Stop for a moment, and think of others. Put the anger, the hardness, the walls of your life aside and be thankful for the grace that you have. . . . But don’t stop there, step outside of yourself.
Remember the parable, “I complained because I had no shoes. . . and then I met a man who had no feet”
Think how lucky you are to have your limbs, to be able to walk, to be able to see, to be able to stand upright.
The Scuba Diver Girls, in conjunction with K2 Scuba want to put the heart back into the scuba industry with charitable giving!
The Diveheart Foundation has a need for scuba gear to train disabled divers! These items are displayed on our special featured products page where you can purchase them and we will ship them directly to Diveheart.
Here are some examples of what Diveheart needs from you!
A K2 service specialist will be contacting you after you have made your purchase, however feel free to add any special instructions or comments upon checkout.
Buying Dive Gear for Yourself? You Can Still Help!!!
Receive 10% off most items purchased, plus 10% of any profits will then be donated to the Diveheart Foundation!
More About Diveheart
Diveheart is an incredible organization and it is the “CAN DO” spirit that Diveheart hopes to instill in all its participants by giving them the confidence and independence that allows them to face their own life challenges and overcome barriers that before might have seemed insurmountable.
Through SCUBA diving, the Diveheart Foundation supports and facilitates programs that teach children and adults with disabilities and the military wounded to fly. Thanks to the wonder of the water column, the oceans and lakes of the world become the forgiving weightless environment of outer space, giving perfect buoyancy to a child or adult who would otherwise struggle on land.
LET ME SAY THIS AGAIN: You are going to buy gear. . . buy your gear AND feel good about the fact that you are teaching a wheelchair bound child to dive, you are helping a wounded warrior to feel the freedom of weightlessness.
AND, we are going to give you a discount at that. WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
I ask, no expect, no. . .demand your comments!
What other worthy charities should we know about?
What other causes are near and dear to your heart?
The Tribe K2, in conjunction with the ScubaDiverGirls know your heart. . . and it is good!
Football players wear them. So do people competing in hockey, baseball, cycling and a myriad of other sports.
But divers wearing helmets? And being supplied with compressed air via a hose at the water surface that connects to their helmets? Who would have thought it?
During a recent Caribbean cruise I experienced this interesting twist on underwater exploration during a stop at Coral World Ocean Park in St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. It is called “helmet diving.”
We boarded a bus in St. Thomas and were taken on a 40-minute drive on the wrong side of the road – at least what North Americans consider the wrong side — to our destination, which they called “the cove.” Among the other attractions at this facility are snorkelling, scuba diving and encounters with sea lions, sharks or turtles, to name a few. Equipment can be rented or purchased there.
The helmet diving base is a large round covered area. After a brief introduction that included instructions and the usual signing of a waiver absolving the facility of liability, gloves and water shoes were provided. We descended a ladder three steps into the water, where a white helmet was placed over our heads, resting on the shoulders. It was the receptacle for the compressed air that was pumped down from the surface.
The helmet, which featured a clear mask, was large enough to enable us to wear our glasses. That was a bonus in clear water where the visibility ranged from 30 to 40 feet. We were told to stay upright to prevent water from entering the helmet. Breathing was normal, but we had to purge our ears. The helmet weighed 70 pounds, but with the buoyancy created by the water we experienced a weight of just 15 pounds when we were below the surface.
Descending the final steps of the ladder to the ocean floor 20 feet beneath the surface in 81-degree Fahrenheit (27.2 Celsius) water, we began our helmet dive walk. Two scuba divers guided us on the 30-minute trip. An added safety measure was a chain along the route; we were told to hang on to because the water was fast moving.Unfortunately, one of our helmet divers had to leave the water after experiencing breathing difficulty. While it should not be a problem for most people, those who have breathing difficulties or who suffer from claustrophobia might not want to try it.
Of the five of us taking part in the helmet dive, I was the only one who scuba dives. It struck me that helmet diving is an excellent opportunity for those who do not wish to go the scuba route to see some of the underwater world that thrills divers. But in exposing helmet divers to that same visual experience – especially in the clear waters of the Caribbean – it is also a vehicle to attract new people to scuba.
I would highly recommend helmet diving to anyone thinking of getting into scuba diving, or to those who just want a glimpse into a diver`s world.
This is not a Great White, but he plays one on TV…
Upon arrival at the dive site, the captain anchored the boat while the divemaster jumped up on the boat’s bench seat and prepared to deliver his briefing. The divemaster was long and lean, with flowing hair bleached blond by the sun. He appeared confident, even cocky, an attitude fueled by the successful execution of hundreds of shark feeds without any noticeable loss of his body parts.
“Okay, who has done a shark feed before?” No one raised their hands. “Okay, so who has gone diving in Moorea before?” Again, no one raised their hands. We were a really impressive group. “So, has anyone actually done any scuba diving anywhere?”
“We just got certified in Bora Bora,” I said proudly, an admission met with congratulations from the other divers. The divemaster’s face fell.
“Okay, so we will keep this easy. Descend directly to the bottom. I will show you where to go. Do not move around. Do not gesture or hold your hands out towards the sharks. Do not make erratic movements.” Do not pass go. Do not collect $100. Do not feel bad about pushing the diver next to you towards the shark’s open mouth if it looks like it is going to attack.
As the other divers suited up, I peered over the side of the boat into the bottomless cobalt abyss. The sky had clouded up, causing the water to appear murky and foreboding. Off the back of the boat I noticed fins breaking the surface, lots of them.
“What are those?” I asked the divemaster.
“Reef sharks. Small ones,” he said. “They know they’re gonna get fed, so they’re waiting for us. They’ll leave when the big guys show up.”
This endeavor began to look less and less like a great idea. Clearly we were expected to jump into the water with the sharks swirling on the surface, like lobsters dropped into a boiling pot of water. I envisioned the sharks heating up some drawn butter in anticipation of our entry. We geared up, preparing to take the plunge. I lingered while putting on my scuba vest, cleaning my mask, and slipping on my fins in hopes of being the last diver to jump into the water. The shark “feeder,” one of the crew members, donned a suit made of heavy woven chain designed to protect him from shark bites. The chain mail suit covered him from head to toe in medieval scuba chic. He looked like a tropical Knight of the Round Table.
The moment divers entered the water, the surface sharks disappeared. I took a giant stride off the back of the boat and instantly felt more relaxed as I soaked up the warm, 80 degree water. As we descended the visibility improved and I realized the depth was only 35 feet. The sloped, rocky sea floor undulated with deep grooves like mini canyons extending out towards deeper water. The divemaster guided our group to a point at the shallower end of one of the grooves and gestured for us to stay put. Holding a stationary position would be difficult, however, because the significant waves at the surface created a surge of water down below. With each passing wave, we floated forward and back five feet. Despite our best efforts, we could not control it; the water moved each diver with a force that flailing arms and legs just couldn’t combat.
I heard the splash as the heavily-weighted shark feeder entered the water. As he sank to the bottom about 25 feet in front of us, I noticed he held a large bag full of fish bits for feeding. A tsunami of small fish engulfed him, greedily eyeing up his bag of food as he prepared for the feeding frenzy. Sir Fish Head took a chunk of snack out of his bag and placed it on the end of a long, pointed stick, which could double nicely as a jousting lance later in the day if needed. Appearing suddenly from the blue, as if by magic, was a small black-tip reef shark. It snatched the piece of fish then like a shot disappeared back into the blue. The surrounding small fish went crazy picking up the bits of fish flesh the shark left behind.
Although that early shark caught the proverbial worm, the rest of the shark flock was not far behind. Reef sharks started appearing from all directions, replacing the fish swarming around the feeder. The sharks were anywhere from two to five feet long, not huge, but impressive because of their sheer numbers. I counted at least 20 of them, though there could have been more. Sharks streaked in and out of view, grabbing, tearing, and stealing the bits of food offered, working their way into a true feeding frenzy.The surge grew worse, and I could no longer hold myself upright and face-forward because of all of the water movement. I leaned at a 45 degree angle to my right, my left leg thrust awkwardly high in front of me like I was trying to clear an invisible, aquatic hurdle. The other divers were also having trouble. My husband floated on his stomach, his legs steadily rising up and threatening to flip him over. Another diver had already achieved the flip and stared upside down between his legs at the fish feeding spectacle. Our collective lack of underwater skills made us look like a deficient Cirque du Soleil troop knockoff. Our attention, though, was focused on the amazing display of power in front of us, our various acrobatics all but unnoticed.
Then, as abruptly as they arrived, all the fish and sharks left. The silence was eerie, no swishing tails, no crunches of fish bones. The only animals I could see were us awkward humans suspended in the water. Clearly the other fish knew something we did not. The divemaster pointed to the distance, behind us and to the left. Divemasters, in general, tend to be a jaded bunch, having seen almost everything there is to see underwater. If one points to something there is a high likelihood that it is something amazing and so it’s wise to take a look.
An enormous shark swam towards Sir Fish Head who looked surprisingly at ease despite the pelagic dragon barreling towards him. No wonder all the other sea creatures left the area; this shark could have easily eaten anything that had previously been swimming around us. The ten-foot lemon shark bulged around the middle, having clearly indulged in a whole lot of fish. So corpulent, in fact, that I suspected one might find several masks and fins in its stomach. The brown-hued creature had yellow overtones and two large dorsal fins. It grabbed the proffered fish head without chewing; one gulp swallowed it whole.
A second lemon shark appeared, chunky as the first, but not as long. Sir Fish Head barely had time to pull another fish piece out of his bag before hungry jaws closed near his hand. I wondered what would happen when the fish bag grew empty. At the end of a meal I usually need a little desert. With all my gear I hoped I didn’t look too much like a tasty wetsuit filled with rocky road ice cream.
Scuba Diver Girl Stephanie and Scuba Diver Girl Margo head out to dive with Diver Duncan in La Jolla Cove on another wonderful day. Looking for fun stuff and fish to share with all of you. Hugs & Happy Diving!
The Scuba Diver Girls, in conjunction with K2 Scuba want to put the heart back into the scuba industry with charitable giving!
Diveheart is an incredible organization and it is the “CAN DO” spirit that Diveheart hopes to instill in all its participants by giving them the confidence and independence that allows them to face their own life challenges and overcome barriers that before might have seemed insurmountable.
Through SCUBA diving, the Diveheart Foundation supports and facilitates programs that teach children and adults with disabilities and the military wounded to fly. Thanks to the wonder of the water column, the oceans and lakes of the world become the forgiving weightless environment of outer space, giving perfect buoyancy to a child or adult who would otherwise struggle on land.
This is not a Great White, but he plays one on TV…
