@Iris Lilies
Pearl clutching time - my cave diving class is this weekend. :D
Full report to follow.
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@Iris Lilies
Pearl clutching time - my cave diving class is this weekend. :D
Full report to follow.
lalalala ....my ears are plugged....Quote:
Originally Posted by Tradd
@iris lilies
Today was fun and I’m still alive.
sigh of relief...thanks for reporting in!Quote:
Originally Posted by Tradd
Glad you had fun.
Great, Tradd. I look forward to the report!
Just got home. I’m beat. Very challenging and rewarding class. I passed. Yay!
I have to write up the class for you, but it was a great learning experience. I’m amazed I passed my first try and not needing any extra days past our initial weekend. I’m exhausted and it was hard on my body b
Yay! Tradd. You've made me smile this morning! congratulations on meeting this goal!
Thank you! I had one heck of a mental swagger yesterday. “Look what I DID!” :DQuote:
Originally Posted by nswef
Gal instructor is just fab. OMG. She’s not mean when she honestly critiques you. So many of the big instructors are. She has no testosterone poisoning like so many of the young guys. It’s awesome getting to train with her.
I’ll post a photo of the dive site later. Pretty area back in the country.
Dive site is near Platteville, WI. Right where WI, IL, and IA meet. The mine entrance is at the far end of the pond, 25ft deep.
We went no deeper than 70ft. The mine has been explored to 110ft deep a half mile back. We only went in about 500ft for class. We actually did a circuit on the last dive. Went in a circle. You use markers on the guidelines.
I was shocked when instructor said I was doing pretty well at the end of the first day. Said I showed improvement each day and my diving was really changed at the end of the course. I know what I need to work on.
I now have access to the mine to dive whenever the instructor is there, which is pretty often this winter as she will be teaching a lot. More people with $$ for cave classes since they’re not doing travel and more are interested in local diving. I have a few people to dive with already. They are really experienced but don’t mind helping the newbies get experience.
I’m seriously considering doing my full cave class next fall. That means more complex navigation, etc. For intro to cave you’re redirected to main guideline only and only 1/6 of your tanks.
Attachment 3499
A local diver I know who is part of the group from the old dive shop, but as a gay libertarian doesn’t agree with the owner’s politics, told me that whenever I had something major happen diving-wise, to make the FB post shareable and he would share it on HIS FB page, so He Who Shall Not Be Named, and others associated with that dive shop, would see it.
He did that with my passing intro to cave. He said getting a cave cert from X (gal instructor’s name) is not easy. He said I’m also just about the toughest and most stubborn diver he knows (and that’s saying something). As he told me privately, success is the best revenge. :D
Good for you, Tradd. Adventures await!!!
That looks like a pretty area, Tradd.
Rosa, it’s very pretty. No facilities, though. We walked a bit down a path and peed behind the trees. :D
A buddy I’d dive with at the local quarry now considers me “too dangerous” to dive with since I got my cave cert.
Ironically, I’m even safer to dive with since I got my cave cert. You can’t be a dangerous diver and get your cave cert. The training is far beyond what the average recreational diver gets.
Oh, well, their loss.
Very impressive and congrats on passing the cave class.
Your dive buddy is stupid because cave divers need more skills.
Bingo! She has about 30 dives or so. I told her with that attitude, I wouldn’t be diving with her anymore. I tried to tell her about how intensive the training is, but it went in one ear and out the other.Quote:
Originally Posted by Teacher Terry
Oh come now, you know that is bad ass. That they consider you dangerous. That is a brag!Quote:
Originally Posted by Tradd
That reminds me, my nephew named one of his children a common modern first name with a middle name of “ Danger.” Very odd, since my nephew and wife are about as Standard issue white-bread as you can get.
so Tradd, change your middle name legally to “Danger.” Ha ha
Haha, IL. Yep, I do consider that as bad ass. :D
I’ll be mine diving next weekend. I have at least two experienced people to dive with. I was actually invited for this weekend but wanted to chill since last weekend was so intense.
My new drysuit shipped from the manufacturer in San Diego Wednesday so it should be here this week! Can’t wait.
I listen to a podcast called Scared to Death. During last week's episode, they told a listener's story about a cave in a Florida lake that is supposedly haunted. I thought of you, Tradd!
Attachment 3515
Interesting!Quote:
Originally Posted by beckyliz
Picked up my new drysuit in Madison today. Fits like a dream. Expensive but worth every penny. It was custom.
Stylish! What is a drysuit?
It’s not a wetsuit! Seriously :). There are seals at neck and wrists and a waterproof zipper. You wear insulating stuff underneath. Fleece is popular. You put some air into it for warm and to keep water pressure from shrink wrapping you in the suit as you descend. Keeps you much warmer than a wetsuit.Quote:
Originally Posted by rosarugosa
You look like a very chic Navy Seal.
:DQuote:
Originally Posted by Tybee
It’s made in San Diego. Company has been there for 60 years. Glad it’s US made. The US military (including CG) does buy suits from DUI. Company offers a ton of color choices, etc. I love my purple and I’ve been eyeing this pattern for several years. Cadillac of drysuits.
Keep that photo as a special memento of all the adventures of 2020. You have had a lot of positive ones to treasure.
Definitely will!Quote:
Originally Posted by razz
It’s very weird but I’m getting the vibe that some diving friends are very uncomfortable with me being cave trained. The most recent one is a gal I dove with a lot on the lake last year and the year before. She got cave trained last year. We text occasionally. I let her know how much I enjoyed class, how neat the mine was to dive. Thought she’d be interested. Crickets. She texts me back and talks about other stuff, but doesn’t say a word about my class. She talks about HER upcoming cave diving trip to FL. I mention it to a mutual friend. He said she bought into the lies He Who Shall Not Be Named posted about me being an unsafe diver, even though nothing ever happened when we diver together. She think I have no business in a cave/mine and is questioning what the heck the instructor was doing by certifying me.
Goodness! It never stops.
I guessed that your nemesis might be behind this latest development. Odd business--but carry on.
That’s what I guessed myself. Oh, well. No big loss. Just odd.Quote:
Originally Posted by JaneV2.0
Nice dry suit - very fashionable, actually!
I don't understand why someone else has "issues" with what you learn and don't learn re: the cave class? Why in the world would this person think you shouldn't be doing it?? Sorry, I just don't understand not celebrating/cheering someone on when they learn something new.
@happystuff
I don’t know either. But if they’re going to be that way, better to just ignore them. The stuff I do is all up on FB. If someone can’t be happy for my successes, that’s their problem. Unless she’s jealous she can’t have access to the mine. That is a possibility. She is a FL cave diver. I have a number of cave diving friends who are seriously green with envy that I’ve got a place to dive 3 hours away instead of the 15 hours whatever it is down to FL. But if you’ve not had a class with the instructor, you don’t get to dive in the mine.
I am always happy for people and their achievements. Just stupid and petty to be jealous.
I really like the dry suit, too!! I'm amazed you dive in WI in the winter! With all of your past and future training, would you ever dive for money? I'm thinking of rescue operations and even weeding aquatic invasives--stuff like that.
No interest. Plus for rescue type diving, you need public safety diver training.Quote:
Originally Posted by catherine
Sold the 4 remaining small tanks I had started out with. Guy will pick them up tomorrow for $700 cash in hand. I can definitely use the extra space and the cash will be nice.
Well, the gal texted me today to ask about something, so I seized the bull by the horns and asked her why she hasn’t said a word about me getting cave certified. First off, she’s jealous as hell that I have a dive site 3 hours away that I can dive many weekends, while FL is 15 hours away. She also thought I was copying what she’s doing. Mine diving in WI is far from FL cave diving. Last but not least, she’s upset I get to dive when she’s out of the water for months. She lives with a relative who has multiple health issues so this gal goes nowhere for the time being due to covid.Quote:
Originally Posted by Teacher Terry
How sad for her. Sounds like you were the recipient of her disappointments, frustrations and personal hardships. I'm glad you were able to find out why she was behaving the way she was. Kudos to you for "seizing the bull by the horns". Don't know if it makes it "easier" for you or not, but at least now you know and have some answers/explanations for her behaviors, etc.