new to this forum

[da bear]

Hi- my name is Ron and I am fairly new to diving. I had original found this board when my wife and I gave scuba lessons to each other for Christmas last year. We both enjoy snorkeling for years in California and the Caribbean on vacation. But due to the fact that I had asthma I thought I could not dive.
When I got a subsitute doctor thru my HMO due to my primary been on extended leave it turned out he was a diver as well. The change my medication to advair and told me he had lots a friends and patience that had asthma and did dive. So our quest started.

We were certified by sport chalet in Huntington Beach in January 2005. And thought it was ok. But then in March we went to Jamaica on vacation. We had planned to do a dive or two while we were there and that would be that. WRONG! We got hook after our first dive we. We went from 2 or 3 panned dives for the week to two or three a day what ever we could get in.

We came back and sign up for peak performance buoyancy classes then right into advanced open water. We took a few weekend trips to Catalina and dove 5 or 6 dive in the park. (What a great place) and took a couple of boat trips from long beach. And then a week long dive trip to Maui.

It was great until life set in. we ended up going from empty nest to now having legal custody for our two grand children due to drug problems of the parents

So I came back to find this board and ask for help

How do other members deal with getting time away from their kids to dive?

Most of our plans were weekends away or vacations centered on diving but now it seems local dive for a few hours may be our answer but where to go? When were we getting certified the beaches we went to left a lot to be desired compared to the dive park at Catalina? And all day or overnight boat trips are out of the question

Last question for anyone is that when we sign up for our aow class we enter the scuba in ten cities and won a one week trip aboard the aggressor in Tahiti sometimes life can be good

My wife is worry about going on this dive as the aggressor list it for the intermediate level diver and we only have about 40 dive currently

She is also concern about the drift dives

We dove the back wall of molikini
But I can not find any one that does drift dive training her in so cal
Will the training be required

Thanks for all your help

 

[DiverBuoy]

Cool you are in my backyard, I worked for Sport Chalet for years. Though not out of the Huntington beach store. I just met Bobby (sorry no last name) an instructor from that store, on a lobster boat trip to catalina last week.

Kids shmids ... I just abandon them

There are so many dive ops in Laguna, in fact some scuba board folks are diving in Laguna on the 29th ... getting hooked up with one of the many dive clubs will help tremendously ... two clubs meet every weekend morning around 7:30am in the Laguna Hills shopping mall right off the I-5.

 

[pasley]

Ok, I am willing to make the sacrifice. I will throw myself onto the grenade and take the Aggresor trip. I promise to write a great dive report so you can live through me on the trip.

About children, 30 pounds of lead ought to just about do it.

Seriously, depending upon ages you can either get a babysitter, or hook up with divers who bring non-diving spouses to the beach and leave them on the sand playing while you dive.

Beach diving. Taking classes is not the same as beach diving. Go, enjoy the beach and dive. http://www.sandeaters.org will hook you up with dive site descriptions. We dive every Sunday at 08:00 a.m. and all are welcome. Not a club, just a website with a calendar and dive schedule. Beach dieing is cheap and you can do one dive and home in 3 or 4 hours, or you can to a day of it.

 

[Rickster]

Seriously, depending upon ages you can either get a babysitter, or hook up with divers who bring non-diving spouses to the beach and leave them on the sand playing while you dive.

Welcome to Scubaboard, and the SoCal forum!

As Pasley said, bring them with you. My wife, Teresa, goes on all my dives. She is certified, but is a none diver. Figure that one out Anyway, she says she will keep an eye on them while you do your dives. We will be at the Wrinkles dive and campout this coming weekend (Friday thru Sunday) at Leo Carrillo, and do the sunday morning dive up the road at Stair Case with Sand Eaters.

Hope to see you there!

Rick

 

[wetrat]

Hi Ron,

Welcome to the So Cal forum! Teenagers are basically designed to babysit. Find one in your neighborhood and interview them - can you dial 911? If answer is yes, hire them at a ridiculously low rate because all they will do is watch TV with your kids and eat all your food. I have teens who sit all the time and they like the extra money.

That Molokini dive you mentioned is a pretty healthy drift dive if memory serves - it requires a bluewater dive at about 20' depth for 30 yards and then a drift in a swift current. I dove with Lahaina Divers on Maui in July and they wanted everyone to have a minimum of 30 logged dives to do it. If you did that, you should be OK.

If your wife is still apprehensive, I'd be happy to go with Melvin, but just as a special favor to you.

John

 

[Esco Bubble Blower]

I'm new to this Forum also... Writing from the Temecula/Escondido areas, looking for new buddies to dive with in my area....

 

[pasley]

If your wife is still apprehensive, I'd be happy to go with Melvin, but just as a special favor to you.

John

So there you have it. Two divers willing to make the ultimate sacrafice and take the trip for you. Isn't this board great? Where else would you find two divers willing to take a free trip on the Aggressor so you don't have to go?

Anyway, on a serious note, come on out and dive. http://www.sandeaters.org will get you wet most weeks. Wrinkles once a month is a good bet too.

 

[Rickster]

I'm new to this Forum also... Writing from the Temecula/Escondido areas, looking for new buddies to dive with in my area....

Welcome to the Board Esco Bubble Blower!

You might try to do a post of your own, asking for buddies to dive with. There are quite a few divers down your way, that I am sure will invite you for a dive. With the title in the open, your post will be seen better.

Dive safe!

Rick

 

[wetrat]

I'm new to this Forum also... Writing from the Temecula/Escondido areas, looking for new buddies to dive with in my area....

Hey Esco Bubble Blower,

Welcome to the So Cal forum! I'm going to try to dive quite a bit over the holidays. I'll PM ya for a dive or two. I really want to make a few of those Sandeaters dives too.

John

 

[pasley]

As always, I will be diving most weeks. You can always give me a shout and see if I can get away. I can only dive on days ending in a 'y'. Challenge is the wife limits me to one day a week, but night dives don't count, and then if there is a dive buddy in need, she often allows me to help out.