Are we really the minority??

[paradicio]

A couple of weeks ago a bunch of co-workers came up to me all-a-buzz about another co-worker that just got certified while he was on vacation. Apparently he was bragging about how he is now a scuba diver.

Always on the lookout for a dive buddy I approached him and said: Hey I heard you got certified! That’s great! Would you like to come out and dive some time with my wife, my cousin, and I?

He replied something along the lines of: You mean here in California? It’s too cold. I just got certified on my trip, I probably won’t dive again until my next vacation…if I go somewhere I can dive…

I remember my OW class, my instructor gave us a lecture on how we should dive California. At the time I didn’t understand why he would give such a lecture, after all we were getting certified so that we could dive California… Now I understand. We’re the minority. We weren’t getting certified for a vacation, we were getting certified to dive right here at home. (Understand when I say “we”, I mean me, my wife, and a friend of ours. We took a semi-private OW class, so there were only 3 of us there.)

I guess, like the OP, I didn’t realize that people would go through all the trouble of getting certified if they didn’t intend to dive more than just on their vacations.

Nothing against the vacation divers, I guess we’re just of a different mindset…and there's nothing wrong with that!

 

[rakkis]

I hadn't been diving in two months cause of work. So I took my first day off and went diving... am I still an avid diver? :T







In other news.... I can't wait to move back home to CA. Something about paying to dive in 24 *F air/40 *F water doesn't quite feel the same.

 

[letsgodiving]

These are the folks you see standing on the bottom,

hey.......I have to plant my feet on the bottom to pee, seriously. For some reason I just can't go easily without getting in the normal position for a man.

BTW - here in Florida a lot of people get certified and only dive once or twice. nearly all the people under 35 in my office are OW but most haven't been wet for years.

 

[reel-wild]

My wife bought my certification for my 40th birthday / i didnt take the class until my 42nd birthday / at only 70 miles from the coast and been a hard core salt water fisher i would fish the wreck sites and see these guys pull up fall out of the boat and then come up with all these nice fish thats how my wife came to buy my certification i now spear fish almost every weekend and i dont mind warm or cold water so you could say im a dive aholic ( my wife just loves to sit on the boat and watch bubbles) life is great

 

[RoyN]

Yes we are a small group. Less then 1% in my family and throughout the generation goes diving. Its just my aunt who died because of it and RoyN who is talking to you now.

 

[Blackwood]

...

nice!

 

[nereas]

For every internet-diver (certified & logs onto a scuba internet site) there must be 1000 other occasional divers, yes. I often meet them at work, at church, in other clubs like tennis, etc.

They have all heard of or dive in Hawaii, it seems like. Some have heard of Cozumel too.

Scuba Board is a great place for those of us who dive frequently to get info on current diving issues, like new products (this is where I learned about Oxycheq and Sartek), new procedures, recent accidents, great diving vacations, etc.

For the others who are infrequent, I guess they don't care?

 

[Geoff_H]

DAN defined avid divers as people who dive more than 5 times a year.

Damn, I made up my annual quota in a day sometimes!

 

[drydiver]

Our solution: Nemo33 (gallery). Only 100 minutes away...

That looks awesome for training or for a quick fix . . . are those prices per 45 minute session?

Donna

 

[Kbear]

Rakkis, what's on your right shoulder in that first pic? It looks like a soda can.

I understand the need to go diving in cold weather like that, and I'm probably about to. I haven't had the chance to get under since October and it's driving me nuts.