Descend Downunder
We Fish you a
Merry Xmas…
We would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a safe and Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!! From Des, Val, Kristy, Andrew and Leigh.
Xmas Party
Mermaids, Nemo’s, reindeers and even Santa made it to this year’s Descend Christmas Party. Another great turn out with around 30 attending, and after what was a wet and wild evening, a quick change of venue to Descend and it turned into a very dry pleasant evening. Thank you to everyone who made it a great night and try not to miss out next year, its always nice to catch up on a social level with all our valued club members.
Xmas Hours
Well the countdown is well and truly on with approximately 10 more sleeps till Santa comes. We are stopping for a break over Christmas and will be closed for the public holidays and the days in-between, however we will be opening between 9:00am and 10:00am each morning on the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday to service anyone needing hire gear, air fills or sales. Our Xmas trading hours will be as follows;
Xmas Day – public holiday
Boxing Day – public holiday
Monday 27th – public holiday
Tuesday 28th - public holiday
Wednesday 29th – open between 9:00 – 10:00am
Thursday 30th – open between 9:00 – 10:00am
Friday 31st – open between 9:00 – 10:00am
New Years Day – public holiday
Sunday 2nd - public holiday
Monday 3rd - public holiday
Tuesday 4th – normal hours 8:30 – 5:00
Twilight Club Dive
The Pit is fantastic at the moment, clear and even warm. Join us for a Twilight Dive followed by chicken and champagne on Friday evening 21st January. Bookings are essential.
Time: 5:30 @ The Pit
Cost: $10/ head
RSVP: prior to the 21st
Jindabyne Cub Weekend 19th & 20th February
Its filling fast and we’ve got about a dozen divers already booked so if you want to join us call us now and reserve a place and don’t forget you need to book your own accommodation gear in advance. Hire gear is also getting a bit limited so book now.
A unique weekend at Jindabyne.
Walk to the top of the world
Have a dive on a flooded township
Ride the Mount Crackenback chairlift
Lunch at Eaglenest
Kalkite Homestead is one of the best freshwater dives in Australia and without doubt the most interesting dive in the lake. It takes a twenty five-minute boat ride to reach the site, which usually is about seven metres deep but depends on lake level. Last time I went, two platypus played around the boat, splashing and diving for about twenty minutes. Kalkite Homestead is almost intact. The roofing material is gone however this allows light and access into the individual rooms. The kitchen still has the old cast iron stove and Silent Knight kerosene refrigerator. We found a valve style mantle radio and of course all the divers felt the need to sit on the outside dunney. A big brown trout was lying in the corner of the lounge room and a lounge can still be seen on the front veranda overlooking the front yard and the low rock wall that surrounds it. Swim over the gate, you don’t have to open it, and you are in the orchard. A brillant dive.
If you are interested please let us know as gear will be at a premium and it is the holiday season, however you will need to make your own accommodation bookings with snowline.
Book into the Snowline Caravan Park.
There is a range of accommodation starting at $15 for backpackers to $56 for two persons in a deluxe unit with unsuite. The park has very good facilities including boat hire. www.snowline.com.au Phone 02-64562099
Med Diver Course
This course is also filling fast with limited places left. Commences 14th January. For Full detail select the link below:
http://www.descend.com.au/training/sports/courses/2004979602.htm
New… New… New… | | NEW - Superflex semidry |  |
|
Multifit Semidry suit – the comfiest suit you will ever wear!
A superb combination one piece suit design for enhanced warmth and comfort
Available in 7 – 5mm and 5 – 3mm thickness
Revolutionary ‘Supaflex’ neoprene allows unmatched ease of donning, superior comfort & freedom of movement.
Supaflex design allows various body types to fit into one size
Ribbed contoured knee pads for superior abrasion resistance
Abrasion resistant grilled shoulder panels
Rear zip for easy entry and self donning
Revolutionary internal batwing zipper design stops water from entering zip and acts as spine pad
All zips have heavy duty marine grade locking sliders for durability and ease of use
Sealed wrist and ankle seals for supreme warmth and comfort
Ankle zips with bat wing seal provide easier entry whilst remaining watertight when diving
7 – 5mm combination - $598.00
5 – 3mm combination - $558.00
..... WANTED DIVERS ......
Refer a Friend & Receive $50.00
Courses are run in three different formats;
2 nights a week for 3 1/2 weeks
One week full time (available January)
Dual weekend course
Home study for theory, plus attend pool and sea weekend
Each course consists of;
Four nights of theory instruction
Three nights of pool instruction (extra pool may be required)
Full weekend of open water diving at Portsea
Two nights accommodation
Three shore dives
Two boat dives
The use of all high tech equipment (standard sizes)
Education materials – text and log books
Certification card and certificate
12 months complimentary membership to our club
The opportunity for further education through to instructor level & commercial diver
World recognised qualification through Scuba Schools International (SSI)
A divers medical certificate is a pre-requisite to attend this course and is available at an additional cost. It must be completed PRIOR to starting your course.
BOOK NOW AND SAVE – PRE CHRISTMAS SPECIAL
NORMALLY $550 REDUCED TO $490 – SAVE $60
Select the link below four course dates:
http://www.descend.com.au/training/sports/courses/20035221352.htm
Super Air the Alternative breathing Mix for all Divers
By I. Plummet
Chief executive, Trainers of Super Air (TOSA)
Super Air is a new term, but one that all divers will get to know in the near future. It is a secret mix that will allow all divers with only a little extra training the ability to dive for longer and deeper. Trainers of Super Air (TOSA) will provide this training in a safe training environment. When trained you will be able to wear your TOSA badge which bears the emblem, "I'm a TOSA Diver" with pride, sure in the knowledge that you are a better diver than those who do not use Super Air.
TOSA Course 1 is an introduction to the SAFE New World of Super Air that only TOSA divers can enjoy. Medical experts all agree (with the exception of a few misguided souls) that any mixture that reduces the "bad guy" nitrogen from your breathing mix, is safer. Some of you may have noticed that oxygen is also being implicated in the complications arising from other gas mixes, so in Super Air we have no oxygen. Yes, we have eliminated all the "bad guys" from your breathing mixture. This breakthrough in breathing mixtures has dumbfounded medical opinion as they cannot find any "bad guys" to have an opinion about. As there are no bad opinions we are confident that this is the mix for you and in time all divers will seek to become a TOSA.
TOSA Course 2 carries on from the knowledge gained in Course 1. You will learn to mix the secrets of Super Air blindfolded, reading the secret formula in Braille, through thick gloves at an amazing 300 metres, with a clear mind and steady hand. TOSA, in co-operation with respected INTERNATIONAL EXPERTS", have developed special techniques to ensure that the procedures used for handling this Nitrogen and Oxygen free mixture are safe. All components are chosen for and cleaned to our (ITERNATIONALLY accredited by experts in the field) standards, for use in an anitroxic environment. "Helium must be in there somewhere?" I hear you ask, but no. Helium has also drawn some criticism so it was never considered as a component of Super Air.
To enter the top level of the TOSA pyramid you need to consider becoming a TOSA instructor. We use the term Master TOSA for these privileged few. When you receive your Master TOSA cap with badge, T-shirt with "I'm a Master TOSA" emblem, underpants with your name and TOSA number embroidered in silk above the left leg (optional blood type information can be added for a small fee). You receive your Master TOSA manual which gives details on how to defend our TOSA position in regard to our secrets of Super Air and why Super Air is safer. The TOSA manual gives useful positional tips on stance - my favourtie is right foot slightly forward, with the body turned away from the camera ensuring your TOSA logos on the cap and T-shirt and underwear are clearly visible (this is similar to Tom Cruise in the Top Gun poster - ladies and gentlemen, please use discretion here). For those who may be interested there is a small section at the back of your manual on the course outline for Course 1 and 2.
Super Air is odourtess, tasteless, has a molecular weight of 0 and is totally inert. It can be used to any depth, as it causes no breathing resistance due to its zero atomic weight and causes no toxicity or narcosis. The cost is relatively low due to the use of transpose compressors, and therefore the use of expensive and complex rebreathers is not required. To carry the extra gas required for these long deep trips, we will train you in the use of the self propelled gas cart that has a free air equivalent volume of 500 cubic metres. Getting cold is no longer a problem; Super Air causes a catalytic action on contact with your lungs that produces heat. Leading diving medical experts agree that control of your core temperature is of vital importance in preventing death by hypothermia, internal heating is the best way to preserve this core temperature. This heating effect ensures that you can enjoy the extended bottom times that Super Air can bring.
Hyperbaric Units agree if a diver cannot come to harrn using Super Air, then there can be no complications to the non-treatment of TOSA diivers using existing facilities and tables. Indeed non-treatment could be carried out anywhere under careful supervision by a Master TOSA with suitable experience. Regarding the experience level to conduct non-treatment, getting your photograph published alongside a recompression chamber is deemed to be suitable. However it is mandatory that all gauges on the operating panel should read zero for these photos.
So, from the first time you took at the distinctive pressure gauge on your TOSA Super Air, and see the needle resting fim-dy on the right side of the gauge and reading -14.696 psi gauge (O ATA or -760 mnihg gauge or -1.0133 Bars gauge of 0 Bars absolute) you will now experience that inner glow and know what it feels like to have become a real TOSA diver.
For more information please contact TOSA at a dive store near you. Just walk in and say "I no longer want to be just a diver, I want to become a TOSA". The staff at any reputable dive store will know exactly what to do.
END
I. PLUMMET Admiral Ret. is personally accredited with exceptional dives in deep caves, his most memorable solo dive was on the Titanic, from which he recovered part of the embedded Iceberg from the hull as proof of the dive. His exploits are recorded in his autobiography "I. Plummet, the greatest diver in the world" available from Pengrin Press. His technical expertise has been gained from over 60 years as a commercial / scientific / recreational / instructor / military/ cave / wreck diver. Holding the rank of Admiral he commanded the Swiss clearance diving team for many years at their Alice Springs base. He is accredited by saying "yes, of course I know all there is to know about the sea, diving and everything" regularly and often to anyone who comes within earshot. Now at the age of 35 he has retired and keeps his hand in by consulting to anyone who will listen, these include many Navies and major commercial diving companies who make the pilgrimage to his corporate headquarters at the Pig and Whistle, frontbar. The relic from the "Titanic Iceberg" still remains and can be seen floating in his glass of "Bundy" for all unbelievers to see.
|
