Not a full time job, a hobby. The management of the Project is broken up
into several areas with a person responsible for each. Casey McKinlay is the
Project Coordinator. He actually runs the WKPP. Jarrod and I are more and
more just concentrating on the dives.

We figure out what dives we want to do and then Casey gives me a list of
divers. JJ and I then decide how to run it based on that and the objective.
We run several set up and cleanup teams as well as a rotating support crew
for each area. Bottles and scooters are taken in to certain drop points and
left for us to pick up. We pull all of the gear to be removed back to within
one mile of the entrance on the way out, and another team goes in to get it.
We run all of these dives sequentially, and some of them concurrently. If
there is a problem with another team, JJ and I just pick up the gear where
it is left and move on. If there is a problem on the way out for the clean
up team, we send another team then or the next day.

We have a pretty "deep bench" when it comes to this, with the big problem
being the expense and getting the time to do it. I love doing this , but it
is a lot of work. However, it all is worth it when we get the whole team
together and execute one of these and then go have dinner and hang out. You
just would not believe the orchestration of one of these events. The
logistics are overwhelming, and the teamwork unbelievable.

Maybe people think that JJ and I are getting all the fun while everyone else
is doing all the work. The real story is that nobody else wants to do what
JJ and I do once they get to the point where they would be capable of doing
it, for one reason or the other. However, they are all doing what they want
to do for the most part, and we have a steady stream of people learning and
progressing up the line. You would be amazed at how many divers we go
through who never make it that far, and then you would really be awed at the
stamina, skill and capabilities of those who have made it , set their own
limits and have been on this team a long time enjoying the diving.

I fell into it by taking my cavern course from Alton Hall who was a law
student at the time and a WKPP diver. He sent me to Parker Turner who was PD
at the time. Parker and I got to be good friends and I got moved up the line
fast due to others quitting and started diving with Bill Gavin. Gavin took
over as PD when Parker died and then turned it over to me when he had to
devote his full attention to the Navy's MK19 rebreather program. JJ , Casey
and I built up the team from there and trained everyone. Now those we
trained carry the ball.


----Original Message-----
From: David M. Burnworth [mailto:xlh883@ea*.ne*]
Sent: Sunday, August 19, 2001 9:02 PM
To: trey@ne*.co*; Techdiver@Aquanaut. Com
Subject: Re: New European Record at Doux de Coly by WKPP divers


Sounds like a good and safe way to do business, especially with the
redundant scooters.  Do you guys leave empty tanks and scooters behind on
dives or do you bring what you can back with you each dive.  I am really
intrigued by how you do business each dive and still keep interested in what
you are doing.

BTW, is this a full-time job for you and how the heck did you get started
doing it?

D Burnworth

----- Original Message -----
From: "Trey" <girvine@be*.ne*>
To: "David M. Burnworth" <xlh883@ea*.ne*>; "Techdiver@Aquanaut. Com"
<techdiver@aquanaut.com>
Sent: Sunday, August 19, 2001 3:06 PM
Subject: RE: New European Record at Doux de Coly by WKPP divers


>
> David, the thing you need most in these dives is the vehicle. We use
several
> , rather than let's ay one big one , for redundancy and we only burn them
> part of their capacity. We always have on us a scooter that will get us
back
> to another scooter which has enough time to get past one to the next
> scooter, etc., all permutations and combinations thereof. No scooter, no
get
> out of cave. JJ and I use ten between us. The bottles float ( heliox or
high
> trimix ) and we pull them in a chain. The scooters tow perfectly and you
can
> not feel them and they do not slow you down. The rest of the gear is
tucked
> away. The camera is snapped onto the scooter as a separate "Mini Mee "
body
> with the lights and camera built into the nose with a double sided
> separation plate between the real scooter and the camera. The rest of the
> gear is DIR rigged so allows us the slickness.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: David M. Burnworth [mailto:xlh883@ea*.ne*]
> Sent: Sunday, August 19, 2001 2:36 PM
> To: Techdiver@Aquanaut. Com
> Subject: Re: New European Record at Doux de Coly by WKPP divers
>
>
> That is a lot of gear you all carry, but I am sure it is all necessary or
> you wouldn't carry it.
> >
> > --
> > S
>
>

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