Drew and What's Next?!

Spring is here and divers in this area want to get back in the water. Yeah, the lake is still cold but yeah ya got to go dive!

Drew wanted to complete Virginia Scuba's What's Next?! program.  A weekend of diving completing 3 certifications and 6 dives. The week before we did Drew's coursework for Enriched Air Nitrox so he could do all of his dives on Nitrox, While at the lake during surface intervals we would cover the coursework for Navigation and Perfect Buoyancy. Then do the dive for the certs. Great diving, crappy weather rained (poured) most of the time.  Lee was also there with Joe doing  Joe's Open Water Cert with Jerry as his DM.

Cold and rainy but we made the best of it. Had a lot of fun.  Drew did a large Nav around the lake as his final task brought us right back to where we started.

Congratulations Drew!  You are now that much closer to your goal of Master Diver!

April Dive Club weekend - Diving with this Guy!

Or a better title would -

You have a goal for this year. funny so do I!

Carl, this everybody, Everybody this is Carl.   Carl received his Open Water Cert during our Florida Spring Trip in 2016 and he was hooked.  So hooked within a year he did five specialties and 50 dives which earn him his Master Diver.  Then he started his career as Dive Professional currently a Dive Guide and soon to be working on his Dive Master looking to Dive Control Specialist/Assistance Instructor this summer. Yeah, that hook set deep.

We were sitting around the shop last week and he asked me if I was going diving this weekend.  I told him not if I don't have to the lake is cold.  To which he responded, "going diving this weekend?"  I relented, Even though I just did my dry suit cert last weekend I chose to use my wetsuit.  Since I could not dive the entire weekend due to other plans on Saturday, we dove on Sunday. 

During one of our surface intervals, we got on to the subject of personal dive objective for the year. I started the year diving in the Bahamas with dive number 831. During the course of that dive I remember thinking could I get to dive 1000 this year, what would that take.   After doing the math figured, okay, dive 1000 might be a stretch but it could be done, but dive 900 was well within reach. I decided dive 1000 was the overall goal for the year with dive 900 as the short term object.  Now how to do it.  I needed dive buddies and to make the time.

I explained this to Carl and he said it just so happens he is trying to get to his dive 200 this year, he is currently at dive 58. He as a well has short term goals dive 100 and dive 150 knowing that dive 200 was ways  out there. 

Since it was Sunday we only did three dives towards our goal. Traffic on 95 North on Sunday afternoon can be real pain  Beach traffic north of Richmond, then the entire section between Fredericksburg and Woodbridge where the top speed averages around 10-20 mph after 1 PM you didn't hang around long at the lake after 12 PM if you wanted to make it home at a reasonable hour.

We agreed if either one of us needed a dive buddy to let the other know.  Let's see how we do!

Feeding the Swimming Pigs!

January 3 2017
The Swimming Pigs of the Bahamas, what could be more fun!

Okay, today we were there early and they were not swimming. But I have seen them swim in the past.   The crew saved a slop bucket which we brought ashore for the pigs to feed on.  On days the pigs are in the water they take apple slices for them to feed on while they swim as well. 

Celebrating the New Year in the Bahamas!

Did not have any plans for New Year's 2017. I felt I needed a break, I NEEDED to go diving. Found some friends who were going to Nassau for a week and I joined in.

Arriving in Nassau exited the plane down a flight of stairs on to the tarmac. It was about 32 degrees when I left DC, it was 72 degrees in Nassau. How nice it was!

Passed through customs found the tour bus driver for the ride to the boat. Wasted no time removing jacket and sweatshirt. then took this picture and posted it on Facebook and did not feel bad about posting it, hehe.  It was warm and wonderful.

Van loaded usual ride across the island. I realized this was my third trip to  Nassau. I have another trip plan here for later this year.

Dropped off at the Nassau Harbor Club met by the crew directed to the boat, I knew the way.  Bunks assigned, Bags up packed and stowed in the Harbor Club. Initial briefing by Captain Red who offered us a choice, we could set sail but the wind was picking up and then it would be a rough ride or we could stay in port celebrate the New Year watching the fireworks over Atlantis resort. The later is what he was pushing. We followed his recommendation.

 Clancy, our cook, who I am still convinced is a magician, made the first of weeks meals for 30 people on a boat in a galley that was slightly larger than a typical coat closet. The rest of the evening we got to know our shipmates.  Just before midnight the case of champagne was brought out and opened. We are all ready when the New Year started along with the fireworks over Atlantis.  The fireworks were excellent and went on for a good long time. Match or beat any July 4th show.   After the show and many empty bottles of bubbly, we all started drifting off to our bunks to see what the new year would bring us.

The crew managed to get up and pull out of port early, like before 6 AM.  Nothing like listening to the water move past the hull next your bunk.   I go up went on deck they had the sails up and we were moving.  At some point doing the week, Red said that at one point we were doing 9 knots. 

Heading out to our first dive site Lobster No Lobster.  Captain Red noted we would be staying in the Exuma Sound for the first part of the week, the wind was up, so was the ocean  it would be an unpleasant ride. They did a great job picking great locations to dive in the mean time.

I will be posting daily segments  or dive site locations as I get videos and pictures together,

Sailing New Year's Day 2017

I want your opinion!

I have created a poll/survey to see where else fans of Roz Savage would have liked to seen Roz's book tour go.

The current tour (positive thinking that Simon & Schuster may expand it) is to these US cities.

Boston MA, Cambridge MA, New York, NY, Washington DC, Seattle WA, Portland OR, San Francisco CA and Los Angeles, CA.

Too few for my thinking, what do you think.

The Roz Savage Book Tour Question.

To be fair, I live in the Washington DC metro area and already plan to attend the events here.

But what about you....

Roz Savage's Book Tour begins!

I am a big fan of Roz Savage, just look back though my postings. Her book Rowing the Atlantic is out and Roz is going on tour starting October 6, 2009.  She will be in DC on the 18th and 19th.

From Roz's web site:

Book signing in Washington DC

When: Sun, October 18, 2pm – 3pm

Where: The North Face store, 3333 M Street, NW

Description: Organized by National Geographic.

Presentation for National Geographic “Live @ NGS series”

When: Mon, October 19, 7:30pm – 9:00pm

Where: 1145 17th Street N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036

Description: Roz will deliver a presentation for the prestigious National Geographic Live! series. Members: $15, / 3-part series $39 General Public: $18 /3- part series $45

I wanted and had planned to try to meet Roz earlier this week when she rode into DC for the Climate Ride (from NYC to DC) but I had a problem at my day job, our servers hard drive was having issues so I missed out.

The weekend of the 17th and 18th already have too may things scheduled, but I will fit this in. It would be great to hear Roz speak on Monday as well.  I will keep you posted on updates.

Missed the opprotunity to hear Slyvia Earle speak!

Wondering around the web this afternoon, between weekend task and football games I notice that National Geographic had a National Geographic LIVE! event this morning in DC.  World famous diver,  author, renowned oceanographer and National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence (how cool would it be to have that title) Sylvia Earle was speaking about her new book  The World Is Blue: Why Saving the Oceans Will Also Save Us at the National Cathedral. It was a free event too. If I had found this out earlier I would have been there.

I am now signed up for the Nat Geo LIVE! newletter, so I won't miss out again.

If anyone else had the chance to see it post your comments and thoughts about it.