Flower Garden trips CANCELLED

[scubafanatic]

By the way, your SB bio. provides no information....to my knowledge you might not even be a diver....hmmmmmm.

...that's funny Alan, 'cause on June 6, 2010 Captain Frank (SPREE) wrote the following:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/te...els-all-most-june-trips-flower-gardens-6.html

I just had a look at the Fling calendar. I see 6 profitable trips for the rest of July and August, with 4 more possible break-evens. I have no idea what they canceled in June and July. If the Flower Gardens were profitable, I'd still be there. With the changes in the economy over the past 5 years, it just doesn't work.

When we bought out Gary Rinn, fuel was 60 cents a gallon. We fed the boat for $350 per trip. The only paid crew was the captains, everyone else worked for tips and diving. We'd get fussed at for canceling trips in 4-6 foot seas. Divers were tougher, younger, and willing to rough it.

When I saw ridership decline, I made changes to the Spree, which I did on the advice of my divers. Karl, I boosted the pressure of the HP banks and started free nitrox on your suggestion. I cut the number of divers based on many folks suggestion. When I cut the number of divers, it was obvious that the price would have to go up, but Gary, you told me one night that amenities didn't matter, the ride was the same, so you were switching to the Fling because they cost less. I devised an online booking system for those independent divers who didn't like going through a shop. All of those changes cost me money, as well as market share. All of the improvements we did to the Spree cost me money we never made back until we moved to Florida. I don't know why the Flower Gardens isn't as popular as it once was, I always thought it was due to..ahem..personalities on the Spree, but looking at the continued decline since I left, it wasn't me or Mel.

It's interesting. The Sanctuary was created by divers for divers. What will happen if dive boats don't go there anymore. If the economies of scale don't make it profitable, I wonder if a cheaper, leaner, really no-frills boat can turn a profit?

What I do know is that I've turned down enough business in Florida to make the Fling profitable if I had it here.
__________________

_________________
Capt Frank Wasson
M/V Spree

...by the way, I'm the "Karl" to whom he's referring when he says: "Karl, I boosted the pressure of the HP banks and started free nitrox on your suggestion." dunno, maybe there is a chance I REALLY am a diver ?

 

[Bill Parker]

Sorry you'll have to wait but I'd take the money while I could
just like Fling is. You can go to Cozumel for cheaper than
Fling anyway and not be stuck on a boat for days!

 

[Hawkeye Mark]

The owners of the Fling made a business decision. Fine its their business and their choice. Five years ago after Katrina if I remember correctly all gulf trips were cancelled and both boats went on clean up duty. But this is different. Its their choice. As some people have pointed out the Fling with nitrox is almost 600 for a 2 day trip. I can go to Cozumel for a couple hundred more(depending on what hotel) and have reliable diving. I have been to the FG only once but had several tries before that. Its a great place. But its not that reliable. I have enough trouble scheduling vacations without having to worry about storms at the last minute.

 

[texdiveguy]

Karl, my error.....opps. But still would be nice to read about your experience in the SB bio, as it helps us the readers of your post/threads to get a feel for whom we are writing/reading. FREE NITROX--way to go.....now if you can get FREE TRIMIX with someone--lol. Well off for a second day of getting wet myself. AK

 

[scubafanatic]

Sorry you'll have to wait but I'd take the money while I could
just like Fling is. You can go to Cozumel for cheaper than
Fling anyway and not be stuck on a boat for days!

....firstly, Cozumel is substantially more expensive than FG, if you do a realistic total cost-per-dive analysis. (especially if it's a road trip, which it is for me)

....secondly, as it's a road trip for me here in Dallas/TX, I can bring a 'big' scuba tank for nice long dives, which isn't an option with most Coz dive ops, and an extra cost option when it is available.

...thirdly, it appears that you just don't 'get it' with respect to the whole scuba liveaboard experience to characterize things as being "stuck on a boat for days!" For some of us, the ideal/dream dive trip is exactly being 'stuck' on a boat out in the remote middle of nowhere, as far as possible from civilization....it's OK if you're not one of those 'types', but trust me, you really do not 'get it'.

 

[scubafanatic]

Karl, my error.....opps. But still would be nice to read about your experience in the SB bio, as it helps us the readers of your post/threads to get a feel for whom we are writing/reading. FREE NITROX--way to go.....now if you can get FREE TRIMIX with someone--lol. Well off for a second day of getting wet myself. AK

...no sweat Alan, I'll go update my 'bio'...hmmm, let's see now, how many times have I led expeditions to the Andrea Doria, the Mariana Trench, and underneath the polar ice cap, not to mention the cave dive to the center of the earth just last week? Most of those 'bios' represent 'cyberdiver par excellance' smoke-blowin' anyway.....but I love good fiction!

...actually, much as free NITROX is cool, my BIG pet peeve is short-filled tanks, so I was eternally grateful for Frank upgrading the SPREE's tank filling infrastructure.

 

[blueeyes_austin]

I said they are part of the cleanup effort, which requires a huge amount of resources be it a floating dorm, a cleanup vessal, or whatever is needed. You make it sound as if they are just sucking up money for no apparent reason. They made a business decision just as it is your choice on how you spend your money. When they cancel trips due to weather for safety reasons, do you fault them? They choose to participate in the cleanup effort at the expense of their dive business, I just wish that the complainers on this thread would respect their decision to assist in the effort rather than bash them around. Your efforts should be put toward holding BP accountable and not beating up on one of our own homegrown small businesses affected by the negligence of a large overseas business that was unprepared for such a catastrophy despite the early warnings they were aware of such a potential disaster.

Why?

This isn't about BP and it isn't about the oil spill. The Fling's participation in the clean up isn't going to change outcomes in the slightest.

It comes down to this: they could make $X with divers and they could make $X + $Y as a floating dorm. To make $X + $Y they unilaterally abrogated the contract they had with their divers this summer and returned their money.

 

[scubafanatic]

Why?

This isn't about BP and it isn't about the oil spill. The Fling's participation in the clean up isn't going to change outcomes in the slightest.

It comes down to this: they could make $X with divers and they could make $X + $Y as a floating dorm. To make $X + $Y they unilaterally abrogated the contract they had with their divers this summer and returned their money.

...agreed! The FLING gamble being, as they have the FG liveaboard monopoly (realistically), when 2011 arrives, there will be enough loyal (or desperate) FG fans who will tolerate the 2010 abuse, put it aside, and just want to go diving, while they still can, in FG. I don't know if FLING's gamble will pay off...it won't surprise me if I'm one of those divers who likely WILL be giving them another try in 2011, as there really aren't many options for us FG fans....much as some of us might like to teach FLING a lesson, who wants to 'cut off our noses to spite our faces' ?

 

[chinacat46]

I can look at what the Fling is doing two different ways. If they are providing a service helping out with the cleanup that nobody else can provide then I say go for it and help out. On the other hand if they are doing something that somebody else could provide then they screwed there customers over for more money. Suppose you had a reservation and they called you up and said somebody has offered me more money for your spot so here is your money back. That is what it appears to me. They had a commitment and they broke it for more money. Greed pure and simple. I've always wanted to dive the Flower Gardens but due to trips getting blown out and having to fly in I've never booked a trip. Now knowing that they will also cancel on me if somebody offers them more money will no doubt make it a certainity that I will never book with them.

 

[texdiveguy]

...no sweat Alan, I'll go update my 'bio'...hmmm, let's see now, how many times have I led expeditions to the Andrea Doria, the Mariana Trench, and underneath the polar ice cap, not to mention the cave dive to the center of the earth just last week? Most of those 'bios' represent 'cyberdiver par excellance' smoke-blowin' anyway.....but I love good fiction!

...actually, much as free NITROX is cool, my BIG pet peeve is short-filled tanks, so I was eternally grateful for Frank upgrading the SPREE's tank filling infrastructure.

......silly,, you know what I mean and the 'general' purpose of the SB bio., by the way we may have been on the same Andrea Doria trek....what a jab getting blow off the last 2 dives of 4 dives, but that the North Atlantic.