View Full Version : Diving
Anyone on here into diving? I haven't been in years. The last dive i have logged is a dive i did in Italy 2 or 3 years ago. I've been living in Florida for about 3 years now and still haven't managed to get any dives in.
I'd love to get down to the keys some time and do some wreck dives. Perhaps if theres interest we can get a little trip together in the summer. :grinning-smiley-003
halfdragon
03-21-2007, 04:20 PM
I just got back on Monday from diving in Grand Cayman :-)
Aside from the freshwater springs in the area (which are always 72F, brr), you can dive in the Gulf if a: it gets above 70 b: hurricanes don't kill the visibility c: you can stand the hour boat ride it takes to get offshore. There are some wrecks offshore, shrip boats and some old army tanks.
I am looking forward to is going up to Pensacola to do the USS Oriskany.
Diving across the state in FtL/Pompano is great, you can zip a few hundred yards offshore and get 80 ft viz and much warmer water.
We'll probably go to the Keys for a weekend this year. The dive shop we frequent, Calypso at Bearss & 275, has several scheduled, as well as some other longer trips. We may go with their group and do some specialty certs. The Live-aboard boat trips sound great, they take care of all your gear for you, so you just get out of the water and dump the gear and it's ready for your next dive :-)
Minch00
03-21-2007, 04:27 PM
I totally thought you said "Driving". *backs out of thread slowly*
I went for my first time last summer in the Adriatic off the Croatian coast, and absolutely love it.
I definitely will be doing more when ever I go on vacation somewhere warm.
I just got back on Monday from diving in Grand Cayman :-)
Aside from the freshwater springs in the area (which are always 72F, brr), you can dive in the Gulf if a: it gets above 70 b: hurricanes don't kill the visibility c: you can stand the hour boat ride it takes to get offshore. There are some wrecks offshore, shrip boats and some old army tanks.
I am looking forward to is going up to Pensacola to do the USS Oriskany.
Diving across the state in FtL/Pompano is great, you can zip a few hundred yards offshore and get 80 ft viz and much warmer water.
We'll probably go to the Keys for a weekend this year. The dive shop we frequent, Calypso at Bearss & 275, has several scheduled, as well as some other longer trips. We may go with their group and do some specialty certs. The Live-aboard boat trips sound great, they take care of all your gear for you, so you just get out of the water and dump the gear and it's ready for your next dive :-)
Nice, the USS oriskany is the big carrier they sunk a year or so ago right? Thats a big fucker! I've only ever done one wreck dive, but i loved it. Hence i'd like to go diving in the keys. theres something like 1200 wrecks in the keys. I started diving when i lived in england, so the cold water doesn't bother me too much :lol2:
pdisme
03-21-2007, 04:51 PM
Diving in cold water = shrinkage! :lol2: :lol2:
Diving in cold water = shrinkage! :lol2: :lol2:
yeah but shrinkage is only a problem if its small to begin with. :wink: So i dont suffer the effects as bad as others :fu2: :lol2:
pdisme
03-21-2007, 05:22 PM
I just got back on Monday from diving in Grand Cayman :-)
Do you have underwater case for your camera? That's a great pic.
yeah but shrinkage is only a problem if its small to begin with. :wink: So i dont suffer the effects as bad as others :fu2: :lol2:
The way you jumped when Mr Vroom revved up the Gallardo last weekend I wasn't so sure. :lol2: :fu:
The way you jumped when Mr Vroom revved up the Gallardo last weekend I wasn't so sure. :lol2: :fu:
HEY! i wasn't expecting that! My attention was elsewhere... :fu2: :lol2:
duc749r
03-21-2007, 06:19 PM
I was diving down in the caribbean this past oct grand cayman, cozumel, and Jamacia. Here are a couple pics, i shot over 300 pics with my digital camera and underwater case.
http://i7.tinypic.com/48fu49e.jpg
http://i12.tinypic.com/4i56gkp.jpg
http://i3.tinypic.com/2s9r61w.jpg
http://i14.tinypic.com/315o1s0.jpg
duc749r
03-21-2007, 06:20 PM
opps they are a bit large sorry
pdisme
03-21-2007, 06:20 PM
Hmm, not sure if I'd want to go picking up a sting ray like that guy in the pic. :)
Minch00
03-21-2007, 06:27 PM
HEY! i wasn't expecting that! My attention was elsewhere... :fu2: :lol2:
What in all the world could distract you more than a bright green Lamborghini!?
Stage3
03-21-2007, 06:30 PM
I have just gotten into diving and was NAUI certified last semester up to 60 feet. I plan on taking the advanced diving class over the summer which will take me to 120 feet and teach me night diving. Ultimately, I want to be certified for search and rescue, but that may be many moons down the road. So far, I've only logged two dives (crystal river and devils den), but from what I have experienced, I love it! I can't wait until i go back to hawaii... I'm definitely going diving there!:headbang:
What in all the world could distract you more than a bright green Lamborghini!?
women. :wave:
halfdragon
03-21-2007, 06:36 PM
Do you have underwater case for your camera? That's a great pic.
It's just a Nikon 7MP with an underwater case. The camera has an underwater mode setting that's supposed to do some color correction to make up for the missing reds.
My favorite dive so far has been off Oahu in Hawaii. There's a cavern dive they call the Sea Cave which is sort of a drift, you're crusing along looking at turtles and then suddenly you're in this cavern that looks like a Disney aquarium with sharks and amazing fish. I didn't have the camera yet when I did that one though :-(
duc749r
03-21-2007, 06:52 PM
great pics.
I did a shark dive a couple years ago when i was in St Marteen i will try to find the video and post it later tonight.
The stingray i was holding in the pic above was a female with no barb so it was not an issue
halfdragon
03-21-2007, 07:02 PM
I have just gotten into diving and was NAUI certified last semester up to 60 feet. I plan on taking the advanced diving class over the summer which will take me to 120 feet
The north edge of Grand Cayman is called the North Wall, it's the edge of the shelf that the coral bed that makes up the island sits on. There's a "mini wall" off the beach that's about 65 ft at the bottom, and if you swim past that another few hundred yards it gradually goes down to 120 ft. There's a spot with a sand chute the coral fingers kind of steer you to, and at that spot it's a sheer wall to 6000 ft. I went out to the chute one day and swam over the edge and looked down into the big dark void, and that was enough for me, to many thoughts of something really really big that lives in 6000 ft of water wanting to swim up and taste some scuba diver.
I did the Nitrox class a few months ago so when you do have to go past 60 ft you can stay longer then five minutes. The Oriskany's top desk I think starts around 60ft and the flight deck is 90 or so. It's definately good to do the deep dive class to go past 60 ft, but the surface just seems do far away at 130 ft. Those trimix divers that go much deeper are crazy. Cave divers are crazy too :-) I don't want anything between me and the surface when you're breathing out of a soda can.
duc749r
03-21-2007, 07:46 PM
that pic is nuts, it reminds me of a wall dive in cozumel where i swam down to 110' looked over the edge and was told it dropped off to around 5000' completely black down there.
haha love the pic... "120ft... BOTTOMLESS HELL".
When i lived in england, I used to go to a place called stoney cove, which was essentially an old Rock quarry. At its deepest its 32 meters, but there are shelfs at different depths. the biggest shelf drops off from about 7 meters right down to 32. Nothing crazy, but when you consider the visibillity on average is about 4-5 meters, its pretty crazy dropping over the edge, because you cant see the bottom. They have a lot of random things that they've sunk over the years to dive on, one of those being an old tug boat.
Pretty fun place to dive if you dont mind the 8 degree surface temps.
halfdragon
03-22-2007, 02:22 AM
Pretty fun place to dive if you dont mind the 8 degree surface temps.
Ahh, I mind :-)
Coldest thing I've ever dove was the San Diego kelp beds, water was 50F in a 7mm suit, and it was so not worth it. I was expecting somethng really cool with big 30' monster kelp, instead it was like swimming through iced tea with little weeds growing all over the place.
It was disappointing... kind of like how spending $250k on a Lambo and then getting blown out at the first stoplight by a $12k sport bike is disappointing... :bootyshake: :crazy:
Ahh, that'll probably get me banned. Just teasing boys and girls. :-)
pdisme
03-22-2007, 04:52 AM
It was disappointing... kind of like how spending $250k on a Lambo and then getting blown out at the first stoplight by a $12k sport bike is disappointing... :bootyshake: :crazy:
A perfect example of why I won't go diving; the wrong mix in your tank and you start thinking funny. Ducati 999 vs Gallardo video shows only a 1/2 second difference around the track:
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/88786/lamborghini_vs_ducati/
halfdragon
03-22-2007, 11:15 AM
A perfect example of why I won't go diving; the wrong mix in your tank and you start thinking funny. Ducati 999 vs Gallardo video shows only a 1/2 second difference around the track:
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/88786/lamborghini_vs_ducati/
I was talking about 0-60, anytime you've got a turn in the track four wheels is going to be better then two. Shame that the lambo drivers had to stage a test where the road is more favorable to them to make themselves feel better :evil5: ... Didn't you just buy a track car based on the Hayabusa engine? booyah :-)
duc749r
03-22-2007, 11:58 AM
i have seen that video, he should have been on a 749R :)
pdisme
03-22-2007, 12:42 PM
I was talking about 0-60, anytime you've got a turn in the track four wheels is going to be better then two. Shame that the lambo drivers had to stage a test where the road is more favorable to them to make themselves feel better :evil5: ... Didn't you just buy a track car based on the Hayabusa engine? booyah :-)
If all I wanted to do was drive fast in a straight line I'd have gotten a drag car. I don't need a special track to feel better, I'm going to bring the g-wagen to your house tonight and do burnouts in your front yard to feel better. :lol2:
duc749r
03-22-2007, 01:13 PM
bring that g wagen to SF and you can do all the burnouts you want in my area then we will go pick up supervixen and text drive a LP640 at BMC and do more burnouts... LOL
halfdragon
03-22-2007, 02:55 PM
I'm going to bring the g-wagen to your house tonight and do burnouts in your front yard to feel better. :lol2:
That gimp-wagen box on wheels has so much air resistance my granny outruns it on her walker.
duc749r
03-22-2007, 03:26 PM
That gimp-wagen box on wheels has so much air resistance my granny outruns it on her walker.
LOL watch out i hear his granny will take out your benz
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tdc2vWghZE
LOL watch out i hear his granny will take out your benz
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tdc2vWghZE
:lol2: :lol2: :lol2:
I've seen that before but its still just as funny every time! :grinning-smiley-003
pdisme
03-22-2007, 06:21 PM
That's it, I'm banning everyone!! :lol2:
duc749r
03-22-2007, 06:36 PM
LOL
I used to go to Grand Cayman about twice a year. I got real bad ear squeze about 5 years ago in a swim through where I could not equalize and my ears got jacked up. I was constantly dizzy and felt seasick all the time for weeks even after seeing a couple specialist. None could figure out what happened. A girl I was dating was a P.A. and gave me some meds. I have no idea what they were, but all the dizzyness and nausea went away after about 3 days. Needless to day, my diving days are done. I still have this "popping" noise and ringing in my ears to this very day that never went away.
Thats the one thing about diving that worries me the most. I need to be able to hear well, its part of my job criteria. If my ears were damaged, my career would be over.
Thats the one thing about diving that worries me the most. I need to be able to hear well, its part of my job criteria. If my ears were damaged, my career would be over.
Yeah, I was basically "scared straight". I had to choose between risking my hearing again, or giving up diving. I'm just glad the dizzyness went away. It was terrible. It was like that feeling before you puke from drinking too much alcohol, where the room spins. And it was constantly like that for about two weeks. I was about to go insane. The docs thought I got some fluid in my ears that was causing it. But I don't know.
pdisme
03-26-2007, 11:21 PM
Thats the one thing about diving that worries me the most. I need to be able to hear well, its part of my job criteria. If my ears were damaged, my career would be over.
If you ever come to Sebring to let me take you for some laps in the Radical, bring ear protection, it's extremely loud. I'm currently looking for some way to have driver to passenger communication that lets me hear but also protects my hearing because right now the only way for me to hear the instructor is to crank up the volume to overpower the engine and that really sucks.
blueballs
03-26-2007, 11:38 PM
I just loged on and I dont see anything about muff diving...
duc749r
03-27-2007, 12:15 AM
I just loged on and I dont see anything about muff diving...
LOL:beerchug:
pdisme
03-27-2007, 12:21 AM
I just loged on and I dont see anything about muff diving...
If you need air tanks and hearing protection for that, you've been messing with the wrong kinds of girls. :lol2: :lol2:
lambo_freak
03-29-2007, 12:08 AM
Does snorkeling count? I id some of that on my trip to St. Croix a few summers ago. Very cool!!
pdisme
03-29-2007, 01:56 AM
Snorkeling I think I could handle, then air is just a foot away. :)
duc749r
03-29-2007, 11:50 AM
Diving is not that dangerous if you have the right training and go with a certified dive company. I have been diving for 10+ years and never had a problem, give it a try you won’t be disappointed.
Diving is not that dangerous if you have the right training and go with a certified dive company. I have been diving for 10+ years and never had a problem, give it a try you won’t be disappointed.
I agree totally, really safe sport/hobby, if done correctly. Some people just get sketched out by the idea though.
I don't have a bunch of hours logged, maybe 30. But I never saw anyone have any gear problems. I have seen a couple people panic when they get in swim-thrus, or go over a steep wall that drops into the abyss. My deepest dive was about 95 feet. It's pretty strange feeling at that depth. But I found diving to be one of the most relaxing things ever. Except the night dive I did in Hawaii. I don't do well on rough water and amost puked in my regulator before we even went in the water. Then on top of that it's hard to tell how fast you're decending or vice-versa which I did not like. That dive sucked. That's why I most went to Grand Cayman. Clear water, and all the dive sites are close to shore. So no 45 minute gut wrenching boat rides.
My last dive trip i was in italy. to get to the dive site we had to travel about 30-45 mins on a small boat. Normally i can stomach it, but on this particular day the water was quite rough and the small boat was getting thrown around... needless to say, i didn't make it :icon_oak:
My last dive trip i was in italy. to get to the dive site we had to travel about 30-45 mins on a small boat. Normally i can stomach it, but on this particular day the water was quite rough and the small boat was getting thrown around... needless to say, i didn't make it :icon_oak:
Oh man that sucks, I totally know the feeling. That Hawaii boat ride was like 45 minutes. Then when we got there we had to sit and listen to the dive briefing for 10 minutes or so, then sat there for another 15 or so while everyone geared up. Meanwhile, the boat is rocking back and fourth like crazy. It sucked big time.
pdisme
03-31-2007, 08:28 AM
That's not as bad as a story I heard; I think it may have been Greg telling me, or someone else at Sebring last time I was there, but evidently someone was giving a girl a ride around the track in their Radical at normal hot lap speed and she lost it in her helmet. :lol2: :lol2:
lambo_freak
04-01-2007, 02:03 AM
That's not as bad as a story I heard; I think it may have been Greg telling me, or someone else at Sebring last time I was there, but evidently someone was giving a girl a ride around the track in their Radical at normal hot lap speed and she lost it in her helmet. :lol2: :lol2:
she better have been very hot. if not, she would have cleaned the helmet herself.
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