Florida Sea Base News

CONGRATULATIONS TO NEW PADI OPEN WATER SCUBA INSTRUCTORS MICHAEL ROESEL AND STEVEN RAYMOND.  I am looking forward to having them on our Scuba Certification staff this summer.  I have EXCEPTIONALLY high expectations for these two.

Friday was a very windy day at the Florida Sea Base.  The divers still went diving and the sailors still went sailing.  This frustrating west wind finally clocked to the north overnight.  North winds make life easier in our harbor and reduces the waves on the reef.  Yeah north wind!

I drove BSA Quail Ridge Explorer to Alligator Reef for one of the certification crews yesterday; Scuba Commissioner Laura Kuras served as First Mate.  Scuba Instructors Captain Christy Clemenson, Steven Raymond and Michael Roesel lead the divers through PADI Open Water Training Dive #4 and one fun dive.  Then we relocated to the bay side to eat lunch and goof off for a while.  Michael Roesel drove the boat for most of the day but Captain Christy made her first successful docking in a major west wind.  Way to go Captain Christy!

Scuba Instructor David Ball sent me an email from the ScubaLiveaboard trip a few days ago, but I forgot to post it.  Dave had reported outstanding visibility AND his 1,000th dive.  Congratulations Dave.  Sadly, Mr. Ball has completed his spring tour of duty and left early this morning to return to New Jersey.  He will be missed.  Barbara, if you’re reading this, thank you very much for letting Dave come out and play.  We will miss you at the Tarpon Tournament this year but I hope you have a great time on your cruise.

Mark Gilbert will be released from the hospital today with a clean bill of health.  False alarm, but better safe than sorry.  If all goes as planned, his wife will drive him down to the Florida Sea Base this afternoon so he can be with his crew for luau.  They will then drive to Fort Lauderdale on Monday and fly home to Kansas City.

Many of our staff are very dedicated Scouting volunteers.  Their service at the Florida Sea Base and with their local units sincerely appreciated.  The Boy Scouts of America could not exist with the devotion of hundreds of thousands of volunteers.  Thank you all for what you do.

One Sea Exploring crew, one Scuba Liveaboard crew and four Coral Reef Sailing crews returned to the Florida Sea Base yesterday to celebrate their luau.  Two Coral Reef Sailing crews and one Sea Exploring crew arrived to begin their adventure.

As of 0500, the wind is officially from the north and has dropped to 11 knots.  It should be a stellar day on the reef.  We have one Scuba Liveaboard crew arriving today and two Scuba Adventure crews arriving Sunday.  Here’s the NWS Marine Forecast for the next few days:

Today…Northeast winds 15 to 20 knots…increasing to near 20 knots in the afternoon. Seas building to 4 to 6 feet. Isolated showers.
Tonight…Northeast to east winds near 20 knots. Seas 5 to 7 feet. isolated showers.
Sunday…Northeast to east winds near 20 knots. Seas 6 to 8 feet. Isolated showers.
Sunday Night…East winds 15 to 20 knots. Seas 5 to 7 feet…subsiding to 4 to 6 feet late. Isolated showers.
Monday…Northeast to east winds near 15 knots early…decreasing to 10 to 15 knots in the afternoon. Seas 3 to 5 feet…subsiding to 2 to 4 feet late. Isolated showers.
Tuesday…Northeast to east winds near 10 knots. Seas around 2 feet. Isolated showers.
Wednesday…Northeast to east winds near 10 knots. Seas around 2 feet. Isolated showers.

My suggestion is start taking one BONINE® tablet a day NOW to get it in your system and to see if you suffer any side effects.  (Chew the little orange tablets, do not swallow them whole.  By the way, they actually taste good.)  Sunday and Monday look a little rough.  Hopefully the wind will drop on Tuesday as forecasted and the end of the week will be better than the beginning.  If BONINE® is not your cure of choice you might consider the wrist bands (they work for Scuba Instructor Rich Goldman) or, if you’re not on a diet, ginger snap cookies or ginger supplements from the pharmacy.  If you go with the cookies, put them in a zip-lock bag and enjoy about three of them per morning before leaving on the boat.  You may want to take three more onboard to eat with lunch.  Even smelling ginger essential oils helps many people with gastroenpukeulitis.

Enough about that.  Have a great day.  NO PUKING.

Capt. Steve Willis
Professional Scuba Bum®
Aboard S/V Escape