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Hi Randy, I'd like to put in my request to be one of the single digit card holders for the new certification of "Deep Air Diveboard Diver." But only if you will train me to go to the bottom of our wall here in Akumal (starts at 200 ft and bottoms out at around 330 ft) and then snowboard, er, diveboard down the 30 degree downward slope of the bottom from there for about 500 to 1,000 yards. The certification number is important to me as it will match my IQ rather closely. We could set up a slalom course and time the runs. Think of the advantage. We wouldn't even need a ski lift to go back up the run. Just inflate your wings a little and go right up. We could even keep records for the one who completed the most runs before getting toxed on O2. Of course to make the boards run we'd need to be weighted at least 50 pounds negative so maybe the floating back up to the start might not work. And if we actually completed the runs, we'd need to climb back up the down line to the surface. Of course we'd have a down line, safety always you know. Of course the down line would be connected to a big honkin float or a boat, so it might tend to drift. And another problem would be that the score keeper would be so narced that his records might be subject to question, that is if we could read them after they were recovered. But what the hey, these are only the little details that need to be worked out. Oh, we could wear those little numbered racing bibs like the ski racers do, but I'm afraid that the colors might not be as impressive on the bottom. But they would be a whole lot of help to identify the bodies. And talking about bodies, we could set up a whole betting syndicate involved with the prizes of taking home the participants' equipment. Of course there wouldn't be a whole lot of DIR stuff, but there should be plenty of other stuff to bet for. We could have teams in a league as the sport became more popular. After all, the equipment manufacturers would support the sport with funding and advertising as it would use up lots of equipment. I can imagine team names such as "The Doomsday Irregulars (TDI)", "Illiterate Animals Nameless To Date (IANTD)", "Associated Nerds Defending Idiots (ANDI)", "People Always Dreaming Illusions (PADI)", "Needy Aquatic Underpaid Individuals (NAUI)", "Supreme Scientific Imbeciles (SSI)", "Wanton Killers Protecting Pagans (WKPP)" and of course the favorite team "Going Underwater Eternally (GUE)". The championship each year could be named the "International Diveboard Intramural Obscene Conference Yearly (IDIOCY)" It would seem that you've hit on a really great idea here. I think the next step is to figure out how to make a whole bunch of money on setting this thing up. Wow, there could be instruction fees, participants' entrance fees, spectator fees, boat trips and air fills for all, advertising fees, betting rake-off, body recovery and undertaking fees, and of course the omnipresent souvenirs and T-shirts. You could actually get rich on this thing. Randy, I really think you've hit on something worthwhile. Congratulations. Take care and let me know how it turns out. Your wannabe business partner, Scott In a message dated 5/3/00 8:05:30 PM, randy@mi*.co* writes: << This is serious business and not to be taken lightly. It's the safest way to descend when you're diving deep air. It forces you to go feet first, which is well known to help with ear clearing and orientation problems. Once you are on the bottom, you put your fins on (if you can find them), attach a tow rope to the diveboard, put your stages on the board (if you can find those), and tow it behind you. I'm hoping to be the first Deep Air Diveboard Instructor in the US. So who out there wants to be "Deep Air Diveboard Divers" cert number 0001, 0002, 0003, and 0004? You need to already be "Deep Air Certified" and "good on air" to 220 feet. Note that heliox or trimix gas mixtures are not allowed in this course and certification in heliox or trimix is not recommended. This is because diveboard diving is very dangerous if you are not at least a little narced (or is that narked?). Sincerely, C. Randy Bohrer Underwater Applications Corp voicemail/fax: (707) 222-7528 randy@mi*.co* www.mixedgas.com >> -- Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@aquanaut.com'. Send subscribe/unsubscribe requests to `techdiver-request@aquanaut.com'.
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