Support to Portsmouth University Divers

We wanted to say well done to the team from Portsmouth University Divers (the PADI club based at the uni) who completed a relay underwater marathon a few days ago. The team swam the distance of 26 and a bit miles at Victoria pool. We were pleased help out by providing all the air and cylinders for the event which raised several hundred pounds for charity. Well done guys.

Team Oceanic ....... or is it Team EasyJet?

Oceanic are always very generous when we go to seminars. In the past we have had fleeces, t-shirts, I was given a wonderful undersuit ... hey, we even had a sheep on a keyring once! This year they once again splashed out and we were all given very nice IQ Jackets which were worn throughout the weekend. Many thanks to Kelvin for that, and Dad says thanks as well. However, the question we all wanted to know is whether Team Oceanic is being sponsored by a. Team EasyJet, or b. Team Holland. As you can see during the champagne stop at the Tunnel (Jane as always left holding the bottle!), they certainly stand out!

Another Dealer Award - in Belgium!

We went to Belgium at the weekend with Oceanic along with around 10 other dive centres for their annual seminar and dealer awards bash. Once again we won an award (getting to be a regular thing now!) as one of the top Oceanic Dealers in the UK. Previously the function has been held at a swish hotel in Taunton, but this year for a change, they decided to take the top dealers to Belgium and combine it with a tour of the region and some of the battlefields and cemeteries. On the Sunday evening we went to the "last post" at the Menin Gate, where I was privileged to be asked to lay a wreath. It was an excellent couple of days. Many thanks to John for organising the event and to Kelvin and the rest of "team" Oceanic for being such great hosts.

More Open Water Success

The weekend was busy again as 6 more students braved the pleasures of diving in February and successfully completed their Open Water course. Many congratulations to Gareth, Sam, Andrew, Joanna, Luke and David. We look forward to seeing you again soon.

Congratulations on Passing Open Water Training

Many congratulations to our 6 newly qualified divers who passed their Open Water course at the weekend. Horsea Island lake was a positively tropical 10 degrees on the surface and with our high quality semidry suits everyone did really well in spite of it being a chilly day. We look forward to seeing you on another training programme in the near future, or at a club function. Well done everyone.

Join us for some Sport Relief - 16 March

Some of us are going to be walking, jogging, running or simply staggering for a mile on 16 March in aid of Sport Relief. And just to make it a bit more interesting we thought we would do it in Scuba Gear. If that isnt bad enough, its the morning after the Spring Ball so there might be a few hangovers going around. so why not blow out the cobwebs and join us at the Mountbatten Centre at 11.00 am. You can sign up by logging onto the Sport Relief website (http://www.sportrelief.com/portsmouth-mountbatten-centre-mile). It costs £5 then you can start collecting sponsorship. Once you have signed up why not join the team by looking for Team Triton. If you cant be bothered with all this activity then why not sponsor us by clicking here. Its all in a good cause and just imagine how we are going to feel after a night in the Royal Beach!

Nice to See You

Another good club night last night with just over 60 turning up. Chicken curry made a change and it was good to see some new faces who have recently joined. Many thanks to everyone who bought raffle tickets and donated prizes - we raised another £60 for charity.

Club Presentation - 1 May 2008

We have organized another "presentation" evening for 1 May 2008 and the next guest speaker will be Dr John Bevan. John is a well known diving expert and has given presentations on many topics to some distinguished audiences, so we are very grateful that he has agreed to join us. He has a PhD in the Development of Diving Equipment and is the founding Chairman of the Historical Diving Society. He is a qualified commercial diver, BSAC First Class Diver, and has even clocked up 100 hours in a submersible. His book, The Infernal diver" is the definitive history of diving, covering its development over the years since John and Charles Deane invented the first diving helmet. The title of his presentation on the 1st is going to be "The History of Diving in the Solent" and he assures me that he will be covering the Mary Rose, the Royal George and much more. It wil be another cracking evening and after the talk we will have a meal and the opportunity to socialise over a couple of drinks. This will take the place of the normal club night for May. The cost of the evening wil be £5 for club members and £10 for guests. Once again all the proceeds will go to charity. We will put more information in the next newsletter but in the meantime if you want to know more or book tickets contact the dive centre.

Many Congratulations

Many congratulations to the open water students, Rikkie Close, Alex Benfield, Julian Heelis, Tina Ide who all passed their course last weekend. The word is that the new suits are excellent even in the cold water at this time of year.