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Rental
Gear Experience
Ed France
Brockton,Mass.
I do most of my diving in the Plymouth Massachuttes area and
have a distance to commute to get there. All my dives have been
with rental gear. Prior to my last dive was in August 1998 and
at that time of the year with all the students going out for
there certifacation dives it is some times hard to find the
gear you need at a spur of the moment. One weekend my brother
and I along with a free diver buddy of ours went out for an
enjoyable time. Last August at the begining of the month we
were suiting up and I had put my weights in my brothers bc not
realizing it and when I got to the water. I thought some how
the the weights were lost and I had to use rocks as a substitute,
needless to say the dive was uncomfortable.
The following dive mid August the three of us went back to our
spot and this time my bc was a large when I take a medium. I
am used to the weight intergreated pockets and this bc had none,
I was for my first time in for a real shock now having to experiance
having weights around my waist and having a large bc, it was
like a tug of war going to the bottom. To top it off my free
diving buddy knowing of the weight problem I had just the week
before came down from above me and thinking I was still having
a problem with my weight started pushing down on me. Already
in a slight I realy felt like freaking out and not to mention
this was my first time in the ocean with cut bait to feed the
marine life (knowing there were blue fish out there (what we
here concider a saltwater purina).
I then surfaced and went to shore where I tried to readjust
my bc and try getting a enjoyable time out of this anyway. Well
I went back under because I knew that if I didn't my diving
enjoyment might end .
I came out of the water with 1500 lbs.left in my tank. We retanked
for our repetive dive and with the same problems again but with
only 1000 lbs.left in my tank this time. This year I went out
and bought new gear and plan to have a good year of diving.
If you have to rent your gear you may run into some unpleasant
experiences but just stay calm and keep a clear head. Better
yet, get your own gear so you don't have to keep readjusting.
I'v already hit the ocean once in late January with my new gear
and have decided to wait a couple more months cause it's still
a little to cold. The most important thing to me was that I
got back on that horse and rode again.
Keep it together down there (buddys)
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