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There has been some confusion about my views, and what I did or did not say
regarding a Truk Lagoon Trip.  Most of these messages were in the private
forum, but I want to say all this in the open.

I DO NOT support any form of deep air diving, diving below 130' without
Helium, or any diving operation involved with Brett Gilliam, TDI, or any of
his buddies.  The shop I work for is taking a trip to Truk, on the boat
Odyssey.  This vessel, at the encouraging of Bret Gilliam, allows *and*
supports Deep air diving to depths of 200, because Gilliam says in the
ocean you are safe to that depth.  I DO NOT agree.  It is very clear that
this guy is a moron, and the charter company is falling victim to his
stupidity.

As for the trip, I have suggested to several members of the trip that the
answer is to limit the diving on the trip to depths of 130 or shallower, or
not go at all.  (Helium, which is available, is *very* expensive, so my
thinking is that it makes more sense to not do the deep dives, rather than
to pay for the He)  As for the other suggestions on the list regarding
"diving to 140 or 150, mabey the 200 foot dive...," in Truk, I also DO NOT
agree with this.  This is the exact thing we all are trying to get away
from, It is not safe, nor is it "OK," to do these dives without the use of
Helium.

I am a firm supporter of the DIR idea and those who have put in the time
and effort to make it work--If you want to do it DIR in Truk, you have 3
choices:  Pay for the gas, stay above 130, or refer to Rule #1.  Most, I
would think would refer to Rule #1........

Finally, I would like to point out that it is up to us as divers to get the
point across to these charters....deep air is not safe.  I hope this post
has cleared up this mess, and that everyone knows where I stand now.  

Best,

Mike Strong

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