Hej from Copenhagen

[Evita]

Hello everyone,

I have been surfing the threads of this forum for a while now, so I think it is time to come out and greet you all properly :wave

I live near Copenhagen and I belong to 2 freediving teams, mostly for fun… at least until now, when I begin to take my training more seriously and am trying to take an all-round approach to it (eating well, sleeping well, training well, and staying focused and happy )

My experience is mainly in pool training, which I have been doing since September 2004 (mostly dynamic apnea and interval swimming, I am only beginning with the statics). I have yet to do my first vertical freedive, although I have been scubadiving for years, and I am really looking forward to it! The plan is to get my monofin below a couple of meters of water in Kreidesee at the Hemmoor Apnoe Happening in Germany in the beginning of July. Or possibly before?

So, right now I am gearing up – just about ready to order my first wetsuit (tailormade from eliossub). My friends tell me that I tend to get "tunnel vision" and shut everything else out when I get interested in something. Well, at the end of this tunnel are lots and lots of clear blue water, mmmmmmmm

I have the bifins and the monofin
Even the front-snorkel, but :yack I will never get used to it
My mask is the size of a bathtub, but that makes me feel safe (because of the extra air supply in its big compartments, perhaps? :t )
My techniques for monofinning and for no-fin dynamics are not the worst but they are not the best either… clearly something to work on and I am happy to do so.
Similarly, I know that my breathing could take me a lot further than it does today, so I am experimenting and trying out some of the suggestions I have read here on Deeperblue.

I am really in awe of all advice and encouragements that can be found in this forum! Imagine all the time and thinking that have gone into these posts (well okay, maybe not all of them… :duh ) Such a wealth of information and experience, and I just love the little tell-tale signs of new friendships being formed :inlove . Thanks to everyone for sharing and making this forum what it is – being a newbie I have a lot of questions, of course, but hopefully I can contribute more with my own things when I have tested my waters a little more.

See you around here,
Evita

 

[naiad]

Hi Evita, welcome aboard!

I have only done pool training so far, since August 2003.

I have got a tailormade wetsuit from Eliossub. It is very good, the best I have tried.

There's so much to learn from Deeperblue. [ame="http://forums.deeperblue.net/showthread.php?t=64959"]This[/ame] thread has answers to lots of beginner's questions.

Lucia

 

[Evita]

Thanks, Lucia!

I already read some of your posts - you span a lot of subjects. Such a good example for the rest of us :king

Are you planning on going outside this summer or do you prefer to stay in the pool?

Evita

 

[SanderP]

Welcome to DB, [ame="http://forums.deeperblue.net/member.php?u=6733"]View Profile: Evita@@AMEPARAM@@View Profile: Evita</title>@@AMEPARAM@@Evita[/ame]!

In my opinion - open water all the way! Pool is only good for winter.

 

[Evita]

Thank you!

I will let you know what I think about that in a few months time

 

[naiad]

I already read some of your posts - you span a lot of subjects. Such a good example for the rest of us :king

Are you planning on going outside this summer or do you prefer to stay in the pool?

Thanks.

I am planning on going outside this summer. I'll post what happens on my first diving trips...

Lucia

 

[Apnea_Addict]

Hi Evita,

are you still planning to come to Hemmoor ?

I would recommend a good wetsuit for that, as the water temperature tends to drop as you go down - even in July.

Would be great to meet you there !

best wishes
Holger

 

[Evita]

Yes I am going to Hemmoor, and I am really looking forward to it!!!!

That is actually what I am getting the wetsuit for, thanks for replying on [ame="http://forums.deeperblue.net/showthread.php?p=595176"]the other thread[/ame] also.

The one I was thinking of getting from Elios was a 5mm with nylon outer coating and the "black" inner coating (can't remember the right name).

Of course now I can't get an Elios suit, but I will try to get a Marea or Diveskin with similar specifications, if possible.

What do you think about a suit like that for Hemmoor? Is 5mm enough?

Socks and gloves... 3mm or 5mm? Any recommendations?

I love my monofin (literally, love) and I have been looking forward to using it in Hemmoor. Unfortunately I won't be able to fit in my monofin with socks on, (bought it for pool training) so I don't know which is better - cold feet in monofin or socks in bifins... it's a dilemma. Will my feet fall off, if I don't wear socks?

I would love to get some advice about Hemmoor conditions, thanks Holger! And see you there!

 

[Apnea_Addict]

Hi Evita,

my new Elios will be a 7mm, but in the summer I think 5 mm is enough. I already got a 5 mm suit and I used it all last summer and the one before and usually I was warm enough even though it wasn´t a real freediving suit since it was also nylon coated inside. But the feeling of warmth is highly individual. The Elios suit I am getting is also going to have nylon coating outside and black coating inside, hopefully ready by then !

It would be interesting to hear how good the suits from diveskin are - I was thinking of getting one for the winter training in 3 mm.

Socks - well I can only fit into my fins with 3 mm socks. But the Omer socks I got were warm enough. I cheated a little by pouring warm water into them before entering the lake. That worked quite well. Gloves - normal gloves will be enough I think. I got 5 mm/5-fingered gloves for summer, and 3-fingered gloves for diving right now.

I suspect that you won´t last all too long without socks. This year the lake seems to take longer to heat up since we had such a long winter. I would defintely bring the socks and bifins. But also the monofin for a shorter dip.

Maybe we can dip together ? ;-) Would love to take you on a tour of the lake.

best wishes
Holger

 

[Evita]

Thank you very much! I will get 5mm socks and gloves, then. I am waiting to hear back from Marea, and if they don't respond soon, I will order from Diveskin.

Can't wait to check out the lake and all the activities at the happening!

Good luck with your new suit, hopefully we'll be able to compare them on the tour

 

[wolleneugebauer]

no, no! forget the 7mm!!! this is not a wetsuit, this is an armour. 7mm you need only in the winter (for icediving).
5mm (opencell inside!) is definitely enough (Is the water-temperature on the surface more than 20°c I am using a 3mm suit).
important are good semidry socks and gloves (waterproof is more important then the thickness. they must have a water-barrier, - rubber to rubber!).
greetings wolle


http://www.freedivers.info

 

[Evita]

Hmmm, is opencell inside really so important? I have a ordered a 5mm from Marea with a thermo inner lining, mostly because it should be easier to put on.

Where do you get semidry socks and gloves? I have bought 5mm Cressi gloves (ultra stretch) and asked Marea to make 5mm socks for the wetsuit.

Will this not be enough for Hemmoor?

 

[Apnea_Addict]

Minimum water exchange is definitely a good idea - you´ll get semidry gloves from the normal scuba product range. Omer has got semidry socks. I use these now and they keep your feet a little warmer.

Well, your suit is made to measure - so little water should enter. It would be even better, if the inner surface would be smooth. If that is not the case, don´t worry to much about it.

Once you get to Hemmoor, the water should have warmed up a bit more. Yesterday we had 13 degrees Celcius on the surface. In my normal scuba semi-dry I was warm enough and so was my buddy. He was just complaining about cold feet after an hour.

I am still waiting for that Elios suit to arrive

Let´s hope for warmer weather !