Hello Extremepeta;
I'm a novice (well, intermediate...finally) Freediver, & have been a Victoria B.C. resident, for many, many years.
I've trained with Performance Freediving International (P.F.I.). I strongly advocate anyone, wanting to start Freediving, make up their mind to work with that organization--or one like it--@ some point, sooner, rather than later. Don't think you're going to "pick it up' from some other guy, virtually by osmosis--that never works. Neither does working from books, even such famous references as Umberto Pelizzari's classic: "Manual of Freediving: Underwater on A Single Breath". You need feedback, from someone who knows what they're doing, knows how to teach & how to coach others. Try it without & your risk ingraining habits--which may be bad, worse, or lethal.
P.F.I. typically teaches 2 Vancouver, classes each year:1 in Spring & 1 in Fall. You can view their site @:
Performance Freediving International
Kirk Krack is the CEO of P.F.I. A one-time protege of Kirk's, Martin Stepanek has started his own enterprise, in Southern Florida:
http://www.freedivinginstructors.com/index.php?stranka=nabidka&id=2
Should you speak Italian, you could jet off to Genoa, Italy & sign up @:
http://www.apnea-academy.com/content_eng/index.php
...Personally, I think--given the geographical issues--Performance Freediving is by far the best deal!
Now, the Vancouver Apneist Club--which I have been on the executive of--has a "mentor-ship program". That's predicated on teaching
some fundamentals, which may raise a Swimmer/ SCUBA-diver to the level of "uber-snorkeller", typical of entry-level
recreationall Freediving, in this region. In late Fall & Winter, that mentor-ship chiefly happens via the Club's Wednesday-night closed-H2O sessions in the U.B.C. pool. For us "Islanders", that means a sleep-over, someplace. Those sessions typically run from 19:30 to 22:00 hr. You could learn more about their doings @:
Vancouver Apneist Freediving Club | Exploring Vancouver's underwater environment on one breath
Specifically on Kirk's advice, I'm currently trying to log much more "H2O -time" & I'll be diving off & on, @ least every other weekend--or more. [As it happens, the tides are often most auspicious (@ least during daylight hours...) in our region, only every other weekend. :waterwork]
There are 2 other P.F.I. alumni, on Vancouver Island & I try to link up with @ least 1 of them, as often as I can. if you're serious about Freediving, on the Island, please e-mail me @
lescarmure@telus.net, with your contact information & I'll get back to you.
Meantime, don't try to do any "training" in a pool, static, or moving, above or below H2O, that involves breath-holding, even with another beginner as a "spotter". You need a trained person to provide safety & decide if you're nearing the "clear & present" stage of imminent B.O. Do otherwise--in any pool in entire Capital Regional District--& you risk inflaming an existing "range-war" that will benefit nobody & hurt many...even if you don't black-out. Remember: more people die, every year, trying to "go underwater on a breath" in pools, than die in all the World's Oceans, in a similar period.
I look forward to hearing from you, sometime.
--P.L.