Goose75:I get the same treatment when I go somewhere new in the world. I find that the more people stress past experience, the more they worry. I see their eyes on me full time (being the new guy) until I hit the water, then I'm the one they aren't worried about. It's just standard CYA.
I have the slightly opposite experience when I dive elsewhere.
The ask the same questions you always hear: When was your last dive? How many dives in last 6-12 months? Where?
When I tell them "My last dive was less than a week ago, I've done more than 100 dives in the last 12months, with vast majority of them being wreck dives off NJ..."
...the response is usually something like "...OK, you're all set then. Back of the boat's over there. Feel free to do your own thing, but please try to leave the other divers alone, ok? We had some NJ divers here recently..."
Honest to god, that's the exact response I've gotten from several dive boat captains in FL, CA, and HI.