Dispelling the Myths Surrounding Why You Shouldn't Scuba Dive

Reprinted from Enzine Articles c/o Mike S Shea

I have been a scuba diver for almost 20 years and a scuba instructor for more than 5 years. Still, it shocks me to hear some of the myths on why people don't want to dive. Some of the most common myths include: scuba diving is too hard; there is nowhere around here to go diving; scuba equipment costs too much; or my favorite is that scuba diving is too extreme or dangerous.

Let's start with the last one, scuba diving is too extreme for the common person or that it is dangerous. First, we have to understand that being human has inherent risks that we can't control (As a current commercial says, "It could be other humans"). Yes, scuba diving does have some inherent risks to it. If you are properly trained and follow safety protocols that almost every certifying agency (i.e. PADI, NAUI, SSI) prescribes to, your chances of injury is dramatically reduced. We still believe that your instructor is the main influencer to your future safety. IF they are poor, most likely your experience is going to be poor too (please note, if you had a poor experience with an instructor, don't give up diving, find a different professional to dive with).

As for being an extreme sport, I haven't seen scuba diving sponsored by Mountain Dew or advertised on the X Games, so it can't be that extreme! Humor aside, the reason diving received the rap about being an extreme sport was because original scuba equipment did not promote the feeling of being comfortable and confident in the water. I know this because I started out diving with much of this equipment. Looking back on it, if I was to choose diving over another activity, I would have stayed with the other activities. Those days being long in the rearview mirror, scuba equipment has lent itself to you being safer in the water, more comfortable in the water and thus more confident in the water. Properly configured equipment will do wonders on your abilities. That scuba equipment takes the extreme nature out of scuba diving.

So is the cost or your scuba equipment too much? Remember what I just said, proper equipment does wonders on your abilities to dive with confidence and comfort. With that being said, if you're looking to completely outfit yourself, a complete scuba equipment kit; it could cost anywhere from $500 to holy garbanzo beans! Scuba equipment should be looked at as lifesaving equipment, so cheap is not always the answer here. What you plan on doing with your diving adventures is what you should be basing your buying decisions on. Your locations of diving are going to influence more of what you should buy then just cost. This is where you need to trust a professional to help guide you along in your buying process. They should have the knowledge and be willing to listen to you about what you are looking to do with your diving, then help you make the correct decisions on equipment.

Remember, you don't have to purchase everything at once. You can purchase items here and there as money becomes available. Otherwise, you are going to be renting the required equipment until you get to the point of purchasing. No matter where you live, you are probably going to find a dive shop to help you make those decisions.

So if there are scuba dive shops almost anywhere, does that mean you can go diving almost anywhere? Why yes you can. I will let you in on a little known fact: the founders of PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) were originally from the Chicago area. If they could figure out a way to go diving there, you can probably go scuba diving where you are too. You don't have to live within an hour of the Florida Keys, or the Gulf of Mexico. Or, you don't have to live within an hour of the Catalina Islands in California. While those places do lend themselves to the diving lifestyle, you can dive in the Great Lakes or even those lakes near your house. There are quarries scattered all across the country that dive shops use to certify people. Along with that, there are multiple lakes that lend themselves to scuba diving too. I live in the Midwest, outside of Chicago, in Northwest Indiana. Weather permitting, I can be diving on shipwrecks within about an hour or two of my house.

So if you want to find out where the locals dive, go to the dive shop and find out where they dive. More chances than not, it is within the local area. If they really want you to dive, then they are going to offer trips to go to other places to scuba dive. Doesn't that sound easy enough?

So we have not talked yet about scuba diving being too hard. Reference the conversation earlier about equipment and perception. Diving has gotten easier. With any certifying agency, we are asking what your current state of health is. If there is a question, then we have a doctor give the thumbs up on your ability to dive. If they clear you, then we are good to have fun and start exploring. There is a physical aspect to diving, No doubt about that. I try to reduce that stress as much as possible. On the flip side, there is also a mental aspect to scuba diving. More people get hung up on the mental side more than the physical side.

Face it, when you step into the water, put the regulator in your mouth and slide below the waves, you take a step backwards in the evolutionary chain. Once you relax and realize that you have a full tank of air, everything becomes easier. We are going to have you do skills in the water to overcome common issues. While you might not like the skills, if you follow what the instructor is teaching then that too becomes easier and more relaxing.

So the scuba equipment manufacturers have created equipment that makes us feel more comfortable and confident in the water. Proper instruction helps you to understand common issues that can happen underwater and gives you techniques to correct those issues. Your instructor is there to also remove many of the physical strains that will happen during scuba diving. So how can this be too hard? Again, scuba diving suffers from a perception of what it used to be like, and not what it is today.

From someone that has been scuba diving for years, we start to see that scuba diving, with the right instructors is not too hard. They will show us many places to go scuba diving and really it doesn't cost all that much for our safety and comfort. Since we don't see Mountain Dew advertising scuba diving, it really can't be all that extreme. Scuba diving should be looked at as a relaxing and enjoyable sport that almost everyone can enjoy.

Kathy Dowsett
www.kirkscubagear.com



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8285092

Sharks are not 'man-eaters'

The term "shark attack" is typically used by the media, government officials, researchers and the public to describe almost any kind of human-shark interaction - even those where no contact or injury occurs between humans and sharks.

Now, Christopher Neff of the University of Sydney, Australia, and Robert Hueter, leader of Mote Marine Laboratory's Center for Shark Research in Sarasota, - the only Congressionally designated national research center in the U.S. focused on sharks - propose a new system of classification to support more accurate scientific reporting about shark interactions and more accurate public discussion about shark risk to swimmers and divers.

The international study, published this week in the peer-reviewed Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, is titled, "Science, policy, and the public discourse of shark 'attack': a proposal for reclassifying humanshark interactions."

In the study, the authors analyzed global shark statisticsand found the term "shark attack" misleading in many cases. For instance, a 2009 government report from New South Wales, Australia, documented 200 shark attacks - but 38 involved no injuries to people.

In Florida, often called the "Shark Attack Capital of the World" because of the number of reported shark attacks, only 11 fatal bites have been recorded over the past 129 years - a lower number than several other locations in the world, and vastly lower than deaths from natural events such as drowning or lightning.

"Not all shark 'attacks' are created equal, and we certainly shouldn't call bites on kayaks and bites on people the same thing," said Neff, a doctoral candidate conducting the first study on policy responses to shark bites at the University of Sydney.

"Nor should we equate the single bite of a 2-foot shark on a surfer's toe with the fatal bite of a 15-foot shark on a swimmer, but that's how the current language treats these incidents," said Hueter.

The Neff-Hueter study groups shark incidents into four categories based on clearly documented outcomes rather than speculation over shark motives and intentions. These include:

1, Sightings of sharks in the water near people with no physical contact.

2, Shark encounters where no bite takes place and no humans are injured, but physical contact occurs with a person or an inanimate object holding a person, such as a surfboard or boat. A shark might also bump a swimmer and its rough skin might cause a minor abrasion.

3, Shark bites by small or large sharks that result in minor to moderate injuries.

4, Fatal shark bites causing fatal injuries. The authors caution against using the term "shark attack" unless the motivation and intent of the shark is clearly established by experts, which is rarely possible.

"These new categories provide better information to the public so they can judge their levels of risk based on local shark activity," Neff said. "If 'sightings' of sharks are increasing, or if 'encounters' with kayaks are decreasing these are important pieces of information. There simply is no value in using 'attack' language. It is time to move past 'Jaws.' "

"Contemporary scientific understanding of sharks paints a very different picture than that current public discourse and even early research," said Hueter, a world expert in shark biology, behavior and ecology. "Few sharks look like the large great whites you might see on the movie screen. Of about 500 shark species on Earth, most grow to less than 3 feet long. In addition, most shark species rarely, if ever, come into contact with humans. When they do, serious bites are the extremely rare exception rather than the rule."

Sharks were labeled "man-eaters" two centuries ago by scientists who had a limited understanding of shark behavior and biology, and a researcher in the 1950s wrongly suggested sharks could go "rogue," developing a taste for human flesh.

These concepts inflamed public concern and resulting government responses. Multiple nations have used shark hunts and intensive commercial fishing targeting sharks - and even deployed naval depth charges - to kill supposed "rogue" sharks and protect the public.

Popular culture - especially the novel and film Jaws in the 1970s - has strengthened rogue shark legends. News media reports also have contributed to misperceptions of human-shark interactions. The current study reviewed Associated Press articles in Florida during 2001 - known as the "Summer of the Shark" because of shark incidents ranging from minor to severe - and found 79 percent of the stories used "attack" in the headline, even in the case of non-serious injuries.

Indiscriminate use of the term shark attack "can create a perception of a premeditated crime, lowering the public's threshold for accepting shark bite incidents as random acts of nature. The narrative establishes villains and victims, cause and effect, perceptions of public risk, and a problem to be solved," the authors say in the study.

In contrast, the Neff-Hueter naming system would provide a more balanced way to describe shark risks, significantly adjusting reported statistics, the authors say.

In the government report from New South Wales, Australia, the new naming system would reclassify 200 shark "attacks" between 1900 and 2009 as: 56 fatal shark bites, 106 shark bites, 37 shark encounters and 1 shark sighting.

In Florida, the 637 confirmed cases of unprovoked shark "attacks" since 1882 would be reclassified as 11 fatal bites and 626 other interactions including bites, encounters, and a small fraction of sightings. (Shark incident data from the International Shark Attack File.)

"When public discussion centers on the idea that sharks are out there attacking humans, it doesn't reflect the reality of what we have learned over the past 40 years about shark behavior and biology - sharks are not man-eaters, and in fact, many shark species are threatened by humans who overfish them. Using the 'attack' language really hinders public discourse about the need to protect shark species, especially those vulnerable to depletion or even extinction," said Hueter.

Thanks to MocaGrandeTalk


Kathy Dowsett
www.kirkscubagear.com

Jimmy Buffett narrates Manatee awareness video

“Preventing the risk of extinction of manatees due to human related encounters is critical to all of us in the dive industry who have enjoyed snorkeling and diving with these majestic marine mammals,” said Tom Ingram, Executive Director of DEMA. “DEMA feels privileged to work with Jimmy Buffett and the Save the Manatee Club on this important endeavor.

”The Diving Equipment and Marketing Association (DEMA), a non-profit trade association for the scuba diving industry has teamed up with Save the Manatees to release a new Public Service Announcement. Narrated by well-known performer Jimmy Buffett, the PSA is aimed at increasing awareness of the need to protect the manatees.

Often referred to as Florida’s mermaids, the PSA provides tips on how to enjoy but not endanger these gentle giants and was released in support of the State of Florida’s November Manatee Awareness Month.

The video provides divers and snorkelers with fundamental knowledge on how they can keep the manatees safe and highlights the rules of sharing Florida’s oceans, rivers and springs with Florida’s official marine mammal.

Manatee Awareness Month was created to expand efforts to raise awareness about the presence of manatees in Florida’s waters and to reach more people in Florida and outside the state about how to prevent harm to the manatees. You can find more detailed information about Save the Manatees and how you can help at www.savethemanatee.org.





Thanks to Divewire

Kathy Dowsett
www.kirkscubagear.com

BadDiverBill

BadDiverBill was born in Jersey, grew up a “Vegas rat” in America’s gambling capital and now lives in Southern California, where he pursues his passion for scuba diving.

So how did a guy who spent his formative years in the dessert get into scuba and launch a group for people who like fun with their diving? Bill Hill says his founding of BadDivers (www.BadDivers.com) “was one of these things that happened on its own.” Hill, who prefers to be called “BadDiverBill,” earned his certification as a diver in California and “decided to dive naked somewhere else.”

He took a “red-eye flight” to Florida and as midnight marked the beginning of his birthday, “I went on a nice shallow dive around a pier in Florida in my birthday suit, with my shorts in my hand and waving them over my head.” Later, he and some friends had birthday drinks. A surprise soon followed when Bill was taken to the Florida Keys for an open-water dive. He enjoyed it but was struck by how serious the dive boat people were.

Next was a dive from Fort Lauderdale on a boat where safety was taken seriously but post-dive fun was part of the experience. “I went from what I call a military operation to a boat whose captain wore a shirt that announced ‘rehab is for quitters.’ ” After the dive they opened a cooler and “we had a great time.”

The stark contrast between the two approaches prompted Bill to tag the first dive experience as one for “good divers,” while the second was for “bad divers.” BadDivers was launched. Fun does not trump safety with BadDivers. “One of our slogans is we’re safe but not so serious.” For BadDivers, there is also a lifestyle component in diving. They encapsulate that into the post-dive experience. “When the dive flag goes down, the BadDivers flag goes up.” BadDivers is not a club in that it doesn’t sign up members. “It’s that feeling, you’re a BadDiver,” says Bill, who likens it to the lifestyle promoted by Jimmy Buffett. The popular singer, songwriter, pilot and businessman glorified escapism to exotic islands and explored that lifestyle island hopping in the Caribbean in his amphibian aircraft. Bill says a lot of people get into diving but all they do is the dive. “It’s a lot of work to be underwater for a half hour . . . They get burned out fast.” He believes in making it a complete experience that also includes travel and sharing a post-dive drink. Also important is interacting with “the people we meet along the way.” He promotes his BadDivers concept through BadDiversTV (www.BadDiversTV.com), which involves short segments on the internet that he hopes someday will evolve for television. They usually cover some of his favourite dive locations, scuba talk and instructions on preparing various cocktails. He calls them “adult beverages.” “I’m a bar man. I tend bar. I’m either in the ocean or swinging drinks,” says BadDiverBill. “My passions are scuba diving and cocktailing. It’s lots of fun, a never-ending learning process.”

His favourite dive trips include Roatan, Utila and Cayos Cochinos, all Honduran Bay islands. Diving there after dark gives scuba enthusiasts the chance to see ostracods, small aquatic crustaceans whose bioluminescence (the ability to produce and emit light) creates a spectacular show. In mating season they light up to attract a mate, forming what looks like a string of pearls under water. Bill remembers a woman with 2,000 dives to her credit telling him before they descended that if they saw two or three groups together in a string they would be lucky. They were pleasantly surprised. “We floated off the reef and all of a sudden, as far as I could see there was a string of pearls. We were down about 70 feet. If we had enough air we would have stayed down there until the sun came back up.” BadDiverBill was certified as a rescue diver and plans to eventually become a dive master, but has no interest in teaching the sport. “I know instructors who got burned out and I don’t want to do that. I think I’ve found my niche. “We’re not trying to be that serious. We’re hoping to make people laugh. My quest now is to find the most interesting dive spots, dive people and dive bars. And I’d like to dive the fountain at the Bellagio (a Las Vegas hotel).” On a more serious note, Bill says he also wants to do something to protect the ocean. As he puts it, “BadDivers always do something good.”


Kathy Dowsett

www.kirkscubagear.com