Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida

jkaterenchuk · 5th May 2008, 16:20

I see you have been having far too much fun diving in SE FL from the reports and pictures. My departure day is fast approaching and here is what I have so far. Seems only the Meg divers have stepped up to the plate. Maybe thats a characteristic of Meg divers versus Optima divers.

Thu 5/15 - MEMPILOT

Fri 5/16 -

Sat 5/17 - MONKEY

Sun 5/18 - MONKEY, NETMAGE if after 1pm

Mon 5/19

Tue 5/20 - MEMPILOT

Adrian, your suggestion of doing the Hydro Atlantic is a good one. Which day would you suggest and which operation?

Eric - Do you want to go down to KL for one or more of the days or stay around Pompono? I promise not to bring any Optima stickers with me. You have my complete support. Come to Thailand or PI with me in Sept and I am sure you can find a replacement for the girl and no Optima divers. You can even teach her how to keep your Meg spit polished and ready to dive. Plus the after dive massages are a nice touch. Seems the Thai food is a big hit with the Optima guys so just think how envious they will be when you have a live in Thai girl. Gives a whole new level to the statement "going out for Thai after the dive".

John

**sfldiver** · 5th May 2008, 17:14

Quote: (Originally Posted by jkaterenchuk)

I see you have been having far too much fun diving in SE FL from the reports and pictures. My departure day is fast approaching and here is what I have so far. Seems only the Meg divers have stepped up to the plate. Maybe thats a characteristic of Meg divers versus Optima divers.

Thu 5/15 - MEMPILOT

Fri 5/16 -

Sat 5/17 - MONKEY

Sun 5/18 - MONKEY, NETMAGE if after 1pm

Mon 5/19

Tue 5/20 - MEMPILOT

Adrian, your suggestion of doing the Hydro Atlantic is a good one. Which day would you suggest and which operation?

Eric - Do you want to go down to KL for one or more of the days or stay around Pompono? I promise not to bring any Optima stickers with me. You have my complete support. Come to Thailand or PI with me in Sept and I am sure you can find a replacement for the girl and no Optima divers. You can even teach her how to keep your Meg spit polished and ready to dive. Plus the after dive massages are a nice touch. Seems the Thai food is a big hit with the Optima guys so just think how envious they will be when you have a live in Thai girl. Gives a whole new level to the statement "going out for Thai after the dive".

John

Hi John,

Definitely count me in for the weekend (17th & 18th). As far as diving the Hydro, I'd like to try to do it on the weekend, so lets see who we can recruit to join us. Unfortunately, of the two boats I've dove the Hydro recently on, one is out of commission and the other has become sort of rebreather unfriendly, but I think we can still find someone to take us out to it. I'm out of the office today, but I'll make some calls tomorrow and see what will work out best.

Adrian

mempilot · 5th May 2008, 18:13

John,

On the 15th, can you do a local morning dive? I have tickets to an event in the evening. We can plan on Key Largo for the 20th if that is OK with you.

Eric

Quote: (Originally Posted by jkaterenchuk)

I see you have been having far too much fun diving in SE FL from the reports and pictures. My departure day is fast approaching and here is what I have so far. Seems only the Meg divers have stepped up to the plate. Maybe thats a characteristic of Meg divers versus Optima divers.

Thu 5/15 - MEMPILOT

Fri 5/16 -

Sat 5/17 - MONKEY

Sun 5/18 - MONKEY, NETMAGE if after 1pm

Mon 5/19

Tue 5/20 - MEMPILOT

Adrian, your suggestion of doing the Hydro Atlantic is a good one. Which day would you suggest and which operation?

Eric - Do you want to go down to KL for one or more of the days or stay around Pompono? I promise not to bring any Optima stickers with me. You have my complete support. Come to Thailand or PI with me in Sept and I am sure you can find a replacement for the girl and no Optima divers. You can even teach her how to keep your Meg spit polished and ready to dive. Plus the after dive massages are a nice touch. Seems the Thai food is a big hit with the Optima guys so just think how envious they will be when you have a live in Thai girl. Gives a whole new level to the statement "going out for Thai after the dive".

John

jkaterenchuk · 6th May 2008, 12:39

Quote: (Originally Posted by mempilot)

John,

On the 15th, can you do a local morning dive? I have tickets to an event in the evening. We can plan on Key Largo for the 20th if that is OK with you.

Eric

Absolutely, who would you suggest we contact for the 15th? We can decide on the 20th later.

John

jkaterenchuk · 6th May 2008, 12:46

Here is the latest. Trying for a Hydro Atlantic dive on Sat or Sun. CHRISP is interested in coming if we get a HA trip setup.

Thu 5/15 (Pompono AM) - MEMPILOT

Fri 5/16 -

Sat 5/17 (Trying for HydroAtlantic) - MONKEY, SFLDIVER, CHRISP

Sun 5/18 - MONKEY, SFLDIVER, NETMAGE if after 1pm

Mon 5/19

Tue 5/20 (Maybe KL Dive)- MEMPILOT

John

**sfldiver** · 6th May 2008, 19:52

As John indicated, I'm trying to figure out how best to book a dive to the Hydro Atlantic for one of the weekend days on the 17th & 18th. I was originally planning on using Miss Conduct, but I called Capt. Conrad and he's out of town until the 11th, and I don't want to wait that long to book it, because he may already have a charter for that day.

I noticed that South Florida Divers has the Hydro Atlantic scheduled for Sunday the 18th at 1:00 PM aboard the Safari Diver. I know this is not our favorite boat to dive with rebreathers, but given that it does hold 8 divers and that it is already scheduled for the Hydo right around the time we are interested in diving it, I think this may be the most viable option. If you're not familiar with the boat, here's a few pics of the boat from the last time we dove the Hydro aboard it:

So I guess my question is, does Sunday the 18th at 1:00 PM aboard the Safari Diver work for you guys? Remember, since the summer wheather has arrived, it is exponentially more difficult to get a boat to take us out on a tech dive, unless we have a lot of divers solidly confirmed upfront, which is not the case yet. Therefore, I think this may be our best option, especially since they are already headed out to dive that wreck on that day and they currently have 8 spots open (the entire boat), as shown on their online reservation system at SouthFlorida Diving (dot) com.

What do you guys think? Are you guys ok with this boat? If so, is the timing (@ 1:00 PM Sunday) alright?

I vote yes, but I'm curious to here from the rest of you.

Adrian

jkaterenchuk · 6th May 2008, 19:58

I am a YES. Been a lot worst boats than that one.

John

**sfldiver** · 6th May 2008, 20:14

I went to the South Florida diving Headquarters website (SouthFlodidaDiving (dot) com) and made my reservation. There's no payment or credit card needed to make the reservation, and they only request a 24hr period to cancel, so if you think you are going to make it, best to reserve your spot now.

Once I made the reservation, I checked and it now reflects 7 spots available.

MarcLaukien · 6th May 2008, 20:21

I made my reservation as well.

Do I read this correctly that they limit bottom time to 30mins?

Sands Harbor | Hydro Atlantic Wreck | 30 mins | Safari Diver

If we do team bailout (the 1.5x rule), then we could dive longer than that...

**sfldiver** · 6th May 2008, 20:27

Quote: (Originally Posted by MarcLaukien)

I made my reservation as well.

Do I read this correctly that they limit bottom time to 30mins?

Sands Harbor | Hydro Atlantic Wreck | 30 mins | Safari Diver

If we do team bailout (the 1.5x rule), then we could dive longer than that...

Marc, when we dove the Hydro with them before, they treated it as a tech dive and did not limit our bottom time in any way. In fact, they even sent the divemaster down to us during our decompression to check if we needed any extra gas.

Also, since it is one dive for the entire afternoon trip, we should finish our dive and make it back to the dock early, which is often their primary concern.

5th May 2008, 16:20	#11 (permalink)
jkaterenchuk . Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Megalodon Classic Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: May 2006 Location: Lititz, PA Posts: 576	Re: Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida I see you have been having far too much fun diving in SE FL from the reports and pictures. My departure day is fast approaching and here is what I have so far. Seems only the Meg divers have stepped up to the plate. Maybe thats a characteristic of Meg divers versus Optima divers. Thu 5/15 - MEMPILOT Fri 5/16 - Sat 5/17 - MONKEY Sun 5/18 - MONKEY, NETMAGE if after 1pm Mon 5/19 Tue 5/20 - MEMPILOT Adrian, your suggestion of doing the Hydro Atlantic is a good one. Which day would you suggest and which operation? Eric - Do you want to go down to KL for one or more of the days or stay around Pompono? I promise not to bring any Optima stickers with me. You have my complete support. Come to Thailand or PI with me in Sept and I am sure you can find a replacement for the girl and no Optima divers. You can even teach her how to keep your Meg spit polished and ready to dive. Plus the after dive massages are a nice touch. Seems the Thai food is a big hit with the Optima guys so just think how envious they will be when you have a live in Thai girl. Gives a whole new level to the statement "going out for Thai after the dive". John
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5th May 2008, 17:14	#12 (permalink)
sfldiver Team Optima Diver Current Rebreather/s: Optima Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Pompano Beach, FL Posts: 639	Re: Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida Quote: (Originally Posted by jkaterenchuk) I see you have been having far too much fun diving in SE FL from the reports and pictures. My departure day is fast approaching and here is what I have so far. Seems only the Meg divers have stepped up to the plate. Maybe thats a characteristic of Meg divers versus Optima divers. Thu 5/15 - MEMPILOT Fri 5/16 - Sat 5/17 - MONKEY Sun 5/18 - MONKEY, NETMAGE if after 1pm Mon 5/19 Tue 5/20 - MEMPILOT Adrian, your suggestion of doing the Hydro Atlantic is a good one. Which day would you suggest and which operation? Eric - Do you want to go down to KL for one or more of the days or stay around Pompono? I promise not to bring any Optima stickers with me. You have my complete support. Come to Thailand or PI with me in Sept and I am sure you can find a replacement for the girl and no Optima divers. You can even teach her how to keep your Meg spit polished and ready to dive. Plus the after dive massages are a nice touch. Seems the Thai food is a big hit with the Optima guys so just think how envious they will be when you have a live in Thai girl. Gives a whole new level to the statement "going out for Thai after the dive". John Hi John, Definitely count me in for the weekend (17th & 18th). As far as diving the Hydro, I'd like to try to do it on the weekend, so lets see who we can recruit to join us. Unfortunately, of the two boats I've dove the Hydro recently on, one is out of commission and the other has become sort of rebreather unfriendly, but I think we can still find someone to take us out to it. I'm out of the office today, but I'll make some calls tomorrow and see what will work out best. Adrian __________________ *Currently piloting & shooting...* Dive Rite O2ptima FX Rigged w/ a Dsix Custom Aluminum Frame, Nomad Wing, Transpac Harness and VR3 Computer w/ VPM-B/E & a 4th Cell Sensor Link.* Canon PowerShot G9 Digital Camera *Rigged in a Patima-PDCH 2008 G9 Aluminum Housing w/ an Inon UWL-100 Achromat Wide Conversion Lens, 2 Inon UCL-165M67 Close-Up Lenses and 2 Inon Z-240 Strobes.
(Offline)

5th May 2008, 18:13	#13 (permalink)
mempilot What is this..terrafirma? Current Rebreather/s: Megalodon Other Rebreather/s: Megalodon Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Ft. Lauderdale Posts: 1,113	Re: Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida John, On the 15th, can you do a local morning dive? I have tickets to an event in the evening. We can plan on Key Largo for the 20th if that is OK with you. Eric Quote: (Originally Posted by jkaterenchuk) I see you have been having far too much fun diving in SE FL from the reports and pictures. My departure day is fast approaching and here is what I have so far. Seems only the Meg divers have stepped up to the plate. Maybe thats a characteristic of Meg divers versus Optima divers. Thu 5/15 - MEMPILOT Fri 5/16 - Sat 5/17 - MONKEY Sun 5/18 - MONKEY, NETMAGE if after 1pm Mon 5/19 Tue 5/20 - MEMPILOT Adrian, your suggestion of doing the Hydro Atlantic is a good one. Which day would you suggest and which operation? Eric - Do you want to go down to KL for one or more of the days or stay around Pompono? I promise not to bring any Optima stickers with me. You have my complete support. Come to Thailand or PI with me in Sept and I am sure you can find a replacement for the girl and no Optima divers. You can even teach her how to keep your Meg spit polished and ready to dive. Plus the after dive massages are a nice touch. Seems the Thai food is a big hit with the Optima guys so just think how envious they will be when you have a live in Thai girl. Gives a whole new level to the statement "going out for Thai after the dive". John __________________ MEM "Da Pilot" Black holes are where God divided by zero. "If at first you don't succeed, don't dive silent." "Would you mind not shooting at the thermo-nuclear weapons." ~ Vic Deakins "Donkey's kill more people annually than plane crashes."
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6th May 2008, 12:39	#14 (permalink)
jkaterenchuk . Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Megalodon Classic Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: May 2006 Location: Lititz, PA Posts: 576	Re: Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida Quote: (Originally Posted by mempilot) John, On the 15th, can you do a local morning dive? I have tickets to an event in the evening. We can plan on Key Largo for the 20th if that is OK with you. Eric Absolutely, who would you suggest we contact for the 15th? We can decide on the 20th later. John
(Offline)

6th May 2008, 12:46	#15 (permalink)
jkaterenchuk . Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Megalodon Classic Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: May 2006 Location: Lititz, PA Posts: 576	Re: Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida Here is the latest. Trying for a Hydro Atlantic dive on Sat or Sun. CHRISP is interested in coming if we get a HA trip setup. Thu 5/15 (Pompono AM) - MEMPILOT Fri 5/16 - Sat 5/17 (Trying for HydroAtlantic) - MONKEY, SFLDIVER, CHRISP Sun 5/18 - MONKEY, SFLDIVER, NETMAGE if after 1pm Mon 5/19 Tue 5/20 (Maybe KL Dive)- MEMPILOT John
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6th May 2008, 19:52	#16 (permalink)
sfldiver Team Optima Diver Current Rebreather/s: Optima Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Pompano Beach, FL Posts: 639	Re: Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida As John indicated, I'm trying to figure out how best to book a dive to the Hydro Atlantic for one of the weekend days on the 17th & 18th. I was originally planning on using Miss Conduct, but I called Capt. Conrad and he's out of town until the 11th, and I don't want to wait that long to book it, because he may already have a charter for that day. I noticed that South Florida Divers has the Hydro Atlantic scheduled for Sunday the 18th at 1:00 PM aboard the Safari Diver. I know this is not our favorite boat to dive with rebreathers, but given that it does hold 8 divers and that it is already scheduled for the Hydo right around the time we are interested in diving it, I think this may be the most viable option. If you're not familiar with the boat, here's a few pics of the boat from the last time we dove the Hydro aboard it: So I guess my question is, does Sunday the 18th at 1:00 PM aboard the Safari Diver work for you guys? Remember, since the summer wheather has arrived, it is exponentially more difficult to get a boat to take us out on a tech dive, unless we have a lot of divers solidly confirmed upfront, which is not the case yet. Therefore, I think this may be our best option, especially since they are already headed out to dive that wreck on that day and they currently have 8 spots open (the entire boat), as shown on their online reservation system at SouthFlorida Diving (dot) com. What do you guys think? Are you guys ok with this boat? If so, is the timing (@ 1:00 PM Sunday) alright? I vote yes, but I'm curious to here from the rest of you. Adrian __________________ *Currently piloting & shooting...* Dive Rite O2ptima FX Rigged w/ a Dsix Custom Aluminum Frame, Nomad Wing, Transpac Harness and VR3 Computer w/ VPM-B/E & a 4th Cell Sensor Link.* Canon PowerShot G9 Digital Camera *Rigged in a Patima-PDCH 2008 G9 Aluminum Housing w/ an Inon UWL-100 Achromat Wide Conversion Lens, 2 Inon UCL-165M67 Close-Up Lenses and 2 Inon Z-240 Strobes.
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6th May 2008, 19:58	#17 (permalink)
jkaterenchuk . Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Megalodon Classic Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: May 2006 Location: Lititz, PA Posts: 576	Re: Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida I am a YES. Been a lot worst boats than that one. John
(Offline)

6th May 2008, 20:14	#18 (permalink)
sfldiver Team Optima Diver Current Rebreather/s: Optima Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Pompano Beach, FL Posts: 639	Re: Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida I went to the South Florida diving Headquarters website (SouthFlodidaDiving (dot) com) and made my reservation. There's no payment or credit card needed to make the reservation, and they only request a 24hr period to cancel, so if you think you are going to make it, best to reserve your spot now. Once I made the reservation, I checked and it now reflects 7 spots available. __________________ *Currently piloting & shooting...* Dive Rite O2ptima FX Rigged w/ a Dsix Custom Aluminum Frame, Nomad Wing, Transpac Harness and VR3 Computer w/ VPM-B/E & a 4th Cell Sensor Link.* Canon PowerShot G9 Digital Camera *Rigged in a Patima-PDCH 2008 G9 Aluminum Housing w/ an Inon UWL-100 Achromat Wide Conversion Lens, 2 Inon UCL-165M67 Close-Up Lenses and 2 Inon Z-240 Strobes.
(Offline)

6th May 2008, 20:21	#19 (permalink)
MarcLaukien Custom Title Allowed! Current Rebreather/s: Other CCR Other Rebreather/s: Optima Other CCR Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: South East Florida Posts: 169	Re: Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida I made my reservation as well. Do I read this correctly that they limit bottom time to 30mins? Sands Harbor \| Hydro Atlantic Wreck \| 30 mins \| Safari Diver If we do team bailout (the 1.5x rule), then we could dive longer than that...
(Online)

6th May 2008, 20:27	#20 (permalink)
sfldiver Team Optima Diver Current Rebreather/s: Optima Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Pompano Beach, FL Posts: 639	Re: Upcoming Trip: May 15th thru 20th SE Florida Quote: (Originally Posted by MarcLaukien) I made my reservation as well. Do I read this correctly that they limit bottom time to 30mins? Sands Harbor \| Hydro Atlantic Wreck \| 30 mins \| Safari Diver If we do team bailout (the 1.5x rule), then we could dive longer than that... Marc, when we dove the Hydro with them before, they treated it as a tech dive and did not limit our bottom time in any way. In fact, they even sent the divemaster down to us during our decompression to check if we needed any extra gas. Also, since it is one dive for the entire afternoon trip, we should finish our dive and make it back to the dock early, which is often their primary concern. __________________ *Currently piloting & shooting...* Dive Rite O2ptima FX Rigged w/ a Dsix Custom Aluminum Frame, Nomad Wing, Transpac Harness and VR3 Computer w/ VPM-B/E & a 4th Cell Sensor Link.* Canon PowerShot G9 Digital Camera *Rigged in a Patima-PDCH 2008 G9 Aluminum Housing w/ an Inon UWL-100 Achromat Wide Conversion Lens, 2 Inon UCL-165M67 Close-Up Lenses and 2 Inon Z-240 Strobes.
(Offline)

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