Hi Guys!
Sorry for the long post, but I think this might be of interest to some.
Well, though I was certified in 1973 and dove frequently until 1990, I haven’t dove much since then and not at all from about 2000 till now. Last spring I decided to revive my interest in diving and, with the well wishes of my wife (who can’t stand even swimming, much less diving), embarked to regain equipment and do some diving.
A couple of weeks ago, I took my refresher dive and then another dive into Lake Mojave, my first time diving in 11 years! Everything went well including finding out that it’s kind of riding a bicycle, you don’t forget all that much. My buoyancy was okay and weighting was about where I thought it should be. I had a great time! But there were a few things I had forgotten and decided to mention them on the wire so others who have just taken up the sport or have been out of it for a time will benefit from my experience.
I have a little dry box that I keep my save-a-dive kit in, along with some other little items, directions to the dive computer, log book, sun screen and mask defogger. What I forgot:
1) a comb (you really, really need one after a dive)
2) another stick of chapstick (yes, take two, one WILL get lost)
3) pencil (for the log book) and don’t bring a pen—a pencil will write on wet paper, pens won’t
4) and finally, if you wear glasses or sunglasses, some kind of wipe for water spray (especially important if on the ocean)
Be sure to use nail polish or some other waterproof paint to mark your name on your fins and tank unless they are very distinctive. At the end of the dive, everyone passes their fins up to whoever is in the boat and they may end up in a pile. Do you have any idea how many divers use Scubapro split fins today?
Get a weight bag if you use integrated weights. Back when I stopped diving, most divers were still using weight belts (then we had to write our names on our weight belts, today, not so much). When you finished your dive, the weight belt could be put over a shoulder or clipped around your waist to carry around. But integrated weights in their little pouches don’t lend themselves to easy carry and leaving them in the bcd only makes an already heavy package even heavier.
Speaking about weight, I had forgotten how heavy dive gear is (or maybe I was just much stronger back then!). The gear bag I still had was just a large bag, with no wheels and no shoulder straps. Lifting that thing up with sheer arm strength was really a problem. The new gear bag I just bought has both shoulder straps and wheels. And the wheels have lugs in them (smooth wheels tend to slid on shallow sand, not turn, so you end up with a kind of sled rather than a roller)
Overall, I had a great time, one that I’m repeating this next weekend, with the exceptions noted above. I hope to get out of the lake and back into the ocean as soon as I get a new wetsuit but until then, I’m happy to get more experiences in whatever water I can jump into.
Jerry
Sorry for the long post, but I think this might be of interest to some.
Well, though I was certified in 1973 and dove frequently until 1990, I haven’t dove much since then and not at all from about 2000 till now. Last spring I decided to revive my interest in diving and, with the well wishes of my wife (who can’t stand even swimming, much less diving), embarked to regain equipment and do some diving.
A couple of weeks ago, I took my refresher dive and then another dive into Lake Mojave, my first time diving in 11 years! Everything went well including finding out that it’s kind of riding a bicycle, you don’t forget all that much. My buoyancy was okay and weighting was about where I thought it should be. I had a great time! But there were a few things I had forgotten and decided to mention them on the wire so others who have just taken up the sport or have been out of it for a time will benefit from my experience.
I have a little dry box that I keep my save-a-dive kit in, along with some other little items, directions to the dive computer, log book, sun screen and mask defogger. What I forgot:
1) a comb (you really, really need one after a dive)
2) another stick of chapstick (yes, take two, one WILL get lost)
3) pencil (for the log book) and don’t bring a pen—a pencil will write on wet paper, pens won’t
4) and finally, if you wear glasses or sunglasses, some kind of wipe for water spray (especially important if on the ocean)
Be sure to use nail polish or some other waterproof paint to mark your name on your fins and tank unless they are very distinctive. At the end of the dive, everyone passes their fins up to whoever is in the boat and they may end up in a pile. Do you have any idea how many divers use Scubapro split fins today?
Get a weight bag if you use integrated weights. Back when I stopped diving, most divers were still using weight belts (then we had to write our names on our weight belts, today, not so much). When you finished your dive, the weight belt could be put over a shoulder or clipped around your waist to carry around. But integrated weights in their little pouches don’t lend themselves to easy carry and leaving them in the bcd only makes an already heavy package even heavier.
Speaking about weight, I had forgotten how heavy dive gear is (or maybe I was just much stronger back then!). The gear bag I still had was just a large bag, with no wheels and no shoulder straps. Lifting that thing up with sheer arm strength was really a problem. The new gear bag I just bought has both shoulder straps and wheels. And the wheels have lugs in them (smooth wheels tend to slid on shallow sand, not turn, so you end up with a kind of sled rather than a roller)
Overall, I had a great time, one that I’m repeating this next weekend, with the exceptions noted above. I hope to get out of the lake and back into the ocean as soon as I get a new wetsuit but until then, I’m happy to get more experiences in whatever water I can jump into.
Jerry
