a number of the Moai. As you may know, we've done two trips to Easter Island that involved diving (very interesting IMHO) along with land tours of the Moai so the place is near and dear to us. You can read more about what happened here:
EASTER ISLAND FIRE.
PROGRAM NOTE: NO AVALON TRIP THIS WEEK - It's a combination of the Dodger playoff sked and getting ready to leave for Indonesia next Monday but I need the day. So we're going to skip this one and will look to next go on November 16. Sorry for any inconvenience.
KUDOS TO THE RALPHS TAILGATE PARTY - Also not dive-related but I wanted to give a shout-out to Ralphs for organizing what they call "The Ultimate Tailgate Party" prior to both UCLA and USC home games. We went this past Saturday before the UCLA/Utah game and it was a festive atmosphere, the food was really good and plentiful, there were some games and giveaways, and they had some live music. You get in by spending $35 on specific "tailgate" items at Ralphs and then show your receipt. We felt it was a blast and would definitely do it again. So if you go to either Bruin or Trojan games, give this some thought.
And that'll do it for now. Have a great week and let's go diving soon!!!
- Ken
