Time to find a new port

[Dave Dillehay]

JOHN WAYNE had a great quote in the movie "The Sands of Iwo Jima".. It went like this: "Life is tough, it is even tougher when you are stupid". Someone in the Harbor Masters Office has a tough life and it is getting more tough as we speak. That is all I can say.

Dave Dillehay
Aldora Divers

 

[cvchief]

JOHN WAYNE had a great quote in the movie "The Sands of Iwo Jima".. It went like this: "Life is tough, it is even tougher when you are stupid". Someone in the Harbor Masters Office has a tough life and it is getting more tough as we speak. That is all I can say.

Dave Dillehay
Aldora Divers

No doubt.

 

[Moray]

Has anyone asked the officials involved for their explanation?

 

[darook]

As a former albeit, awful, triathlete I learned a fair amount about the organizations. There are a couple main players in the industry, World Triathlon Corporation (WTC), International Triathlon Union (ITU), Challenge Series and Lifetime Fitness. Among the big boys there has been a good deal of consolidation as tri participation has started to dwindle. The name Ironman is owned by WTC and sometimes licensed to local operators operators such as it is in Cozumel for both the half and the full distance races. ITU is the same format as that done in the Olympics which is a 1500M swim, 40K bike and 10 K run. While Ironman branded has a thousand or two non-athletes like myself and some fast folks, ITU is typically a smaller field of actual athletes. Ironman races are either beach start or deep water as they are done in Coz. ITU starts off a pier and the swim is actually important as they are allowed to draft on the bike unlike WTC and most every other format. If you are out of the water after the main group you are not likely to catch them. They use road bikes vs. time trial bikes that you see in the long format races. This is a safety consideration as drafting on TT bikes is an awful idea. That said, Cozumel is INFAMOUS for drafting at the Ironman events on the East side which is typically more into the wind.

The reason you likely saw the ITU take over the Caleta is that they needed a solid surface to start from and their transition area to be in the same place. The transition area is where they go to after the swim to get their bike, shoes helmet etc. It must also be the same place they put on their running shoes. Typically carpeted with assigned spaces. The Ironman races on Cozumel have a swim to bike to transition at the Chakanaab (sp?) park and the bike to run transition in El Centro. This would not work on the short, fast format that ITU runs. I don't know that this answers any of the issues you saw this weekend but likely explains why the layout was different.

 

[drrich2]

Has anyone asked the officials involved for their explanation?

When something's wrong & unnecessary (a.k.a. 'stupid'), I'd be surprised if we got the whole truth out of a bureaucracy (whether government or a large business). Someone may well have been 'called on the carpet' & chewed out, but for a bureaucracy leadership to formally & publicly admit wrongdoing & give the specifics, incriminating individuals, I don't think that's going to happen. Ignore it, hope it goes away, deny/rationalize/distort/blame-shift if possible, when all else fails render vague, general semi-apology without admitting wrong-doing if possible, that's more what I'd anticipate.

Be interesting to see if they prove me wrong on that...

None of us are perfect, everybody makes mistakes & I'm not seeking a witch hunt for somebody's head or job. I would like to see an acknowledgment that this was wrong, bad, serious, taken notice of & will not happen again. That would go a long way toward mollifying some of the ill will this episode has generated.

All that's standing in the way is getting an upper level bureaucrat to publicly disclose the truth. Holding my breath...(not).

Richard.

 

[OkByMe]

Does Cozumel ever have bad weather that precludes diving?

Chug
Loves west wind.

Yes. You can be at any destination on the resort side and expect to be picked up, but if the port has bad winds, they will close the port and the boats can't get out. Some dive operators use smaller boats that they tie off from the beach or just beach them. But if you have a large party you are going to need more boats.

 

[drrich2]

Darook:

I have little familiarity with athletics & can't put that all together in my head about the event requirements for facilities (e.g.: Caleta Harbor), and I know from other threads that Cozumel's got a new harbor. I don't know much about that at all; how close it is, what's happening with the old one, etc...

So this is a question for you, & anyone familiar with the harbor transition, expected fate of the old one, etc...

Is this scenario likely to happen again? Do the requirements for ITU or whatever other athletic competition for practical purposes mandate it take place in the harbor? If so, will this harbor most dive op.s operate out of be the only one that will serve? Is it probable that future such events will 'take over' the harbor, basically shutting down dive boat access?

With advance notice, what do the dive op.s do? Leave early in the morning so they're out of the harbor & pick up customers elsewhere? How big of an issue is that for the op.s? How much impact does it have on customers?

Richard.

 

[cvchief]

Darook:I have little familiarity with athletics & can't put that all together in my head about the event requirements for facilities (e.g.: Caleta Harbor), and I know from other threads that Cozumel's got a new harbor. I don't know much about that at all; how close it is, what's happening with the old one, etc...So this is a question for you, & anyone familiar with the harbor transition, expected fate of the old one, etc...Is this scenario likely to happen again?

The caleta 'plan' is everyone one was supposed to get the heck out and move right next door into the Fonatur. (They share the same entrance to open water.) Due to contract fighting and beliefs about who was supposed to do what, a number of dive operators felt aggrieved. They have an syndicate that was going after people and got some agreement a while back and now they are going after them for violating it. I think in the meantime the owner of Caleta changed in a manner that lets them thinking they won't honor the old agreement? So a number of boats are squatting in old Caleta and refusing to move, including some that weren't even paying their rent in Caleta! Many have moved. So there is a lot of crap there. And the new marina was opened without a building built. NO BEER STORE!!!! I am sure someone will correct the fine details, but generally that is it. I would bet this ain't gonna happen again.

With advance notice, what do the dive op.s do? Leave early in the morning so they're out of the harbor & pick up customers elsewhere? How big of an issue is that for the op.s? How much impact does it have on customers? Richard.

Well, we have heard from our two SB resident OP posters, that they had notice. (Which came off a little haughty... ) Those ops got in and got out before the place was shut down and assumedly made customer arrangements, so it didn't affect their customers much at all. On the other hand on the day in question, a crap-ton of other ops, snorkel boats, fishing boats and the like DID NOT get the word. They were parking across the street where those rental horses always are and trying to walk in to get to their boats. It was a goat #$%^.Given all of that, as I said, I don't see this crap happening again.Now if they would just open the old road....

---------- Post added October 8th, 2015 at 11:14 AM ----------

As a former albeit, awful, triathlete

Thanks for all that explanation. That was interesting.

 

[gopbroek]

And the new marina was opened without a building built. NO BEER STORE!!!! I am sure someone will correct the fine details, but generally that is it. I

They have at least temporarily partially solved that with a temp shed housing a store that sells beer. It is about 40 pace's from the temp portable air conditioned (free) restrooms.

 

[cvchief]

They have at least temporarily partially solved that with a temp shed housing a store that sells beer. It is about 40 pace's from the temp portable air conditioned (free) restrooms.

FINALLY. And thanks for the restroom info. I was there twice taking pics and I assumed both of those were job site trailers.