Air Bubbles
The Newsletter of the North Shore Frogmen’s Club
Volume 53, Number 10
October 2011
President’s Message - October 2011
Can you believe the month of September is nearly over? This past weekend featured the club picnic with MetroWest Dive Club, the Bay State Council Dive Club, and several others. Attendance was good, and the day turned out nice and sunny. Glad the rain that was predicted held off. Meg, Lauren, and Vinnie were very helpful in making the picnic a great success. Bill Werner was the hero for the day; Bill bought all of the food and drink, brought tables, and a grill. Not only did he set up, but he manned the grill all day for our members and other divers who paid to enjoy our menu.
We sold raffle tickets on 3 well priced items that we received from Bobby Boyle, and also had a bottle of cheer raffle. This combined with the monies paid by hungry non-members should go far to help cover the picnic's expenses. I was thrilled to find that I won the new dive fins, since on one of my recent dives I ended up with a wrecked split fin.
I want to remind club members of Undersea Divers year end sale Oct 1st, and 2nd. This is a great time to pick up year-end close out specials, buy great condition used gear, and other items you may need to restock.
It is time for members to consider running for office. Our Club election of officers will be held in November. It’s great to see the active new members shaping our Club’s future. The President's Banquet will be held on Saturday December 10, 2011 at our PCYC. Hoping we can get some of our past dual members to join us this year. Members have been enjoying various different dives all summer. I have had a great time lately diving regularly on Jim Durso's boat. Jim has so much experience, and truly knows the area and what to expect at each dive location.
For the Diver of the Month I choose Bill Werner for all of the work he did for us at the picnic. For Member of the Month I choose John Ferrier who for years has greeted people for our Sunday club dives while carrying our club banner to attract new members.
John P. Sears
Coming Club Events
Oct 13: “Open video night”
Bill Buckley presentation on How to Get the Perfect Shot (previously scheduled for 10/6) POSTPONED due to
Halloween parade in Salem. New date TBD.
Jerry Shine presentation (previously scheduled for 10/206) POSTPONED due to family illness. New date TBD.
Susan Copelas presentation about her trip to Socorro Island. Date TBD.
Pipefish, Pebble Beach, Sept 2010
In this Issue:
President’s Message – pg. 1
Meeting Summaries – pg. 2-5
Upcoming Events – pg. 6-7
Bad Day Diving, John Sears – p. 8
Redneck Party, Dodie Carvalho – p. 9
Dive Patrol – pg. 10
Boston Scuba show – pg. 10
Undersea Divers – pg. 11
Visit our website at www.northshorefrogmen.com | 1 |
The North Shore Frogmen’s Club
PO Box 3604
Peabody, MA 01961
2011 OFFICERS
President: John Sears Tel: 978-750-4745
Email: john.sears@bostik-us.com
Vice President: Lauren Byrne Email: laurenb5635@hotmail.com
Treasurer: Vinny Egizi Tel: (858) 342-3365
Email: vinnymass@yahoo.com
Secretary: Meg Tennissen Tel: (781) 724-0071
Email: macduff18@yahoo.com
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Membership: Dan Hering membership@northshorefrogmen.com
Newsletter: Mary Howard
Tel: (781) 944-1292
Email: m.m.howard@comcast.net
Webmaster: Markus Diersbock
*Deadline for submissions* to the November 2011 issue
of Air Bubbles is
Sunday, October 23
Please have all articles and information to the
Air Bubbles editor by October 23, 2011.
Air Bubbles – October 2011
Meeting Summaries
11-Aug-2011
Meeting minutes not available at presstime
25-Aug -2011
Meeting minutes not available at presstime
Abbreviated meeting for Presenta- tion by Norman “Dugie” Russell
01-Sep-2011
Meeting called to order: 8:05 PM Attendance: 4 Officers, 17 Members Secretary: Minutes not read Treasurer: we have money
Correspondence –
-Pat and Annette said they’re OK after hurricane Irene, but they had to abandon their van because of high water.
-Mary got an announcement through BSC that the Seeker of Shadow Divers fame is for sale. If you are interested, it’s in Rhode Island
Committees: (see calendar for more info)
-Program:
-9/25: Club picnic & BSC treasure hunt.
-10/6: Bill Buckley presentation (now postponed!)
-Vinny has been in contact with Jerry Shine who is willing to do a presentation
-Membership: Dan Hering – one hit last week may be interested in joining. Vinny’s neighbor came last week. Vinny’s son did discover scuba this week talked with some people there.
Old Business:
-Vinny has been in touch with the caterer for the banquet; currently looking at ~ $25-$30ish/person. Still needs to discuss the appetizers.
New Business:
-Last weekend John Sears went to
Paul Sauvageau’s house with Paul’s brother Marc to inventory the dive gear. Dry suit is in excellent condition, size XL; 2 pairs force fins; 4 BCDs; one Sea Life camera. They
shared the list with Bobby for his used equipment sale.
-Paul also had some Club paraphernalia.
Dive Talk:
-Dan at Back Beach. Undersea Divers had advertised a night dive Friday with Jerry Shine. Lauren, Laura and Amy were there. Good dive. Saw a big squid, a big eel, some pipefish, and some lobsters out walking. Amy got a picture of a tiny tropical fish.
-Vinny, Adam, Tony and Lauren at Back Beach on Monday post Irene dive, ~ 50F; vis was 3 inches to 30 feet, varying in bands. Lying on back at 20 ft could see flag on the surface, then vis would go back to almost nothing. 2 bugs, flounder, sea raven and a big anchor that looked old, but had modern rope and piece of rubber strapping on it; 20’ away, thick chain, really low and shallow. - They were approached by the harbormaster who told them they need to have 4” numbers on tank and flag. They’re out there looking, also watching for people switching bags at the edge of the water.
-John S, Jim D and Jim’s son at Tinker’s ledge. They dove to 72ft. Jim had 120 steel tank; John had an 80. Vis 15-20’; at 74ft, it was 48F. First two bugs for John for the year. Jim and his son had a 45min dive.
General Discussion:
-Maine: a 1647 ordinance states that you can traverse the intertidal lands (between high and low tides) for fishing, navigation or hunting even if on private property. Maine Supreme Court upheld ordinance 6-0, and it includes diving.
-Mike has hats and pins w/ Club logo for sale tonight.
-Mike’s Moments:
-Japanese tsunami is breaking off chunks of ice from Antarctica, largest about the size of Manhattan
-Two guys flew the pirate flag and broke into a boat in Gloucester
-June 1975 lobsterman in Salem pulling pots found stuff form the ship Margaret – sunk in1797 near
Visit our website at www.northshorefrogmen.com | 2 |
Goose Island; he has been in lawsuit w/ person who supposedly helped him.
-Silicon Valley millionaire Pay Pal founder, gave money to build floating countries in international waters
-Mike Murray, off Emerson Point, Rockport, was shocked when he fell on top of a torpedo ray – he’s OK now.
-18 lb lobster found off Canada – donated to NY Aquarium in Coney Island
-Microbes can transmit from humans to coral – one is effective in killing coral in the FL keys
-Blue shark spotted in Annisquam River
Raffles: Dollars Box: John Marren Mystery Prize: John Marren Bug Bag: John Marren
08-Sep -2011
Meeting called to order: 8:07 PM Attendance: 3 Officers, 13 Members
Guests: 1 – Michael Metlock from Lexington, member of PCYC wants to dive with us
Secretary: Minutes read and accepted as amended.
Treasurer: we have money. We now can do online banking, and can take credit cards for payments. There is a fee of a few percent. Dues if by PayPal or credit card will be $45; dues paid by cash or check will be $42. We’re getting into the late 20th century now that we’re a decade into the 21st!
Correspondence – Email from former member Barbara Jones now in FLA; she says hello to everyone. Someone in the Club told her if she wanted to see a shark to bring a marshmallow, the next week she showed up with a bag with marshmallows.
Committees:
Program: (see calendar for more info)
-9/25-Club picnic and BSC Treasure Hunt at Stage Fort Park. The picnic is to be held in a general area, no specific location assigned, first come, first served.
Air Bubbles – October 2011
Of note: we have a really good projector and good speakers. You cannot hook up sound to the PlayStation. We may want to think about raffling off the PlayStation and get something better for sound.
-Membership: Mike Metlock who is visiting may join.
-Air Bubbles: The September issue is out! Lot of cool things that aren’t
Froggie events are in there. Read your Air Bubbles!
Announcement: Fred Calhoun wants to run some ads in AirBubbles. Fred will have boat in water for next 6 or 7 weeks. Raffle off one boat dive each week.
Old Business: Picnic – looking for volunteers. Ray will bring his grill. John can work on raffle prizes. We should check with MetroWest about if they’re bringing a grill.
Dive Talk:
-John F in Eastport after Irene. Viz was pretty bad; he lost Amy on a dive, could hear her, but not see her. Eastport is already not known for its viz. There are now 4 wolfish; a juvenile, Gene and his mate, and one named Pat that swims out and waits for you. Eastport is pretty sheltered. Amy got some good bottles. They made an outdoor theatre on the side of the barn and watched “The Deep.”
-John F, Jeff, Meg & Bill went to Lanes Cove; strong current, hardly any bugs, though John got 2. Saw Dan T and Genci who were there kayaking.
-Claus missed hurricane, was in Western Canada; he met his brother and family in Calgary where it was very dry and sunny. Started diving in the lakes, clear but no life. Last two weeks were on Vancouver Island; the water is like here but 5x as much stuff, with small starfish to ones that are 2 feet across with 26 arms. Great Pacific Octopus, wolf eels at 70’. They look mean but don’t hurt anything. Last dive at Victoria Ogden Point breakwater made with big chunks of granite. Claus did ~ 12 dives and highly recommends this
diving, though it was a little tough to the organize tanks. In some areas there’s a 30 knot current. Even if you don’t dive, Vancouver Island is a great vacation. 3 weeks total 4000km (2800mi).
-Dan & Lauren went out with Fred Calhoun last Sunday, Gap Cove, lots of bugs, tons of fish at 20’; then to
Folly Cove, not much there.
-Dan went free diving off Cocktail Cove of b-i-l’s boat; got lobster at 15’, and found an unopened beer covered in barnacles. They later drank it, it was fine.
-Vinny, Tony & Lauren saw 1” flounder at Back Beach.
-John S dove off Halibut Point on Monday w/ Jim D; 1-3’ seas. When he went overboard, his bc shoulder strap broke; got 2 bugs anyway. 50’ dive, Viz 15’, minimal growth on rocks, no heavy kelp. 2nd dive off Folly, tied his bc together, got a couple more bugs.
-Tony, training, first two open water dives with a student; she did well. She was blown away seeing a skate.
General Discussion:
-Claus is looking for 2 120s; has 100s to trade.
-Dodie picked up a Jade plant of Paul’s to give to Pat and Annette. During the hurricane floods they went somewhere where they had leave the van because of high water.
Still haven’t been able to get it.
Bridge on rt 5 was closed over the Williams River. Bellows Falls Dam was open fully. Water has finally settled down. Westminster Bridge was closed for a while.
-Mike’s Moments:
-2 students 10 yrs ago at U Maine in Orono bred tropical fish in closet of their dorm room; they were selling clown fish at $100/ea. Got a grant at Taunton Bay, only place in NE breeding and selling tropicals. Started selling in 2003, when Finding Nemo came out. Most tropicals for sale have either been captured with poison or dynamite
-Mississippi man caught stuffing
Visit our website at www.northshorefrogmen.com | 3 |
food, including 2 live lobsters into cargo shorts; one of the lobsters’ band came off.
Raffles: Dollars Box: John Marren Mystery Prize: Ginny Cookson Bug Bag: john m x2 (Dive on
Fred’s boat and dive light).
15-Sep -2011
Meeting called to order: 8:08 PM Attendance: 4 Officers, 11 Members
Secretary: Minutes read and accepted as amended.
Treasurer: we have money! Correspondence – got SSN newsletter.
Also got something from REEF thanking for our donation.
Committees:
-Program: (see calendar for more info)
-Undersea Divers sale Oct 1st and 2nd. Used bin has great deals. Bob is selling Paul’s stuff and giving the money to the family.
Old Business:
-If we sell the play station, probably won’t be too expensive to get some- thing new, something that can accept headphone jack. Mike made motion to authorize up to $100 to buy a DVD player to replace the PlayStation.
-Picnic coming up; need someone to purchase food, raffle prizes.
Dive Talk:
-Sunday dive Jeff & Graham at Pebble, only people there at first; viz poor 3-4 feet, short lobsters. Graham tried out new dry suit; it’s awesome. Just did one dive, surgy but it looked calm.
-Tony training dives at MIT Sat – the pool is the best he’s been to viz was outstanding!
-Lauren tried new fins in the pool; they’re fantastic.
-Dan w/ John S & Jim D Monday going for scallops Baker’s, Misery Channel. 15’ vis. Went in different directions. Combined they got one bag’s worth. Second dive between Big and Little Misery. 20’ vis but lots of algae blooms. Lots of bugs, but small and eggers. Found an anchor. Pulled up a really old weight belt,
Air Bubbles – October 2011
probably 40lbs lead. 2 dives over 60’. John’s backup BC didn’t inflate; had to drop bag and weights to get back to surface. Current was strong that day. Moral of the story, if you have old equipment you haven’t used in a while, make sure it works properly before you go to 70’.
-Dan day 2, House Island (deep side). 20-25’viz dropped to nil at 60’. Was in the shallows where a gorge turns into an underwater cave, 2’ crack at surface 25’ at the bottom. Didn’t have a light. 25’ in big round room.
-Dan, yesterday w/ Jim, Graves Island at the wreck of NH, could see the bottom clearly from surface; beautiful 35-40’ vis. Got some j-nails, saw big eggers. Met up with John Tooey. Jim did 2 dives, got a couple of lobsters. John T got 5 bugs total, but 4 got away. Jim had problem by end of third day, getting charley horses in backs of the thighs.
-Meg dove at Back Beach Sunday night, met up with some folks from a Facebook group and a Finatic.
Looking for squid, didn’t see any. About 20’ max, did an hour dive. First dive with the camera at night, defiantly different when you can’t see what you’re trying to take a picture of; got pictures of lobster tails; good dive.
-Ginny now has full set of gear and is looking to go to the beach and figure out how much weight she’ll need.
General Discussion:
-Jim, fishing, saw big fin in the water off Baker’s Island, thought it was a shark. It was an ocean sunfish, maybe 4-500 lbs; he got close to it.
-Mike’s Moments:
-3 guys staying in FL condo; one, a 23 yo former marine, was killed by an exploding tank. Story was from two different sources, but no mention of why the tank exploded.
-There is a website for getting kids interested in the ocean: adventuresofscubajack.com.
Dates left for raffles on Fred’s boat, this week is the 17th. No substitutions.
Raffles: Dollars Box: Jim Durso
Mystery Prize: Jeff Lynch
Bug Bag: Mike Denneler
22-Sep -2011
Meeting called to order: 8:06 PM Attendance: 4 Officers, 14 Members
Secretary: Minutes read and accepted as amended.
Treasurer: we have money
Committees:
-Program: (see calendar for more info)
-Picnic at BSC Treasure Hunt are this Sunday!
-Jerry Shine presentation is on hold due to family commitments.
-Bill Buckley presentation may be postponed because of Oct 6 Halloween Parade in Salem. (The easiest way to get to Salem in Oct: take Rt 1A from Beverly, stay left after crossing the bridge.
-Undersea Divers is having an end of season sale Oct 1st and 2nd! - Most of
Paul’s stuff going there to be sold in the next few weeks. Al Sauvageau says hello.
-Maybe over the winter we could have an “open video night” when members can bring videos and we can see some Sea Hunt videos.
-Membership: Dan Hering. When
Vinny was at Bob’s shop, ran into the person from PCYC who is interested in joining, seems ready to go.
-Air Bubbles: deadline tonight.
Old Business: Turns out Ray will be away for work this weekend; need to get another grill or someone to pick up
Ray’s grill. Bill may be able to help.
New Business: Club officer nominations are coming up soon; think about running for office.
Dive Talk:
-John M and his sister, on Easy Diver, went to the USS NH. Water was 58Fish viz fair; sister had a piece of the wreck caught on her catch bag, didn’t realize it.
-Claus at Dutch Springs two weeks ago, water 6’ higher than usual from the runoff from the storms, taking video of some students. Two days later he had bad ear infection from
Visit our website at www.northshorefrogmen.com | 4 |
storm runoff. Dan recommended ear drops.
-Lauren finished her advanced cert w/ Tony on Sat. Lauren was babysitting while Tony finished an open water class. Peter Ernst called a lot to bring over the boat. Plan: Lauren and Tony swim to the boat and get pulled in. Boat was pulled into the harbor by tide, toward the rocks. Went into water trying to find
60’; deepest they found was 57’.
Lauren saw a lobster, pulled it out of its hole to try to find 60 ft depth, gauge said 59’. Hit 60’ in lobster hole or divot next to it! (See sketch of evicted lobster below.)
-Tony finished class with Vinny’s neighbor here a few weeks ago; she’s interested in joining our Club.
General Discussion:
-Maybe the Froggies will have a snorkel team for the BSC Treasure Hunt?
-Mike’s Moments:
-Since 2004 NOAA been making electronic charts, until this week, there were 2 different systems, one electronic and one paper; this week they go to just one system for both, transitioning to just downloadable e- charts; will be distributed by Coast Guard regions. – Claus noted that we are fortunate in the US to be able to download the charts; it’s not the same in other countries, even Canada.
-Russian nuke sub, sitting at anchor. Crew saw approaching trawler, trawler ignored signals and hit the sub, the whole crew was drunk. No real damage, though.
Raffles: Dollars Box: Ginny Cookson
Air Bubbles – October 2011
Mystery Prize: Ginny Cookson Bug Bag: Fins being raffled off
on Sunday.
29-Sep -2011
Meeting called to order: 8:04 PM Attendance: 2 Officers, 11 Members
Secretary: Minutes read and accepted as amended. (Mary filling in)
Treasurer: we have money. Lauren took money from non-Club members; we will share some with MetroWest. We did have leftovers.
Correspondence:
-Email from Al Morris advertising a DUI Demo day in Portland ME on 10/15 (will be forwarded to Club members).
-If you get an email from John Sears with a subject line, don’t believe it.
He reuses previous emails. Note to John: You CAN change the subject line.
Committees:
-Program: (see calendar for more info)
-Both presentations on hold. Bill
Buckley doesn’t know when he will be available again, he will let us know. Jerry Shine, family issues.
-Do we want to have open-projector night on 10/13. Claus has something. Cenote video from Vinny. Sea Hunt video?
-Undersea Divers is having end of season sale Oct 1st and 2nd!
-Air Bubbles is in process
Old Business: Thank you to Bill Werner, Lauren, Vinny, John Sears for all the work done for the picnic. Ron donated a beautiful pen which Lauren won; Marlene donated a basket of bath supplies won by John’s mother; John S won the fins.
New Business:
-Dodie suggested we formally announce next year that we will support the local food bank. They really need “protein in a can”, i.e. chicken, tuna, peanut butter, etc.
Let’s make a more significant donation next year, and include in our plans for the picnic.
-Nominations for Club officers coming up soon! Think about it.
Dive Talk:
-Bill W 2 weeks ago at OGB, lousy viz. Found a gear net that was full of crabs; tried to cut some out but too hard. Otherwise nice dive, saw badge star.
-Tony tried to dive.
-Lauren did her 50th dive on Sat 9/24 w/ Meg at Fort Sewell, around to left; 30 ft; regulator was leaking, so not long. Saw huge skate, tons of little fish, really warm, ~ 60F. Couple bits of broken china.
-BSC Treasure Hunt was a nice event. One of the snorkel teams from Salem State U won the trophy for most treasure found. Mary was
“safety kayaker”, and won a pair of fins.
General Discussion:
-Great white attack in SAfrica; warnings all up and down the beach but a guy decided to swim and got mauled.
-Mike’s Moments:
-Someone bought the Nantucket Lightship, redone w/mahogany and cherry interior, now available for vacation rentals.
-Maine lobstering is a sustainable catch. One of the walls of the trap is biodegradable. Territories are assigned, if you invade another’s territory, your lines get cut. If you are caught stealing from another’s traps, lose license, boats and gear.
-Man In The Sea Memorial Monument Project planned to honor military divers, at navy yard in DC.
Raffles: Dollars Box: Dawn Denneler
Mystery Prize: Lauren Byrne
Visit our website at www.northshorefrogmen.com | 5 |
Air Bubbles – October 2011 | |||||||||
Calendar of Events | |||||||||
2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |||
Sunday Dive | 8:00 PM Meeting | ||||||||
9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | |||
Tropical Fish | 8:00 PM Meeting | DUI - Maine | |||||||
Rescue | Demo Day | ||||||||
Open video | |||||||||
16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | |||
Sunday Dive | 8:00 PM Meeting | ||||||||
23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | |||
Sunday Dive | 8:00 PM Meeting | ||||||||
30 | 31 | October 2011 | |||||||
Sunday Dive | |||||||||
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |||||
8:00 PM Meeting | |||||||||
6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |||
Sunday Dive? | 8:00 PM Meeting | ||||||||
13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | |||
8:00 PM Meeting | |||||||||
20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | |||
Thanksgiving | |||||||||
No meeting | |||||||||
27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | November 2011 | |||||
BSC meeting | |||||||||
Activities List
-Oct 6, Thur POSTPONED! Bill Buckley presentation at NSF; The Perfect Shot
-Oct 9, Sun Tropical Fish Rescue diving in RI with NEADC
-Oct 13, Thur Open Video Night. The video projector will be available at the meeting.
Bring your (short) video to share.
-Oct 15, Sat DUI Demo Day in Portland, ME (see info on pg. ?)
-Oct 20, Thur POSTPONED! Jerry Shine presentation at NSF
-Nov 24, Thur Thanksgiving – NO MEETING
-Nov 30, Weds BSC Meeting in Quincy, MA
-Dec 10, Sat Annual NSF President’s Banquet at PCYC
Visit our website at www.northshorefrogmen.com | 6 |
Air Bubbles – October 2011
Upcoming Club Events
At this time we have no presentations scheduled, but do have a few in the wings waiting for new dates. Those dates will be announced when we have them.
Susan Copelas on her trip to Socorro Island.
Bill Buckley, renowned underwater photographer, on “How to get the perfect shot”
Jerry Shine author of A Shore Diving Guide to New England, and photographer extraordinaire of northeast nudibranchs
Other Events of interest to SCUBA divers:
An nual Tropical Fish Rescue and BBQ 2011
http://www.neadc.org/tropicalfish/2011TropicalRescue.pdf
Sunday October 9, 2011 9:30am to 4:30PM
Fort Wetherill, Jamestown, RI
This is a great family event, especially for the kids!
We will be seining; which is pulling a fish net through shallow water, up onto the beach, and discover all sorts of marine life, letting the children help gather the fish and marine life collected in the net. There will be a large touch tank set up, for all to enjoy, with lobsters, crabs, starfish, baby tropical fish, etc. As we gather out catch, let our experts teach you about the tropical fish you can observe in our on-site holding aquariums. There will be organized regular scuba diving as well as designated tropical collecting areas.
There will also be volleyball, music, silent auction, and of course diving and a great variety of food.
Never caught tropical fish before? Let our experts show you how. Extra collecting nets will be available.
All are welcome. Join us for a fun filled day!
All proceeds will benefit the Cotting School.
If you plan to attend, please contact Al Bozza at Programs@neadc.org so we can get a headcount.
DUI Dog Rally and Demo Tour
Portland, Maine
October 15, Kettle Cove Beach
Most of our Club members are familiar with the DUI Demo Days and Dog Rally at Stage Fort Park in Gloucester, and some of you have been to the one at Dutch Springs in PA.
This year, for the first time, there will be one day of DUI demos near Portland, ME, at Kettle Cove Beach. Kettle Cove Beach is on Cape Elizabeth just south of Portland. There is easy access from the highways via Rt. 1 and Rt. 77. Admission to the facility is free and there is plenty of parking. You will see the DUI tents when you arrive.
The requirements are the same as for the same event in other locations. Bring your own air, your C-card, your license or credit card, weights, regulator, mask, fins and snorkel, etc. DUI can outfit you with drysuits,
“divewear insulation”, weight and trim systems, rock boots and zip gloves.
There will be a barbeque lunch provided (I assume for the usual fee).
In any case, Portland is a fun place to visit! Who’s going?
More info in the May 2011 issue of AB.
The Next BSC Meeting
The next meeting of the Bay State Council of Divers is scheduled for Wednesday November 30, 2011 at the
South Shore Neptunes’ Clubhouse in Quincy at
7:30PM.
All are invited to attend the BSC meetings
Visit our website at www.northshorefrogmen.com | 7 |
Air Bubbles – October 2011
Bad Day Diving
It all started off as a fun day diving with Jim Durso, and Dan Hering. We left Winter Island and headed out around Misery Island. After a little discussion we chose a site between Big, and Little Misery Island. Our goal was to search for scallops, and if not found search for bugs too. I had brought my back up BCD to use since I had recently had a mishap with my everyday BCD.
Jim and Dan were first to jump in the water as there is room on the boat for just two divers to get ready at one time. They both dove with steel 120's, while I had my aluminum 80. I had figured that I would finish my dive first, and they could catch me on the boat soon after. I blew air into my BCD before entering the water. I jumped overboard and descended to a depth of 70 feet. Once at the bottom I tried to inflate my BCD with a little air and found that it did not work. I figured I'd do an easy dive, and when I got to 1500psi I would surface. I gathered about a half bag of scallops as I went along.
I hit 1500psi, and tried to start to surface kicking hard to leave the bottom. I went up about 3 feet, and then found myself standing on the bottom. I tried this once again with the same result. At this point I knew I was in trouble, and dropped my catch bag. I was able to start heading to the surface, my progress was a bit faster than before. I was not able to do a moment of hang time at 20 feet. I worried that if I stopped, I would sink down again. After getting to the surface, I tried to orally inflate my BCD. I ended up getting a small mouthful of water, and decided not to try that again.
I was a good distance away from the boat and the current and wind was pushing me towards House Island. Already tired from my earlier experience I didn't take long to decide to drop my weight belt. This helped me float better at the surface, as I started a trying swim back to the boat. My efforts paid off, and I eventually made it back on board. I was happy to climb back inside, and shed my dive gear. As I sat there thinking of my buddy, Jerry Sutherland, I grabbed a cold PBR. I enjoyed that cold beer, celebrating the fact that I had not drowned.
I share this experience with you, so that you might not make some of the mistakes that I did. Namely using gear I hadn't used in years, or even tested to see that it
would work properly. I had heard stories of divers drowning by not being willing to give up a scallop bag. I have been diving since 1988, and this was the first time that I had to drop my weight belt. Safe diving to all.
Diver of the Month
for October 2011
Bill Werner
for all the work he did for and at the picnic
Member of the Month
for October 2011
John Ferrier
who, for years, has greeted people for our
Sunday Club dives
Visit our website at www.northshorefrogmen.com | 8 |
Air Bubbles – October 2011
SHON DUBOIS AND LAURA GALLAGHER'S REDNECK PARTY
by Dodie Carvalho
On Sat. the 17th (of September) the NSFC were invited to a great Redneck Party given by Shon-Bob and Laura-Sue in Pelham, NH. We had a great time with good “eat’ns” enjoyed by club members along with Shon and Laura’s families and friends. They had really pulled together a great atmosphere with toilet-lid horseshoes, Nascar banners, and one huge ice chest of a front-end loader to chill our moonshine in. As you can see by the pictures we had a great time, appropriately decked out for the redneck occasion. Grub was delicious! One contribution was a “turtle meatloaf” with sausage appendages and bacon shell. This delicious dish might rival Roslyn’s incredible artistic edibles she has brought to many parties. Fried turkeys, homecooked beans, and lots of other great dishes combined into a delicious feast. Here’s a few pictures taken at the party. Thanks Shon and Laura for putting on a great party.
Yee Haww!!!
Visit our website at www.northshorefrogmen.com | 9 |
Air Bubbles – October 2011
The Bay State Council of Divers
Supporting and promoting the recreational diving community in Massachusetts.
The Bay State Council of Divers (BSC) is a diver’s advocacy group. The BSC monitors local, state and federal regulations that may affect the recreational diving community in Massachusetts. When required, the BSC represents the interests of the diving community in these matters.
The BSC serves as a liaison between dive clubs and dive stores to promote recreational diving activity in Massachusetts. All divers are encouraged to support the BSC with an annual contribution of $5. Your contribution will allow the BSC to continue to be a strong advocate for the recreational diving community in Massachusetts.
See http://www.baystatecouncil.org for more information on
the Bay State Council.
JOIN THE ELITE UNDERWATER TEAM BE A QUALIFIED AND INFORMED MEMBER
OF THE DIVE PATROL
Be part of The Dive Patrol mapping squads. Learn how to reconnoiter dive sites
for future reference and recovery efforts
Your assistance is necessary to our continued access to open water scuba sites.
Be part of the local dive sites assistance patrols also
All the words you’ll need to know to train beginner scuba divers will be licensed to you when you become a successful attendee at
The Dive Patrol Instructor Camp
Learn how to advertise, how to find customers, for your scuba school
contact: Fred Calhoun, Director The Dive Patrol
2 Ocean Ave (1-H)
Gloucester, MA 01930
Our website is under construction (really)
The Underwater Club of Boston
THE DIVE PATROL present
The 61st Edition of
THE BOSTON SCUBA SHOW
Directed by Alan Budreau
with EMMY AWARD winners Kerry and Linda Hurd
Feb 25, 2012 (10 am to 3 pm)
Marlboro Holiday Inn (jct rtes 20 and 495)
Featuring EMMY Award winner
JONATHAN BIRD
(what more can we say?)
Fred Calhoun
with a new film, and lively commentary
UNDERSTANDING TECHNICAL DIVING
THE GENESIS OF VISUAL INSPECTIONS
Q & A
Tom Huff on Rebreathers
plus
Jerry Shine 2012 PAUL REVERE SPIKE AWARD
This is not the order of presentations
ALWAYS FREE PARKING
Tickets at $20 available at the door, or in advance by writing to Cecile Christensen, 2 Ocean Ave (1-H), Gloucester, MA 01930; Checks payable to The Dive Patrol
Visit our website at www.northshorefrogmen.com | 10 |
Air Bubbles – October 2011
The North Shore Frogmen’s Club Inc
PO Box 3604
Peabody, MA 01961-3604
Upcoming Events
Oct 9: Tropical Fish Rescue/NEADC
Oct 13: Open Video Night
Oct 15: DUI in Maine
42 Water St.
Beverly MA
978-927-9551
DIVE@underseadivers.com
2011 Hours:
Tue-Fri 10-6, Sat 9-5, Sun 9-3
Sales Service Rentals
AQUA LUNG SEAQUEST SUUNTO
GENISIS DUI VIKING HENDERSON
VISA MASTERCARD AE DISCOVER
The North Shore Frogmen’s Club meets every Thursday at 8PM
at Palmer’s Cove Yacht Club
74 Leavitt Street
Salem, MA 01970
There is more parking available in the Harbor Sweets lot across the street.