Diving After 50

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

The US Army Corps of Engineers "retires" their divers at age 38.
Elsewhere in the commercial diving industry it's usually 40.
I was over 50 before I couldn't lie my way through the physicals any more.
Methinks something smells a tad off with the beaching of sporties after 50 though, it's not like they're going into any sat work.
It's like lawyers... shop around until you get the opinion you like.
That sounds like what I did with my "gout diet". There were so many to choose from it was no problem finding one that had stuff listed that I could comfortably do without. :eyebrow:
 
One story in an Aussie paper mentioned that there were always about a dozen trained divers assisting anytime they were shooting. Maybe one of them will chime in on here.
 
I broke my leg skiing at age 3, and the only thing the doctors said was "quit wearing out the bottom of your casts" (3). I doubt many Doctors in Colorado fit your silly generalization.

Lucky you. Outside of Colorado, most Doctors are still ignorant of skiing injuries and long term effects.

Here's a dose of reality for you: When 99.9% of American go diving, they return to home towns where their doctors know nothing of barotrauma~ much less tropical diseases.

Generalization, you bet. Silly? You try getting a diagnosis for something as obvious as Malaria while at 7200 feet in Telluride, Colorado.

Talk to your dentist about tooth pain related to diving. Get a puzzled look much?

Pick your Doctors well.
 
Lucky you. Outside of Colorado, most Doctors are still ignorant of skiing injuries and long term effects.

Here's a dose of reality for you: When 99.9% of American go diving, they return to home towns where their doctors know nothing of barotrauma~ much less tropical diseases.

Generalization, you bet. Silly? You try getting a diagnosis for something as obvious as Malaria while at 7200 feet in Telluride, Colorado.

Talk to your dentist about tooth pain related to diving. Get a puzzled look much?

Pick your Doctors well.
I'm sure that is totally correct. I'd call DAN before my local doc, even tho he is a Mexican native and his partner is an experienced diver.
 
I took my Dad diving on the Yukon when he was over 80, he had no problems. I know Cousteau dove into his 80's, I intend to as well.
 
56 years.... 4 digit PADI instructor number... PADI instructor 30 tears.... FSDA instructor..... 3 digit instructor number low 200's..... Scuba tanks - steel Hundreds made in Oct 1970...... Absolutely WORE OUT!!!! my Scubapro MK 5 made in 1976 Scubapro ansy about their life time warranty...... Wore out my Scubapro X-L Jet fins....... Wore out Scubapro BC vests..... Killed multiple SPG's....... Dove all over including cave dives (NO not cave certified but did quit doing cave dives - mostly).... Dive over 130 feet!!!! - not that YOU can prove..... Still teach..... Volunteer each year at BSA Sea Base..... Doc still says have fun see ya when ya get back...... Stress tests etc. each year.... Doc says cardiac of 20 year old....... Says output actually better now than 5 years ago - go figure!..... Knees shot.... Back shot..... Still can out dive vast majority of divers regardless of age...... the older I get the better I was!!!!!...... Still cuter than a bugs ear!!!! Meg says so...... ???? Plan to die by being shot by 21 year old husband of 19 year old blonde haired girl friend...... Or while diving when I am in excess of 80 on a deep reef in an exotic location with a very pretty lady dive buddy so I can just drift down to the abyss to save on burial expenses.... I real cheap & gonna be buried there anyway....... OK you other over 50 divers..... What did I forget?
Grady MSDT

amjority of divers regardless
 
I began diving aka "Goggling" in the mid 1940s as a result of a very serious eye infection that required eye protection while swimming. A pair of crude goggles opened up a new world for me and I never looked back.

I made my first "Lung dive" aka SCUBA on May 31 1951 at Divers cove Laguna Beach Caifornia. After service in the Korean war I returned to OC and resumed diving, becoming the third L.A. County Underwater instructor in OC which at that time had two dive shops. I established my own training program and as the shops increased taught for some of them, including US Divers company dive course, but spent about 15 years teaching Advanced Diving, Underwater Photography and Diving Emergency Procedures (aka Dive Med) at Orange Cost College in California as an adjunct instructor.

I retired from active SCUBA instructing after 28 years and my practice about ten years ago but not active diving so began seriously traveling the world over in pursuit of diving activities;
but I am the first to admit I am not as the gorilla diver that I once was.

With the publication of my first article in 1959, I began documenting diving and have been published in several languages and in many of the international, national and regional dive publications. What follows was authored eight years ago in my local news paper dive column "Dive Bubbles" which possibly answers many of the questions about senior divers, which at I suspect that with excess of over 6000 Scuba dives, unknown number of free dives, 60 years of experience and approaching 80-with the title of Doctor, I some how quantify as an
Expert--???.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

HOW OLD IS OLD???



By Dr. Samuel Miller



"I was having my usual Wednesday delicious cup of cafE latte at Andrinis’s cafe, solving the problems of the world with my senior counterparts, Don Pieper, Joyce Ward and the junior components of our jolly group, Mike Rees, Dave and Pam Carroll, Russ and Patty Fish and Deed Dee Float the founding members and loadstones of the group, Wally and Debbie Conger (as in Darva Conger! (His cousin).



I was casually out lining my dive trips for the rest of the year, Canada to present a program at Scuba 2000, some antique dive equipment trading, a north island kayaking trip and a dip in Tobermory bay to explore the many shipwrecks that have been suspended in time. Back to again to Egypt and the Red Sea, our second trip this year, for some more world class sightseeing and certainly some of the worlds best diving. Finally our Baja trip, which my dear red headed wife, Betty, and I have visited so many times, it is like going to our second country and second home. We will spend three weeks kayaking, free diving spear fishing, eating a heck of a lot of fish and tortillas and reconnecting with my Mexican heritage.

It was Joyce or Don who posed the question and opened the discussion, “Sam how long can you continue to dive?” Perhaps also imply why don't you mature and go on senior vacations, like cruises, perhaps tour the museums or cathedrals of Europe, or maybe even take up old man’s sports like golf, card playing or trot next door purchase every thing Pete Skarda has for sale and become a “Jenuwine worm drowning wishing stick fisherman. Well! That’ll be the day!

I was reminded of a conversation on a lovely day many years past- well over fifty years ago. I was relaxing between dives on my trusty boat “Miss Tish” enjoying the warm noon day sun with my diving companion of that time frame Harry Vetter. (NAUI Instr #4 -I am #27) “Boy this is the life” I though, “good boat, good diving, good companions.” “Wonder how long we can continue diving?” I ask Harry who was five years my senior and had about three years diving experience on me. “I don't know but the “old Walrus”, Charlie Sturgill, he’s 43 and still is going strong” was Harry’s reply. . “Look at that fish boil over there, might be Berries but could be Yellows!” Harry exclaimed breaking our trance like daydreaming as we placed the Green Churchill fins on our feet and the rugged homemade mask, Charlie had fashioned for us, on our face. With our tried and trusty shoot’ en irons firmly grasped in our hand we silently entered the chilly Palo Verdes water for a look see without the protection of a floatation device, warmth of a wet suit or knowledge of a diving class. (we used wool sweaters and long underwear for thermal protection)

Much has been written about the minimum age to begin diving, but very little about the seniors. What is the age that a diver should think about another activity? What is the maximum age a person should begin to dive?

There are very few adult active sports that are immune to some sort of long term serious effect, jogging, bike riding, tennis, golf, skiing, surfing, they all have a down side of injuries and human deterioration.

Diving certainly isn't immune; it targets the ears, bones and ancillary systems. At the "Fathers of free Diving and Spear Fishing" ceremonies in January this year (2000), the majority of the honorees, all in their late 60s, many in their 70’s, a smattering in their 80’s and a few kissing 90 had diminished hearing, many sported hearing aids, while others relied on animated gestures and strong booming voice for conversation. These were “Diving’s Greatest Generation,” the ones that free dove long before the introduction of Scuba, consequently had uncountable numbers of equalizations on their ear‘s delicate tympanic membrane, causing long term damage.

There is also that real problem of “external auditory meatus exostosis” a medical term of a condition that is seldom heard or taught in the modern abbreviated diving courses. It is a bony growth in the external ear canal caused by prolonged exposure to cold water. A sort of a bony stalagmite/stalactite growth in the external ear, when fully developed will obstruct the canal, reduce hearing and entrap water causing all sorts of nasty painful infections. Do not despair it is very common in veteran surfers, swimmers and creaky old divers. I’ve had a bilateral EAM Exostosis for at least 25 years; I must wash my ears with a solution of white vinegar and alcohol after every dive to prohibit infections. I also say HUH? A lot to my red headed wife Betty, and when she’s away I entertain all of Pismo Heights with my music selections.. There is a removal option; a sort of medical roto rooter type device that will remove these pesky little growths, but not quite yet!

Diving does have two affections that are almost proprietary, the bends and aseptic bone necrosis. In the beginning the dive tables was a chart of time and depth, one dive every 12 hours. Initially it was subscribed to as if Moses had carried it down from the mount, but then the law started to get bent, as did the divers at an ever-increasing rate. Interesting symptoms began appearing, tingling, rashes, coughs, irritated joints, but in a few days they disappeared and were forgotten. They had to be forgotten since there were very few recompression chambers available to recreational divers. The charts gave way to tables, to repetitive tables and finally the battery operated “bendomatic” computers, “no batteries no brains” as the number of bends case clogged the now ubiquitous decompression chambers

Associated with the bends is "Aseptic Bone Necrosis," a medical term when translated into human talk means the death of a bone in the absence of bacteria. How does that happen? World-renowned experts are yet to agree on its etiology, some say prolonged exposure to the depths, others insist that it is the frequency of dives; current buzz is improper surfacing from any depth. That is one of the major reasons to momentarily stop around the ten foot mark for a few minutes when surfacing from any depth. There are only 206 or so bones in the body and not one to spare! When your out of bones you’re out of a body skeleton

With all these wonderful diving affections along with the other wonderful senior events, strokes, heart attacks, joint replacements, skin cancer and cataracts affecting “Diving’s Greatest Generation” when should seniors stop diving?. Cousteau made a dive on his 80th birthday, his naval commanding officer and his diving inspiration (who introduced him to free diving) Philippe Tailliez made a Scuba Dive on his 92d birthday. When even they damn well please! They have earned the right and privilege of diving as long as they wish.

When then should it be appropriate for the grandparents to start diving? If they are athletically fit and realize their limitations, just about any age. They must recognize that the other senior divers who began with the sport are products of the SAID principle. SAID is one of those wonderful acronyms; Specific Adaptation to the Imposed Demands. To illustrate, an individual who has had a long-term adaptation to a specific activity has developed the skills, muscles and know how to perform the requirements of a given activity indefinitely with minimum ease and impact upon his body. Or even simpler a novice can never out perform the master.

The prostate Poseidons and menopause mermaids, those arthritic athletes who were members of Diving’s Greatest Generation were privileged participants in an era that will never be experienced again up on this earth. Few in numbers they are, like the call of the running tide, dwindling in numbers.

Editors note: Dr. Miller was one of 88 pioneer divers in the world to be honored as an “International Father of Free Diving and Spear Fishing” at the first induction ceremonies in January (2000) of this year in San Diego."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Since that meeting about 50% of the inductees are now diving in that big reef in the sky

Your comments?



sdm
 
I'm sure glad that I didn't see this post about Mr. Sutherland 8 years ago before I became a certified diver at the age of 53. I might have believed that I was too old to learn to dive. I sure would have missed a lot of fun and many amazing underwater sites. I am looking forward to doing my 50th dive on my vacation in Cozumel next week.
 
I think many comments misunderstand what Sutherland has. He experienced barotrauma from the dive.
I don't think anyone doubts he was injured from his dives. I am pretty sure everyone doubts that age alone is some sort of barrier to diving or that any real DM "admitted" that 50 was a magic retirement age for divers. I believe he had the pain; I believe that diving brought it on; I am certain the rest of the article is BS.
 

Back
Top Bottom