Open Water Weekend

Friday.

Working with a 12yr old who is upgrading from Scuba Diver to Open Water.  He did most of his initial work in Spain last year and came to us on his return.

He is not an academic young lad and finds it difficult to understand some of the concepts.  However, with 1 to 1 tuition he is progressing well.  He just needs the concepts to be explained using analogies that he is familiar with.

After finishing with the theory we are off to the pool for confined 5, with a mature lady joining us.  A nice easy session that only takes us 45mins. 

At the same time the two students I have for their open water dives are doing their drysuit orientation.  From what I see of them they are finding drysuits a little difficult in shallow water.

Back at the centre both open water students are not sure about using drysuits as they are ‘uncomfortable’.  We explained to them that it would be different in the lake as more air required at depth would relieve the discomfort.

Saturday.

Both students arrived on time, but one of them stated that they were very nervous.  Plenty of reassurance and we kitted up and briefed.  We were in the water for 09:00 for a steady bimble along the front of the lake.

As we arrived at the 8m platform the weight belt of one student went south, becoming ankle weights L.  

Despite trying to replace it whilst laying on the platform, it was not possible to get it tight enough, so we popped back up to the surface to sort it out, then continued the dive.  As we got to the 8m platform this time I was checking that they were both comfortable and everything was OK, when one of them pointed just to the left of me.  About 6 inches off my left hip was a pike observing us.  Nothing gigantic but a good 15-18 inches long.  He even followed us as we went off to the buss, a nice sight for both of them J

During the debrief, the nervous student admitted that she was not at all comfortable during the dive.  It was nothing specific that she could put her finger on, i.e. depth, temperature or visibility, so it was put down to nervous apprehension.  She was, however, keen to continue if only to conquer her fear.  We also swapped a weight belt for a harness for the other student to prevent the possibility of another loss.

Back in for 10:30 and the start of the skills.  To try and keep them as warm as possible all the skills were done with one student whilst the other was kept on the move by the DM’s, then swapped over.  The only minor issue this time was with the fin pivots, both students breathing to quick and shallow, but it was easily overcome with a little reminder.  Both admitted during the debrief that they thought it was the water temperature that was making them breathe quicker.

A good surface interval over lunch allowed them to warm up again before the final dive of the day.

As it is often a challenging skill I decided to start dive 3 with the CESA.  Being a flexible skill it can be done at any time during dives 2-4.  I like to put it in at the start of dive 3 so if there are any issues there is time to repeat at the end of the dive and also during dive 4 if needed.  It saves on repeated attempts that tend to knacker and frustrate students.  Both managed it with reasonable ease, but the lad, being a large individual, needed a bit of support on the surface whilst he orally inflated his BCD.

Our nervous student is now feeling a lot more comfortable and is beginning to relax and enjoy herself.  This is obvious in her buoyancy control which is becoming significantly better  indeed, at the end of the dive she even manages a smile.

Debriefs over, the students are off home knackered to return on Sunday for 09:00 to finish off.

We are off to the Indian for dinner, promises to be a good night.

Sunday

Looks like being a much warmer day today.  A good breakfast sets one up for the day, so it was bacon & eggs.

Students turn up on time, always a good start.

One dive to do for them to qualify, the our nervous lady, who is much more at ease now is also completing her drysuit spec.

Briefing over we are in the water just after 10:00.  Skills competed on the 8m platform we potter off to the Shorts.  After a look around the cockpit we head to the back.  There, sitting under an overhang is a large Perch of about 2-2½ lbs.  The students tell me later they thought it was dead as it didn’t move at all whilst we were looking at it.

I don’t think I would be to lively after weeks in the water at 6⁰C J.

Our nervous lady is now all smiles.  Both have qualified as Open Water divers and are looking forward to some pleasure dives where they can finally do what we all love.  Dive for pleasure. However, our young lady has one more dive to do to complete her Drysuit Sepciality.

As we are debriefing a curve ball comes my way.  One of our CD’s is teaching Speciality courses to three of our new instructors but she has split the seals on her drysuit.  Maybe she should use it more often J.  As they are doing Drysuit Speciality, she asks if I will take over.

Quick re-think.  Drop in and start with the instructors, leaving the DM to bring our new diver down when ready.  She would then do her skills for me, then off for a tour with the DM.

I had barely started with the instructors when they appear, so it was a quick remove & replace of the DS LPI then off they went, whilst I continued with the instructors.

As we were doing the surface skills our new diver returned with a huge smile on her face.  They had found the Koi carp over near the rescue area and she thought that this was great, just the sort of thing she wants to see whilst diving.

All in all a good weekend.  Two new divers and three happy instructors.

Pool Weekend

Well, this weekend was fairly easy, if long hours.  All classroom and pool work with a maximum of 5 to look after.

Friday

Pool work with a nervous woman.  She had a bad experience on a SDS some time ago and came to us as she wants to dive with her partner.  Having had a good session last month, she wanted to repeat confined dives 1 & 2 as a confidence booster, prior to joining a full course.  Other than a slight panic on her initial descent, when her mask flooded slightly, it was a great evening.  She was very good at her skills and a lot more relaxed.  Having mastered her fears and with rising confidence, she elected to continue through the weekend and finish off all her pool and academic work.

So she was back on Saturday morning J

Saturday

A group of 5 for academics modules 1-3, with ages ranging from 25 through to 68.  However, all had done plenty of preparation having read all the manuals.  Unfortunately not all had done all the written prep.  Not to worry, they could so that whilst watching the DVD’s.

A steady plod through the quizzes with only a minor hiccup on module 3 for one student that was easily resolved.  On completion of the academics, one student left the group to return at  a later date to complete their pool work.  Then it was off to the pool with the remaining four for stamina exercises and skills.

Oh how unfit modern youth is.  The youngest member really struggled to complete their 200m swim, makes me feel good to be old J.

Why is it that some people can be looking at you, but not see what you are doing?  One particular student seemed to be paying attention to the skills demonstrations, but really struggled to mimic them.  It took a bit of encouragement, as well as some extra demonstrations, before they mastered them but all was all right on the night.

Sunday

The same format as Saturday, classroom then pool.  We really flew through the academics with very little trouble on the RDP, and all achieving over 90% on the final exams.

As we were ahead of time there were plenty of questions from the group on where to go next and the various aspects of diving, including one who has aspirations to be an instructor.

The last pool session went better than Saturday as our ‘non-seeing’ student was much better as performing their skills, apart from remove and replace scuba unit which was quite comical to watch.

So we now have four more students ready for Open Water, with two of them going for it this weekend.  BBBBBRRRR, 6^OC for your first venture into the unknown, it could be interesting.

Quiet Weekend

I knew it was going to be a fairly quiet weekend when I received the training program, but I don't think anyone anticipated what was to come.

Friday in the pool, Saturday classroom doing academics with 2 adults and 3 kids, then Enriched Air on Sunday.  A pleasant change from the usual, so looking forward to it.

Friday

The pool session was a one-on-one with a very nervous middle aged lady who is off to the Maldives on Honeymoon and wants to be able to dive with her new husband.  Whilst far from a difficult session there were certainly some humorous incidents that made it more enjoyable than usual.  However, to protect the guilty no names or details.

When we came out of the pool it was certainly chilly, but no frost to be seen anywhere.

Saturday

Woke up at 05:15 in the van feeling decidedly cold, highly unusual for me.  I assumed that there must have been a power cut or that the heater had failed.  Quick check and all seemed to be working, heater on so power OK.  Why so cold?

A quick trip to the car answered that BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.

With temperatures so low, we were not expecting casual divers, but a few hardy souls did venture into the lake.  However, as their kit froze when they came out, most only managed the one dive.

A good session on academics, all 5 successfully completing what they came to achieve, with te kids doing better than the adults.  Oh the joys of a young receptive brain.

Sunday.

Damn French cars.  Driving in this morning the dash lit up like an explosion in a nightclub with alarms going off and the car ground to a halt.  ESP/ASR fault, irreparable engine damage possible.  Not easy to read the manual at 06:00 in the middle of nowhere.  Decided to carry on to the centre and the engine didn’t blow up, but was not able to get above 40mph L.  Good job it’s a company car, no bills for me J

Why is that people turn up for a course they have booked without having done any prep for it?  Not only had 1 student not done their knowledge reviews, but it was apparent that they had not read the manual either.  Not only is this frustrating for the instructors, it is also annoying for the other students, as so much time has to be wasted explaining principles that they should be aware off.

Despite this, all passed despite the ill prepared having to do a re-sit on the final exam, but I could have been home 3 hours earlier.

Back next week

The Hardy Students

Saturday dawned with a stiff breeze and temperatures touching -8, but that didn't deter 2 young American lads from turning up for their Open Water Dives at 08:00.

Kit issued and briefings done, we were in the lake at 09:15 for dive 1, a nice steady bimble for them to get accustomed to an open water environment.  Not a lot to see in the shallows, other than the bus and pool table.  The fish were obviously having a lay-in.

Apart from the usual minor issues with buoyancy normally seen on the first dive, there were no issues and the broad grins at the exit said it all.  However, it wasn't long before the re-warming of exposed skin brought the usual grimaces of winter diving.

Dive 2 was equally uneventful, skills completed with ease and another swim around to practice buoyancy.  Grins not quite so wide this time, as the cold was beginning to get to the core, despite the water being 14o warmer than the air.

Then it was time for the last dive of the day, dive 3.  It was obvious, during the skills that they were both getting cold.  They could be seen visibly shivering during fin pivots, but coped very well with mask floods.

They went to the cinema to take their minds of things in the evening, followed by a bite to eat, whilst I went to a 17th Birthday.  Very tasty Indian for me :-).

What a shock on Sunday morning, 10-12cm of snow all over the place and an hour to do a 15min drive, mainly due to closed roads.  The main benefit was the wind had gone and the temperature was up to a balmy +1.

The morning after the storm.

Two more dives to go, Dive 4 followed by Drysuit dive 2.

The hardy crew

All was going well until the hover.  One of the students was suffering with a leaky mask that was causing him to choke when he rolled on to his back.  The only resolution was a mask change.  Off cam mine and I offered it to him.  He thought I meant for him to remove, replace and reseal his.  By the time he realised what I wanted him to do, my face was freezing.

Skills done and 2 new Open Water Divers, well done Clint & Tyler, however, its not all over yet.

DVD to watch, then another dive to complete the Drysuit Speciality.  With hardly any skills, it was more like a pleasure dive.  Despite the success of the weekend, both students were glad it was all over and the pork stew, complete with juicy dumplings, that was served up was a real treat for all of us.

Appologies

It seems that the world has transpired to keep me to busy to keep things up-to-date.  I hope that now we are in a New Year I will ge the time to keep on top of things.

Last weekend was quite busy, with a group of 9 starting their open water course.  Due to varying commitments, some stayed for the full weekend & copmpleted all the accademics & pool work, others only did the first 2 pool sessions & will be finishing things at a later date.

Of the 5 that stayed the distance, 2 are completing their open water dives this weekend, so will be in the pool tonight for DS Orientation.

We also have a wide range od trips booked for the year with 2 trips to the Farne Islands & 1 to Portland that fill May, July & September.  Then in June we are off to the Medes Islands in Spain.

This is followed by a Liveaboard in Egypt in August, Northern Wrecks & Reefs aboard Blue Fin

See you soon

A week in Nuweiba - Day 2

Today it is the pipeline.  This site is at an old de-salination plant that has not been operative since the Israelis left the area.  To the north is another scattered coral garden, to the south are the old pipes for the plant.

The first dive is in the corral garden.  Mark is so keen to get in and see what is around, he leaves his fins behind.  A 200m return walk to get them.  Again a steeply sloping sandy bottom with scattered rocks & hard corral with some large table corrals and pinnacles at 20m.  Just short of the largest pinnacle is table corral with an odd shape underneath.  As we move closer we realise it is a large turtle sitting there, with 2 large remora on its back.  It sits there quite happily whilst we take a few pictures, then off she goes, up for air, but not without posing for a few shots on the way.

On the way back our guide, Sarah is contently looking at various rocks hoping for something special.  Suddenly, there it is.  A large red frogfish.  Damn, they are ugly, but impressive.

What a great dive, but can Sarah top it during the rest of the week?

After the obligatory surface interval we are off to the pipeline.

There are 2 pipes, the shorter ending at about 7m, the longer ending at 20m.  The main areas of interest are the water inlet filters, where there is the greatest abundance of corral and, hence, fish.  It seems that this is a nursery area, as the majority are juvenile fish, but the variety is amazing.  There is nothing amazing on this dive, but the variety is impressive and there are loads of Nudibrancs, but very small.

For me, things are not looking good for the rest of the week.  I have been nursing a dodgy back since last Wednesday but rather then improving the muscles have gone into spasm & been getting progressively worse to the point any movement is extremely painful.  We have a Doctor with us & I am hoping he can do something.

More tomorrow.

A week in Nuweiba - The Journey

It started with no hassles at the airport about luggage followed by the usual standard of flight with Easyjet to Sharm.

We were met at Sharm by a Bedouin driver who got us to Nuweiba in a little over 1 ½ hrs where we were met by our hosts, John & Sam Swindale.  They are an English couple who have 3 spare rooms in their house & are putting us up for the week.  After brief introductions, a very welcome meal, beef casserole, was served with a few sakara’s(local beer)  to wash it all down.  The remainder of the evening was spent chatting about a wide variety of things before we all turned in for the night.

DAY 1.

We are diving with African Divers Nuweiba who are located alongside the Swisscare hotel, and run by Sarah & Dan.  We are joined by a middle aged German couple.  After the usual paperwork, we sort our kit out & journey about 20mins north to a site called Angelfish.

There are already divers there, but they are packing up, so we have the place to ourselves. 

Sarah runs through a comprehensive safety & dive brief & in we go, heading to the north.

It is a mainly sandy bottomed, steeply sloping, site with scattered rocks & corral areas.  At 30m there is a small pinnacle that is like an overcrowded tenement block.  All the usual species are there in vast numbers, but nothing big.  What is unusual though, is the high number of Nudibrancs that are to be found here.  Two dives completed it is back to the house for a shower, a few après bubble drinks & dinner.