Newsletter 12 - January/February 2007

Dive reports – There have been no club dives over the winter period and I’ve not had any information about any training dives etc so nothing much to report. If you have been diving let me know!!!!

Arthur’s Story – the first ‘sneaky’ dive report!

I went to Gran Canaria in December for some sun, sea (diving!) sangria and...  dancing. Very tiring all the activity. I managed to get away for a dive with 'Aquanauts' - a small dive centre in Puerto Rico, which is apparently known as the English town, cos there are so many Brits there. Ruth runs it with her French husband. Air temp was 29c. Water temp 26c. Viz was clear. The dive was done off the beach and depth was around 13m around the outside of the harbour. There was plenty of fish life, but not much on the bottom, although a small ray and some baby cuttlefish were spotted. Barracuda were all above us, beside us, behind us and below. Clearly we were in their ‘zone’.

The dive centre can lay on a boat to go to the marine reserve at Arinaga where 60m can be achieved, or for the more dive minded, it's probably just as well to stay in Arinaga and use someone like Davy Jones Diving. Their website offers accommodation in unspoilt Gran Canaria, close to the dive centre.  Gran Canaria is not necessarily top of the list for a diving destination but there's plenty of other things to do apart from diving.

Blondisms

Make sure that when you have just given a lecture on dive kit preparation etc that you have the right fin / boot combination.

Also remember to bring the correct cylinder with you – the one with air in (yep guilty mi’lord).

Other news

Sunday nights - As you may have noticed the pool bar is now being demolished but we now have the option of going to the bowling club / snooker club – a one minute walk behind the swimming pool for a few drinks from around 9.15 onwards. Everyone welcome and we don’t just talk about diving! This is a chance for some of the newer members to get to know us old timers. This is also where lectures are being held before pool session. We may still use the Kings Head (Town Centre). Check after the Pool session as you will usually need to be signed in by a member (Me, Dave Dog, John Rickenberg and Tim Ahern), although I think they know us well enough now to know who we are.

Pool rota – club members are now required to take a turn at the pool rota - collecting pool fees and also acting as dry / pool side supervision for people in the water. This is a requirement of the management of the pool, which we have to abide by. The number of club members should mean that you only have to do this 2/3 times a year. You should receive a text on the day of your turn but a rota is on HSD website.

Friday 20 April 2007 Shark Dive at Southend Sea Life Centre – Dive with man-eaters! Ok maybe they are not that dangerous but you can get up close and personal with UK rays and sharks from British waters, which can sometimes be very elusive.

Cost is £45, kit is provided (tanks, bcd, regs) you only need mask, wet suit and your own sea water weights (yes someone did ask! Do you know of any fresh water sharks or rays in the UK ?). You will also get a meal before or after your dive depending on what time your dive is (between 7pm -9pm) Timeslots will be allocated nearer the time to take into account personal circumstances etc. Cameras are allowed.

It appears that spectators are permitted and can purchase a meal at the centre – burger and chips type thing.  Most deposits have been paid. The balance is payable in April.  If you need to drop out let me know as I might be able to get a replacement

Advanced Diver

Some of the club’s more experienced divers are undertaking the lectures for the Advanced Diver qualification to enhance their knowledge, broaden their experiences and take more responsibility. The first lecture was on pressure systems, the weather, tides and charts. There’s a lot to take in although some of it is covered briefly in previous courses (Sport Diver and Dive Leader). I think I’m now ready to circumnavigate the globe single handedly – just need a boat, now where is the old club floppy?

BSAC Incident report -This report makes for interesting reading – it is on the BSAC website. http://www.bsac.org/page/805/incident-report-2006.htm. These are the 2 common ‘incidents’.

Decompression incidents

The BSAC database contains 105 reports of DCI incidents in 2006, some of which involved more than one casualty. When these multiple cases are counted the result is 112 cases of DCI.

DCI numbers continue to decline from a peak of 173 (2002) to the typical levels of the late 1990s.

An analysis of the causal factors associated with the 2006 cases indicates the following major features:-

35 involved diving to deeper than 30m

30 involved rapid ascents

27 involved repeat diving

15 involved missed decompression stops

Some cases involved more than one of these causes.

Ascent related incidents

There has been a rise in the number of incidents associated with abnormal ascents. This year’s report contains 99 ascent related incidents, the highest number ever recorded and a clear indicator that this is an area that requires a lot more attention from divers. These are the issues:-

88 Rapid ascents

32 Missed stops

Clearly some incidents relate to both the above. Causal factors are:-

18 Drysuit or BCD issues

16 Delayed SMB, Mask, Fin problems

12 Free flows

10 Out of air

6 Weight related issues

2 Training (Again some have a combination of the above factors)

Whilst scuba diving can be dangerous, with the right training, buddy checks, proper kit care, kit awareness, ensuring you dive within your comfort zone, controlling your ascent (which seems to be the biggest factor) and incorporating safety stops, then this will limit the possibility of an incident occurring.

2007 Diving –Roll on the Spring!! AND SAFE DIVING

May 12 Littlehampton (Michelle Mary) DIVE OPENS 15^th April

June 2 /3 Weymouth (unknown) DIVE OPENS NOW FULL

The big ‘Cat’ has been sold and this will now be on the new boat which is a live aboard

June 17 Eastbourne (Sussex) DIVE OPENS 20^th May

July 21 / 22 Lyme Regis (Blue Turtle) DIVE OPEN SPACES

The Locations Officer says this will be the last Lyme for a while, will look for an alternative site for 2008

August 19 Eastbourne (Sussex) DIVE OPENS 15^th July

September 7/8/9 Farne Islands (Newcastle) Farnes Diver DIVE OPENS NOW FULL

The club have only been here once in the last 4/5 years and if you want to experience seals, seals and more seals then this is the one for you. The seal pups will tug at your fins whilst you are swimming along and get really close to you. I spent about 10 minutes sitting on a rock on one dive playfully wrestling my fins from a seal’s fins. Yes they can be annoying but they are so cute.

2006/2007 Qualifications

Open Water Instructor -

Advanced Diver -

Assistant Instructor -

Dive Leader - Marc Freeman

Sport Diver – Peter Burdett has passed the Sport Diver exam,

Ocean Diver - Angela and Maxine have both passed their Ocean Diver exam

You can obtain a qualification card from the BSAC website (saves taking your log book on holiday) they cost £10.50. http://www.bsac.org/services/qcardapp.pdf