First Memories

Hello!

I'm new to the board and am getting back into diving after a self-imposed exile to Portland. I know from looking through the forums that there is a natural tendency to have a lot of posts and interaction followed by a lull. Looks like Bob the Grateful Diver is trying to breathe some life back into the forum and I'd love to help and introduce myself at the same time!

I've got a question for us up here in the NW...what is your first memory of diving? Not necessarily your first dive, but your first brush with the idea that there are things underwater for you to explore and a way to do it...

I was six or seven and at my father's company picnic out at Lake Merwin. I remember playing in the water, splashing around, diving down and picking pebbles up off the bottom. Out of nowhere I was surrounded by bubbles starting to come towards the shore and then two huge (or at least what seemed huge to me at the time) creatures reared up out of the water. I can still see them all in black, water dripping off of them, fins in hand as they helped each other wade/walk out of the water. Deep down inside, I can to this day feel the awe I had as a little kid at the sight of these two things, which turned out to be mere mortals, that had just broken all the rules that I thought I understand about how water worked. Ever since then I've been fascinated by our ability to overcome our surroundings and explore.

Just thought I'd share that with everyone! What's your earliest exposure to diving?

I'm Mathew.

Hi, Matthew! Great idea for a thread, btw. (I'm Lynne.)

My first exposure to diving that I remember was that the brother of our next door neighbor, when I was in elementary school (mid-60's) was in the Navy. He was a scuba diver, and when he would get leave and come and visit his sister, he would bring a tray of slides he had taken underwater. I remember being fascinated by the colors and the shapes, but his diving was all tropical. It was not enough to give me a strong urge to learn to dive -- I suspect, if I thought about it at all, that I thought only people in the Navy dove.

My first exposure was my first trip to Hawaii, on a business convention. I was talked into snorkeling, which I thought was a stupid pasttime. After the first snorkel venture, I spent every remaining day of the trip snorkeling. On the last day, I was attempting to dive down far enough to check out a turtle, but couldnt reach it. About then, 2 divers went by under me, and I thought, "Im doing THAT!"

My first thought that I'd like to dive was back in the '80's when I was racing sailboats in New England. One of our crew was a diver, and had a sideline cleaning boat bottoms for the local racing fleet. He offered to take me diving and "teach me everything I need to know". That opportunity came on Lake Winnepausakee, in New Hampster, in 1989. He showed me how to set up and put on the gear, and off we went into a cove near Merideth. We swam around in 15 feet of water terrorizing the fish for about 15 minutes or so. It was a blast. It wasn't until nearly 12 years later that I finally decided to get trained ... and learned how much I "needed to know" that he hadn't taught me ... including the little things like how to equalize and that bit about not holding your breath ... :shocked2:

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Those are great! I keep telling any of my friends who are traveling somewhere warm that they need to get in the water and snorkel no matter how stupid they feel. I figure if they ease into it with warm water and see how much fun they could have if they went under the water that maybe they'll get certified and dive in the cold water with me. So far it hasn't worked.