Absolutely perfect.  only thing you left out is that the operator needs to
kill then engines while the divers are at the boat. If the boat does not
have risers to where it will not hydrostatically lock, then dive off a boat
that does. If you think there will be an issue locating the wreck, use a
freediving float on a cave reel so you can scooter to find it. The float
provides little resistance, even at 400 feet, and the current will not pull
it down when you tie it off to the wreck. I also throw in a pelican hook
with the grapple and ball act  ( a good one is about 70 bucks) to
disconnect if the current changes or gets too vicious while on the wreck.
The Gulf steam runs over 3 knots, and sometimes hits 4 mph, and can
backeddy in a heartbeat.  This is similar to the rigs used in tuna fishing
while chumming - the anchor is down , but the boat is offset from it with a
tag line to a float ball. There is a pelican hook on the bow with a trigger
line running to the cockpit. When you hook up, the captain starts the
engines and the mate pulls the trigger cord, releasing the boat so the fish
can be caught.

I am absolutely amazed at the inbreeding of stupidity that permeates all of
NE wreck diving. Apparently, these characters are very busy little beavers
writing to people privately telling them DIR will not work in the NE (
translation - they don't get it, and don't have the balls to make asses of
themselves arguing it , other than the "Tongue of the Ocean").


-----Original Message-----
From: Joe [mailto:joe@po*.co*]
Sent: Wednesday, July 24, 2002 11:18 PM
To: mat.voss@t-*.de*; Capt JT
Cc: Doug Chapman; techdiver@aquanaut.com
Subject: Re: Nova Tech Dive Report 7/21/02 & Lessons Learned


Hi Matthias:

We use a method similar to that described by Doug with a few minor changes.

The way we have been doing it here (So. Fla.) is to drop the team with two
men tending the line.  We use a small grapple that is held by the first man
in.  The 2nd man stays about 30 or so feet above him and gathers line to
feed the man with the grapple so it is not taught when he ties in.  If the
current takes the line fast we use the grapple to snag the wreck.
Otherwise, we wrap the chain so the hook is easier to free at the end of the
dive.  The rest of the team follows the lead of these two.

When the dive is over, two men free the hook after verifying everyone is on
the line.  One man frees it and the other stands by to assist if necessary.
As soon as the hook (or chain or whatever) is freed the man standing by
ascends ahead of the man swimming or scootering the hook and goes about 100'
off the bottom (or whatever depth is appropriate for the given dive) and
ties a loop in the line.  The hook is then fowled in it.  This eliminates
any chance of  it snagging something on the bottom.  The divers then deco
following the float ball, current is no longer an issue and the boat can
follow at a safe distance.

To pick up divers, the captain motors into the current, lines up with the
diver and puts the boat in neutral, allowing the boat to drift into the
diver.  If he misses, (rare) he continues to drift until he is clear and
then motors up current to try again.

In my opinion, live boating is the only way to dive in a current and the
preferred way to dive anywhere.  If you are not live boating, a chase boat
is an absolute necessity.  Another caveat is that the divers must coordinate
their schedules so they finish the dives at about the same time.  Otherwise
accurate  "head" counts are next to impossible and the whole deco turns into
a major *CF* with divers floating all over the place.

In my opinion, tying the boat into the wreck is the worst and most dangerous
way to dive and should never be done unless you have no choice.  In that
instance, a chase boat is a must.

To answer your questions, fowling the hook eliminates the problem of the
line catching again.  All maneuvers are done in buddy teams.  Two men set
the hook and two men free it.  The descending divers hold the hook and
chain.  Trouble equalizing is not an issue.  You would pass the hook to your
buddy and fall back to 2nd position.  If you still had trouble, another team
member would take 2nd position and you would remain on the line until you
could descend.

I hope this helps.

Regards.

Joe Citelli


----- Original Message -----
From: "Matthias Voss" <mat.voss@t-*.de*>
To: "Capt JT" <captjt@mi*.co*>
Cc: "Doug Chapman" <dougch@ea*.ne*>; <techdiver@aquanaut.com>
Sent: Wednesday, July 24, 2002 10:19 AM
Subject: Re: Nova Tech Dive Report 7/21/02 & Lessons Learned


> Nice one.
> What do you do if the line catches again on the ground ?
> If I understand correctly, this "one diver with the chain end", will he
> have a buddy ? Does he hold to the end, or just follow ? In case b)
> everyone can follow. In case a ) he is obviously more negtive than than
> the rest. What, if he has trouble equalizing ?
> Maybe I did not understand the full context, so please feel deliberate
> to explain a bit more.
> regards
> Matthias
>
> >
> > > Just for thought:
> > > Upline with sufficient but not exceessive scope, redundant surface
> > > floats, and bottom chain with snap/hook. Down rig with divers is
> > > dropped ahead of wreck to drift into wreck (one diver in team drops
> > > with the chain end). On end of dive last divers detach chain from
> > > wreck and toss into sand. Proceed up line. Now the line is drifting
> > > with the current with a slight bottom drag from the chain. No flag
> > > flying. No issues. Relaxing. The boat is always free to maneuver. If
> > > too crowded on line, you can hover alongside or pop a lift bag
> > > nearby. Will still drift the same as main upline with a slight
> > > backpeddle to compensate for chain drag on main upline. The captain
> > > on the boat knows where everyone is; can drop a safety diver on you
> > > if appropriate and recover used stages. Its a piece of cake and
> > > works well in raging currents like we can have in the gulf stream
> > > (and with close to shore shipping as well). A slight mod on deep
> > > stuff (350+) though, and you need a captain with a clue.
> > >
> > > My two cents,
> > > Doug
> > >
> >
> > "You can't learn to dive on the net, sooner or later you have to get
> > in the water"
> > Your Guide to Great Wreck Diving along the East Coast & more
> >  Web Site  http://www.capt-jt.com/
> > Email     captjt@mi*.co*
> --
> Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@aquanaut.com'.
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>
>

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