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Congratulations to all our recently qualified divers.  You all did great and hope you enjoyed the courses as much as we did.  Enjoy your qualification, you earned it.

Open Water/ Scuba Diver:  Daiva Pustelninkas Dallius Pustelninkas, David Keane, Steven Keane, Kieran Slocum, Chris Gowing, Reg Fletcher, Nino Binns, Claire Furphy, Robert Irvine, Riona Clarke

Advanced Open Water/Adventure: Aiden Brady, Alan Slocum, Carl Lennon

Rescue & EFR:   Ken Mooney, John Brocklebank, Alfie Brocklebank, Jason Corrigan

EFR : Alan Mooney jnr,

Specialities-  

Deep - Ken Mooney, John Brocklebank, Peak Performance Buoyancy- Alfie Brocklebank, Ken Mooney, John Brocklebank, Carl Lennon, Dry-suit - Lenny Russel, Kim Ryder,and Navigation Courses -Alfie Brocklebank, John Brocklebank, Carl Lennon, Graham Pimlott, Jason O Farrell,  Rebecca Cooley, Frank Coady

After many failed attempts in the past, I eventually made it to the Skellig Islands off the coast of Kerry.  It  had been a huge ambition of mine to dive here. In my first year of diving, with all of 50 dives to my name, I almost made it.  Actually that time we made it to Puffin Rock and even though Martin ( of Valentia Island Watersports ) assured me that the diving was very similar, still I hankered for that one name in my log-book.  Little did I know it would be 7 years and some 800 dives later before I would get the chance.  But it was worth it.

Firstly we had a 3 hour boat ride and although conditions were excellent; it wasn't long before the roars and laughter of bravado were replaced with nervous chuckles.  I kept replaying images of "The Perfect Storm" in my head and not those of George Clooney.  However most of us managed to keep our breakfast in place and Martin, skilfully brought us safely to Skellig Michael ( the biggest of the islands )

Finding shelter on the lee of the island, we skilfully kitted up ( no we didn't, but with assistance from each other we managed to get all required kit attached to us ) and off for our dive.  We had broken into 3 groups and I dived with Rebecca, Lisa, Carl.  It was Carl's deep and qualifying dive for his Advanced Course and what an amazing place to do it.  To view one wall here is to understand the meaning of the name "jewel anemone"  No garden of formal roses could match the colour and vibrancy of what we saw.  It was of course helped with the stupendous viz.  Was it 20 or even 30 metres?  I don't know but if was day-light, even at the depths of those on the Deep Speciality ( John and Ken ) 

After all were safely back on board after dive one, we had another treat in store for us as we landed on the Skellig for lunch.  The views were breathtaking, even if we only managed a short bit of the hike to the summit.  We had to worry about Nitrogen overload, plus it was a very long way to the top.   The views, the sun shinning, food when very very hungry and Ken's seal impressions made for a great pit-stop between dives.  But then back to the boat on on to our next destination Little Skellig or bird poo island.  

Another fantastic dive but with strong currents, you realise why this dive is for experienced divers only.  Tucked in between gulleys and free from the current, we could explore at will.  It was here that Lisa and Rebecca also saw the mother of all lobsters, now referred to as "Lobsterzilla" Back on the boat where we chased the waves home. Tired but elated. 

How could people survive on this dramatic but barren piece of rock in the Atlantic?  What did they eat; where did they get water and how did they build here? These and many more questions went unanswered so maybe we'll pay a visit to the interpretive centre next time. We've already booked our return trip so you know where to find us August bank holiday 2009.  Audrey

We ran a Peak Performance Buoyancy Speciality in July.  We were in South Donegal in one of our favourite training spots, which proved perfect for this speciality; flat sand and not too deep.  Here's what 2 of the participants thought of the course:

Mention the Peak Performance Speciality to newly qualified divers and they'll tell you they don't need it. A seasoned diver will give you the same response.  Their enthusiasm of getting into the water overshadows everything else.  They prepare in a hurry without properly securing equipment with little concern for their gear or the underwater environment.  The instructors watch them before the dive and  know a day's work is ahead of them.  YES I WAS THAT DIVER, I THOUGHT I KNEW IT ALL …

Until I took the peak performance Buoyancy Speciality Course and I will admit I was surprised with the techniques used t teach this course.  Quite literally you are swimming through hoops to check your streamlining and weight distribution, then we were hovering inverted 6 inches above the seabed, playing pass the parcel ( 2 kg lead ) while hovering ( to demonstrate control of buoyancy using nothing more than a breath of air) and descending to within a couple of inches off the ocean floor.  These are a few of the techniques used by our cunning instructors to the make the course fun.  And yes, it was fun but a steep learning curve as well.  I would recommend it to all divers now having done the course.  Alfie Brocklebank

The PPB speciality was one of the more enjoyable and probably the most crucial part of my training so far. From swimming through loops in the pool to head stands in the open water it is one skill that you will always be conscious of on every dive and one that divers will always be trying to master. I think all divers should have a how’s my buoyancy? Sticker on there tanks because it is the one question your buddy will ask more then any other after a dive. At the end of the training I learned how to control my descent, swim without disturbing the bottom and hover in open water at different depths which are all skills required for becoming a more confident diver.   Carl Lennon

How to spot a Nav course .... Find a car-park near a lake where several wetsuit clad individuals are roaming around carrying either a compass or a sheet of paper, the likely hood is that you're in the right place!  

Having teamed up to find out that two peoples sense of direction is only marginally better than ones and having spent what seems like hours trying to navigate your way back to the bin only to end up half way across the main road, then its time to head into the murky depths to prove that the compass is all powerful and should be ignored at your own peril. For our course in Mullingar the weather proved exceptionally helpful by making sure that we couldn't see more than an inch ahead in the water and that this was definitely going to be a challenge. Joe set out our six point course and we headed in as buddy teams, one person counting kick cycles and the other navigating. We had been warned in advance that not all the markers would be in place so the sense of elation when we found the mark for the starting point let alone the markers along the way was overwhelming.  Heading off in search of the markers we located several, and that moment where you stop and look up without finding a marker is heart-stopping - have we miscounted the kick cycles? did we misread the headings? or did we just go wrong somewhere ... but putting all your faith in your training and your compass you continue on, stopping at each supposed marker site to reset your headings.  The moment where you ascend and find the pier directly in front of you, right where you thought you had left it, is just brilliant.

The sense of achievement having completed this course is amazing.  Finally you believe that maybe, just maybe, you can finally lead a dive and actually come back to where you want effortlessly - well, with a bit of practice :)   Rebecca Cooley

Well done Rebecca, Frank, John, Alfie, Jay, Graham.  We will be running his course again in the coming months, so contact the dive centre if interested.

The Divemaster Program consists of in-depth dive theory,  stamina and swim tests, dive skill trials, underwater challenges, as well as practical assessments in pool and sea.  As you can see, there is a lot to it but if can be taken in bite-sized chunks with sections knocked off bit by bit, it doesn't seem so bad.

The sea and pool requirements can take one of two formats - practical exercises or internship.  The latter is common is dive resorts and some dive centres in Ireland.  On an internship you work with an instructor for a period of time ( fairly arbitrary, varying from weeks to months ) until you have helped out on most courses.  This is the way we trained and initially how we ran our courses.  In the past 2 years we have changed our view and now run the Divemaster course the same way Instructor and even Course Directors are trained, with practical exercises.  in this format Divemaster trainees ( DITs as we call them ) act as dive masters on open water pool dives and sea dives for open water and continuing education courses.  They also lead a dive by themselves.  The difference is that there are "professional students" on these courses. 

Some of the advantages of this approach is in scheduling.  If you have 3 or 6 months free, why not work towards your Divemaster on some sunny shore, although I think I would prefer to dive rather than work.  The internship has very often dragged on; sometimes it's the instructor or dive centre's fault, sometimes the student's but there can often be a bad feeling of having being used.  There's the dirty, ugly and boring parts to working in a dive centre as well.  The practical exercises however can be completed on one weekend and 4 pool sessions.  Conditions don't have to be perfect as all "students" are well qualified so we can run the Divemaster during the winter when conditions would not be suitable for those learning to dive. 

Another problem with the internship rests with frequent frustration of DITs, in not actually doing very much.  You have to see it from an Instructor's point of view; you have a couple of complete beginners and a trainee Divemaster.  If a problem arises in real life it's the instructor who will have to step in, regardless of the competence of the Divemaster to handle the situation - they are just unproven at this stage.  Now with "professional students" who are usually experienced dive masters or instructors, it's fair game.

Are you missing out on real experience doing the Divemaster course this way?  We don't think so.  We can be very persuasive; serious acting skills come out.  In real life, you could do 4 perfect sea dives with competent students and no equipment issues.  Does this prepare you for when things go wrong?  On our practical exercises, the only thing we guarantee is that you will be challenged by all manner of problems, but in a controlled setting where you can learn how to handle them.  

We will be running Divemaster programs throughout the winter with the first course starting in November. The schedule is flexible and the time frame depends on how much time you can commit but you could certainly be finished for Christmas if you wanted.  For more details please contact the Dive Centre.

We have Special offer on dry-suits now; 4mm compressed neoprene Procean dry-suits now on sale for € 700, and that includes a PADI Dry-suit Speciality.  The course involves home study, theory and pool class and 2 sea dives, which can be conducted at most dive sites.  We also offer  made to measure dry-suits in both neoprene and membrane varieties. 

There are currently no laws in Ireland regarding the transport of air cylinders but in the UK , you must label cars or vans with a green sign showing "compressed gas on board"  These should only be used when you actually have cylinders in your car.   We now have reversible signs in the dive centre.  It's not the law but we think you should display them. 

October's first Thursday is on the 4th and was scheduled to have as it's theme " Lost at sea "  Last minute problems saw this idea shelved and replaced with "Wrecks".  We will be re-visiting this theme later in the season. 

November 6 is the date of that first Thursday and will feature a "Go pro " presentation.  Ever wonder what you have to do to become a PADI instructor or even Coarse Director.  Map out your future dive career.  Listen to those who have just completed the Dive master program and then decide if it's right for you.  Even if you are not quite ready for this level of course, you should find the evening entertaining and interesting.  Hopefully we will also have videos and photos from Malta

Booking for this trip will close on Sunday 7 September

This year's Malta trip is scheduled for the kids mid-term break so it could suit our dive families, Oct 28 - Nov 4, 2008. 

With Ryanair flying out 3 times a week, there is lots of flexibility.  You can come for a week tue-tue, or a long weekend thu-tue or even tue-sat to suit the kids hols. 

The water temperature should be in the region of 23 C and the days sunny and warm.  The diving is suitable for all with deep walls, wrecks and great fish life.  Our group can be split for dives based on qualification and experience so everyone can join us on this trip.  We will be mostly shore diving but we have a couple of optional trips available including The famous Blue Hole in Gozo and a chance to dive with full size tuna! 

The cost for a week in self catering apartment, plus 6 dive pack will cost € 400.  This also includes your choice of Wreck or Digital Photography Speciality.  With flights priced from  € 150, it makes a great value dive break.  Contact the dive centre for more details.  Final places must be booked soon.

Egypt  (up-dated )

Places must be booked and paid by Oct 25

We will be returning to the Red Sea for our winter trip which will be from 30 Jan - 6 February ( fri - fri )  We will be going on a Northern route which will include the best wrecks and reefs in the area.  Highlights include Thislegorm, Rosalie Moeller, Ras Mohammed marine Park, and Panorama Reef off Safaga. 

We have negotiated a group rate for the trip and are pleased to announce we will be on the MV Elite.  This boat has been re-fitted and rated as a Platinum boat.  Last year was good but this time, none of the rooms have bunk beds and all rooms have individual DVD players and other surprises. The liveaboard will cost you  € 765 and for this you get up to 22 dives, full food and soft drinks, transfers and last night in a hotel in Hurghada.  This group rate is only guaranteed if booked and paid by October 25. 

You can flights from London to Dublin for £200 sterling with easyjet, but you will require overnights before and after in London.   Bring a bottle of duty free and you don't have much else to spend for your week's holiday.  Contact the dive centre for more details and book your place ASAP.

Brussels  (up-dated )

We return to Brussels for what has become our annual Christmas bash.  We fly out early Saturday morning, go straight to the NEMO33 facility for 2 dives, then on into the city for sightseeing, and evening out on the town.  We have most of Sunday for more sightseeing and shopping.  A city famous for chocolates, waffles and beer has to be a good thing.  There's also a traditional Christmas fest to look forward to.  If you are not familiar with Nemo33, the world's deepest pool for scuba divers, have a look at www.nemo33.com.  You book your flights with Ryanair ( as usual early booking for best price )  There are different options for hotels which you can book on www.hotels.com or www.ryanair.com , Floris Grand Place, 3  star at € 73 per room, Eurostars Grand Place 4star hotel at € 93 per room or the Marriott 5 star at €129.  All hotels are near the Grand Place so it doesn't matter which you stay in ( we'll be in the Eurostars )  If you want to share a room, just let us know and we will try to match you to someone else.  We book the dives (€40 per person for 2 ) and airport transfers ( approx €30 ) for the group.   Contact us for more details and to confirm your place.

Conditions on the day were challenging for our photographers with surge, reduced viz and dull conditions.  It didn't help that it rained all day either.  In spite of all this, everyone seemed to have had a good time.  Hope your photos turned out ok

I have just started an on-line course  in Marine Biology with Oxford University.  There are no pre-requirements or qualifications needed.  You download the course and work at it on your own pace.  There are 10 chapters covering topics such as Reef formation, kelp forests, deep oceans, ocean formation and man's interaction with the sea.  You answer 3-4 questions ( half page each ) at the end of each chapter and complete a project at the end.  You have up to 2 years to complete the course but you can work on it at your own pace.  It costs € 295 and you end up with a Diploma in Marine Biology.  So far I have completed two chapters; the first was very good but the next one was a bit disappointing with a couple of obvious mistakes. Contact me to see how the following chapters are progressing. It is not difficult course though.  Is anyone interested in joining me as a "study buddy"  I reckon if a few of us started the course we could help each other and keep each other motivated.  If you want more info please contact me at info@diveinnscuba.com or 086 2144858.  Use this link to join the course.  Audrey