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

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

diving skills

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100 Scuba Dives…Dive Mom Needs Help!

Dive Mom Ready to Go
Dive Mom Ready to Go!

“For the first time I can remember, I don’t have my 100 dives by November 1; I need your help to get there before December 1!”
 Ann Keibler will be venturing up to the DUI Dog Rally and Demo Days in Terrell Texas on November 19-20 and she would like for you to join her. So that you both have something to do while swimming around the lake, she will be doing dry suit open water dives and dry suit demos. To give you some incentive to show up, she has come up with the following specials:

  • Take a Dry Suit course, reg $225, for only $125 and she will pay for your DUI entry ticket for Saturday and Sunday. By doing your open water here, you also save the dry suit rental charge ($100 for the weekend).
  • Take your Nitrox course, reg $225, for only $125 and she will pay for your DUI entry ticket for the day and include the Nitrox for your dives!

Both courses include the educational materials and the classroom portion is a home study program. You should turn in your homework and take the test before you leave. She will be staying late Wednesday November 9, so you can get the test over with early. You can take the test at the lake, but who wants to skip the fun and take a test so doing it early is really better.
Of course if you are already certified as a dry suit diver, you can still come up and go diving. Remember, she needs a lot of dives and she doesn’t think any one person will want to do that many in a day. As such, she needs multiple buddies and lots of moral support.
DUI’s Dog Rally and Demo Days is a really cool event where you can try almost every suit DUI makes, almost every style of undergarment, get lunch and a hat all for $10.00 (when purchased from Oceanic Ventures, in advance). And, if you are already a DOG (DUI Owners Group) and you bring a friend to the event, you will get a special gift.

Please send Dive Mom and email and tell her you will help her reach her goal.

She would like to know who is going to attend by Friday.

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Why should you take an Advanced Open Water Scuba Course?

Lift Bag by Chuck GerlneuchNew divers often wonder how they can start an Advanced Open Water Course so close to completing their Open Water Course; they simply do not feel like advanced divers.  While it is true they are new to the world of diving, and they need to go out diving, it is also true that having a few more underwater skills under their belts would make diving more enjoyable.  This is really what an Advanced Open Water Course is all about; it is a combination of diving specialty courses designed to give new divers a few more underwater tools.

There is no substitute for simply going out and diving.  After you complete your open water class, you and your diving buddies should plan on going diving as much as possible so you can gain some confidence and put your newly learned diving skills to work.  At our facility, we try to promote this by offering dive local weekends at other times during the month.  We also encourage new divers to return with us on the next month’s Open Water Weekend.  By participating in these other events, there is a professional dive leader on hand to give you advice and to answer your questions while learning to dive outside of the classroom setting.

But, like I said earlier, one way to make an improvement in your diving is by learning some basic underwater skills. An Advanced Open Water Course combines the following specialty classes into one package:

  • Underwater Navigation
  • Deep Diving (over 60 feet)
  • Night and Limited Visibility Diving
  • Search and Relocation

 These specialties are designed to introduce you, the new diver, to new environments and equip you with come new skills that you will use throughout your diving career.  They are also tailored to give you more confidence and help you to relax more underwater.  Why these specialties you ask?  Well, let’s look at each of them in more detail.
Underwater Navigation – You probably noticed in your Open Water Class that you had no real idea where you were.  You just followed your Instructor or a Dive Control Specialist with your Instructor following behind.  You were mostly concerned with trying to maintain buoyancy and look around at things as you glided past.  However, when you are diving without your instructor, you will have to find your way around the lake on your own.  This course introduces you to the skills needed to navigate underwater and the ability to get lost creatively.
Deep Diving – While many people do not consider diving deeper than 60 feet deep diving, you were trained and certified in 20 to 40 feet of water so 60 feet is deeper than you have been.  Assuming you do not want to repeat those out-of-air skills you were forced to endure as part of your Open Water Program, there are some things you need to consider when diving deeper, like when to start back to the surface.  So here you will learn what to do to scale the equivalent of a 6 story building and return to the surface safely and proudly.
Night & Limited Visibility Diving – Here you get more toys!  You need lights to complete this specialty so, boys get toys!  Ok, it is not all about the toys but rather how to use them as tools to safely execute a night dive.  And remember, if you are ever planning on sneaking into the cocktail party from the water, you will need this skill-set.
Search & Relocation – With the introduction of more toys comes the need to find them when you loose them.  Here we introduce you to the fine art of finding the things you lost underwater.  As part of the class you also get to use a lift bag to lift up a heavy object.  This is a useful skill if you run across an canon underwater that you think will look smashing in your front yard!
While you are learning these skills, you will be getting more comfortable underwater and may even find you do not need as much weight to sink below the surface.  You even get the opportunity to purchase some necessary toys to safely execute your dives – cool, more toys!
Taking an Advanced Open Water Course is a good way to prepare yourself for the dives that you want to do on your next vacation.  The comfort you gain in the water will make those vacation dives more enjoyable and just plain fun.  Don’t miss this opportunity to improve your diving while having fun diving in a structured program.

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Winter Scuba Diving – Pool Tune-Ups

The cold fronts are coming in more frequently now and the leaves are falling all around us. It is winter in Houston and for many it is not contusive to diving. Of course there is diving at the local lakes but for the most part this is dry suit diving.
If you are not excited about jumping into a temperate Texas Lake in the winter, you probably think there is no way to go diving until Spring, right? Wrong! Maintaining your diving skills over the winter months just requires a little creativity and some water. What I am alluding to is going diving in the swimming pool. Here you can work on your buoyancy control, trim and swimming attitude.
This is the perfect time to try some new equipment. As a photographer you can work on strobe placement, critical focusing, color balancing or just perfecting your “people” photography.
The winter months are the perfect time to work on your skills and to practice your safety skills. That way you can be ready when the spring diving season rolls around.
Did you know that Oceanic Ventures offers a free SCUBA Skills update the first Monday of every month? Do you realize that this is done in a nice warm indoor pool with clear water and lots of light? Did I mention free? You can also set-up a pool session for you and your friends or open it up to others; just call Dive Mom and ask how you can get wet in the pool this winter.