Chilly greetings, all? Actually, we're still seeing some decent temps at-depth, so after the seas calm down you may wanna still get in the water. We have some shore dives lined up for you and of course there are some amazing boat dives on-deck. I just have to find the time to post them!
40 of us went to Palau on a no-profit Power Scuba trip at the start of November... and what a trip it was! Truly, some of the best diving I've done in my 28+ year career. World class. Corner an attendee and they'll tell you of our adventures. Stories to thrill, indeed! (Pictures are posted on the event pages. Go take a look.)
The Ugly Holiday Sweater Party on Dec 15 is fast approaching. Power Scuba is providing the food, drink, and music... as well as prizes for the best Ugly Sweaters. Don't worry though, your sweater doesn't have to be a prize-winner... just kinda ugly. (Plenty of time to make your own, find it in an old storage box in your closet, or go to a thrift shop and score a good {bad} one!) Join my five lovely co-hosts and myself for this fun soiree!
We really hope you can come. This party will be a good way for us, as a group, to say goodbye to 2012, talk about some of our achievements, thank our hard-working Organizers and staff, and share some time with your fellow members. NEW MEMBERS ARE WARMLY WELCOME TO ATTEND. THIS'LL BE A GREAT WAY TO MEET US! Sign up here: Ugly Holiday Sweater Party!
SAFETY
I'm sad to tell you a member of the local diving community died on the wreck of the Yukon over the weekend. Although not a PS member, the 26 year old Marine from Camp Pendelton was taken from the San Diego dive community much too early. A quick Google search will reveal the preliminary pieces of the story... and the boat charter company released this statement.
I'm going to take this opportunity to end our year the same way I entered it, with a quick blurb about fundamentals:
Accepting that one could throw a monkey in the water with (smaller) scuba gear on... and that the monkey would be ok, at least for a while... it's important for us all to understand that much of what we learned in Open Water Class are skills concerning how we address things that have gone wrong- A malfunctioning BC, out-of-air situation, water in the mask, free flowing reg, postively buoyant ascent, etc.
When is the last time you practiced an "open water skill" with your buddy? If your answer is more than 5 or 10 dives ago, you're doing yourself, and your buddy, a huge disservice. It takes only a few seconds and builds that most valuable of assets in a diver- MUSCLE MEMORY. Those who take part in a sport know well the benefit of building muscle memory... the ability to perform a move or skill without consciously thinking about it.
Maybe, just maybe, when (not if) you have a serious gear malfunction, your muscle memory will kick in and you'll attend to the problem... because you've practiced for it many times since your cert class. THAT'S the rub, gang. In an out-of-air situation, do you really want the last time your buddy practiced for it to be ten years ago in their Open Water class?! Not acceptable. Demand more from yourself and your buddy.
With over 1500 members, Power Scuba is like a box of chocolates... you never know what you're gonna get. That being said, our board of directors, staff, organizers, and myself are committed to emphasizing safety & fundamentals to the point that everyone "gets" it, everyone practices their skills, and everyone (no matter their skill level) stays absolutely safe (within those same skill levels).
If you've made it this far with me in this post, congratulations. You are the type of person we want in this group.
Happy holidays, everyone, and I'll see you at the party!
Bill
Supreme Benchwarmer
40 of us went to Palau on a no-profit Power Scuba trip at the start of November... and what a trip it was! Truly, some of the best diving I've done in my 28+ year career. World class. Corner an attendee and they'll tell you of our adventures. Stories to thrill, indeed! (Pictures are posted on the event pages. Go take a look.)
The Ugly Holiday Sweater Party on Dec 15 is fast approaching. Power Scuba is providing the food, drink, and music... as well as prizes for the best Ugly Sweaters. Don't worry though, your sweater doesn't have to be a prize-winner... just kinda ugly. (Plenty of time to make your own, find it in an old storage box in your closet, or go to a thrift shop and score a good {bad} one!) Join my five lovely co-hosts and myself for this fun soiree!
We really hope you can come. This party will be a good way for us, as a group, to say goodbye to 2012, talk about some of our achievements, thank our hard-working Organizers and staff, and share some time with your fellow members. NEW MEMBERS ARE WARMLY WELCOME TO ATTEND. THIS'LL BE A GREAT WAY TO MEET US! Sign up here: Ugly Holiday Sweater Party!
SAFETY
I'm sad to tell you a member of the local diving community died on the wreck of the Yukon over the weekend. Although not a PS member, the 26 year old Marine from Camp Pendelton was taken from the San Diego dive community much too early. A quick Google search will reveal the preliminary pieces of the story... and the boat charter company released this statement.
I'm going to take this opportunity to end our year the same way I entered it, with a quick blurb about fundamentals:
Accepting that one could throw a monkey in the water with (smaller) scuba gear on... and that the monkey would be ok, at least for a while... it's important for us all to understand that much of what we learned in Open Water Class are skills concerning how we address things that have gone wrong- A malfunctioning BC, out-of-air situation, water in the mask, free flowing reg, postively buoyant ascent, etc.
When is the last time you practiced an "open water skill" with your buddy? If your answer is more than 5 or 10 dives ago, you're doing yourself, and your buddy, a huge disservice. It takes only a few seconds and builds that most valuable of assets in a diver- MUSCLE MEMORY. Those who take part in a sport know well the benefit of building muscle memory... the ability to perform a move or skill without consciously thinking about it.
Maybe, just maybe, when (not if) you have a serious gear malfunction, your muscle memory will kick in and you'll attend to the problem... because you've practiced for it many times since your cert class. THAT'S the rub, gang. In an out-of-air situation, do you really want the last time your buddy practiced for it to be ten years ago in their Open Water class?! Not acceptable. Demand more from yourself and your buddy.
With over 1500 members, Power Scuba is like a box of chocolates... you never know what you're gonna get. That being said, our board of directors, staff, organizers, and myself are committed to emphasizing safety & fundamentals to the point that everyone "gets" it, everyone practices their skills, and everyone (no matter their skill level) stays absolutely safe (within those same skill levels).
If you've made it this far with me in this post, congratulations. You are the type of person we want in this group.
Happy holidays, everyone, and I'll see you at the party!
Bill
Supreme Benchwarmer
