Dave Gellert didn't get lost AND brought meat balls last night, so the TNIs ate like kings.  And we dove.  This was my third consecutive week diving without the Light of God, so I didn't see much besides the rope.  Others with good lights told me that viz was good, perhaps more than 10 feet.  Colin and I tried our best to stay together last night, and it almost worked.   We made it to the Quest, struggled a bit to stay in sight there, and then we headed to the mixer - at least I headed to the mixer.  Colin headed - up!  Too much underwear, too much air, too much buoyancy; I've done that drill.  I suspected that he popped, but wasn't going to try and find him in midwater, so I hung out and finally decided to head back.  Colin was bobbing around the Quest, so united again, we went to the school bus.  I wasn't in the mood to blow a bag, but Colin was, and he has the coolest head lamp.  This small light illuminates the work area right in front of him, which is perfect for shooting a lift bag at night.  That done, we headed home the wrong way, but stopped after about 50 feet - unlike Dave Gellert who gets lost and stays lost until he bounces off the wall of the quarry.  At dinner we pondered the meaning of life - and who has better tasting balls: Wild Bill, Vern, or Which Way Dave.  I must admit, Billy Balls are great and, from an alliterative standpoint, they just roll right off your tongue.  Of course, I have the freshest memory of Dave's balls since they're still bouncing around somewhere between my ileum and my cecum.   As for Vern, we have so much trouble getting his ass to Willow, I can barely remember what his balls taste like.  April 20th, the night of the Third Annual Diver Dan Dive, would be a good night for a Three-Way Ball Off.

From John Katerenchuck

Saturday and Sunday found a hearty group of Smokey’s OW Students completing their check-out dives in 39 degree Bainbridge water and 31 degree air temperatures.  Peter Smith, Daniel Smith and Chris Leiphart successfully overcame cold water, cold hand and frozen regulator to successfully earn their Open Water Certification….congratulations.  The surface intervals were made quite comfortable thanks to HOT chocolate, HOT corn soup and HOT dogs supplied by the catering team of Kristi and Jeff Raykos.  Everyone was appreciative of the WARM surrounding and HOT food they provided.  In fact it would have been difficult for anyone to have made it back into the cold water for the second dive of the day without their help in providing some warm relief.  The group was also joined by Joe Dormer on Sunday fresh from his Drysuit Specialty certification  to help provide DM support along with Kristi and Jeff’s AI support to make for a great pairing of each student diver with a certified assistant for an exceptional learning experience. 

From Mark Myers ...

Well, Sunday once again found me running Discover Scuba experiences at the pool at WorkOuts Inc. (For those of you who have been living under a rock, that's the former Golden Meadows Swim Center).  This week it was Heidi and Kyle who are thinking about lessons this month, and 4 kids 8 - 10 years old for bubblemakers.  I was once again ably assisted by my daughter Savannah - oh yeah, and Joe too.  He dropped by on the way back from BSC to help me get gear up to the pool deck, and thaw out a little bit in the 84 degree water.  Savannah and Emily Buckwalter are planning to be in the April Open Water class. It is so fun to see 10 year olds enjoying the sport so much.  

I also have a report to post from the Galapagos Islands, but I'm going to wait for Dave and Chris to cough up some pictures to go with it before I post it!!  Hint Hint!!!

Keep on diving and LIVE THE ADVENTURE!!!