What do you think of dive clubs?

[geogator]

Only dive clubs this far inland are sponsored by LDS and the trips are way over-priced. Don't thinks so.

I wish I lived in a diving area where locals could actually meet and plan their own dives.

Try doing a search of "scuba" and your city/metropolitan area on Do something, Learn something, Share something, Change something - Meetup. This is how I found the group I've done most of my diving with (Bubbles Up Jacksonville) & its grown by leaps/bounds over the last 9 months or so & is very active. If you're in the Atlanta area, check out Atlanta Aquanauts, they have over 300 people signed up. Furthermore, many meetup groups aren't usually affiliated with a particular dive shop & as such, do their own get-togethers & dive trips & may also have monthly social gatherings as well. (Ours does once a month.) Also, like the other poster stated, not everybody listed as a member of a meetup group is always active - some members are able to attend lots of events, some only a few, but it really doesn't matter how often you can/can't dive or participate, as long as you can find some folks to dive with whenever you DO get the chance.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I joined a dive club in my area several years ago and it turned out to be nothing more than monthly meetings at a round table drinking beer and eating pizza. The dives always fizzled out and at the campouts it seemed the core group of 5 or so people pretty much ditched everyone else. They just wanted people to join so they could use their money to play.

I finally had enough so I started my own dive club with no dues or fees. I modelled it after the Sand Eaters dive club in Southern California. They were a club that did a beach dive somewhere in Socal every Sunday morning. There were no fees or dues, it was just a group of people who got information to meet at a certain place at a certain time and dive. All you had to do was show up.

That model has worked out great.
We do a scheduled shore dive once a month somewhere up on our coast and we give new divers a place to meet new people and do some diving.
We don't hold monthly meetings, the dives are the meetings.
We generally get 8-20 people at our monthly dives and the campouts are hugely successful with up to 40-50 people showing up some years.
In my part of the world divers are scarce who actually dive our coast, it's cold and rough. A club like ours really helps ease people into local diving.

The club link is in my signature.

 

[DaleC]

The club concept is a good one and a great way to bypass the commercialization of diving but... it takes effort and commitment and that isn't always forthcoming these days. Many people prefer the notion of just "paying" for their experience because it frees them up to come and go as they please. Lot's of people have the "serve me" attitude instead of "being of service" attitude which is what the club scene should be all about.

My personal experience with clubs has been poor and good and was motivated by a search for other dive partners like the OP. Initially I was part of the creation of a very effective email dive buddy group (pre facebook), the members of which still dive together occasionally. This email group formed a network of friendships for many divers in the lower mainland - many of whom have moved on to other groups - and it allows those different groups to communicate with each other through us.

Around that same time I joined and was part of starting an LDS based club that took in money, promised a lot in terms of structure and program, then petered out fast because of a personality/ego/control conflict. The LDS owner tried to smooth things over (it wasn't he who was the problem) but the damage was done. Apparently no one likes to volunteer their time and effort to a dictator (no, it wasn't me).

Then I found an older established club that was going somewhat dormant (diving wise) but still active socially. Some of us joined that one, whined to ourselves about the lack of diving, but stuck with it long enough (and dived anyways) to see it eventually turn around. Now it's active once more.

This is a pretty normal cycle to see as clubs rise and fall when clumps of divers move through them and it is a skilled club indeed that can keep itself viable as those cycles occur. It means giving up the reins of power to the younger set while still being there to offer guidance, structure and support. Truth is, old blood often initially resists change and a club can lose older members when it occurs. I have to give our current Pres. Michel a lot of praise for helping our group through the latest transition. He has a way of maintaining leadership while at the same time making each person feel good about their contribution.

So, if you are looking for a club my advice would be to get ready to roll up your sleeves and be patient with the old crusty's. With these things it is often more of a marathon than a sprint. If you find a club, dig in, find one area where you will contribute, and try and focus on the good and not the bad.

A shameless plug for our club can be found in my signature line

 

[TSandM]

The club of which my husband is president has a fairly good sized membership, and people appear to belong for different reasons. Some seem to like to come to the meetings, share some food and beer and listen to the talks. Others dive, some of them like maniacs. The club charters boats at intervals, and has shore dives on a regular basis, to which all are welcome (and if you're new and need a buddy, you just let the organizer know). So I couldn't answer the poll, because the club seems to serve different functions for different people. But it definitely dives!

 

[fisheater]

I'm an active and grateful member of the club ZKY started, The North Coast Divers, in northern California.

I joined just as I got certified and found a great group of divers who were very welcoming and are wonderful mentors. Now, I try to treat newbies in the same manner.

We have monthly dives (NO meetings) and lots of other dives set up through our club's online forum.

Without the club, I wouldn't know very many divers and wouldn't dive very often.

 

[k ellis]

Well we just opened up our club a couple of months ago and so far it has been doing fairly well. I will say running one does prove to be interesting but its well worth it. We have some phenominal members who are every bit as in love with the sport and they go the extra mile to assure the club is a success. Its an amazing thing to see so many people happy and this is something I have longed for.

There are other clubs in our area but amazingly enough I think that the problem I have seen with most clubs is they are dead set on a schedule which caters to the the majority however leaves out a small percentage. For example evening meetings during the week are great or the average 9 to 5 worker but then you have those who are like me and work monday through friday in the evenings and this eliminates them all together. I belong to 2 groups but simply can not make the meetings on one of them and dont get to dive much with them either as they (not intentionally of course) plan their dives on the weekends I divemaster. So I started a second group who cater to those who wish to have a different flavor and can not attend those dates they can still be a apart of a great dive group. Amazingly the turnout has proven that there is room for 2 groups to co exist in a non competitive manner.

There is one thing I can assure you and that is without doubt there are those in the scuba world who simply have no people skills but overall there are those who love the sport enough to just enjoy it and enjoy others company. Diving is meant to be fun and so thats how we make things work right?????

 

[grf88]

My area has a number of active dive clubs. The one I belong to has been around for more than 50 years and we have a pretty full dive schedule for local diving and have also arranged trips down south like Blackbeard's where this year when we took the entire boat. We also have a social aspect to the club and pool access every Monday.

 

[DivemasterDennis]

Here in the landlocked center of the nation, dive clubs are very active. They are a vehicle for trip planning, sharing trip reports and pictures, and for guest speakers hyping their latest book. There is definitely a social aspect, but in the Denver area there are three really active clubs, including Sharkbait Dive Club in Lakewood, near us. Club meetings are great places to go when the taste of sea air is fading, to stay connected to our sport with others who share information on new destinations, dive boats, equipment and hotels.
DivemasterDennis

 

[fisheater]

Here's a sample of what our dive club does.

No dues. No meetings. No formal officers. But we DO have a Tiki Bar!

We just dive a lot and have an annual four-day blowout camping dive trip on our coast.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=432125



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[ScubaSteve]

I would gladly join a dive club. It would have to be local though which causes a problem today. I would not however, join a club that had membership dues since I am at a point in my life where I am not able to commit to lots of trips or meetings etc. since I have a young family. I would love to attend periodic meetings (to discuss whatever) and join on periodic dives. The diving/social aspect would be appealing to me but there is nothing close enough to me today that I know of to join.