Xanthro
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40.
How old were you?
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I used to snorkel during our annual holiday to North Wales in the summer, from about the age of six or seven.
Then my uncle, then a commercial diver, stuck his kit on me and rolled me off a boat into 6m of water when I was nearly 12 and I've been diving ever since. Once I figured out I could breathe and wasn't dead, there was no stopping me.
Logged shedloads of dives with him and his mates, then in 1986, I booked a diving holiday and realised I wasn't going to be getting wet unless I had a cert to show them, so did BSAC Novice I, Novice II and Sport Diver in seven days. Crossed over to PADI and am currently a DM.
Was 32 in December, which means I have been diving 20 years! So glad my uncle lobbed me off that boat...
Mark
Then my uncle, then a commercial diver, stuck his kit on me and rolled me off a boat into 6m of water when I was nearly 12 and I've been diving ever since. Once I figured out I could breathe and wasn't dead, there was no stopping me.
Logged shedloads of dives with him and his mates, then in 1986, I booked a diving holiday and realised I wasn't going to be getting wet unless I had a cert to show them, so did BSAC Novice I, Novice II and Sport Diver in seven days. Crossed over to PADI and am currently a DM.
Was 32 in December, which means I have been diving 20 years! So glad my uncle lobbed me off that boat...
Mark
Wayward Son
Contributor
Snorkeling in the pool at maybe 9. In salt water at 10, scuba at 12.
Started snorkeling when I was about 5ish, got my first certification at 13.
dvr4lyf
Guest
Started swimming when I was 2 and spent many summers poolside. When I was 18 I started working for a pool company as a lifeguard.5 Yrs. ago my boss told me if I wanted to do any underwater repairs I needed my cert. Little did I know how addicting this sport/hobbie is!! Certified when I was 27 and started diving for work!! My only regret is that I didnt become a doctor or lawyer first so I had more money for my new love!!!
44. made sure my son did not have to wait so long. Got him his ow cert for hs graduation present at 18
menemsha43
Contributor
I remember first being fascinated with the ocean at the age of 7 on a trip to Greece with my family. One of my cousins was snorkeling and brought up some urchins for us to eat. I think I did some snorkeling on that trip but I can't remember for sure. Then when I was about 12 I remember seeing some Cousteau documentaries and I used to beg my Mom to drive me to the local scuba shop to look around the store. I did some snorkeling in my teens and got certified when I was 24.
OP
When I started this thread, I thought some would give me heat about putting a tank on an 8 year old. Glad to see I'm not the only one.
I started Diving when I was 21. I did it only because my girlfriend atthe time was certified, and I wanted to take her on a trip for her birthday. She is long gone, but the diving has stuck with me. Last summer I decided to move up to pro, and finished my DM and AI.
My nephew was always asking when he could go diving with me. When he turned 10, I took him to my local LDS, and let him take a Discover SCUBA. He was hooked from first breath. He is now a Jr. Adventure Diver, and as soon as he is 12, sept. 2006, he plans to do what ever he has to to be a Master Scuba Diver. I have created a diving monster with him. I can't even walk near my gear without him asking if we are going to go diving soon.
My nephew was always asking when he could go diving with me. When he turned 10, I took him to my local LDS, and let him take a Discover SCUBA. He was hooked from first breath. He is now a Jr. Adventure Diver, and as soon as he is 12, sept. 2006, he plans to do what ever he has to to be a Master Scuba Diver. I have created a diving monster with him. I can't even walk near my gear without him asking if we are going to go diving soon.
KWBuddy
Registered
My family had boats since well before I was born, so I was a water rat as a kid.
I started diving on compressed air one night when a shrimp boat that was next to me in Key West Bight was sinking and needed an external patch. Holding my breath and trying to do the patch wasn't working. Someone asked me if I wanted a SCUBA tank.
Next day the local underwater repair guy found me and told me how stupid I had been. At first I thought he was just trying to "protect his turf," but not so. He taught me a lot about basic SCUBA stuff and we became friends. I still keep in touch with him.
Several years later all the shops in Key West required C-Cards to fill a tank. So I finally took a course (YMCA) in 1977 at 27 years old. The guy who had originally helped me learn SCUBA was one of the two Dive Instructors in the Keys, so I took the course from him.
Funny thing is that after I took the course (I was the infamous holdout [getting "friends" to fill my tanks for me]) *none* of the shops actually asked to see my card. I guess they all knew that I had taken the course.
I got into recreational diving by accident also. I was living with a woman in Austin TX and we were planning a vacation. She wanted to go to Hawaii. I didn't know it when I met her, but she was a recreational diver. The topic never came up. So the Hawaiian vacation was going to be a dive vacation of sorts.
I made the mistake of telling her I had been certified "way back" and she bribed me back in the water with a complete set of top quality dive gear and a trip to Hawaii. Remember that in the 70s there were no BCs, Computers and the like. A J valve was a nice thing to have, but not all tanks had one. Shops had pressure gages, but none of my friends did. A Bourdon tube was used for measuring depth. It only worked well in shallow water. Also, we had learned to never come up faster than our bubbles. Im not sure how fast that is, but it sends the alarm off on the dive computer.
Lets say it took a while to become accustomed to the new world of SCUBA. Anyhow after a period of adjustment, I found I like recreational SCUBA and am becoming mere serious about it.
Last year I moved back to the Keys and got a live-aboard boat and plan on doing a lot of diving. Id like to do the Bahamas this coming summer and perhaps the Caribbean next year.
--
Bud
I started diving on compressed air one night when a shrimp boat that was next to me in Key West Bight was sinking and needed an external patch. Holding my breath and trying to do the patch wasn't working. Someone asked me if I wanted a SCUBA tank.
Next day the local underwater repair guy found me and told me how stupid I had been. At first I thought he was just trying to "protect his turf," but not so. He taught me a lot about basic SCUBA stuff and we became friends. I still keep in touch with him.
Several years later all the shops in Key West required C-Cards to fill a tank. So I finally took a course (YMCA) in 1977 at 27 years old. The guy who had originally helped me learn SCUBA was one of the two Dive Instructors in the Keys, so I took the course from him.
Funny thing is that after I took the course (I was the infamous holdout [getting "friends" to fill my tanks for me]) *none* of the shops actually asked to see my card. I guess they all knew that I had taken the course.
I got into recreational diving by accident also. I was living with a woman in Austin TX and we were planning a vacation. She wanted to go to Hawaii. I didn't know it when I met her, but she was a recreational diver. The topic never came up. So the Hawaiian vacation was going to be a dive vacation of sorts.
I made the mistake of telling her I had been certified "way back" and she bribed me back in the water with a complete set of top quality dive gear and a trip to Hawaii. Remember that in the 70s there were no BCs, Computers and the like. A J valve was a nice thing to have, but not all tanks had one. Shops had pressure gages, but none of my friends did. A Bourdon tube was used for measuring depth. It only worked well in shallow water. Also, we had learned to never come up faster than our bubbles. Im not sure how fast that is, but it sends the alarm off on the dive computer.
Lets say it took a while to become accustomed to the new world of SCUBA. Anyhow after a period of adjustment, I found I like recreational SCUBA and am becoming mere serious about it.
Last year I moved back to the Keys and got a live-aboard boat and plan on doing a lot of diving. Id like to do the Bahamas this coming summer and perhaps the Caribbean next year.
--
Bud
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