What do you see happening with the sport of diving?

[redacted]

Inefficient retail operations with their high price, low volume business models will continue to limit the success and popularity of scuba. There are times when a bad dive shop is worse than no dive shop.

I believe the long term solution is larger retail operations supporting local, not-for-profit dive clubs. Unfortunately, the manufactures might not like what that might do at the wholesale level. Then again, a lesser number of efficient manufacturers might be better also. Why do we have so many scuba brand names when they mostly only compete at the bells and whistles level? A free market level of competition, including price competition, would probably take care of a number of the scuba business problems.

 

[jonhall]

I just wish others could come forward with alternatives or suggestions that lead to the " Broadening the appeal towards Scuba". Its can be an interesting problem to solve if minds are up to the task. This is nothing more than a challenge if we really want to find out any answers we need to put our selves in the shoes of the public and know how they perceive and feel about scuba in general.

For those that rely on scuba as a business they'd like the money, and as participants we'd like the company and the recognition,.. and perhaps what the added money would bring...more shops, more boats, more resorts, competitive pricing, new technology and innovations in gear, etc.

Why not provide an introduction to scuba in schools. Let’s get the dive shop involved in education. Introduce middle school or high school students who are proficient in swimming (the number of HS participants on swim teams has increased the last several years) to scuba as a lifetime activity. The shop could develop an appropriate curriculum that would be a basic intro to scuba. This would be similar to other businesses coming in and teaching certain skills, such as roller skating, bowling, and even driver education (although there is a fee for that.) The one person I know that teaches young people scuba does it after school in the evenings. Tie it into the science curriculum or careers with scuba diving. Schools may be able to pay for some of the costs and the dive shop may incur some loss, but in hopes of future business. There may also be grants available that would help with costs. Maybe students will followup and/or students’ parents will become interested and take up scuba.

My point is, I think the scuba has some fundamental differences in how people become aware of, intrigued by & get into it. Most of us didn't grow up playing with scuba gear in the neighborhood, don't work with a few active divers, know a lot of divers, etc…

At one point in my career (late 70’s - early 80’s) I taught all levels of swimming, including lifeguard training and water safety instruction at the largest HS in the state of Indiana (at the time) in Indianapolis. Also coached the swimming teams. We had a very large pool with a 14 foot deep diving well. Out of the 600-800 students I saw per a year, the majority were able to learn basic beginner or advanced beginner skills as they rotated through from their PE class. Those that enjoyed it could enjoy the the city pools in the summer. For a very select group of students (swim team members) we did snorkeling skills and even canoeing (big pool) and IF I WOULD HAVE BEEN A SCUBA DIVER at the time, I would have probably figured a way introduce that. All lifeguarding classes took place in summer school. As I look back I realize that my first taste of scuba may have been the air compressor, hose, and face mask we sometimes used to check out the pool. Other than that I had no interest or inclination to find out about scuba until a friend brought it up that we should learn before our first ever trip to a tropical destination that wasn’t Florida in 1998. For the first 43 years of my life, scuba was never mentioned to me (although as my memory was refreshed in another thread, I did watch Sea Hunt and Flipper as a kid!)

The industry has an incredibly high drop out rate after certification. Rather than trying to get more people to take scuba classes, does it make sense to try to reduce the drop out rate? Would better training generate better longevity and enthusiasm in the diving public?

If you look at the numbers, participation has declined for pretty much every single outdoor sport or activity with the exception of organized team sports. IMO, that's mainly because of the sheer number of different activities that people have these days; they're just spread thinner than they used to be. Free diving, rock climbing, BASE jumping, etc have all taken adventurous people away from SCUBA and spread them among other activities.

According to a report, 3.174 million Americans (1.1 percent of population) participated in scuba diving once or more in 2013, which is a 14 percent increase over 2012. However, when compared with the average participation over the previous five years, it is only a 0.7 percent increase.
There are 2.351 million casual participants in scuba diving (defined as making between one and seven dives per year) and 823,000 core participants (defined as making eight or more dives per year). Males make up 61 percent of casual and 72 percent of core participants.


I think a lot is determined by how and where a person is raised, what the predominant activities in the area are, and just how adventurous people can be depending on their age and physical abilities.

I think for a lot of us we want scuba to be more popular to validate what we're doing and to make us feel good and proud of our sport, along with the economic boost of new blood.

With all due respect, why should a rec scuba diver even care if recreational scuba becomes more popular, or if the scuba "industry" grows? So long as a rec scuba diver can get his/her tanks filled and equipment serviced and find additional training and make additional equipment purchases whenever desired or required, isn't this enough (to him/her)? Divers I personally know couldn't care less about "validating" their interest in scuba diving, nor about "feeling good/better and/or proud/prouder" of scuba diving.

As a rec/vacation diver with OW certification, who has been able to do everything I’ve wanted to do, including dives considered specialty dives, I have the same attitude as rx17diver. Speaking for myself, I don’t need validation or to feel good about scuba diving, unless that’s the same thing as bragging about what I saw or did on a dive during a surface interval! I feel good just being able to dive, unless I’m in a small boat with 6-8 ft. swells!

One group will be applauded by members of a online forum the other held with ridicule.

I’m okay with that!!!

Inefficient retail operations with their high price, low volume business models will continue to limit the success and popularity of scuba. There are times when a bad dive shop is worse than no dive shop.

Two shops in Indy I frequent. One smaller store sells above prices found on-line and rarely bargains, the other larger store sells at on-line prices and gives discounts (at least to me.) If I hadn't purchased my reg and bc at the smaller shop, I wouldn't go there anymore.

---------- Post added June 19th, 2015 at 07:33 AM ----------

Can anyone else think of a sporting activity that died out with a generation?
Anybody remember roller derby?
Some things just cycle out. I sure wish there was some way to bring it back.

Depends on where you are: The Naptown (Indy) Roller Girls are finishing their 9th season with teams from at least the following states IN, KY, OH, MI.

Still don't agree on scuba cycling out, if that is your contention. Surveys in the U. S. indicate otherwise.