Chris’ Dive Experiences: The PADI Line...REALLY, COME ON?

The PADI Lineup

Anyone who has taken their open water class through PADI has no doubt read the

"Continuing Your Adventure" section in Chapter 5 of the Open Water manual. You

know the one “Meet People, Go Places, Do Things” and I'm sure you were thinking

to yourself, REALLY? Come on! 

For those of you that don’t know this phrase it refers to: "Meet People - go diving and meet other divers thereby gaining more dive buddies and opportunities to dive. Go Places – go on a dive trip somewhere local or exotic, meet divers, go diving, have fun. Do Things – gain new skills that will allow you to visit new sites. Get the gear that will take you on your adventures and allow diving to grow with you."

As I read Chapter 5 in my Open Water manual and came across the PADI line, I emitted a noise from my mouth that must have sounded like someone letting the air out of a big, big balloon and probably scaring anyone that was in the house with me. A million thoughts ran through my head. "What a load of crap! I’m not going to dive locally after my class dives; it’s cold here. I’m only taking the open water class . There’s no reason to take any other classes - I'll know how to dive. And I’m definitely not buying my own gear. I’ll rent gear once a year when we go to Hawaii and dive."

Fast forward to a short couple of weeks later, after completing open water dive 4, I was on my way back to the shop to sign paperwork, get my temporary cert., buy my own set of gear, and sign up for advanced class. Hmmm, what was that PADI line again, “Meet People, Go Places, Do Things”.  Yep, that sounds about right, I'm hooked! Now after 6 years of diving, one thing besides the PADI line that rings true to me is the saying, "Never say never".

Manta ID Shot
Photo Courtesy Of: Anne Marie Kitchen-Wheeler

MEET PEOPLE

Diving has exposed me to so many different people, places and cultures, and definitely taught me to never say never. So many of the people you meet in the diving community have a contagious passion for the sport as well as for the animals and or places that they get to dive. When you meet people like this, you have no choice but to go with the flow which can open doors to opportunities and experiences that you would never have dreamed of.

Andy Murch Chillin In The Office
Photo Courtesy Of: Dustin Hurlbut

People like Andy Murch who is just as passionate about diving with sharks and rays as he is about protecting them. Andy works tirelessly to get the pictures and stories out there about whats happening to the animals all of us love to dive with, balanced with giving people once in a lifetime dive experiences with these same species. Dr. Anne Marie Kitchen-Wheeler who loves to teach and pass on her knowledge and passion for mantas to divers. Harvard graduate and Catalina Island diving guru Dr. Bill who's always willing to pass on his knowledge, experience, and great dive stories to both young and old divers alike. Amos Nachoum who pioneered diving in spots that are on most divers "must dive" list like the Galapagos Islands and the Red Sea. And Hendrik Matthijssen whose pure passion for caves and cave diving was evident from the start of his very first dive briefing with me. It only took one dive with him to see a new door opening, leading to cave diver training.

Hendrik Matthijssen Doing What He Loves To Do
Photo Courtesy Of: Stefan Gartner

Go Places 

Before I started diving I thought you could never go anywhere more exotic and more beautiful than Hawaii. "Who needs a passport?" was something I told myself. After getting my PADI certification, I started learning about these places I had never even heard of and found myself saying over and over, "man I gotta go there and see and experience that". I guess I'm going to need a passport! Dive travel has given me the opportunity to experience the peace and epic sunsets of Antarctica, to see the truly exotic Maldives & Palau, to meet the friendliest people in the beautiful Fiji islands and many places in between.

Do Things

Diving can give you truly once in a lifetime experiences that not too many people will ever get to have. With the right mix of training, experience, desire and timing, the results can leave you breathless. From allowing you to dive with great white sharks without cages that just a couple of years ago was thought impossible, to diving in crystal clear spectacular caves among hanging stalactites that have taken thousands of years to form, I have done things that I had never imagined were possible before I became a diver.

Diving Without Cages
Photo Courtesy Of: Lesley Alstrand

  

Even if you find yourself, as I did, skeptical about the "Meet People, Go Places, Do Things", I really couldn't think of a better path to follow. Give yourself and your diving a chance to grow or to rekindle that passion you once had. Pick one of the things in the  PADI motto and go for it.

Meet People. Join a local dive club. Joining the San Diego Dive Club was one of the very first things I did after getting certified. Better yet, JOIN THE DIVE SHACK's DIVE CLUB forming this month and become a founding member. This will keep you in the know with what's going on with the local diving community and gives you the opportunity to keep diving.  You will meet all sorts of potential new dive buddies and will likely meet people who will become some of your lifelong friends. Swing by your local shop, like The Dive Shack, and find out when the next dive club get-together is, then go.

A San Diego Dive Club Get Together
Photo Courtesy Of: Barbie Lass

Go Places. Maybe what you need is some new scenery above and below the water line. Go dive somewhere different. This may be only a short drive away or may include a long flight. Either one of these could re-energize or build your passion for diving.

Do Things. Learn something new. Take that class that you've been thinking of taking. If your highest level of training is open water, take an advanced class. What could be better than a class where there's no written test and you learn about 5 different types of diving which you then go out and experience for yourself.

Diving is truly what you make of it. It can be a very relaxing, beautiful drift along a reef at 35 feet, a long cave penetration, or a challenging dive hand-feeding multiple tiger sharks. It's your choice to make diving what you want it to be for you. For me, any of the above scenarios would float my boat. We'll see what the next door that opens holds for me. How about you?

 An Epic Antarctican Sunset
Photo Courtesy Of: Steve Reilly

Want to learn more about the animals I love to dive with?  Check out:

http://predatorsinperil.org/

Creature Feature: Flying Mobula Rays

As summer approaches, I get excited looking ahead to my adventure to La Paz, Mexico, at the end of it. Why you ask? Because I am hoping I might catch a glimpse of those beautiful creatures known as the flying mobula ray.

Mobula rays are larger rays, often mistaken for mantas, that are mainly known for their aerobatic breaching.  These rays, also known as “devil fish”, have been reported to breach as high as 6 feet above the water in the Sea of Cortez (Gulf of California). While doing some research for this “Creature Feature” I came to find out that very little is known about these rays. It has been said that there are more questions than answers about them. For instance, nothing is known about what happens to the mobula ray or where it goes between being a pup and a mature adult – it just seems to disappear during this time.

Members of the Family Mobulidae, which does include the larger manta rays, there are four species of mobulas found in the Sea of Cortez (tarapacana, thurstoni, munkiana, and japanica), but it is very difficult to distinguish the different species unless you can get up close and personal with them. Amongst the locals of Baja, the different mobulas, along with the mantas, are all lumped under the name “cubana”. However, mobula mukiana found in the Punta Arena de la Ventana area have a greater propensity to perform airborne flips which led to fisherman in that area to call them “tortillas”. Tortillas have a tendency to jump more frequently than other mobula, never grow larger than 3-4 feet and are more inclined to school.

The reason for breaching, which is exclusive to the smaller mobulid varities, still remains a mystery to researchers, however, a few opinions have been formed. Some think breaching is a means by which to dislodge the parasite-cleaning remoras that attach themselves. Then there are those that feel it may be a way to keep fit for gathering food. While others feel it may be a cooperative form of hunting, much like whales forming bubble circles. It is thought that the vibrations from breaching may cause prey to be driven downward to other rays waiting to feed below. Then there are those that feel it may simply be a form of play.

Mobulas are known to feed on “krill” (euphausiids) or “mysids” (mysidium) which are planktonic crustaceans. These rays feed by filtering the tiny shrimp-like creatures through plates in their gills. It is believed that much of the mobulas migration is based on following their food source.

Except for the mobula japanica , mobulids do not have spines or stingers in their tails as a defense mechanism.  They must rely their size and speed to escape. Another interesting fact about mobula rays is they have disproportionately large, complex brains compared to other fish. “In fact, the weight of their brains relative to their body weight is comparable to many mammals.”[1] It has been documented that mobulids, particularly manta rays, have exhibited “un-fishlike”, almost curious or playful, behavior amongst other rays, and scuba divers as well.

The fight to protect mobulids is on the rise as we discover these creatures have a “long lag time in population response to harvesting”.[2] They have a very slow rate of reproduction, what appears to be producing only a single pup every 2-3 years, making them extremely vulnerable to stock depletion.[3] For species like these, it may take decades to recover from excessive mortality from fishing and accidental by-catch. I hope that efforts to protect these beautiful creatures are successful so that generations after us will be able to view their spectacular aerobatics and gentle splendor.

Notes [4] & [5]

[1] Albert, Paul and Michael, 26 June 2005, "The Flying Mobulas of the Sea of Cortez".

[2] Musick, John, "Ecology and Conservation of Long-Lived Marine Animals".

[3] Dr. Nortarbartolo di Sciara

[4]McEachran, J.D. and G. Notarbartolo di Sciara, 1995. Mobulidae. Mantas, diablos. p. 759-764. In W. Fischer, F. Krupp, W. Schneider, C. Sommer, K.E. Carpenter and V. Niem (eds.) Guia FAO para Identification de Especies para los Fines de la Pesca. Pacifico Centro-Oriental. 3 Vols. FAO, Rome.
[5] Last, P.R. and J.D. Stevens, 1994. Sharks and rays of Australia. CSIRO, Australia. 531 p.