Selamat Datang or Welcome to Scuba Diving Malaysia
I would like to introduce the Malaysian underwater to all divers around the world. My first ever diving was at Perhentian Island, Malaysia. It was spectacular and awesome!!! Then i went to Tioman, Payar and Sipadan… Sipadan was speechless….. Since that time I become addicted to scuba diving…… Malaysia is home to many dive sites. Accessibility to Malaysia by air is via the capital city of Kuala Lumpur and the other major towns and cities of Penang, Kota Kinabalu and Johor Bharu. Road and rail access from Thailand and Singapore is convenient and road/rail systems are good. Note that the South China Sea is exposed to the annual North East monsoon that blows from November to February. But for Sipadan u can dive alll around the year….. Generally, the dive sites off Peninsular Malaysia’s east coast are off the islands where most offer a wide selection of accommodations, milky [...]
The History Behind PADI
I will not attempt to compare PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) to other agencies as each has its own standards equal to or above the minimum established. I also believe that the individual instructor has a big influence on the training received. I have seen many great instructors from all agencies and several bad instructors in all agencies. PADI has a large Quality Control Department and continues to insure proper, safe training to every student. Is PADI the best? It is hard to argue with 70 percent of the trained divers yearly. PADI History: Let take a look In 1966 in Illinois, John Cronin, a scuba equipment salesman for U.S. Divers, and Ralph Ericson, an educator and swimming instructor, were concerned about the scuba diving industry. They felt that the current scuba certification agencies were unprofessional, didn’t use state of the art instruction and made it unnecessarily difficult for people [...]
Categories: PADI, Scuba diving courses Tags: Dive PADI, PADI, PADI Courses, PADI history, Scuba Diving with PADI
Wreck Diving in Grenada: The Bianca ‘C’
Hello again my Scuba Jedi Friends. One of the most exciting dives of my life was on the Bianca C a mile of the coast off the Caribbean island of Grenada. Sitting upright at a maximum depth of 50 metres, this 600 meter long ship never fails to impress, and is listed as one of the top ten warm water wreck dives by many authorities and magazines. The Bianca C has had a chequered life and has actually sunk twice, once whilst being towed incomplete from the southern coast of France under the name of Merechal Petain to Port de Bouc near Marseilles in June 1944 where she was torpedoed by the Germans in August. When the hull was raised she was renamed La marseillaise and towed to La Toulon and then returned to La Ciotat and refitted as a Cruise ship. When completed she sailed to Yokohama . In 1957 given the name [...]
Categories: Scuba Diving in the Caribbean Tags: scuba Grenada, The Bianca C, The Bianca wreck, wreck diving, wreck diving Grenada
The Law of Primacy- Kneeling on the bottom
Most scuba instruction begins with the new diver breathing from a regulator in shallow water on their knees. These are the first few breaths that transform thousands of people every year from pavement praising pedestrians into aquatic adventurers. Over-weighted, the negatively buoyant student diver begins to grow more comfortable with the workings of a demand valve regulator. It is from this kneeling position on the bottom of the pool that students are introduced to various skills necessary for learning to scuba dive. DIR education is trying to change this behavior and enlighten new divers and instructors to the logic behind neutrally buoyant skill development. For a student diver, the position of kneeling negatively buoyant on the bottom of the pool becomes a basic ready position. Stable and rooted, the student learns to remove and replace their regulator and partially flood and clear their mask. Eventually, more advanced skills are introduced [...]
Categories: DIR Tags: DIR educational Model, DIR training, Scuba Education
Underwater Photography. First Lesson…Buoyancy
Ok young masters, let’s begin. Whether you are considering underwater photography or are an accomplished amateur…the first lesson for being the best photographer you can be is Buoyancy! Everyone thinks they have great buoyancy, but it can always be better. Now when we add a camera, small or large, your body posture and total focus during a dive changes. Having a camera is not license to touch anything! It seems to me that photographers think they are immune to being good reef stewards and are allowed to put down their hands, fingers, or lay their fins on the reef. You are NOT… EVER! Have you ever placed a hand or finger down on the reef? If yes…then you should strive to learn and practice the necessary skills to prevent that from happening again. Ok, so how do we achieve the skills and techniques to master buoyancy, add a camera, re-master [...]
The NAUI Requirement for Underwater Swim (and How To Do It)
NAUI requires all open water scuba divers to perform a 50 feet (16.67 yards) underwater swim on one breath with no push off from the wall.¹ NAUI also requires skin diver instructor candidates toperform a 25 yard swim underwater on one breath with no dive or push off from the wall.² As a NAUI instructor you have the leeway to enhance courses you teach. Where I teach at Scuba Steve’s Aquatic Adventures ( http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=121881663788) we also require the Divemaster candidates (who are striving for the highest NAUI leadership-level certification below Instructor) to perform a 25 yard swim underwater on one breath with no dive or push off from the wall. So why is it important to be able to swim underwater while holding your breath? I think we all can think of several reasons. Some of them would include comfort underwater without scuba, more comfort when skin diving and while [...]
Categories: NAUI Tags: Breath hold, NAUI, Underwater swimming
Henderson Hyperstretch Wetsuit
My drysuit seals finally saw their last dive, so I had to go back to a wetsuit for a while. I have a bunch of them to choose from, but I figured I might treat myself to something new. I picked up a Henderson Hyperstretch 7mm jumpsuit for about $280 and a 5mm hyperstretch core warmer for about $150. I have to say it was worth it! Most of my other suits all fit differently in one way or another. A couple of them fit well in some places and were tight in other places. This is the best fitting suit I have ever owned. It’s like the perfect fit all over because of the hyperstretch material. It is also the easiest suit to put on or take off, whether you are wet or dry. You know there is nothing worse than pulling and tugging on a wetsuit to get [...]
Categories: Scuba Diving products Tags: henderson hyperstretch wetsuit, henderson wetsuit, wetsuit review
Diving in Khao Sok National Park, Thailand
If you live and work in diving then believe me – it’s good to get away once in a while! Lots of us choose to go diving somewhere else for a bit of fun, to see something different and to be surprised by what is around the corner. I live and work in Thailand so we have lots of opportunity for different dive locations right on our doorstep yet one of my good friends has been exploring a completely different area for diving. Khoa Sok National Park is made up of thick ancient rain forest, calm and peaceful, with beautiful limestone columns towering out of the 165sq km lake that dominates the park. Most people go to trek in the jungle, spot wildlife and absorb the tranquillity, but a lake that large holds too much temptation for avid divers. The lake was created due to a damming project which has [...]
Scuba Diving in the Mayan Riviera
If you are looking for a great holiday in the Caribbean, few places can compete with Mexico and the long white sand beaches of the Mayan Riviera. The coast from Cancun to Chetumal, is truly a diver’s paradise. Driving from Cancun to Chetumal, passing Mahajual and the Sian Kaan Biosphere Reserve, will delight even the most seasoned diver. With the Meso-American reef formation just five minutes away by boat, divers are guaranteed to see turtles, jacks, barracudas, green moray eels, sting rays, spotted eagle rays, nurse sharks, bull sharks and tarpons. When you have had enough with salt water, you can jump into the fresh water cenotes and discover cat fish, blind fish and other intriguing fresh water critters. There are many dive shops in Cancun offering a wide range of diving options along with snorkeling trips. In the summer season you can snorkel off the coast of Isla Mujeres [...]
Scuba Diving in Thailand Quick guide
As the Thailand expert, I want to get something off my chest right now. I LIVE ON KOH TAO, I WORK HERE, I LOVE IT. And I don’t want to get into any of this forum led east coast / west coast bashing….ever. East or west coast both have their merits and reasons to visit and its worth bearing in mind that if your holidays are particular to a certain time of year then you may not actually have a choice. The west coast :- Phuket, Phi Phi, Koh Lanta, Khao Lak, Similans and Surins, all enjoy the best dive conditions between November and March whilst the east coast is the complete opposite, seeing the best conditions between March and October. That said, if you are not held to a particular time of year then your decision centres around who you are travelling with, your budget and what you want [...]
