Let it Snow!

Congratulations to all the Students that passed their Distinctive Snow Diving Course today!!.....ok ok it was only a little bit of snow but quite a bit for Portsmouth. Well done to the students that passed the PADI Open Water Course and the PADI Scientific Diving Techniques Speciality Course

Horsea Island - Latest Update

The good news is that Horsea Island is not going to be closing. There was a rumour that the military were going to be stopping the use of the lake by civilian recreational divers. Many of you will have signed the petition that was produced at the booking office. I have to be honest and say it is not the first time that I have heard such rumours, but the last time I was sat on the other side of the fence as the person running the military training and negotiating the contracts with Andark on behalf of the MOD! I suspect it will raise its head again in the future unfortunately - that is the nature of the beast. However, for now, HIDC have a concession to continue to operate and we hope it continues.

There have been a few additional restrictions placed on diving in the lake though and I received the following from Karen at HIDC:
"As many of you will know we have recently been campaigning to keep Horsea Island Dive Centre open as a civilian dive site, and for all the support, you, our valued customers have given us we are thankful. So it’s now with a big sigh of relief that we can announce that Horsea will be OPEN at weekends 0800-1630. There are however, some changes to the rules, firstly we will only have access to the small toilet block at the top of Zone 3 (ask any staff if you are unsure about the location), and we will now be using Zone 2 (Sea Survival) changing facilities as our primary toilets/showers.

The second change is that security will be stepped up; we will now be requiring photo ID upon entry to the site. The other security change will be that we will now be escorting people on the site, to make this work efficiently can we ask that groups arrange to meet at the booking office at the same time.

Sadly currently we are closed midweek due to continuing military operations, we hope that we can gain access to the site Wed-Fri again soon, however this does not affect your bookings, if you wish to make a booking, you can still call/email/fax us during the week and a member of staff will be here"

So, a bit of a walk for a pee and you will need to bring some ID with you but otherwise business as usual.

Easter Successes

Well we've had a bit of everything this weekend, sunshine, showers, hail, sleet, snow but the courses battled through.

Congratulations to the students that passed their Advanced Open Water courses......

......and dry suit course

......and Open Water Courses.

Talk by John Bevan - 1 May

Just to remind you, John Bevan is kindly going to be giving a talk on 1 May on the History of Diving in the Solent. This is starting to fill up so get your tickets as soon as you can. The talk will be at the Royal Beach Hotel and will be followed by a meal and a social event. The cost is £5 to club members and £11 for non club members - all proceeds go to charity. For more details and to book tickets click here

Southsea BSAC Club Talk - 2 April

Just to let you know, Southsea Sub Aqua Club are also having a presentation evening, this one is going to be on 2 April. Former Southsea SAC President John Towse has kindly offered to talk about his diving experiences at the start of recreational scuba diving in the 50's, 60's ... to date with lots of local diving history. As it's a SSAC talk, it will be at the Southsea SAC Club at 8.00pm at Fort Widley. If you want to go can you let Alison Mayor know - their website address is southseasubaqua.org.uk. Or you can give us a call at the dive centre and I will let her know - she lives lives next door to my mum and dad!

Sport Relief 16 March

The Triton Team got up early after the spring ball (and there were a few sorry looking faces) and incredibly everyone who said they would turn up and do it did! We met at the dive centre to get changed and then drove up to the Mountbatten Centre. The organizers thought we were mad - and so did we, but we all went around the 4 laps of the track in Scuba Gear. Some of us started off in fins but this foolish idea only lasted for a few hundred metres. There were some outrageous burst of energy from several team members - which generally coincided with the proximity of the crowds and the cameras! Bunch of posers!

With some good heliox mixtures and plenty of O2 going around from the "hangover" cylinders the majority of us managed to put the slightly fuzzy feeling to one side.

Needless to say we came in last - and those that chose to carry 12 litre cylinders were glad to see the finish line! A bit of a shock to the system I know - we even got beaten by a giant chipmunk! But we didn't care - we raised around £800 between us, had some fun and cleared away the hangovers. After the run the team went to a local pub The Duke of Bukingham in Old Portmouth for a sedate Sunday lunch to nurse our aching heads..... and a few pints of lager to numb the pain.

Well done to everyone who took part and thanks to everyone that sponsored the team.

Spring Ball - 15 March 2008

Well over 100 turned up for the Spring Ball on Saturday evening. The weather was atrocious, but it didn't dampen spirits as we partied into the early hours of the morning. We had a jazz band (many thanks again Steve) to play us through an excellent dinner and then the disco took over. The raffle was well supported and many thanks to Andi Davies, David Hyde, Margaret Reed, Bob and Kerstin, and The Royal Beach for their generous donations. The raffle raised £405! Astonishingly 4 of the guests had birthdays on the same day, so we decided to give them a gift of Sunday lunches for 2 at the Royal Beach - just to say happy birthday.

The plan was to have an early night as quite a few of us had the Sport Relief run the following day - 3.30 in the morning and some were getting worried about how they might feel. It was another really good night - photos are in the gallery.

Course Success

Congratulations to all the students who have passed their Open Water course this weekend. High praises all round from Wyndham - apparently you were all bl**dy good.....apart from Darren's coffee making skills....... :-)

More Open Water Success

Well done to all the students who successfully completed their open water training this weekend. It was particularly impressive as they also managed to cope with Timmeeeees new gingery, yellowy, greeny hair without being sick!

Building more links with the Community

This half term just gone we once again laid on some try dives for kids at the Pyramids. Its a free event that gives them something exciting to do as well as an insight into the underwater world. And, this week we have undertaken some training with Cowplain school providing try dives for some of the youngsters. Many of them have expressed an interest in doing a full course - if they do we will let you know how they all do.

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.

Small Business of the Year Award

Triton Scuba were honoured last night to be awarded the Small Business of the Year Award. The awards, sponsored by The News, Business Link and a host of other large organizations, took place at the Guild Hall. Guest speaker was, "they think its all over - it is now" Geoff Hurst who entertained over 500 diners with anecdotes and stories from 1966.

With over 180 nominations it was a great achievement for a small company like ours to come first, especially when you look at some of the competition in the same category. During the presentation, BBC presenter Sally Taylor said that the award recognized our success over the year in a number of our business ventures, and she also mentioned the huge amount of work we have done for charity and within the community over the years.

We would like to thank all the customers, friends and staff who have helped us continue to be the Premier Dive Centre in Portsmouth and now the Best Small Business. More details of the night in this months newsletter.

Congratulations as training gets underway in 2008

We have a full programme of courses planned for the year from Open Water to Instructor. This weekend we got the programme off to a flying start with Open Water and Drysuit starting. And with many courses filling up quickly it looks like being another good year ahead.

Many congratulations to our first drysuit course students of the year who braved the elements and plunged into a freezing Horsea this weekend.

"Making Blue Movies" a Great Success

It was a full house at the Royal Beach hotel for the first club night of the year and the presentation by Mike Pitts. Mike very kindly offered to come along and talk on his experiences as an underwater film maker. Over 100 turned up and it was nice to see so many from some of the other clubs in the area, including, Hampshire Police, Southsea, and Cockleshell Divers. The event was not only great fun, but also raised £400 for charity. On behalf of the club I would like to thank Mike for giving up his time to come and speak to us and making the event such a success. I have posted a couple of images on the website if you want to take a look. We hope to run more events of this type in 2008 so watch this space.

BBC Shoot at Stoney Cove

Well it was not quite Mexico, but the shoot at Stoney Cove on 9 January went really well. We provided diver and supervisor support for the day which had divers taking surface collision flares underwater. We knew they worked from the rehearsal day just before Christmas and although we never got to see the final results the word is that camereman Mike Pitts got some excellent footage. It was long day and great fun, but you will have to wait until next year to see the results. I have posted some images from the day in the gallery under the special events section.

Call the Fashion Police!!!!

We have to be honest, we missed it at first! Alex's shocking fashion statement at Vobster Quay caused many a hardened BSAC diver to feel quite ill. So for those of you who didnt't quite see it ..... here it is again. Be afraid, be very afraid ...

Last dive of 2007

A good number turned up at Vobster for a last dive of the year the day after Boxing Day. The water was a chilly 6 degrees but with only a few people around vis was up to about 15m. It was a great way to end the year and we look forward to plenty more club dives next year.

Nice to see so many of you

The Moose Milk weekend was even busier than previous years and it was great to see so many club members and customers and be able to say Happy Christmas. With a course going on in the main classroom the shop got a bit full at times. We reckon about 80 or so dropped in over the Saturday and Sunday to say hello and join us for a glass of Moose juice.

For those that we didnt see in person, we would like to thank you for your support this year and we wish you a very merry Christmas.

Congratulations to our New EFR Instructors

A huge well done to Hannah, Ruth, George and Kevin who all successfully passed their Emergency First Response First Aid Instructors course on 23 December. We hope to see them teaching in the centre in the future.

BBC Rehearsals - Definitely not the Sea of Cortez

As you know we have done a bit of work for the BBC recently. There is another film shoot coming up in January for the LIFE series. So this week we went on a recce to check out a suitable alternative - and the site chosen was .......... yes, Stoney Cove. We went in advance in order to find the spot in the lake for the shoot, sort out logistics and run trough various light sources to see which one was the best on camera. As night fell we went back out to the designated spot and tried out various torches, high intensity light sticks and flares. Our view was that the flares looked amazing, however with only a minute of burn time getting a film sequence is going to be interesting. We will let you know how the film shoot goes next month.

Another Donation to Charity - The Rainbow Centre

Once again we have made a lot of children smile. For the third year running we have donated enough money to buy the Christmas presents and fund the Christmas party for the Rainbow Centre in Fareham. The centre provides care, support and education for children with Cerebral Palsy. Over the past 3 years we have raised thousands for the Rainbow centre and we were delighted to hand over a cheque for £1000. Donk and Tina helped out once again, standing in for Father Christmas and Chief Elf (who are a bit busy at the moment), and Rhiannon sprouted fairy wings for the occasion and handed out the sweets.

This year has seen us continuing to support our regular charities as much as ever with your help. In May you will remember that we handed out cheques to the Rainbow Centre, RNLI, Project AWARE and Rowans Hospice totalling £3000. This year we have raised a further £2600 through various means, such as raffles and sponsored events. As well, we raised a additional £500 for the Scuba Trust when we held the Monty Halls evening and £150 for the Fire Service Charity in the summer. Coupled with our continued support to Enham Alamein, The Harbour School, The City Boys School, Positive Futures, and Bayhouse School, amongst others, we continue, thanks to your help and support, to make a small difference. Thank you for all your efforts, no matter how small, and we look forward to another positive year in 2008. Have a great Christmas. All the best from the Triton Team

Scubapro Launch New Computer Software - Press Release

UWATEC Launches PDIS - Profile-Dependent Intermediate Stops
UWATEC, the industry leader in dive computers, introduces PDIS, a unique algorithm option for technical divers as well as recreational and advanced divers. Due to the physiological concept behind it, PDIS boasts total versatility and adaptability to all types of dives.

Although a trend towards ‘deep stops’ has infiltrated the dive computer industry, UWATEC has responded with real science. UWATEC’s intermediate stops take key elements into the equation and actually incorporate your profile into the calculation, considering: Nitrogen accumulated from the ongoing dive , nitrogen accumulated from previous dives (repetitive diving dependent)and the type of breathing mixes you use. For more information go to the equipment news page on our website.

Another Excellent Function - Christmas Ball 2007

Over 130 members and their guests sat down to dinner last Saturday for the Christmas Ball. The Royal Beach Hotel once again did us proud with some excellent food. The raffle raised £600 which is going towards paying for the Christmas function at the Rainbow Centre in Fareham for children with Cerebral Palsy. The party went on long into the early hours of sunday morning and everyone had a fantastic time. Photos have been posted onto the gallery. The next club function will be on the 10 January, again in the Royal Beach. This will be the Mike Pitts presentation "Making Blue movies". We still have some tickets left so get in contact with the dive centre if you don't have one but would like to go.

Doing our bit for the local kids

We're always keen to help the local community as you know, so when we were asked to run some taster sessions for The Harbour School, we had no hesitation. Unfortunately a couple of the lads decided not to come, but that still left enough for a worthwhile session. After over an hour in the pool, it was hard to get them out as they were enjoying themselves so much. Well done guys and we look forward to helping you all out again in the New Year.

Egpyt Gallery

I have posted some images from the Dahab trip into the Gallery and Jules has put some up on the facebook page. Click here to go to gallery.

New Advanced Open Water Divers

Many congratulations to the 7 divers who have just completed their Advanced Open Water qualification. Mark Dobbyn and Chris Whyte finished on Sunday and Emma Thompson-Murrell, Deborah Rose, Kelvin Lam, Mitchell Jones, Tiphanie May who opted to do a night dive at horsea to finish their training last night. Last but not least a huge "well done" to 12 year old Tom Perrin who qualified as a Junior Adventure Diver.

November Newsletter

November Newsletter has been loaded onto the website for those that don't receive it automatically by email. Click here.

Course Successes in Egypt and UK

With so much going on we unfortunately forgot to tell you about a few course successes the weekend we went to Egypt and had a few more while we were there, so here goes for the last 2 weekends:
Many congratulations to Mark Dobbyn, Ed Butcher, Chris Whyte, Alfie Rawlinson, and Kev Rimmington who all passed their Drysuit courses. Terry Stocker, Sue Whiting and Mike Gear who completed their Level 2 Digital Photography course and not forgetting Bradley Redman, Ashley Redman, Steve Warwick and David Meade who successfully passed their AOW course. And finally, a huge well done to Melanie Mason who upgraded from Scuba Diver to Open Water diver and conquered several personal gremlins along the way.

We're Back from Egypt!

We all arrived safely back from Egypt last night. It was an epic club holiday with 40 people enjoying the sun, Sakara and some superb diving. A report is being written as I speak and will be published in due course along with some excellent photos!!!! Just trying to work out how to get some of the videos onto the blog! Remember, if you want to book on any of next years trips there are only a few spaces left.

And Again ....Another Award from PADI

Last month we told you that we had been awarded a certificate by PADI in recognition of outstanding service. No sooner has that one been put up on the wall than we get another! The certificate reads
"Awarded to Triton Scuba for outstanding customer service and professionalism in PADI scuba instruction as acknowledged below:
Whilst I have good experiences at several PADI Resorts and Dive Centres around the world, I still feel that Triton stands out above them for the quality of its staff and its training"
Signed Peter Hulme
Thanks for the praise Pete - we are still getting it right.

Oceanic Dealer Locations for DX Regulator Upgrades

Since we published the Oceanic recall notice on our website we reckon we have got hold of most of you who have either purchased regulators from us or had them serviced by us recently. If you still need the hp seat upgrade in your Oceanic DX 1st stages (or if you are not sure whether you do or not) you need to contact an Oceanic Authorized Dealer. Do not use the regulator until you have done so. In Hampshire and Sussex the dealers are:

Triton Scuba, Portsmouth (02392 838773)
Isles World of Diving, Shoreham (01273 463291)
YoYo Divers, Southampton (02380 212100)
Mulberry Divers, Selsey (01243 601000)
Ocean View, Lancing (01903 767224)

The upgrade process is simple, free of charge and can be done while you wait at an Oceanic Dealer. Please note, getting changes undertaken by unauthorized dealers will affect your product warranty. For more information go to www.oceanicuk.com

New Kit for Courses and hire

We have recently had a bit of a clean out of some of the older gear - infact all of it! and have just about replaced everything in the kit store. So next time you come in you will see brand new Scubapro T-1 BCDs, new Scubapro regulators, new fins, masks, snorkels, gloves, boots and hoods. We have also replaced out old suits with some really shiney nice new wetsuits. We have put in Oceanic Shadows, good for some extreme temperatures and these were used for the first time this weekend on the Open Water course. The students verdict - toasty!

A Sunny Weekend

The sun came out and it was more like September than November! So the Open Water and Drysuit students had a bit of a treat down at the lake with some good vis as well as warm weather. Still 12 degrees in the water! Many congratulations to the 9 successful students.

October Newsletter

The October newsletter is available for download on the website for those of you who did not receive it by email. Click here to go to the newsletter page.

Great South Sponsorship - Update

With pledges still coming in I am really pleased to tell you that the total now raised has just gone over the £1000 mark. Thanks to everyone for your support - it is fantastic.

Great South Sponsorship

We've tallied the sponsorship money pledged so far and it comes to just under £1000 in total. Many thanks to all the club members who sponsored the runners, my thanks to everyone at Xyratex who sponsored me, to those at Estee Lauder for sponsoring Andi Davies and to Rothman Pantall for their generous sponsorship of Terry Stocker.

Open Water Successes

Congratulations to all the students that passed their Open Water Courses this weekend. You all did brilliantly, especially with the foul weather! Lets hope it perks up for the students that completed their pool/classroom sections of the course this weekend - but just for you - we've got brand new shiny wetsuits for you next week too!

Well Done to Everyone - The Great South Run

Lets face it the weather was horrendous. So please join me in saying well done to the Triton Team that completed the Great South Run today. Congratulations to:
Chris Gambs (an amazing 66 minutes 168th place), Simon Lamb (1 hr 19), Ruth Sims (1 hr 21), Kim Jones, James Douglas, Adrian Pashley, Terry Stocker, Andrea Davies, Catriona Sutherland, Felipe, and not forgetting ......... yours truly (3 coughing fits, a bad dose of man flu, 74 minutes and 783rd) - Yes I was pleased - thought I was going to die!!

Well done everyone - a fantastic effort!

Great Instructor Meeting - but what happened afterwards?

Last week saw 22 instructors and qualified staff turn up for our regular instructor meeting and entertainment. We held the whole thing at the Noble House in Osborne Road and covered all sorts of topics from changes in standards to equipment maintenance. After the meeting we had an excellent meal and many thanks to John and all his staff for looking after us so well. However, several of the party moved on after the meal for a few drinks and I just happened to be looking through the photos when I came across this one. I recognize newly requalified instructor Chris and full time member of staff Ian, but the dance steps are new to me - can anyone give me a clue. Answers on a postcard to PADI Quality Assurance Department (Role Model Behaviour Section), Unit 7, St Philips Central, Bristol.

The Sun is Shining

Well last weekend was a lot of fun - dive show weekend and we had loads of great bargains, plenty of wine and food and it was great to see so many of you over the 2 days. This weekend the sun has been out and the open water course finished. Many congratulations to all the successful students; we look forward to seeing you on your next course or the club meeting on 1 November.

Donk Seen in Jelly Bean Fancy Dress Costume

When Donk decided to rip the zip from his suit he just popped along to the Horsea dive centre and grabbed a hire one. What he didn't know was that it would make him look like a giant jelly bean! Nice one Donk.

More Recognition from PADI

Its always nice to receive a bit of praise - especially when you dont ask for it! Over the years we have received several Recognition Certificates from PADI for the work we have done and as we received another one last month we thought we would let you know. The citation reads:

Awarded to Triton Scuba for outstanding customer service and professionalism in PADI scuba instruction as acknowledged below:
I am sure there are more glamorous locations in the world to learn to dive – but for me – the Triton team got it spot on where it counts – the quality of instruction was superb. Signed David Morgan

Thanks for that David – we really appreciate it, and it is good to know we are still getting it right.

Hectic Weekend but Successful

It was a bit hectic - with 5 students finishing their open water course, 8 just starting and another 8 doing their Advanced Open Water (great course photo guys!) we knew it was going to be busy. But when the university decided to do over 30 try dives the kit room was looking slightly denuded to say the least. Still with a bit of good planning it worked well, the only major problem was getting enough champers in the fridge to celebrate! Many congratulations to all the successful students and a big warm welcome to the 8 new members who joined the club.

Belize Photos

Some of the photos from Belize are now available on the gallery.....far to many in fact - but then there are 4 DVDs full to choose from!

Another Cracking Club Night

Good to see so many of you at the club meeting last night. Also really nice to welcome our guests from West Wales Divers - glad you enjoyed yourselves and we will look at coming to you for a club trip next year. The raffle raised £70 and a big thank you to everyone who bought tickets. Next club night is going to be on 1 November and if you could let us know if you are coming before the day of the meeting it would be appreciated! Yes you Rosey!

New First Aid at Work Instructors

Many congratulations to Brian, Tim and Mike, who have all passed their EFR Instructor and FAW Instructor programmes with us this week.

Club Trip to Portland

Last weekend saw 16 club members making the trip to Portland, where we 'Teamed up' with Fathom and Blues for some RIB dives. After spending 3 1/2 hours fighting the traffic on Friday night we eventually met up at The Royal Breakwater bar where there was much deliberation about who should sleep where, and if Mike Gear 'really did snore THAT badly'. Then it was beer and discussion about the planned diving for the next day.

Dale had very kindly scheduled the first dives on Saturday for midday, which judging by the state of the hangovers was not a bad thing. We had a mixed group, so there were 2 itineraries booked. The Countess of Erne, and the M2. Viz on The Countess was about 4 metres so not that bad, and was thoroughly enjoyed by those that did the dive, the M2 on the other hand was 'interesting' to say the least. Someone turned the lights off at 17 meters, and with a little current running, it made for an exciting dive. Stories of the huge conger eels, and massive crabs were the talk of the rib ride back.

After a spot of lunch it was time to kit up again for the second dives of the day. Lulworth banks and The James Fennel. For those who haven't done Lulworth Banks, this is a great drift dive. Scallop bed central. F&B have a strict "no take" policy this left some of the divers frustrated in having to leave the food for the BBQ on the bottom - guys, remember fish are friends! Also spotted during the dive was a Thornback Ray, cuttle fish and squid. The guys doing The James Fennel also had a good dive, especially Helen and Charlotte, who, not content with looking at the wreck decided they'd have a little drift dive as well. 25 minutes later they surfaced to find that they were possibly marginally closer to France than they were to England. After making contact with a passing Catamaran, (well actually it nearly ran them over) and using some passable French linguistic skills (just in case) the RIB finally picked them up.

F&B had organized a BBQ for us on the Saturday night with the promise of 'all the beer you could drink'. Being the premier dive club in Portsmouth etc and not wanting to let anyone down, we put in a commendable performance and attempted to drink any profit Dale may have made during the day. Due to the fact that the weather was turning and the BBQ had gone out it was decided that we would retire to The Breakwater for a quicky just before going to bed. It was there that we discovered that contrary to popular belief, Elvis is NOT dead but resides in Portland. Shocking scenes followed as the beer flowed and confidence grew, nearly everyone thought they could do better. Jules in particular was on fine fettle as some shocking video footage of him dancing proves!!

Sunday saw an early start and a few missing faces - something to do with the beer I assume. The weather had also deteriorated so the planned drift off White Nothe was changed to the Landing craft and the Bombard unit in the harbour. Nice dive with plenty to see and lots of life on it.

Charlotte eventually surfaced from her pit and decided that the car was a much better place to be than a RIB. However with much persuasion she decided to come for a ride to Pulpit Rock. Unfortunately the weather was getting worse, and with 2 meter swells and a Force 4 blowing she wished she hadn't as she was drenched in about 30 seconds! So we turned around and did The Countess.

It was yet another classic club weekend away, with plenty of fun and some excellent diving.
Many thanks to Dale , Ron and all the staff at F&B for making it a great weekend. More trips are planned for the next few months so if you want to join in let us know in the dive centre.

September Newsletter

September's newsletter is finished and has been sent to all members. For anyone else who wants it go to the club members area on the website by clicking here.

Club Presentation on 10 January - Making Blue Movies

We have arranged another presentation evening for diving clubs in the area - it is going to be called "Making Blue Movies". Now that has got your attention hasn't it! The evening is going to be given by Michael Pitts, award winning underwater cameraman and photographer. Michael will be covering a variety of films and series that he's worked on, talking for about an hour. He will be covering his part in the making of many progrmmes including The Blue Planet, Walking with Beasts, War Wrecks of the Coral Seas, Midway and Island Apart. He will even tell you how he did the Scissor Sisters Videos and that Bulmers advert where the bottles go back up the river when they fall off the ship. As last time when we had one of these functions, all the proceeds of the event wil go to charity and the entry fee will be £5 for club members and £10 for non club members to cover the food.

I worked with Michael on the BBC filming and some of his work is stunning as well as ingenious in the making. It will be a really interesting presentation and a fun evening.
More details out soon, but if you want to book a place you can let us know early if you wish.

New Open Water Students

Many congratulations to all 6 students who successfully finished their Open Water Course this weekend. We look forward to seeing you in the club and on further courses in the future.

Sponsor Links

To sponsor the team running in the Great South Run you can click on the link below.

Belize Trip Report

I have finished the trip report from Belize and this has been published in the holiday section of the website. I hope you enjoy it.

Christmas Ball - 8 December 2007

The Christmas Ball is now FULL. As we once again have a waiting list can you please let us have your payment for the ball by the end of September. We will then send out the menu choices. Due to a slight increase by the Hotel, the price for the function will be £35 a head for guests and £15 for club members. Still, not bad for a disco, late bar, live band, 3 course meal and half a bottle of wine each. And as you can see from the picture from the summer ball this year they are a cracking good night.

Next Club Night - 4 October

A quick reminder that the next club night is in on 4 October at 7.00 pm in the Coast Bar. As usual please let us know if you are coming so we can order the right amount of food.

Missed Blogs and Course Successes

A couple of missed blogs while I have been away I note. Two weekends ago we ran a nice little Rescue Diver programme. Mike Gear still didn't quite manage to complete it due to having to miss the scenarios - third time lucky Mike! And 7 students successfully completed the Open Water course and 3 completed the Advanced last weekend. Well done all of you.