Diving : Practice!

What a pleasure to be a very "beginner" at the age of 48! Since I got my basic diving qualification on december 17, 2006, I am applying methodically my learning plans. First, I registred to a local diving center to practice with experienced divers.  Twice the week (sometine 3 or 4 if I decide to add fins-snorkeling sessions), we train with fins and snorkel on tuesday night and with the SCUBA hardware on friday.

Last friday, during my fourth pool dive (!..), I finally used for the first time all that beautiful equipment shown before. The Seac-Sub BCD and the Aqua-Lung Legend regulators went to water for the first time. 

I installed an air bottle (half inflated here) on the BCD. I did not hesitated in the strap passing order in the strengthening buckle. It's even written on it : 1-2-3-4 and the scratch finally. Then, I installed the regulators. The main respirator should on the right. The spare yellow one, the pressure manometer and the BCD inflator pipe, on the left. While maintaining the window of the manometer front to the soil for security, I opened the main valve fully then returned half a turn. Read the pressure. If I open the respirator valve, the pressure decrease. Finish by checking the whole system  before wearing it.

This time I wore the SCUBA, sit on the pool seat and went to water using the "straight jump". With your BCD inflated, you stand fully equipped on the edge of the pool (that should allow enough stability!). Check if the area is free of any obstacles of other diver. Breathing already through the respirator, protect your mask and respirator with one hand, your instruments along the body with the other. Looking straight ahead, you make a big step ahead and that all. Once in the water, you check if you kept everything with you and you make the sign OK to your instructor.

We revisited the use of the respirator under water. It was really necessary because the last time, I completely forgot that one can empty the water from it just by pushing the exhaust valve! 
I was pushing that water like in a snorkel. If you have enought in the lungs, it's OK but if you are already empty...
I almost drowned my buddy during a respiration exercise with as single respirator for two divers due to that stupidity!

Most of the work now will be to practice enough to control to the best the descending and ascending speeds. They vary a lot with the deep due to pressure difference. It must be control using the lungs as a ballast and, by small touches, the BCD.

Will need sometime for sure...

to whom is those strange things in the bathroom?..

 

Happy New Year 2007!
Bonne Année 2007!

May this new year afford you happyness and prosperity!

This is a new year again and my wishes are not so superficial as they could appear. Yesterday night, the peacefull evening at home started very sadly. 

Around 7h30 pm I was afraid a big scratch sound coming from the street. 

I went to the window and I did not realized immediatly what happened exactly. There were no apparent accidents 
just a car that looked strangely parked. It turns out that the drivers just had a heart attack and when unanimated, bumping four cars parked along the walk side. The rescue medical doctors did cardiac massages and artificial respiration for more than one hour but, very sadly, they failed to save the poor man from a certain death...

A sort of story that recall you that life is indeed a so fragile thing and we should  spoil a single minit.

In 2007, I am very motivated to pursue my discovery of SCUBA diving as well as developping my hobbies related to watches and computers. Please note that I could combine them altogether easily. For diving I will need at least a watch and a deep meter that could be convieniently mixed into a diving computer!

Santa afforded me the principal hardware that I will complete progressively. 

My basic set is at now :

• Fins (Beuchat, Marseille, France)
  
• 2 masks : one Scubapro CrystalVu and a Cressi which is beeing adapted to my view.
• a snorkel (Technisub, a group of Aqua Lung Company)
• a 3,5 mm thick shorty wetsuit

My new BCD (Buoyancy Control Device) is a Pro2000 Seac Sub  with a total buoyancy capacity (the L size) of 21.2 Kg/46.6 lbs.

My regulators are from AquaLung company (series Legend Supreme LX)

 

At now I use for fum my new Vostok Europe "Rocket N1" that gave complete satisfaction for my initial training.

I have posted either on my 2006 album or wus forum other pictures of my fetish watch of the moment (1, 2, 3, 4) that will accompany most of the coming diving trainings. The next diving club training is January 9 but I will go to the pool swimming before this week (fins/snorkeling).