New Newbie from MN

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Gonz

Registered
Messages
21
Reaction score
0
Location
Fricken Cold & Windy, MN
# of dives
25 - 49
Hey Everyone!

Another newbie here just joined the forum. Let's see, where to start...

I first dove about 15 years ago, in a ghetto style resort cram in Cozumel with my Dad and brother while we were on a cruise. And it was great! But for real, my wife and I did a resort course at a Sandals in Jamaica back in March, as well as four dives, all within the confines of what a resort course allows. We decided it would be a good idea to get certified, however we're more than an hour's drive from the nearest shop, and we have a 2 year old, so logistically it's not very easy! Well, we went to Belize last week, and on the way to the airport picked up a couple sets of personal gear so we could snorkel, however once we got there, we hooked up with a really good instructor/dive shop owner who was willing to give us credit for our resort course work, and a fat discount, so we decided to get certified. When I say he gave us credit, essentially he just acknowledged that we were using terms that someone fresh off the street wouldn't know, so he felt a little more comfortable moving along quickly. After completing our open water in 2 days, we decided to take the advice of a diver I had spoken to about the process, and get the advanced cert done as well. So we did our Deep, Navagation, Night, Aware Fish ID, and Underwater Naturalist dives. I felt that doing these might open up more diving experiences than just the OW would. So now we're going to Atlantis in the Bahamas in December for a conference, and am hoping to get some diving in down there, perhaps I'll do my Underwater Photo while my wife's in her conference. Then we're going to Maui in Feb for another conference where we're hoping to do some diving.

We live in southern MN (Madison Lake), I am a stay-at-home Dad with our 2 year old son. Besides raising our son, I do lots of home improvement projects and enjoy cooking fine meals. I also enjoy a good scotch with a fine cigar. And not those fake Cuban's they sell all around the islands (i.e. Glasstop Cohibas).

I'm looking forward to learning alot about diving here, as well as learning about great places to dive in the future. I'm at a point now where I think I want to just accumulate some more dives and experience before I try and get any more certifications. And, perhaps I'm just macabre, however I've really been into reading the Accidents and Near Misses section. I think there's lots of good info to be had there.

Thanks for reading my short story above!

Andy
 
Hi Andy Welcome to the Board!
Guaranteed hours, if not days and months of reading available... once you get the hang of that - there's forum chatting... and of course you'll need to find some other divers to actually talk to about diving... too bad the store is so far away.

Your trips to the Bahamas and Maui should help with your new diving passion!

Welcome and Enjoy!

PS. About the Accidents and near misses... a great place to learn from - but keep it in perspective, practice safe diving within the limits... etc etc etc
 
Welcome to the board,

Congrats on your certifications. Yes, I agree that it's a good idea to get some more dives in before taking other courses. Experience, especially in different locations is a good teacher too.

Greetings from Montreal, Canada
 
Glad to have you with us...

:bandit_2: don


And don't be shy about posting. Click Forums above, tour the long list of choices, and jump in anywhere you're qualified. PM me with any questions, and I'll try to find a pretty good answer.
 

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