Editorial
The Outer Limits
By Alex Brylske
Anyone who was a kid during the early 1960s surely remembers the sci-fi series, "The Outer Limits." If you were and do, it will certainly put a cold chill down your spine remembering its opening narration: "There is nothing wrong with your television set..." Though some may dispute my opinion, I thought it was way better than Rod Serling's more famous creation, "The Twilight Zone." "Limits" was more hip and the monsters scarier. The show was also a sort of milestone for me because soon after it was canceled in 1965 I made my first scuba dive. (The sci-fi/diving connection, by the way, is also remarkable in that Rod Serling was the narrator of the landmark series responsible for attracting scuba's second tidal wave of devotees, "The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau." It was "Sea
Hunt," of course, that attracted the first.)
I was reminded of my love for the classic TV series while reading Bob Rossier's feature this month, "Diving Under Control: Assessing Your Limits as a Diver." But it's not outer limits that Bob emphasizes in his piece, but inner limits. Or, perhaps a better descriptor, personal limits. As he aptly points out, there are no "scuba police" poised on boats and beaches to keep us safe from ourselves. While training goes a long way, in the end, it's we who are responsible for making the decisions that will decide whether we'll come home safely from a dive.
I'll leave it to Bob to render the details of what constitutes prudent decision making, and other practical concerns in establishing personal limits. My point is more philosophical and, to that end, before we can make any practical decisions about what we can or can't do, we must come to terms with one vital concept: self-honesty. My experience with divers is that problems often arise when there's a disconnect between self-image and reality. It's human nature to believe that what we're capable of to be a bit out of sync with what we can actually do. In most cases, this probably has little consequence. In fact, one could make an argument that our reach exceeding our grasp is a good thing. It makes us strive for continual improvement by assuming that we're always capable of more. But in diving, this attitude can lead to problems.
A personal example may help clarify. Although I began diving as a young teen, I certainly don't dive the same way now. In fact, I don't even dive the way I did when I was 40. I've recognized that I don't have the same physical capability and that, underwater, my aging body responds differently than its younger version. Hopefully, I can make up for some of that deficit by
the wisdom I've gained through experience. Thus,
some of the situations my physical prowess might have gotten me out of in the past I now avoid getting into in the first place. This kind of decision making, which sometimes isn't even conscious,
is a manifestation of what I mean by recognizing inner limits. Maturity, to me, implies that one can have a realistic self-image and still a positive one.
While younger readers may have a hard time relating to this, believe me, someday you'll understand. However, with the average age of the diving population now in the mid-40s, it's this segment that I'm hoping to reach. By all accounts, when measured by either death or injury, diving seems to be getting safer. (Though not knowing the denominator of how many divers there really are, nor how many dives are actually made each year, it's tough to assign a solid number to the true risk.) Yet one of the negative trends is that coronary artery disease is becoming a bigger factor in why divers die, which is hardly surprising given the demographics. Still, it would be interesting to know how many accidents result from not recognizing or accepting personal limits. Frankly, I believe that number would be disturbingly high. It seems clear that, while we should always strive for outer limits, we can get there safely only by understanding our inner limits. As yet another sci-fi hero always said, live long and prosper.

Buddy Lines
Bag Those Weights
In your August 2009 edition of Dive Training, No Dumb Questions, the first question refers to exposure from lead weights. I am quite conscious of the toxicity of lead and its link to cancer. When I purchased bag weights and saw the warning label, I asked my instructor about it, and he said that he's been wondering why no one has mentioned this for years. As a result, I have been placing my bag weights in two Ziploc bags, making sure to release as much air as possible when sealing them, to
reduce the bag weights' exposure to water and my exposure to lead.
This might be something you mention to your readers. It may not be the answer we are looking for, but it gives me some peace of mind.
Thank you for your excellent publication.
Lisa Earhart
Clifton, Virginia

Don't Forget U.S. Postal Service
I recently read in the No Dumb Questions section of the August issue a question about the lead leaching from soft weights as a potential lead-poisoning hazard.
While I have nothing to add in that regard, I was reminded of a recent event that occurred. A friend of mine recently went to Hawaii on vacation and did several dives there. As the rental prices there are quite a bit higher than here in Alabama, he carried his gear with him and put his soft weights and regulator into his "carry-on baggage." It was during the en-route phase that he discovered that the chemicals produced by lead pellets used in seawater will definitely set off the sensors at the airline terminal checkpoints.
After being treated like the Unabomber and threatened with a body cavity search, he decided to use the U.S. Postal Service flat rate mail service to return his weights to the mainland. That may be the best action for both going and coming if you are going to a U.S. territory or state. I don't really know how it would work for foreign destinations….
Robert A Boutwell
Via e-mail

Scenario Addendum
In regard to "Identify and Avoid or Deal With It," Dive Training, August 2009, here's another scenario: Blown O-ring on your tank at depth.
I once descended a guide line to a wreck when the O-ring on my main tank blew, bubbling my air into open ocean. When the O-ring gave way, I was at 20 feet [6 m], going from a vertical to a horizontal position to follow the anchor line down. Unfortunately, I couldn't tell if the blown O-ring was on my main tank or my pony bottle. Luckily, I was able to surface and reach the boat.
Risk factor: At depth, this could quickly exhaust air. Panic at greater depths with a rapid ascent could trigger decompression illness and pressure-related injuries.
Likely causes: I did not properly inspect the O-ring as I was attaching my first stage to the tank. A closer inspection may have indicated the ring needed replacing.
Avoidance: Check your O-ring on your tank before attaching your first stage. If the ring isn't seated right or looks worn, replace the ring. If this happens at depth, the diver has three choices: Switch to the alternate air source and ascend to the surface, with a safety stop; buddy-breath/share air and ascend; or continue to use the "blown cylinder" while ascending. Once sufficient pressure is bled from the cylinder, it may reach a point of equilibrium and provide you with enough breathing gas to reach the surface.
Needless to say, I sat out the remainder of this dive, trying to get my heart rate and breathing under control. Later I was just mad at myself for forgetting something so simple. Upon inspection of my other tank, it too needed a new O-ring. The next dive went well.
Ted Plucinski
Woodbridge, Virginia

Lighten Up, Divers
A recent letter suggested your magazine come out against spearfishing. I'm not a spearfisherman, but is it not obvious that the activity is about the least offensive in depleting fish? Not to mention that from what I read, spearfishermen eat all their catch. The "unfair to fish" argument is just ludicrous.
I am a shell collector, and that hits a nerve with most Caribbean countries and with the "Take only pictures, leave only bubbles" mantra. And I'm a divemaster in training.
Studies have shown that "real" shell collectors (not someone "picking up a souvenir") have basically no effect on shell populations. They also show that even the commercial collection of shells has very little effect. This surprised me.
A bigger problem is pollution from things like pesticides, which also is one of the two causes of the coral reef problems; the other being global warming. My collection is scientific, and the only reason I got certified. I usually hear, "Are you going to kill that?" when I collect. Twenty-five years ago it was, "Gee, that's a good find."
Divers have been so brainwashed with the idea that we are "ambassadors" in protecting the oceans. The "in" thing to do is to blanket everyone as an environmental killer, despite the facts. Divers need to lighten up. I'm a diver/shell collector without guilt and proud of it.
Tom Heimer
Murphy Cove, Nova Scotia

Arizona Requires Dive Flag
Thank you for the great write-up on Lake Pleasant (Training Site: "Lake Pleasant, Arizona," Dive Training, July 2009). I'm one of the divers who go there on a regular basis. I did find one error in the article: "A float and flag are highly recommended, but is not required, when diving from shore." Arizona state law requires a dive flag to be flown when divers are in the water. Sadly, that is all the law states and does not require for watercraft to respect it.
Hopefully I'll get to see some more articles about Arizona diving in the future. Thanks for the great work.
Stephen Nichols
Via e-mail

Spotted Moray is a Vertebrate
I am an avid reader of your magazine. I thoroughly enjoy all the info you have to offer. However, in the May 2009 issue on Page 70, in the Long Island, Bahamas article, I discovered a snafu. In the last paragraph, there is the statement, "Invertebrates included a spotted moray and a spider crab." If I'm not mistaken, a spotted moray is a vertebrate, not an invertebrate. Just thought I'd point that out. Thanks for such a wonderful magazine. Keep up the good work.
Todd Jones
Via e-mail

Dive Observer
By Gene Gentrup
‘Graveyard of Atlantic' Ships, Some Popular With Divers,
Get a Closer Look
The federal government wants to know how much divers and other human activity have affected the condition of World War II shipwrecks off the coast of North Carolina. The inspections comprise the first step in efforts to preserve wrecks from what has been coined the "Battle of the Atlantic."
The shipwrecks are in an area known as the "Graveyard of the Atlantic," which includes sunken vessels from U.S. and British naval fleets, merchant ships and German U-boats.
The examination by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) includes WWII wrecks as shallow as 130 feet (39 m) and accessible to divers. Some are visited by thousands of divers annually, NOAA said. "Unfortunately, some of these wrecks have been severely affected over the years by human activity," the agency said in a statement. "Both NOAA and the recreational diving community promote open access to the shipwrecks and encourage responsible dive behavior and preservation of underwater resources."
David W. Alberg, expedition leader and superintendent of the USS Monitor National Marine Sanctuary, said the project serves other purposes as well.
"The information collected during this expedition will help us better understand and document this often lost chapter of America's maritime history and its significance to the nation. It continues the work conducted by NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries last summer to research and document historically significant shipwrecks tragically lost during World War II."
Alberg said that understanding the wrecks' current condition is a crucial first step in establishing efforts to preserve the historic sites, which serve as "time capsules from one of the darkest times in the nation's history," he said.
Using advanced remote sensing technologies, including sidescan and multibeam sonar systems, researchers will attempt to locate several previously undiscovered WWII shipwrecks. NOAA and its expedition partners from the University of North Carolina will also deploy an advanced remotely operated vehicle to take high-definition imagery of the shipwrecks.
During another phase, NOAA divers and partners will survey and photograph visible sections of a British armed trawler, HMT Bedfordshire, using noninvasive methods. Bedfordshire was sunk by a torpedo fired from the German submarine U-558 on May 12, 1942. The entire crew was lost. The survey team will also study marine life found at the site, which now serves as a vibrant artificial reef. Consistent with U.S. and international policy, the shipwreck site is considered a war grave and will not be disturbed during the expedition.
For more details about the project, check out www.noaa.gov.

Diving Notes and News

FARM-RAISED STAGHORN CORAL REPRODUCES FOR FIRST TIME IN THE FLORIDA KEYS
Students working with marine scientists in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary have documented what is believed to be the first known case in which Atlantic-Caribbean, farm-raised coral has reproduced to serve as a foundation for future reefs.
The discovery is considered significant because it proves that cultured staghorn corals can not only survive, but also reach sexual maturity and naturally help with coral restoration, marine researchers said.
"This is real exciting because this is the future of trying to rebuild these reefs," said Ken Nedimyer, president of the Coral Restoration Foundation. He has been involved in coral restoration projects for the past nine years. "What we're trying to do is to put the girls and the boys back together in the same room so they'll make babies."
Both staghorn, as well as elkhorn corals, are classifed as "threatened" under the federal Endangered Species Act and historically are primary reef-building corals in Florida and the Caribbean, said Billy Causey, southeast regional director for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's marine sanctuaries.
Part of the SCUBAnauts International education group, 21 Tampa Bay-area secondary school students authenticated and collected some of the gametes broadcasted from farmed coral at Molasses Reef off Key Largo Saturday and Sunday nights.
Harvested staghorn gametes were taken to a shoreside laboratory for further research and they'll be used for laboratory fertilization projects with the aim of eventually transplanting offspring.
"This is very much like a great big circle of life," said Dr. David Palandro, a research scientist for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and head of the SCUBAnauts program. "Corals were transplanted here and we're collecting the gametes from those transplanted corals and we hope to take those gametes and transplant them someplace else."
More details on the Florida Keys are available at www.fla-keys.com.

HEALTH OF FLOWER GARDEN BANKS GETS HIGH MARKS
Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary holds some of the healthiest coral reef ecosystems in the tropical Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, a new report says.
The report, "A Biogeographic Characterization of Fish Communities and Associated Benthic Habitats within the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary," offers insights into the coral and fish communities within the sanctuary based on data collected in 2006 and 2007. Sanctuary managers plan to use the report to track and monitor changes in the marine ecosystem, which is 70-115 miles (112-184 km) off the coasts of Texas and Louisiana.
"We found that 50 percent of the area surveyed for this report is covered by live coral," said Chris Caldow, a NOAA marine biologist and lead author on the report. "This is significant because such high coral cover is a real rarity and provides critical habitat for many different types of fish and other animals that live in these underwater systems."
The sanctuary also is unusual in that it is dominated by top-level predators, including large grouper, jacks and snappers. Researchers looked at the relationship between physical measures of the sanctuary's habitat such as depth, slope and geographic location, and the nature of the fish community in each location.
"Ultimately our goal was to develop a protocol that would detect and track long-term changes in fish and seafloor community structure," Caldow said. "Once managers are equipped with this information, they can better understand how threats from climate change and other stressors will impact the ecosystem."
The report says that despite the sanctuary's relatively healthy condition, it may be more susceptible to environmental influences than previously thought. For example, scientists observed high levels of coral bleaching and corals severely affected by hurricane activity.
NOAA prepared the report based on data collected in 2006 and 2007, with input from scientists and managers at Flower Garden Banks.

RESEARCHERS STUDY FISH TO BOLSTER HOMELAND DEFENSE
In what sounds like a study that just might influence a new generation of dive gear, scientists are studying the athleticism of fish and whether materials can be created to emulate their abilities.
Michael Philen, a Virginia Tech assistant professor of aerospace and ocean engineering, secured $1.95 million from the National Science Foundation to tackle the project, with an eye toward building a robotic fishlike underwater vehicle for homeland defense needs.
Philen and his team of researchers are studying the ability of fish to maneuver in tight places, to hover in one area efficiently and to accelerate in a seemingly effortless fashion.
Engineers have noted that fish through neuromasts or "hairs" in the lateral line are able to sense very small changes in their watery environment that allows them to detect and track prey and to form hydrodynamic images of the environment.
The team hopes to develop biologically inspired material systems that have hierarchically structured sensing, actuation, and intelligent control. This research could lead to state-of-the-art materials that can intelligently sense and actuate a network of distributed robust sensors and actuators.
The research team also plans to develop a traveling exhibit on robotic fish that showcases the biology of aquatic propulsion, new actuator and sensing technologies and how these can be integrated to design a robotic fish.
Philen said that over the past 20 years experts have investigated a number of aspects of fish control systems for movement. These studies have shown that fish possess a two-gear muscular system that controls movement. One is for slow-speed movement and the other is for rapid movements and escape responses.
"Despite this progress, there is still very little understanding of the structure and organization of the hierarchical control systems in fish or how the actuation and sensing systems are integrated to perform steady and maneuvering locomotor tasks," Philen said. "Researchers have explored various system identification techniques for characterizing and understanding a number of biological systems, such as insect walking, renal autoregulation in rats, and locomotor oscillators in the spinal cords of lampreys. However, little or no research has been done on the hierarchal control systems found in fish."
For more details, visit www.aoe.
vt.edu/~mphilen/ and click on "Research."

2,486 PARTICIPATE IN RECORD DIVE
Here's an unusual entry for someone's dive logbook.
Nearly 2,500 scuba divers recently set a world record for the largest mass dive.
It happened on the coast of North Sulawesi, a part of Indonesia, where 2,486 divers stayed underwater for 25 minutes in about 15 meters (49.5 feet) of water. They easily beat the record set in 2006 when 958 divers took part in a similar promotion in the Maldives.
The day before the record in North Sulawesi, participants warmed up by doing something else of note. They established a new world record category when 2,465 participated in a mass scuba lesson. Basic scuba skills, such as mask recovery, were performed.
The diving feats were part of the Sail Bunaken 2009 maritime event held as part of Indonesia's efforts to establish the Sulawesi town of Manado as
a world-class tourist spot. Divers also unfurled underwater a flag marking
Indonesia's Independence Day.
For more information, visit www.guinnessworldrecords.com.

FERTILIZER BAN HELPED WATER QUALITY, STUDY FINDS
A city's ban on phosphorus-containing lawn fertilizer improved the quality of a local waterway.
At least that's the conclusion of a University of Michigan professor. He and his team studied whether the quality of Huron River water improved after Ann Arbor, Michigan, approved a 2006 ordinance to curtail the use of phosphorus on lawns. Phosphorus levels in the Huron River dropped an average of 28 percent, said John Lehman, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, in a paper published in the journal Lake and Reservoir Management.
Ann Arbor is one of many municipalities around the country that have banned or restricted the use of phosphorus-containing lawn fertilizers, which can kill fish and cause smelly algae blooms and other problems when the phosphorus washes out of the soil and into waterways. "Dead zones" that form in the Gulf of Mexico are caused partly by lawn chemicals carried to the gulf by the Mississippi River and its tributaries.
Many of the bans by cities and other political entities have been done partly out of a sense of environmental responsibility, Lehman said, but no evidence has been offered in peer-reviewed literature that the ordinances like these have a salutary effect, he said.
Lehman said testing quickly revealed a difference.
"Right away, we started to see decreases," Lehman said. "After the first year of data collection, it was clear that phosphorus concentrations were lower after the ordinance was enacted than before." But did the ordinance cause the drop? Though that explanation seems likely, Lehman said, public education efforts and general increased environmental awareness among Ann Arbor residents also may have entered in.
For more information, visit www.
umich.edu/~hrstudy.

DAN RELEASES ANNUAL REPORT
The DAN (Divers Alert Network) Annual Diving Report, an educational resource for safer diving, is now available.
DAN Research compiles its findings from data gathered from incident reports and information shared through Project Dive Exploration. The DAN Annual Diving Report – 2008 Edition examines contributing factors in dive accident and fatality cases to understand those factors and improve dive safety.
The report is available at no charge; it can be downloaded from the DAN Web site at www.DiversAlertNetwork.org.

ATLANTIC HURRICANE FORECAST REDUCED
The number of hurricanes forecast for the 2009 Atlantic hurricane season has been reduced.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) latest prediction calls for between seven and 11 tropical storms, with three to six becoming hurricanes. NOAA predicted that one to two of those would be "major" hurricanes of Category 3 or higher, with sustained winds of more than 110 mph (177 kmph).
In May, the agency had predicted nine to 14 tropical storms, with four to seven becoming hurricanes, and one to three strengthening into major hurricanes.
The change was based mainly on the arrival of El Niño, a periodic warming of seawaters in the eastern Pacific. El Niño can dampen Atlantic hurricane activity by increasing wind shear, a difference in wind speeds at different altitudes that can tear apart nascent cyclones.
Another reason for the change in forecast was the late arrival of the first named storm of the season. Tropical Storm Ana became the first named tropical storm August 15. By the same time last year, six tropical storms had formed.
The Atlantic-Caribbean hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30. For more information, visit www.nhc.
noaa.gov.

RIVIERA MAYA DIVERS PLAN PHOTO CONTEST
The Riviera Maya Dive Alliance has announced the first free recreational and technical "Scuba Diving Photo Contest" in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, during the week of December 5-12, 2009. The contest includes photo opportunities in the Yucatan caves, caverns and on the second-largest barrier reef in the world, the Mesoamerican Reef.
The contest is designed to celebrate the diversity of diving in the Riviera Maya, a diving location that has access to inland and ocean diving. No other photo contest in the world offers such a variety of diving and photo opportunities, organizers say.
International judges will select the winners of the contest on December 11 at the final ceremony and contest dinner. The Riviera Maya is south of Cancun and includes the Caribbean cities of Puerto Morelos, Playa Del Carmen and Tulum.
The Riviera Maya Dive Alliance is a network of dive centers that promotes quality diving in the Riviera Maya through events and other means. For more information, visit www.divingphotocontest.com.

EVENTS
USC CHAMBER OFFERS EMERGENCY RESPONSE COURSE
The USC Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber is offering its annual Emergency Response Diver Course for all divers who want to improve their rescue skills. This year the Emergency Response Diver (ERD) will be offered
October 18-23.
The Emergency Response Diver course is designed to prepare divers with the knowledge, skills and practice to handle emergency situations. The course is presented by Gordon Boivin, former senior instructor for the Canadian Coast Guard, and Karl Huggins, director for the USC Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber.
Special topics include the best techniques for beach and boat rescues; the best way to handle a victim in the water; how to administer effective CPR and first aid; how to make the best use of emergency oxygen; how to efficiently manage the diving accident scene; and methods for dealing with hypothermia, near drowning and other diving maladies.
Tuition for the ERD course is $675, which includes all instruction, five nights of housing at the USC Catalina Island facility and all meals.
For more information, see the chamber's Web site at http://wrigley.usc.
edu/hyperbaric/chamber or contact the chamber at USC Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber, P.O. Box 5069, 1 Big Fisherman's Cove, Two Harbors, CA 90704; or call (310) 510-4020.

GALES OF NOVEMBER SET FOR NOV. 6-7
Lake Superior shipwrecks and regional maritime history will be discussed during the 22nd annual "Gales of November" conference, to be held at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center in Duluth, Minnesota.
Sponsored by the Lake Superior Marine Museum Association, the event is a chance to recognize the power, mystique and influence of the Great Lakes through presentations, tours and other activities.
Educational sessions on diving and shipwrecks are among other highlights of the weekend. They include divers Ken Merryman and Bob Olson who will discuss the "Benjamin Noble Project"; and Jon Janzen and John Scoles who will talk about "The Carl D. Bradley Bell Exchange Project."
For more details or to register, visit www.lsmma.com or call (218) 727-2497.

always learning
The Adventure Never Ends
Story and photo by Marty Snyderman
Not long ago we celebrated the 40th anniversary of astronaut Neil Armstrong's giant leap for mankind. Landing on the moon was a big deal back then. And now, when you consider that your cell phone probably has more advanced features than the computer system that ran the mission to the moon back in 1969, it's astounding.
Ask anyone who's old enough to have a memory of the lunar landing where they were that day and they'll likely be able to recall it in great detail. I know I can. It's an indelible memory. And I must admit that even though I was awestruck and excited, I was also the slightest bit jealous that Armstrong had landed there first instead of me. My career as an astronaut never really got off the ground, but learning to scuba dive sure got me in way over my head.

A Life in Inner Space
Not long after I graduated from college I moved to south Florida to be close to the ocean and become a certified diver. Not too long after getting certified, two of my closest friends and I drove and camped our way
from Chattanooga, Tennessee, all the way to Guatemala. Along the way I dived as often as I could. From that point in my life I was a confirmed dive-aholic, adventure-aholic and travel-aholic. I had fallen seriously in love with diving, and I lived to discover what was below the waves in places I had never been to before.
After returning from that trip to Mexico and Central America, I headed back to the Caribbean to work on a tourist boat where I became the ship's diver, meaning I took tourists on snorkeling and scuba diving expeditions. About six months into my Caribbean boating adventure I decided that I wanted to get more training and become a diving instructor. In the winter of 1975 I became an instructor and went to work at the San Diego Diving Locker.
During my time at the Diving Locker, several of us began spending considerable time and energy exploring the waters of the open sea. We would take a boat 10-20 miles (16-32 km) out into the open sea, jump in around kelp paddies, and see if we could photograph the animals of the open sea. During most of our early attempts we didn't see much, but every once in a while something magical happened and we got a glimpse of a blue shark, an ocean sunfish, a school of yellowtail or a passing whale.
I loved those open-ocean adventures, but on the whole our time was not as productive as we hoped it would be, so we began taking bait to see if we could bring the world of open-ocean animals to us. It worked, and we soon realized the need to design and build a shark cage, a rather rare item in the mid- to late 1970s. After we built the shark cage I began to build a photographic catalogue of blue and mako sharks.
At about the same time, I had the opportunity to begin exploring Mexico's Sea of Cortez. Back in those days we traveled by truck, and we camped and dived up and down the Baja peninsula. We hauled everything from tanks, weights and compressors to small boats. Being 100 percent self-contained was our mantra. Many of the sites we dived had been dived before, but at some places we just looked at a map, checked the water and weather conditions, dropped the hook, and splashed over the side. Explorers, we were.
Not too long after that I got invited to be part of an exploratory dive trip to Mexico's Revillagigedos Islands (aka Socorro Islands). A group of four islands 220-400 miles (352-640 km) south of Cabo San Lucas and the tip of Mexico's Baja peninsula, the Revillagigedos are now legendary for encounters with manta rays and a variety of sharks. Today these islands are synonymous with big-animal encounters, but in the late 1970s when I got my first chance to dive the area the water there was just part of the great unknown.
A few years after that a buddy of mine, Bob Cranston, and I started a business taking other divers out to see and photograph blue sharks and mako sharks off the coast of Southern California. We got a real thrill out of sharing our shark experiences. About the same time I began to lead trips for a company that specialized in diving expeditions. I led great white shark filming adventures and traveled all over the globe.

And Then the Globe Got Smaller
Over the course of my diving career, diving changed. You might say the diving world grew up. Or the globe got smaller. The underwater world opened up to so many more people. Beautiful resorts were developed in places that most divers hadn't heard of just a few years before. Live-aboard dive boats made previously unreachable dive sites available 52 weeks a year. Instead of hauling compressors, tanks and weight belts, we were offered three choices of desserts after eating hot meals and taking hot showers. Of course, the diving was still exciting, but somewhere along the way I allowed myself to drift away from camping and diving in the middle of nowhere to enjoying more creature comforts and relying upon the adventures first enjoyed by others as they opened new diving destinations for the rest of us.
Over time I recognized what was happening to me, and I saw both pros and cons. No doubt about it, I love to go places that a dive guide is intimately familiar with, and I sure don't miss hauling compressors and carrying weight belts everywhere I go. But I also realized that deep down inside of me I miss the excitement that comes with occasionally traveling to dive destinations that are off the beaten path. I still want to taste the adventure of being an early explorer, and there were times when I found myself wondering if I'd ever have another chance to go to a rarely explored diving wilderness.
When Travis Swanson contacted me a few months ago about joining him and a small group of his friends on a camping, diving and filming expedition to Alaska's Prince William Sound this coming summer, I jumped at the chance. Travis tells me we will be in the middle of nowhere, 24-boat hours from the closest road. Just like the good ol' days, we need to be 100 percent self-contained.
As I write this piece my trip is a little more than one month away, and today, as I have a number of times during the past couple of months, I find myself counting the days until we go.
My diving career has spanned more than 35 years and 10,000-plus dives. It has taken me to a long list of countries spread out around the globe, and I have a rather extensive marine life image library. But there is no doubt that I haven't done all there is to do or seen all there is to see. Not by a long shot. Not by a place the size of Alaska.
I am doing my best to be prepared for whatever we encounter, but no doubt, some of this trip will involve figuring things out as we go. I feel confident that we will have cold water, long August days, mosquitoes, black flies and, yes, I am told there will be lots of bears. But there is also a good chance that we will get to see salmon spawning in a river, maybe a salmon shark or two, bubble netting humpback whales and pods of dolphins and orcas in the Middle Of Nowhere, Alaska.
I admit, I have a little knot in my stomach. But it's a familiar feeling. One that I cherish. After all of my dives and years of globe-trotting and exploring the underwater world I think it is absolutely fantastic that the idea of diving can still make me feel a rush of adrenalin. If it's a wilderness adventure you want, or one filled with creature comforts, take the plunge. Spin the globe and let your adventures begin. You won't run out of opportunities for exploration, adventures and new animals to see in just one lifetime.

no dumb questions
Questions and Concerns About Getting Certified
By Alex Brylske

This month, I've decided to do something a bit different. Over the past few months I've gotten several queries from people who are not divers, or even in training, but are trying to decide whether to get certified. So, for our readers who might be in similar circumstances, I decided to devote the entire column this month to their concerns.

Q:Tom Ewing writes about a chronic problem that he thinks may be cause for concern in getting certified. "My best friend took scuba lessons last year and is hooked. Though I was initially reluctant, he finally convinced me to give it a try. However, I have a concern. He told me that one exercise that's required is an emergency swimming ascent, and described the technique for me. I don't think that I'll be able to do that and here's why: My entire life, I've suffered with ear problems (infections as a kid and as an adult difficulty in equalizing during airline flights and driving in the mountains). It's not that I can't equalize, it's just that it takes a long time. My concern isn't really getting down; it's that if I have to make a continuous ascent, I won't be able to equalize. My buddy said that this is called a reverse block in diving lingo, and that I'd learn how to deal with it in training. I'm not so sure. Should I reconsider my decision to enroll in the class? Or, is there a way that I can opt out of this particular skill because of my condition?

A:You're absolutely right to be concerned. In diving, it's essential that your ears and sinuses be able to clear, as the lack of doing so can result in some pretty serious injuries. However, I wouldn't cancel your plans to become certified quite yet. First of all, I know and have trained many, many divers who have had lifelong "sinus problems" — myself included. There are techniques and medications that can help most people who are at least able to equalize.
I actually encountered the problem that you describe with a student years ago. It was caused by a chronic condition exacerbated by numerous childhood ear infections. (Sound familiar?) The good news is that he eventually went on to become both certified and a very active diver, but not without some effort.
You cannot "opt out" of emergency ascent training, as it's required by the standards of all certification organizations. And as it is what's described as an "industry standard," it can't be waived under any circumstance. That's really not an unreasonable requirement because every diver, regardless of his medical condition, is at risk of running out of air, and must be able to respond appropriately.
You might consider a proactive response, and go see your doctor even before your class starts. With your condition, you'll have to get a medical clearance, anyway. You might even consider going to an otolaryngologist with training in diving medicine. You can get a referral to a qualified physician in your area by contacting the Divers Alert Network.
Conditions like yours can be corrected, with either medication or surgery. And sometimes the problem resolves with just a bit of diving experience and practice equalizing under water. Still, it may turn out to be a problem that cannot be corrected, or one that you may not want to go to the trouble and expense of fixing. In that case, the answer is simple. If you can't equalize — either descending or ascending — due to some congenital problem, diving is not for you.

Q:Linda Barnes-Ebersol asked for some insight into a dilemma involving where to do her training. "I live in Wisconsin and I'm planning to get certified. The main reason is that I often go on vacation with friends, and last year some of them got certified before our trip to the Virgin Islands. I couldn't do anything but watch them from the surface with a mask and snorkel. So, I vowed that the next time we go on vacation — Hawaii — I'd be able to dive with them. But there's been a new wrinkle. My friends loved diving so much that they started doing it here in the local lakes and quarries. So, my question is this: Do I take my training here locally, and make my check-out dives in the murky cold water, or take my course while I'm on vacation somewhere warm? One friend told me that I could actually complete my classroom and pool training here, and do my open-water work someplace nice (read: warm). They're all encouraging me to take my training locally because they say I won't really be qualified to dive around here if I only have warm-water experience. Any advice?

A:As you've indicated in your letter, your decision should be driven largely by your diving plans after certification. If you plan to dive only in warm, tropical water, then there's no downside to taking your training in that environment. In that case, you might consider the "referral" option described by your friends — classroom and pool training locally and open water elsewhere. However, if there's any possibility that local diving might be in your future, then you certainly want to get local training. Most divers consider the transition from cold-water diving to warm-water diving easier than the reverse. Indeed, the better visibility and lack of need for a thick exposure suit does make the transition into open water easier. Yet, some divers find that the benign conditions of a quarry, though cold, are better than dealing with salt water, and the possibly heavy seas and currents. There's really no "right decision; it's a matter of circumstance and choice.
Your dilemma does raise an important issue: While you will get the same certification card regardless of where you train, that doesn't mean that you'll be qualified to dive anywhere. This means that, no matter where your open-water training takes place, you absolutely must get a proper orientation anytime you plan to dive in a new environment. To me, a proper orientation means a dive under the supervision of a professional. You can accomplish this either by taking a specialty diving course, or arranging for a dive professional to orient and supervise you during your initial experiences.

Q:Norm Colinwood writes about an issue that's directly on point with the previous letter. "I live in northern Alabama and I'm interested in taking scuba lessons. No doubt most of my diving will be in Florida, but I'd still like to dive closer to home, too. I'd have no qualms about taking my course locally except for one problem. At a nearby lake where the local dive shop takes their students, I've noticed that they always wear hoods. I seem to have a problem with claustrophobia, but from past experience snorkeling I think I can deal with wearing a mask. What I don't think that I can deal with is wearing one of those thick rubber hoods. I've watched divers trying to deal with them, and it looks terrible, especially when wearing wet suit gloves. Watching one student who was fumbling with her hood, I even overheard the instructor say that hoods were hard to use and get used to, and made equalization difficult. I can't imagine how wearing a hood must feel underwater with all the pressure. I'm wondering do I really need to use a hood to dive locally if I limit my diving to summertime? Or, am I just making too big a deal out of this?"

A:Hoods are probably one of the least favorite equipment items for most new divers, but they really don't have to be. I taught diving for many years in environments where you couldn't even think about getting into the water without wearing a 7-mm hood. I've found that the problem often isn't the hood itself, but when students are introduced to them. And they're typically introduced to them too late in their training, most often not until they reach open water and are already stressed by the new environment. In my classes I always required my students to wear both hoods and gloves during their last two pool sessions. Granted, it looked more than a bit odd with everyone wearing bathing suits yet sporting neoprene hoods and gloves, but it did the trick. Students got used to the fit of the hood, and became familiar with how to seal their mask around it using bulky gloves. So, by the time they got into open water, it was no big deal.
Another trick is making sure that the hood isn't too small. In fact, if someone has trouble clearing because of their hood, as the instructor you witnessed indicated, then it's definitely too small. Equalization should never be a problem with a properly fitting one. Also, the idea of going without a hood is probably not possible in a place like northern Alabama, even during summer. The reason is that the temperature below the thermocline (a phenomenon you'll learn about in your training) is likely to be in the 50s Fahrenheit (10-15 degrees Celsius) even if the surface temperature is in the comfortable 80s F (27-31 C) range. Water that cold absolutely, positively requires a hood.
I'll tell you one more story that may come as a surprise. I haven't dived in water below 70 degrees (21 C) for over two decades. Yet, on probably 30 percent of my dives I still wear a hood. In fact, I commonly wear a 3-mm hood-attached vest under my 0.5-mm wet suit. Because of the disproportionate amount of heat we lose through our head, wearing a hood is the best thing that you can do to stay warm. Don't worry, you'll get used to it.

DIVE TAINING QUIZ
Test your knowledge of the information featured
in this month's issue of Dive Training.
MARTY SNYDERMAN PHOTO

1. Because carbon dioxide helps trap heat in the atmosphere it is termed:
A. A thermal gas.
B. An insulator gas.
C. A regulator gas.
D. A greenhouse gas.

2. Hydrogen ion concentration is measured using the familiar 14-point pH scale, which literally stands for:
A. The "power of Hydrogen."
B. The "place of Hydrogen."
C. "Particles of Hydrogen."
D. All of the above

3. The lower the pH, the higher the acidity and lower the alkalinity. The higher the pH, the lower the acidity, and higher the alkalinity. A pH of 7.0 represents:
A. A neutral state.
B. The point where acidity and
alkalinity cancel each other out.
C. The tipping point.
D. The flash point.
E. Both A and B are correct.

4. It is against the law for an Open Water-certified diver to dive below a depth of 100 feet.
A. True
B. False

5. The term jellyfish is incorrect.
The correct term is:
A. Jelly roll
B. Jell-O fish
C. Jelly
D. Sea jelly
E. A and B are correct.
F. C and D are correct.

6. Sea jellies are poor swimmers.
A. True
B. False

7. The Portuguese man-of-war is:
A. Not a jelly.
B. A cnidarian.
C. A type of siphonophore.
D. Not one animal but a colony
of animals.
E. All of the above.

8. The island of Roatan is part of
the archipelago of the Bay Islands of Honduras. The remaining Bay Islands include:
A. Utila and Guanaja.
B. Morat, Barbareta and St. Elena.
C. More than 60 small cays.
D. All of the above.

9. The ideal cutting tool for use when diving should:
A. Have both smooth and
serrated cutting surfaces.
B. Have a line cutter.
C. Be sharp.
D. All of the above.

10. When wearing a dive knife strapped to the leg, it should be positioned:
A. On the inside of the calf.
B. On the outside of the calf.

Answers: 1. D 2. A 3. E 4. B 5. F 6. A 7. E 8. D 9. D 10. A