Maine Divers Scuba Center Newsletter

February 2010 Edition

  The MID-WINTER blues

   It is cold and diving seems long ago and far away.  This time of year we do mostly diver training in the pool for referral students so they can go on vacation and complete their training in a tropical setting.  This month we have customers in Thailand, Palau, Cozumel, Egypt, Turks & Caicos, Roatan, the Bahamas and Florida.  Not too shabby for a dive shop in Maine.

What is wrong with scuba diving?

   Scuba diving is not just a skill set, it is an invitation to some of life's most unique experiences.  As a diver you get to join a world alien to the land dwellers.  As a diver you become a part of the undersea world.  There is a zen to diving, total relaxation and awareness of being surrounded by the living sea.  The more aware you become, the more you see and experience.  This does not come all at once, and here is the problem.  People learning to dive have expectations of these wonderful experiences.  Unfortunately, the dive training process, especially here in New England, is often challenging with poor vizibility and cold water.  Many enthusiastic students finish the open water course happy to have survived the ordeal, never to be seen again. 

   So how do you get from "I'm lucky to survive training" to "I can't wait to go diving again"?  The answer is training and experience.  It is the difference between fear and confidence.  From my background in military aviation I  understand the importance of the continuum of skills and practice.  Your initial open water certification is a license to learn. Far too often that is where the learning stops.  If you are not really comfortable in the water, with your gear or your skills, your diving experience will be one troubled by anxiety and fear.  You will never have that "I'm one with the sea" moment.
   From my first dive, I was hooked.  As my skills have improved, so has my experience under the water.  A key factor was an experienced dive buddy as a mentor.  The more you learn in knowledge and skills, the better diver you  become.  The PADI training program is designed to give you the skills, experience and confidence to seek your own awareness moment.  When you can change your focus from yourself to the living sea around you, your diving experience will never be the same again.