March Meet

[samdive]

Just a reminder that the March meet is 20th and 21st March (weekend before the London Dive Show)

Oxygen Provider course at the NDC on the Saturday morning for anyone who has a spare £45 for the
O2 kit fund and would like to join us - let me know

Dives as this weekend - arrive 1ish on Saturday if you only want to dive, 9ish if you want to do the course
as well. Arrive 9.30 on Sunday if you want to dive - should be done by lunchtime

Let me know..... as usual


Sam

[Donna]

Hellooo, from a still cold and sniffly feeling sorry for herself Freebie!!

But, I'll be back (so will Martin), in March, ready to rock.......

Thanks for a good weekend guys, least we all had a laugh, mainly at my expense (hope Simon's forgiven me!!!!)

Donna x

[Donna]

Oh and we will definately be there for the O2 provider course as well

Donna

[Mlungu]

Donna,

Can you remind me where you got your gloves from? I think you said Dive-inn.... I had a look there but they don't specifically have the semi-dry ones (as far as I could tell).

Cheers

Justin

[Donna]

Hi Justin...

I got my gloves from a local dive shop in this area - Dive Crew in Bracknell (01344 454245) All my other freediving kit - fins, weightbelt, D3, socks I got from Dive Inn.

I'm not sure if Dive Crew do mail order, if not I'd be more than happy to pick some up for you? The gloves are Scubapro 5ml semi dry gloves and were £29.95. The size I have are small and fit well - the sizes do seem to be quite generous.

Let me know if you need me to help you out...

Best wishes

Donna x

[Mlungu]

Thanks Donna,

I'll bear that in mind.....I have just looked back at the old messages on this forum and noted Sam got a similar pair of gloves at scuba zone. I definately think the semi-dry gloves are the way to go for the freezing water of the NDC. Just need to get a thicker pair of socks as well.

Cheers Justin

[samdive]

on that note, does anyone know the best/warmest socks!
my gloves are the Scuba Pro 5 ml Semi Dry Kevlar ones. I think they retail at about £50 but they are worth it... I got em when I worked at Scuba Zone, they don't have a web shop as far as I know but would do a phone order

Sam

[Donna]

The socks I was wearing on Saturday are 4.5mm from Dive Inn. They're not the best fit, but as my fins are so big, its not too much of a problem. Would probably be an issue in a mono though

And on that note - I'll need to get some thinner socks for Cyprus - any suggestions????

Donna

[Mlungu]

I have just been looking at my Picasso catologue...... they do a commercial termic 9mm sock ( same as my 9mm suit) but I have not seen it for sale on any of the more popular websites, so I guess you would have to order from the US or Picasso direct. If its anything like the suit it will be warm, but you would need a bigger size on your fins!The 5mm Biotermic from Picasso is available from Dive-Inn and the comments seem to be quite favourable, this would be worth looking at.

Donna, I am not sure if you would notice too much of a difference between 4.5mm and something much thinner in terms of comfort. Iam using a 2mm sock but have used a 4mm before in SA and did not notice much difference (water temp +/- 22-26 C ).

Cheers J

[Donna]

Thanks Justin - my socks are such a rubbish fit that if I don't get my fins on just right, they rub!! And I'm sure in Cyprus I'll be nervous enough without worrying about getting my fins on just perfect to stop my socks rubbing - that was the only reason I wanted some thinner/better fitting socks.... I've only got a size 3-4 foot so it is a problem getting things to fit my feet properly, everything seems geared for the men!!!

Sure I'll find something soon....

Donna

[thud]

Speaking of warm gloves, I recently had a small enlightment. More than one study has showed that although immersing the face in cold water increases bradycardia (dive reflex), submerging hands in cold water has the opposite effect. That is it increases heart rate and oxygen consumption. Therefore having warm gloves isn’t just for comfort, but also for performance.

Everyone probably already knew this, but it was an eye opener for me.
Drew

[samdive]

Just a reminder that the next saltFree meet is at the National Diving Centre on the 20th and 21st March. Schedule is:
Sat AM Oxygen First Aid course (£45 in aid of the saltFree O2 kit - please book with me in advance)
Sat PM Dive - meet about 1.30pm
Sunday AM Dive - meet about 9.30am
The long range weather forecast is for palm trees to be swaying, hot hot sun and viz of around 40m.

The perfect opportunity to check out the location for the saltFree UK National Freediving Champs, meet the hosts, pitch yourself against the green and hand deliver your entry form!

Email me if you would like to come

saltFree - mean, green but not marine...

Sam

[samdive]

On da list so far... (not including Angels)

Saturday

Sam
Mark H
Deepest Dave (O2)
Hardest Dave
Rodin (02)
Shaun
Donna (O2)
Haydn (O2)

Sunday
Sam
Deepest Dave
Mark H
Rodin
Shaun
Donna
Haydn

If you haven't yet paid for the O2 course - please send your cheque to me for £45 asap. If anyone else would like to sign up for it, there are still places and we still need contributions towards the O2 kit.

see you then

Sam

[Mlungu]

Sam,

Can you pencil me in for saturday (or possibly sunday ). Got some new gear to try out!!!! he,he,he.....

Cheers

[samdive]

Plan for next weekend is:

Oxygen Provider Course

Starts bang on 9am Saturday - places still available. £45 towards the saltfree o2 kit and a place is yours

Dives

Meet at 1.30pm Saturday
Meet at 9.30 am Sunday


Before Wednesday lunchtime please can you let me know
a) what depth you would like to try to a max of 36m
b) how many attempts you would like at that depth
c) whether or not you can give someone a lift from SE London

and bring your entry forms with you!

Sam