The first of the planned series of SDC’s, which are being organized jointly with the the other local BSAC clubs, i.e.Gwynedd, Rhosneigr and Bangor Uni., were held over the weekend of 28 Feb / 01 March at Plas Menai.
The first course, First Aid for Divers (FAD) was attended by eleven divers, including five from the Lleyn Club (Anja, Rhian, Carl, Brian & Llyr) and was well received, with Paul Wood and Ruth Jones of the Gwynedd Club providing most of the instruction, which included a fair amount of practical work, i.e.bandaging each other up and playing with RA’s. As a bonus, at the end of the day Paul ran through the introductory lesson to the Dive Leader course, The Role of the Dive Leader, DT1, as a prelude to the following day’s course.
Sunday’s course was Oxygen Administration (OX) which covered lessons DT2 – DT7 of the Dive Leader syllabus. This course was attended by fifteen divers, including the same five from our Club. There was even more practical work with both the RA’s and the O2 kits. The newly acquired Club Resussi Anni’s were give a good workout and proved to be the biggest and fairest there and the only ones properly attired! The lessons were followed by a 25 question exam which everyone passed with ease, possibly due in some small way to the extreme emphasis placed on certain points by the lead instructor.
The programme for other SDC’s to be held this Spring has been firmed up to include the following :
i) Practical Rescue Management (PRM) – Sunday 22 March. This course covers lessons DT9, DT11, & DO5 of the Dive Leader course.
ii) Boat Handling (BH) – Weekend of 25 & 26 April.
iii) Chartwork & Position Fixing (CPF) – weekend of 9/10 May.
These courses are well subscribed but if you are interested and have not yet registered let me know asap.
David.
It was Sunday. Not a cloud in the sky. Light breezes. Balmy early signs of summer. And reports that the poor unfortunates who were stuck out in the Red Sea were having to endure harsh Siberian winds and rough seas. So, as Irfon was starting to have withdrawal symptoms, Brian and David joined him for an afternoon idyll. Simon was devastated when he was called away at the last minute and had to miss out. The centre was very busy with lots of rebreathers and twin sets in evidence. In fact we were something of the exception with our single cylinders and ponys. The water had warmed up nicely in the sun, reaching a very comfortable 6 degrees. We went right, and on down to the bench at 25 metres where David had the new experience of a prolonged free flow, which can best be described as the sensation of someone swimming alongside operating a pneumatic drill. So unfortunately we had to turn round early and make our way up to the 10 metre bench. However, we were blessed with crystal clear water and lots of wrecks. What more could anyone ask for!!!
David.
The early evening unfortunately turned out wet, just like last year. However spirits were high and so was the alcohol consumption, as we gathered around the barbeque to watch Anja convert our meat offerings into a more edible form. A visitor from another planet might have doubted our sanity, huddled as we were, around the Tudor Lodge front door in the smoke and rain, protected only by a thin tent canopy. However from the level and quality of the discussions a visitor would have also determined that we were very happy. Gradually the cooking process over we moved into the dinning room, chose our place to sit and set down to eating.
Yes, chose our place to sit. This was possibly not a random act since each table would be a quiz team and who was on your table would directly affect the chance of winning. Anja, of course, had anticipated this and even while each table was trying to jell into an unbeatable team she had us drawing names out of a hat to form new and quite unplanned teams. After some good natured grumbling we settled down to the quiz. As the quiz progressed a transformation occured which had the contestants taking up the role of disruptive school children in being very noisy, cracking jokes, asking questions without first putting their hands up, and shouting out answers. This forced Anja to take up the role of strict teacher. (Some people pay good money for this.) A role she wore like a close fitting cloak. As the papers were swapped and marking began the pupils all tried to get teachers attention and to get her to award marks for effort not just for the right answer. However the lady was not for turning and the team of Carl, Enid, Sue, Carys and Lee who got the most answers correct won the hamper.
An excellent evening was had by all. Many thanks to Anja for organising the event and the quiz and to Carl and Anja for letting us use Tudor Lodge.
Article from the Caernarfon and Denbigh Herald.
