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Hey, El! Hope your trip back home was a good one. I wish I was in a position to have come to Florida for DEMA. Next year...VEGAS!!!
Ahm...what's to ask about the fins?
They take up WAY less room in the dive bag.
They work a heck of a lot better thasn any split fin or fold-up type fin - on my feet with my kicking style. I don't "over swim" these fins as I do with splits and fold-ups.
They're way more comfortable than my solid blades. I've yet to have a cramp with my Mantas.
I bought the white model and Laura bought the black model when they were being demo'd at the Scuba Center in Temecula, CA. I haven't used the white fins for white balance with my camera...yet. However, even in murky water, my dive buddies can eaily see my white fins!
The ONLY braw back to these fins that I've found is that the dive chain for whom I DM does not sell these fins...YET. As a consequence, I can only wear my Mantas when diving for me. I get to wear them tomorrow for what I hope will be a pair of dives (#100! and #101) at Shaw's Cove. Then, I DON'T get to weat them on Saturday when I'll be DM'ing on a well known Southern California Dive Boat!
I was very pleased to meet you John at DEMA and I hope to see more of you in the future. I would like to say that I have being in the diving industry for 11 years and a diver for 17 years. I am an Open Water instructor, Tech diver and Rebreather diver. Diving for me is fun and a great time to relax. I dive in the Upper St. Lawrence River. Through-out my diving experience, as well as some dives in the sunny south I have been watching the progress of the Manta ray for some years and got my first pair in the summer of 2007. I have had the jets & rockets fins and they work great, but that’s 30 + year old technology. Now, for the fin in question, the Manta ray. It is a very surprising product. The little fin that can, right off the bat, kicking is not hard and the power is there, as I was turning to look for my buddy kicking with my right leg and turned with little effort. I dive ship wrecks and when you are inside the wreck, you don’t want a long fin inside, turning kicking up silt. In the current they will push me as far as I would like to go. There is no problem with force, and in the river we always have current!!
So the answer is yes I do very much like my Manta ray fins and if you have the opportunity to try them don’t pass it up you won’t be sorry.
Jeff Pauze
Rockport, Ontario, Canada
I've been thinking about giving them a try.... would be a lot easier to pack in a carryon bag tham my atomic splits! I would be needing a size small (wear a ladies 8) but am wondering just how wide the footpocket is.....
I wear a woman's 6-1/2 and fit very comfortably into a small. I wear the lowcut bootie with a medium sole so they can double as reef shoes when I dive in warm water. The foot pocket is pliable and soft and conforms to the shape of your foot. Be sure to adjust the Universal Fin strap so it fits comfortably -- snugly but not tight -- then there won't be any "slop" in the foot pocket and your foot and the fin become one. It is wonderful! I forget I even have fins on.
Thank you very much for your insight and report. The Mantaray Fin was 14+ years in production and divers of all types, styles, professionals, recreational, and levels were consulting throughout the process in developing a fin that would meet the needs of divers.
It was a pleasure as well to meet you at DEMA and once again, thank you for sharing your honest views and experiences.
By the way, if you have a buddy who is a photography, don't forget to send in your submission to our photo/video contest, it ends on January 15, 2008: www.apsmantaray.com/PhotoContest.pdf to find out the details.