Houston's Premier Scuba and Dive Shop Oceanic Ventures Inc.

(713) 523-3483 (dive)
5808 Newcastle Drive
Houston, TX 77401

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From the Highlands to the Islands – A Tasting Event

Scotch GlassRecently, David Morris and I were sipping on a special glass of uisge beatha, which was a recreation of the spirits carried by Shakelton on his Antarctic expedition when we both had an idea.  Wouldn’t it be fun to do a Scotch whisky tasting?  We did a bourbon tasting last year so it seemed only natural to shift our attention to Scotland.  So, David being the resourceful person that he is came up with a plan and voila we had an event.

With a little more thinking, refinement and an ambassador or two,  we have assembled a really fine event that will be a real treat for our Club Aquarius members and our guests.  On February 23, we will be hosting Andrew Hyman, from Whyte and MacKay, who will be leading us on a tour of Scotland through our palettes.  He has promised to bring us a selection of Whisky from The Dalmore Distillery and the Jura Distillery.  To make this event even more special, we will be in the Whisky Bar of the Royal Oak Bar and Grille which is located at 3100 Westheimer.  As Ann would say, this bar is decorated in old world stuffy so it is an appropriate location for our event.

If you are in the area or plan on being here, please join us for this special event.  In order to bring enough whisky and hors d’oeuvres, we need to know you are coming.  Please email us and let us know you will be joining us on 23 February 2012 at 7:00.

RSVP

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Open Water Side Mount Scuba Diving

Diver Hovering
Photograph by Pete Nawrocky

If you look through the various diving publications or look at current diving trends on the internet, you will find references to side mount diving. Have you ever wondered why? In order to help answer that question we should first talk about what side mount diving is.

Like the name implies, in side mount diving, you mount the cylinders on your side instead of on your back. This is accomplished using some clips on the bottles and the d-rings on your buoyancy control device, BCD. You can see a diver in side mount gear in the photo above.

So now that you have a basic understanding of what it is, you may still be wondering why? Side mount divers have a variety of resons fro switching to this method of diving. Of course technical divers have been doing this style of diviing for a long time in order to squeeze into tighter spaces; but recreational divers are discovering new reasons to try it.

One reason given by these divers is the fact that you can carry the bottles to the water or better yet to the boat’s dive platform one at a time and then enter the water with no cylinder. This allows you to reduce the strain on your back especially when you get to hand the bottles back up to the crew and climb out of the water with no cylinders on at all.

Another reason is simply a gas supply issue. This is especially desirable if you are a heavy breather. By carrying two bottles, you have a larger gas supply and can remain underwater longer. Yes, guys, this means you can stay down as long as your wife. An additional benefit is that by changing the placement of the cylinders, side mount divers trim out better or obtain a better, horizontal posture underwater.

You may be asking that if it is simply a matter of mneung the bottles, why should I take a course to learn how to do it? That is a good question to ask. One of the things you will learn in class is how to configure your equipment to best carry the bottles. Another thing is the scheme of changing second stages as you swim underwater. In another lesson, you will learn how to deal with the bottles and the beginning and end of your dive so you don’t drop them to the bottom (a really bad thing especially when you are over a wall).

So, to put it simply, there is a lot of interest in lightinig the equipment load exiting or entering the boats for all of us. Side Mount divers also love the extra gas available! If you have not tried it, you should take a course and get started…it is a lot of fun.

To find out more about Open Water Side Mount diving, send Eric an email or leave a comment.

 The next Open Water Side Mount Course is scheduled to begin 28 February 2012. Other classes are available. Email us for more information.

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Andrew Trent Speaks at Club Aquarius

Drew Trent and Ann Keibler

What a fun presentation Drew Trent, Vice President of Oceaneering’s Engineered Solutions Group, made at our Club Meeting last evening. It was a full house at the Black Labrador with no vacant seats available. For those of you who were not there, Drew spoke about a variety of topics including what his group does and their particiation in the BP incident in the Gulf. While he did not give a lot of particulars, he did talk about things his group and the ROV group did to help coordinate and bring a positive conclusion to that incident.

 Of course, Drew also talked about his past life as a saturation diver in the North sea and his love of diving and sailing. He had photographs from these adventures as well as his early courses with Oceanic Ventures. He even recounted how a mixed gas dive supervisor was forced to take a series of diving courses beginning with the Principles of Technical diving through Trimix.

 It was fun getting together with so many people to talk about diving and to have such an entertaining speaker. You can see photographs from the event by clicking here.

 Don’t forget to put next month’s meeting on your calendar (23 February 2012). The topic is From the Highlands to the Islands – A Scotch Tasting Event .

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Eric Keibler is in the News

cayman newspaperEric Keibler and Oceanic Ventures made the newspaper in Grand Cayman this morning!
The Cayman Compass publised Eric’s photograph and a note about the upcoming Rebreather Scuba Diving Event in Houston on March 29-April 1, 2012.
See the post here.
We hope everyone in the Houston area will join us for a unique evnt which featuers rebreather trials in the pool, presentations by Leon Scamahorn, CEO of Inner Space Systems and dinner with Leon on Saturday evening.
Form more information, please email Eric.

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Dive Diva Trip October 2012

Divas in Costa Rica
The Dive Divas in Costa Rica

Dive Diva/Rock Beauty Semi-Annual Weekend Adventure to Cozumel Mexico El Presidente Intercontinental Hotel

October 19-23, 2012

Join us for a weekend of fun, sun, diving, spa, touring, beverages with beach umbrellas, snorkeling, and rest……. Friday thru Tuesday. The dive staff at SCUBA Du will offer valet dive service and beautiful fast boats so that we can be back in time for lunch and umbrella drinks on the beach. Or spend the afternoon in town shopping for Holiday gifts for friends and co-workers. One afternoon Ann will organize a trip to tour the Mayan Ruins and a visit to the beaches on the East side of the island. The spa has offered our group a 15% discount on all services booked in advance for our group. Night dives and night snorkeling available.

  • Package includes: RT Air from Houston to Cozumel via Continental Airlines, 5 days/ 4 nights El Presidente Intercontinental Resort Hotel, 3 days of two tank boat diving, plus a boat dive the day of arrival, air taxes on base fare, welcome cocktail, American breakfast buffet, transfers to the hotel, beach cylinders, weights, water on board, hotel taxes/resort fee, trip brochure and packet, trip shirt, and travel leader….Ann.
  • Fare: $1595 per person for Club Aquarius Members ($1545 dfc and club). $500 deposit due January 1. Final payment due on April 1, 2012. Trip insurance recommended, diving insurance required.
  • Not Included: Nitrox, extra boat diving, tips for the local staff, marine park fee, shopping, increases in air taxes, tours and entrance to the Mayan ruins. Space is Limited.

Dive Mom. Sign Me Up; I want to go diving!

 

Club Aquarius is an International Diving Club. Oceanic Ventures sponsors a local chapter. Membership is $75 pp family for a year and $65 for individuals.

Membership benefits include travel discounts, discounts on classes, monthly equipment specials, meetings, door prizes, a card and a gift.

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Price and availability subject to change until booked. Trip insurance is recommended as all deposits are non-refundable unless the trip runs full and replacement found.