John ("Popeye") Renshaw
Registered
Be cheerful. Reach out to the younger generations. Be patient with "newbies." Remembering that the goal with each dive trip, whether at a local beach or thousands of miles away, is a pleasurable, hassle-free, trouble-free dive experience with many new learnings for all involved. New people need to be reminded: You don't get into scuba diving in order to get in shape; you get into it when you are already in good shape. Hopefully prepared by daily practice in large swimming pools with weight belt, fins, mask and snorkel. I used to swim my daily mile at our local YMCA's until policy changes later prohibited swimming with this equipment or holding classes at their facilities. (The big legal liability SCARE ---- policy changes motivated by fears rather than by facts) Students also need to be forewarned: they need to purchase top quality name brand belt buckles so that weight belts are not lost during dives or practice----that's one of the most common problems, one which undoubtedly motivates pool facilities to restrict or prohibit scuba diving people from pool practice. I am attaching here a photo and caption to help inspire...... (LOL)