Ssi scuba instructor cross over- is it a joke???

[shrek]

not all the work i do is volunter just the weekly pool training i have set this up for my own training as well as everyone elses. i'll only take people line diving who have done a course and know what they are doing
i run a course about once a month in a weekend so it's not a living just subsidising my habbit .as pointed out by others all this training and certification costs thousands of dollars i'm not going to add it all up as i'd only scare myself

 

[Pelizzari]

Hello everybody and sorry for my english.
I had no time to read all the messages belonging to this post, but I would like to answer to Trallallà (Linda) concerning her opinion on AA.
-It's true, in our procedure (AA) you can get instructor without having done a course ever. But are you sure that after a normal course (consider also the price for travel and stage!!) you automatically are ready for attending the instructor course: I have students that attended already ten of my clinics and they never could be instructor. A course could help (this is what I suggest to the students writing me) but I don't want to get it obligatory because it looks like if I want to force them to pay extra money for attending extra courses before the instructor one.
- Linda, in AA you don't get instructor simply because "you are so mad to push you down deeper then 30meters". In the last international course we had in Sharm, there were 40 students. 26 of them got instructor. All of them dove deeper then 30, statics more then 4' etc...Why 14 students (about 30%) didn't get instructor? Simply because we don't consider a freediver able to get AA instructor only because he can to go deeper then 30meters!!
-Last May we had 40 students and 47 persons in waiting list!! We could organize a course every 3 months!!! Actually we organize a course every two years because we don't care about the number..we care about the quality. And I couldn't guarantee the quality organizing courses too often. As a matter of fact, in the last instructor course we had 23 teachers (in water and the theory room), the average of 1 teacher for 2 studets. When students are in the water, I have maximum one instructor every 3 students. 4 instructors for the variabe machine, etc.. We have an expert in public speaking, yoga instructor, mental techniques instructor, orl doctor, dietician, phisiologist, etc.. The course lasts 6 days, but from 7am to 11 pm...any student have to demonstrate to be able do manage a group, rescue, public speaking, mistake correction, etc...Do you understand now the reason why 30% of the students didn't get instructor. Do you understand now why is not enough to go deeper then 30 meters to get AA instructor? Do you understand now why our next instructor course will be full again? And do you understand why many instructors of other agencies every time want to attend our instructor course?
-All this is for the Int. Instructor Course. In Italy we start working with the students who want to attend the italian instructor course 2 years before. This year more then 200 freedivers passed the selection: we took only 60. At the moment we are not ready (as an organization) to follow for Int Instructor course the same standards as the Italian instructor one. Maybe in the future..
-I don't say that AA instructor course is the best in the world. But I can say that in my instructor courses I (and my staff) do the best i can, using all my experience, my know how and all my energies.
-We are in a free market world. People can decide to go everywhere considering price, quality, serious organization, etc. If we have this success for sure there is a reason.
ciao a tutti
sincerely
Umberto

 

[azapa]

Well lets see if I can add something to the actual thread content without seeming to be over-defending myself

I was one of the 26 that Umberto mentions in the previous post.

Linda mentions the AA international instructor course requires no previous freediving certification. Well, this is true, and surprised me a little at first. But the idea of going back and doing an Aida 2, 3 and 4 star was just plain dumb for me. I have trained with world class freedivers and already was diving the Aida instructor levels. It would have been a waste of time and money, although I probably would have learned something new and enjoyed being in the water anyway. All AA instructor candidates are pre-screened via Umberto and the network of AA instructors World Wide, it would be very hard even to start with no good free diving reference to ones name. For example, many of the passing instructors had some freediving national record for the country they represent.

Secondly, the whole course is focused on instruction. The way we spoke in class, the way we handled our selves in the water, was all towards the final goal of instruction. At no point was the context solely self-improvement as a freediver, trying PB's etc. Of course, we all improved anyway, but in the context of becoming instructors.

Thirdly, as an AA instructor I am obliged to do more improvement courses every year and maintain my freediving levels or in 2 years my instructor status expires. This for me is key, as it shows the instructors course is just the start of a long term route of improvement and qualification.

Lastly, the 30m dive (we also did 40 on VWT) was the easiest part for 99% of participants, all had done more than that before the course, that was the minimum entry level. The hard parts were doing decent statics and dynamics under pressure (emulating the pressure an instructor may have with a group of students). For many (me too) the swimming tests were very hard, requiring, "perfect" crawl and breast stroke. Not easy under the high pressure context of being able to show that level to a group of potential students.

I would love to be an AIDA instructor too, maybe when I give up my day job .

Simon

 

[kelp princess]

Thirdly, as an AA instructor I am obliged to do more improvement courses every year and maintain my freediving levels or in 2 years my instructor status expires. This for me is key, as it shows the instructors course is just the start of a long term route of improvement and qualification.


Simon

Simon, if there is one thing that i know for sure it is simply that everyone on this thread and interested in freediving could learn something beneficial from you sir. regardless of what agency you may have trained with - you are the kind of teacher and in-water expert that everyone would be lucky to dive with.

cheers,

kp

 

[monkeyhatfork]

I'll second that, a solid waterman, and from his stories Umberto's course its certainly not an easy pass or something you could just show up get lucky and pull off

 

[trullalla]

pelo,
mine was not an attack against aa at all. if you have read my previous posts the whole point that i was making is that if you show up at an instructor course and you are not good enough you don't pass.
every agency got its standards, no matter how you screen people before they get in the course. once they are in they are evaluated for how good they are.

when i was in sharm with you a couple of years ago during one of your instructor courses there were a few candidates who shouldn't have been there because they were very very poor freedivers and we had spent the whole week to teach them how to use fins and how to dive to 25 meters wihtout dying. of course these people didn't pass.

now, unfortunately the problem i see with this is that if you have a big number of people like this in a course they take up precious time that should instead be used to teach them how to teach other freedivers.

so if we get people like this in our instructor courses we tell them to go home, learn how to dive and train before they show up again to finish their ic.

(and of course i do know that in the italian aa scenario things are completely different and a freediver can show up at the instructor course only after having passed a lot of pre evaluations and has an exstensive experience as an assistant to another aa instructor)

that is the point that i was trying to make with dean. people can show up to any of our (fdd) instructor courses and if they suck they go home without a certification, no matter if they are applying to an ssi course or to a aida course, and especially no matter how much they have paid to be there.

btw, somebody was so impressed about you registering on deeperblue just to answer my post that he wrote me an email calling me a god and saying he wants to kiss my feet...thanks for that

cheers,
linda

 

[spaghetti]

btw, somebody was so impressed about you registering on deeperblue just to answer my post that he wrote me an email calling me a god and saying he wants to kiss my feet...thanks for that

cheers,
linda

Yes it's absolutely frigging COOL to have Pelizzari on board at Deeperblue.
Benvenuto Pelo, tu ci onori!

Thanks Linda for making the miracle come true! But I, speaking for one, would have craved to kiss your feet anyway even before you made Umberto appear.

Now back on topic....
(anyone may start a "Paganelli foot fetish" thread of its own in the Beach Bar section of the forum, if the urge is felt to do so).

 

[Pelizzari]

...ok...now you kiss her feet...but after a 4 hours walking in the desert...in July!!!! Now you do it!!
Anyway, linda we are probably saying the same thing.
-You are right: I help students (not ready for the instructor course) during the Inst. course, rather send sending them back home because many of them did important economic efforts for coming there in Egypth. So, even if they know they will not get instructors, they start working and training to improve their level. Maybe, after two years they will be ready (if he wants to attend the next course, he will not pay again) . I can do this thanks to the high number of staff instructors I have.
-If a student discover the passion and kindness in your stages, even if he doesn't get instructor at the end of that course, they will anyway talk positively about the course..and this is the best advertising.
sincerely
Umberto

 

[deanspahic]

Hey Linda. I also don’t have that much time these days so I’ll keep this direct and to the point. Though this commentary strays from the focus of the thread I’m going to address your points as honestly as I can.
Just a note for all those who don’t know me, I worked with FDD for almost two years and the information I’m posting in relation to FDD is based on first hand knowledge. This is not an attack as I have no animosity towards theses people or their business. Rather it is a statement answering to Linda’s criticisms of AIDA, other AIDA instructors in Dahab, and AA; in order to clarify some points for people who don’t know all of us.

dean, you raise many subjects that I’d like to respond to, but I’m not having the time now. but, about what you have said about fdd not teaching aida IC at the moment, the reasons for this are 2:
you must have noticed that aida at the moment need to sort out organizational problems that i have no intention to make public in here, since i am an aida trainer and as such i have no intention to speak bad about an organization that i represent. until things are sorted, we are not going to produce more instructors because problems would become even bigger and responses to them even slower

First off, by making this statement you are talking bad about the organization that you “represent”. I had some concerns at one point myself, but all it takes is an email or a phone call to a few people to understand that AIDA is on the upswing and that AIDA instructors have nothing to be concern about, neither existing instructors nor new ones. The organization is solid and the only people that I have heard saying any different is you and your staff.

the other reason is what you have mentioned in a bit of a narrow minded description: fdd has grown during the last few years, we have a shop and a center, we pay tax, we have costs that need to be covered every month. the egyptian system at the moment is such that anybody without a business and a work permit is allowed to sit on the beach and teach low costs courses because of the complete lack of expenses that you freelance instructors have, which give you the chance to ditch the course prices to half if you want to.
obviously we cannot do that, and until the system start working and the rules about freelancing get enforced we are not going to contribute to the growth of the number of freelancers populating the lighthouse beach.

I don’t appreciate you bringing up the working situation here in Dahab as it is a little precarious at the moment, even for you, but that was your choice. Now your statement Linda, I find it a bit humours. “We Pay taxes, have overhead, ex.” Though it may be true at the moment, you might remember that it wasn’t that long ago- a Little over a year I think- that you were working out of a house in Dahab’s residential area, teaching on the beach without a work permit; and before that you guys were moving from dive center to dive center. Also there is the fact that you are listed on the CDWS black list at the moment - here's the web site for anyone interested (Black List dive companies) - and as I understand it, your staff still work without work permits. This is a list of facts about your center, so please don’t give me that holier than thou approach that you are so fond of and don’t criticise other good instructors that are trying their best to work within the existing system.
An additional note Linda, we “freelancer” are the people that used to work with you guys at FDD, but got tired of all the antics that go on there. I’m not going to make a list as I don’t feel it overly appropriate. We all work with dive centers that pay taxes, have overhead, etc. and are working as legally as the current system allows us to. None of us are “ditching courses prices”. We offer high quality courses and charge a proper rate for them. So your “narrow minded” description of us” freelancers” is wholly inaccurate.

as for the low standards you are so concerned about, I could write a book about the appalling low standards of other instructor trainers and instructor courses.

Please write it, and I encourage you to include in there the information about the non-existent prerequisites and low performance requirements that have been set for the SSI scuba instructor crossover program. It would be nice if you would post them here so that everyone can see the prerequisites and performance requirements and decide for themselves if they are appropriate, as I suggested before.

as for AA don't forget that you can become aa instructor without having done a freediving course ever. so anybody who is mad enough to push themselves down to 30 and make it back alive is guaranteed to become an instructor is 6 days. does that make you feel more confident about high standards, considering that these people have no teaching skills whatsoever, they are 30 to 60 of them in a course and are not evaluated in their in water/pool/ classroom teaching skills?

Linda, Umberto registered here because you basically spit in his face with this comment and he needed to answer back. That doesn’t make you a hero, it makes you unprofessional. He’s been doing this a lot longer than you and his program is well established unlike the SSI program; give the man his due respect.

Now Linda you can say what you want, but every word that I posted is true and to the point based on the information available and the knowledge that I have of you and your shop. People have an image of you guys that isn’t real, but trust me it’s changing. You might want to think about that.

Now back to the point of the thread:

The whole purpose of this tread was to bring into question an aspect of the SSI program - the SCUBA instructor crossover - and to make people think. I have stated every point at least two times, but I guess people like you don’t pay any mind to common sense ideas, which is sad. What I do know is that there are people that have taken the information here into consideration and if that makes them think twice before taking a beginner courses with some half qualified SSI “Scuba/ freediving” instructor then mission accomplished. I care about the quality of training not the dollars involved.


I hope this brings some clarity for you regarding the working situation for the other AIDA instructors here in Dahab Linda; and
helps you understand the purpose of this thread.
Enjoy your time in South Africa,

Dean

 

[Jmakc]

Hello everybody,

It's been very interesting reading this thread and seeing it turn into a heated debate. Points of view from all different perspectives (ethical, financial, quality etc) are all being aired. However, we seem to be drifting away from the original topic, which was:

• Can a crossover from scuba instructor to freedive instructor in 5 days be justified?

In my opinion, for the average person, the answer has to be: NO. As Dean stated with many arguments, which I don't want to repeat (the fact that freediving and scuba diving have nothing in common, lack of experience etc etc etc). The fact that the passing rate on the SSI instructor courses has been low so far, completely supports this statement.
Of course there will be some exceptions, as there are great freedivers out there, but let's not focus on that. I think if we (re)formulate the question more precisely, our debate is about the following:

• Can the standards within this SSI crossover program be justified?

Again, in my personal opinion, keeping politics out of it and looking at this objectively, the answer has to be: NO.
I am 100% confident that the SSI freedive instructor trainers are keeping to the existing standards, but this is not the issue. The problem lies in the standards, which seem to be very low. Only 20m !!!!! for example, this already gives an indication. (Why hasn't anybody replied to Kars's request to be open about the rest of the SSI standards?!!! ). Concerns about the quality of instructors “produced” by this cross over program seem to be more than justified to me.

cheers
J

 

[Kars]

It appears to me that if the SSI instructor standards are raised to at least level with the AIDA 3* level than a cross over could be done. The higher level standards should include style and ability of technique, as well a check on the teaching skills.

In this situation a SSI scuba instructor needs to train the listed freediving specific abilities (and or follow an extra FD course) before his crossover course. Because it's not possible to learn the skills in 5 days.

I completely agree that as an freedive instructor you should display an expert level of freediving technique as well as good teaching skills.

In regard to student safety I also highly recommend the above. I think the instructor must be able to swim along with every student, the whole way, observe, correct and provide safety, have a good dive time margin, with a short or NO preparation at the surface. You could not do this if you're technique is sloppy and you're not confident and proficient below 20m.

And indeed I would love to see the rest of the SSI cross over norms, and the standards for the other levels too.
Maybe the 20m is just a standard part? Perhaps the full standard reads: the instructor must be able to do 5 dives of at least 1'30" to 20m in 10 minutes. With that the 20m would be much more justified in my view.


20m in the Netherlands is also much more challenging than in clear blue waters off cause, to name another variable.

 

[x_yeti]

Hi Jmakc

Thanks for pulling this thread back to something that resembles a debate

Your first question for SSI is:
Can a crossover from scuba instructor to freedive instructor in 5 days be justified?

Let's then ask AIDA (or anyone else delivering similar IC courses):
Can a not an instructor of any kind to freedive instructor course in 7 days be justified?

I think people are getting hung up words 'scuba crossover'. Let's replace them with 'SSI employee' instead.

Can a crossover from SSI employee to freedive instructor in 5 days be justified?

The answer is yes. The course is merely 2 days shorter than an AIDA IC. The reason being that the SSI employee already knows 1) how to teach and 2) how the organisation works so this does not need to be relearned. The candidates who do the SSI IC course need to be good freedivers already. The SSI IC is not a 'learn how to freedive' course, it is a 'learn how to teach freediving' course. This is what I think Linda was trying to explain with the AA example. If I am a good enough freediver to get into Umberto's course, without having done any other AA courses, and I then pass the course because I am a good freediver and a good instructor, should they then rename it the "Marketing manager to freedive instructor crossover course?" Of course not!

This brings us to your 2nd question:
Can the standards within this SSI crossover program be justified?

I was diving 1 buoy away from the FDD crew doing an SSI employee crossover course. I watched Denis, Russia's first SSI instructor, do 5x 15m dives with 1 min breaks in between, doing a hang at 15m for 1 minute and then rescuing someone. I was roped in to act as a blackout victim at 20m which he pulled me up from, did the same rescue proceadure as AIDA and then towed me 50m to land. If a freediver can pull my gangly 100kg body up from 20m, then I'm sure they can dive to 30m. So in my opinion, yes they can!

P.S. Welcome Umberto!!!

 

[trullalla]

Since some people are speaking about the low standards and no requirements of the SSI crossover without even knowing the standards, here’s the doc about how the candidates are being assessed.

NOTE that these are the standards for becoming LEVEL 1 instructor (teach people to freedive to 10 meters). In order to upgrade to LEVEL 2 instructor you have to do another update course, plus have certified a number of level 1 students. Same thing to become LEVEL 3 instructor.
(the in-water requirements for level 2 instructor are exactly the same as for AIDA, plus a DYN of 100, so nobody can say that the standards are lower)

here the doc content:

HOW INSTRUCTOR APPLICANTS WILL BE ASSESSED DURING THEIR SSI FREEDIVING INSTRUCTOR TRAINING COURSE.

Applicants for the Freediving Instructor rating should be physically fit and Flexible individuals that can display outstanding watermanship.

Scuba Diving Instructor - Divecon / Freediving Level 1 Update.

The SSI Level 1 Freediving Instructor rating will require the following

Written Exams

SSI Level 1 Freediver Instructor Applicants
The Instructor applicant must achieve a 90% pass rate in the Level 1 STUDENT Freediver Final Exam
• If the applicant achieves a mark below 90% they may retake the exam the following day.
• If the Instructor applicant achieves a mark below 90% on the second attempt they will fail the entire course and can re-apply for another IE within 12 months.

NOTE: It is the responsibility of the Instructor applicant to fully familiarise themselves with the SSI level 1 Freediver course material.

SSI FREEDIVING Level 1 Instructor Final Exam
The applicants must achieve an 90% pass rate in the Level 1 INSTRUCTOR Final Exam
• If the Instructor applicant fails to achieve 90% they may take the exam the following day.
• If the Instructor applicant fails to achieve 90% twice they will fail the entire IE, and may re-apply for the next Freediving IE.

NOTE: The Applicant will have to pass 2 x Academic Presentations and 2 x In-water presentations on Freediving Specific Topics.

In Water Performance Requirements (The In-water performance skills will be
developed during the 5 day FITC)
The Instructor applicant must achieve a 100% In Water pass rate.
All In Water performance requirements are PASS/FAIL tasks. If a candidate fails one point then he/she may redo the performance the following day. If the Instructor applicant fails the performance the second time, he/she is not given a third chance during the same FITC. He/she will then get a completion form and can redo the failed performance within 12 months with another or the same Freediving Instructor Trainer. If the Freediving Instructor applicant fails more than two (2) In Water performances twice, the candidate will fail the entire IE and can re-apply for another IE within12months.

All the In Water Performance Requirements where the Instructor applicant has to use fins must be performed with Stereo fins (Bi-Fins) e.g. no mono fins.

Performance requirements (SSI Freediving IE)
• Perform a swim of 800m using mask, snorkel and fins within 15min
• Perform a swim of 400m (No Fins - buoyancy device or snorkel) within 10min (any stroke)
• Freedive to minimum 20m depth competently / on demand.
• Ascend from 15m using arms only
• Ascend from 15m with no mask
• Freedive 20m with a minimum dive time of 1min.
• Freedive to 15m and hang for an unknown time (30sec-1 min, which is determined by the FIT) then rescue another Freediver from simulated blackout (BO) from that depth.
• Endurance examination - max 1min preparation, 5 dives to 15m with 1min surface interval between Freedives .
• Shallow Water Blackout (SWB) rescue from 15m and demonstrate a 50m tow.
• Perform pool disciplines Dynamic (DYN) - minimum 50m.
• Perform pool disciplines DYN w/no fins (Arms only) - minimum 25m.
• Perform a Static breath-hold minimum of 2:30mins.
• Demonstrate Blackout (BO)/Loss of Motor Control (LMC) rescue skills during pool sessions.
• Demonstrate proper rope/buoy rigging for an Open water Freediving session.

If the Instructor applicant has an equalisation problem then they may retake the in water performance requirements at a determined date in the presence of an SSI Freediving IT within 12 months.

Successful OWI / DCS or higher who pass the SSI Freediving IE will be Eligible to start
teaching the SSI Level 1 Freediver course.

Subsequent IE updates will have to be taken to achieve instructor status to be able to teach the Level 2 and Level 3 Freediver courses and Specialties.

As a prerequisite prior to applying for Level 2 & Level 3 Freediving Instructor course update is a requirement to teach and certify a minimum of 25 Level 1 SSI Freediver students.

Pre-requisites for SSI Freediving IE applicants.
* Applicants must have an Instructor rating or Dive-con rating to apply for The IE.
* All Instructor applicants must also have their own total “Freediving” system of Instructor quality.

Compulsory equipment
• Long bladed fins (Freediving Fins).
• 2 piece Freediving wetsuit (preferably open cell and appropriate thickness for conditions)
• Low volume Freediving mask & a suitable snorkel.
• Freediving computer (depth / Dive time / Surface time) eg: (Suunto D4)
• Rubber Freediving weight belt (Weight harness systems will not be allowed)

Applicants cannot participate in the SSI FITC using Scuba Diving fins / Scuba diving Wetsuits.


hope it is more clear now.

cheers,
linda

 

[trullalla]

Dean: haha, of course yours is not a personal attack, why would I think otherwise?
Funny how you are unable to pick up the phone and say these things to me since we are living 50m away from each other, and you rather spit poison on this forum. That is a very interesting form of advertisement.

But that’s ok, no hard feelings, I guess you are being bitter because your office had been washed away. Hope the Nirvana restaurant fixed it quickly.

However, I’m gonna ignore everything else (despite most of it being wrong or bent information, but I’m sure people here don’t really care about our personal disagreements) but your statement about the CDWS black list:

We have been explained by the CDWS that as absurd as it is, all the rest of you have been taken out of the blacklist because you legally don’t exist as businesses, since you don’t have a registered company, no work permit and no base where you operate.
Unfortunately we have all of this, and the Egyptian government cannot pretend we are not there, while they can pretend you aren’t, because in their eye you don’t exist. So basically we are being punished for being the only ones who are trying to get legal. Which I find quite amusing in a way.
Furthermore, until december 2009, “Freediving” didn’t exist as a commercial activity in Egypt. We moved in the 3 shops in light house at the beginning of 2009 where we have the shop (licensed) and the center (when there were no rules about freediving)
So it wouldn’t have been possible to register and apply for a license as a “Freediving center”. When they woke up and decided that freediving should be regulated as a business, they decided Freediving falls under scuba and that you need to have a scuba diving license (scuba diving licenses have been completely stopped in dahab since 2008 because there are too many dive centers, which made it impossible for us to fulfill the required standards).
Then, less than a month ago they finally realized how stupid this was, and they changed it. So now Freediving is categorized as a water sport and doesn’t need a scuba license, which is very cool, but according to them a watersport center needs to be located either on the beach or inside the premises of a hotel. Of course we aren’t in any of these situations, and we are now trying to figure out how to deal with that.
Boring stuff, I know, but I hope it is more clear now.

p.s. are you working with a dive center since when exactly? I completely missed it; is this since Nirvana restaurant was washed away?

 

[deanspahic]

Thanks for posting the requirements Linda. It simply state what Ive been trying to say. You are producing freediving instructors at a lower standard.

As for the rest, it comes back to show your level of professionalism. I provided a list of facts - CDWS black list, staff without work permits,etc ... All facts by the way - and all you are able to do is spout back ungrounded comments. The post was not an attack as I said. I really have no issues with you personally. You might have noticed that it took a week for me to respond to your post. The reason is simply that I wanted to take the time to consider what to post, if anything. The problem is that with your previous post and criticism of every other AIDA instructor here in town - there are 8 of us by the way - you left no option for me. I'm not going to let you talk bad about other instructors here in Dahab and present yourself as a saint, because you certainly are not. The reason it's on the forum is because you brought it up here. For every action there is a reaction Linda and its time you learned that. You know that I was a military man and that I work on principle. You crossed a line by bad talking AIDA,the other instructors here in Dahab and AA. You might think that's funny "Ha Ha", but we don't.

 

[fcallagy]

Guys this thread is about ssi scubacrossover and is straying off topic. Please keep the comments relevant to the subject. Its been an interesting and informative discussion up to now.

 

[OzMike]

Hi All

My First post on DB

So to keep my post simple and on Topic see below.

1. There is No SSI Scuba Crossover course! Its called a FITC (Freediving Instructor Training Course).

2. No it is not a joke!

3. Dean you could learn to embrace the 2 main philosophys of Freediving, "Relaxation" & "Fun", simply by reading the first 5 pages of the SSI Level 1 Freediving student manual.

Anyone who is interested that would like further information on future FITC dates and venues or any information on the subject, please feel free to email me and ask.

mike.wells@divessi.com

Thanks

Mike

 

[x_yeti]

WOW!! Umberto Pelizzari and Mike Wells registered on DB because of this thread.

I think Papa Smurf needs to send Dean a big cheque!

Edit: Actually after giving it a bit more thought it should go to Linda instead because she enjoys making money from freediving and doesn't do it as a charity.

 

[trullalla]

john, nedless to say i agree with you.

dean, thanks for teaching me this action/reaction thing. i never figured it out before.
please, quote me on the bad things i have said about the other dahab instructors, because i have no recollection of doing such a thing.

mike! finally! only once you join deepeblue you can call yourself a real freediver! welcome!

 

[kelp princess]

mike! finally! only once you join deepeblue you can call yourself a real freediver! welcome!

Now that is a statement we can all agree on rofl

Welcome to DB Mike - nice to have you here.

cheers,

kp