I don't believe this video. I've done that dive several times, and it's a heck of a long way down and a heck of a long way through. He just doesn't seem to be going anywhere near fast enough to do it in the time he has available, which can't be more than maybe 5 or 6 minutes. No, I don't believe it.
I did however watch the video of/by Yuri Lipski, who died attempting it in 2000. I had no idea that video had got out onto the web, and I wonder who put it there. His family at the time didn't want it released, but maybe they later changed their minds. He was totally untrained and non-equipped for that dive, and he had previously gone around Dahab dive centres looking for someone who would train him. His attitude was very macho, though, and no-body would do it. So he got hold of some rec gear and went down by himself. A friend of mine recovered his body. He was dressed up like a Christmas tree, with all sorts of unnecessary gear that weighted him down badly. Had he ditched it all early on he could probably have surfaced, but like all of us he didn't want to lose it. He died not through inexperience as such but through his macho attitude, and a complete inability to understand what the dangers were. Very sad for all that. As tech training gets more and more attainable - way too easy - let's hope we aren't breeding a whole new generation of divers who think they're immune.
