NEWSLETTER May 10,
2002
Members may submit articles
for future editions. This is issue no. 15
Visit club web site at https://www.angelfire.com/nj4/divers/
DA Dive Log
DA Dive Plan
Large Marine Animal Story
March DA Meeting Minutes,
Unapproved
DA Calendar
New DA Year as
of April 30, 2002
Thank you to
all members who have paid their $25 dues for the new DA year. This will help to
support all the fun events that are coming. A new waiver and release must also
be signed for 2002. If you still need to pay your 2002 dues, please make a
check out to Divers Anonymous and send it to:
Lara Padula
and
Ask Rich to mail you a special club waiver
for 2002. Or attend our next meeting to take care of both. Monday May 20, 730PM, Mario’s
DA 5th Annual
Pre-Memorial Day Dive-Picnic
Event: Divers
Anonymous 5th Annual Pre-Memorial Day Picnic and Dive
When: Saturday, May 18, 2002 / 8:00 a.m.
~ 2:00 p.m. (rain date Sunday,
May 19, 2002)
Where: Bay Head,
Who: All DA members, family, and
friends (divers and non-divers)
Activities: 1 or 2 shore dives to Bluffs Wreck (Creole) located a few hundred feet off shore. If surf conditions are bad, we may choose other nearby sheltered spot to dive.
Conditions: Depth approximately 16 feet and water
temperature expected 57F. Bring extra
weight to stay down and a dive flag as well.
Food: Food assignments will be arranged
by Tom, but we need to know the
number in your group. Contact Tom and he will give you an
assignment. The club
will provide lunch meats and paper goods.
Bring your own non-alcoholic
drinks.
What: Dive gear, beach chairs, rubber
horseshoe set, small table, blankets,
tarps, utensils, no
cooking allowed, kayaks, bathing suits, towels,
cameras, warm jackets
etc
Directions:
Take Garden State Parkway to exit 98. Take Rt. 34 south, which connects
with Rt. 35 south. Continue on Rt. 35 over the Manasquan River Bridge. Go
through the town of Point Pleasant Beach and into Bay Head. Turn left at Mott
Street and right onto East Avenue. Look for Chadwick Street. Park as close to
the corner of Chadwick and East Avenue as you can. There is a public sidewalk
access to the beach. In season, you need a beach tag, but out of season and
off-hours you can use the beach. Look for the DA group near the end of the
walkway.
Contact Tom Gormley at telephone number 973-759-2100
or
Peggy’s News
Peggy Bowen, Director, NJ Council of Diving Clubs
From
Capital City Dive Club, Trenton, NJ.
Their web site: CapitalCityDiveClub.org.
--------------------
April 30, 2002 Release # 02-150
CPSC Hotline: (800) 638-2772
CPSC Media Contact: Mark Ross (301) 504-0580 Ext. 1188
Sherwood Scuba Recall Hotline: (800) 469-9929
CPSC, Sherwood SCUBA LLC Announce Recall of Maximus Regulators
WASHINGTON, D.C. -
In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC),
Sherwood SCUBA LLC, of Irvine, Calif., is recalling about 14,000 Maximus SCUBA
regulators. The second stage orifices on these regulators can be cracked, bent
or broken. This can result in a loss of breathing air underwater.
Sherwood SCUBA has received seven reports of broken second stage orifices on
these regulators. Two of the regulators
broke during dives underwater. No injuries were reported.
The Maximus regulators included in this recall have the followingmodel, serial
numbers and connection types:
Model Number: SRB5600
Serial Number Range: K600001 through K611834
Description: Yoke Connection
Model Number:SRB5600D2
Serial Number Range: DK60000 through DK62000
Description: Din-Style Connection
Model Number: SRB5600CE
Serial Number Range: EK60001 through EK62000
Description: Yoke Connection
The serial numbers are laser marked on the top of the second stage case next to
the mouthpiece.
Authorized Sherwood SCUBA distributors and dealers nationwide sold these
regulators from January 1998 through November 2000 for about $580.
Consumers should stop using the recalled regulators immediately, and contact
their nearest authorized Sherwood retailer for a free repair.
For more information, call Sherwood SCUBA at (800) 469-9929 between 8 a.m. and
5 p.m. PT Monday through Friday, or go to the firm's web site at
www.sherwoodscuba.com
To see a picture of the recalled product(s) and/or to establish a link from
your web site to this press release on CPSC's web site, link to the following
address:
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml02/02150.html
For those that read their dive council minutes of
the March meeting and saw a comment by Glenn Arthur that Underwater Society of
America was supporting the UNESCO treaty (because of what Glenn heard said by
one of their people at the USOA meeting at BTS on that Friday) --
- - - -
This is the formal position on the UNESCO treaty sent in by Ray Tucker, the
Underwater Society of America Vice President.
(NOTE: Have your clubs vote on Jack Fullmer's 7 page letter on the
UNESCO treaty and make sure your rep is at the May 29th meeting to vote
on this issue! - a copy of the letter is in your meeting
minutes.)--------------
On a motion by Ray Tucker and second by Carol Rose, the following resolution
was adopted unanimously by the membership of The Underwater Society of America:
Whereas,
The Underwater Society of America has represented recreational sport
divers of the United States for 37 years.
The Underwater Society of America has worked to educate the public and
divers on the value of the of the Underwater Cultural Heritage United States,
The Underwater Society of America opposes any restriction on the Right of
Recreational Divers to access and explore the waters and Underwater Cultural
Heritage of the United States,
The Underwater Society of America has witnessed repeated examples of good
underwater archeology performed by trained and supervised recreational Divers,
The Underwater Society of America recognizes, as does the United States' bandoned Shipwreck Act, the diverse interests
(Archeological, Recreational , Ecological and Salvage), which need be balanced
in the management of underwater cultural resources,
The UNESCO Draft Convention on Protection of Underwater Cultural Resources
abandons the principles of Admiralty Law and of individual and corporate
property rights, And, Whereas the Draft UNESCO Convention on Protection of
Underwater Cultural Resources, embodies none of these principles in favor of
domination by archaeological interests, Be It Resolved,The Underwater Society
of America opposes the UNESCO Draft
Convention on Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage,
The Underwater Society of America urges that the United States of America not
become a signatory to this Convention, And, The Underwater Society of America
urges the United States of America works to include the diverse interests of
stakeholders in any international shipwreck management.
The Underwater Society of America
Passed at the January 1999 Annual Meeting
______________________________________________________________________
NEWS ALERT
April 23, 2002 (source Dan Berg’s Wreck Valley Report)
To:
Fellow Dive Industry Members
From:
Dick Long
This is an alert!
Our industry is about to lose ½ billion
dollars.
The U.S. Federal Government must dispose
of 400 surplus warships. We divers proved with the Yukon that the best way to
do that is to reef them. The taxpayer will get the cost back in twelve years.
But we won’t get any of them unless we
become proactive.
There are a number of government agencies
assigned to look after the interest of fishermen. The federal government is now
talking to these agencies about how and where to reef these ships. There is no
diver participation or representation. The result will be few if any of the
ships will be available for divers.
NOAA has released their national
artificial reef plan for comment. If no comment to include divers is made, we
will be left out.
Please go to the NOAA Web site. Look under
National Marine Fisheries.
Attached are my comments. We need a
massive mail in campaign or accept our fate.
Please ask everyone you can to comment.
This will be a long battle but the payoff
will be far bigger than any of us can imagine.
Thanks for your help.
Dick Long
_____________________________________________________________________
DA
Dive Log
Boat Dive Log
Boat Dive – Ben, Mike, Rich and club new member
Jamie Cacciatore boarded Sea Dwellers OL’ Salty II on Sunday May 5 for a 2-tank
boat dive. It was thought this charter
was going to the Mohawk for some artifact digging, but Caption Ted decided at
the dock the boat would be going to the Pinta for lobster hunting and training
of advanced students. In spite of the
last minute destination change, it was a beautiful day to be on the ocean as
the air temp was 65F, waves were less than 1 foot, the water was around 50F at
80 feet and vis was at least 15 feet with mild current at depth. Jamie was finishing her advanced training
with Cory from Sea Dwellers. Mike was
busy trying out his new underwater scooter and Ben and Rich were busy looking
for the Mohawk. All divers, except for
Rich, were diving dry, as his ordered drysuit was stuck in Lake Erie. It was a fun day of diving and upon existing
the ocean, Ted had soup and hot meat meal waiting to help warm up the divers –
not bad for $70 as long as it lasted.
“Tom,
Attached is a link to an article that appears in this months Outside
magazine about the Mohawk. Rich and I were there on the trip with the
rest of the usual Diversion II crowd with the author. It's an interesting
article
that you might want to forward to the other members of the club.
Ian”
http://outside.away.com/outside/adventure/200204/200204_out_there_1.adp
Shore Dive Log
Shore Dives – This past month club members Al, Ben,
Ian, Mike, Rich and Tom have been doing a lot of Thursday and Sunday drift
dives in the Shrewsbury River and Sandy Hook State Park. The water temperature has been running in the
low 50Fs and visibility has been from 1-6 feet depending upon daily
conditions. Rich and Tom have been doing
these dives for the past few months and have uncovered lots of older bottles
including fully intact blob top, torpedo, and other broken plates and bottles
thought to be over 100 years old. Al has
come up with a few great finds including a fully intact blob top torpedo
bottle, Ben has found some old milk bottles, and Ian has found some nice newer
glass bottles. Besides having fun
collecting old bottles, we also get to see marine life in this area such as
spider crabs, horseshoe crabs, shrimp and flounder. Club members are encouraged to contact Tom or
Rich if you want to join us for some shore diving.
May 5: Tom, Al, and Rick did a shore dive in
Mantoloking on one of the many unknown shore wrecks. Conditions were excellent for
an early May ocean shore dive. Waves were about 1 foot, visibility was around 4
feet, water temp was 56 degrees, skies were sunny, and a light wind was out of
the west. The trio of DA divers easily located the wreck and spent 50 minutes
scouting around the site. There were many blackfish, bergalls, and one blowfish
swimming on the wreck, which was covered by a blanket of tiny mussels. Various
types of crabs, and mollusks were found and coral, sponges, hydroids and
anenomies were also observed. Edith and Norva provided shore support. After the
dive the group went to Duffy’s for lunch. A good time was had by all.
Leatherback Sea Turtles Face Threat
By JESSICA BRICE
.c The Associated Press
PACIFIC GROVE, Calif. (AP) - Leatherback sea turtles
have outlived dinosaurs, but they may not survive humans, scientists warned
Tuesday.
The ancient giants, once plentiful in the Pacific
Ocean, have plummeted in numbers over the last 13 years from the hundreds of
thousands to an estimated 40,000 worldwide.
On Tuesday, scientists, marine researchers and
environmental activists gathered to brainstorm a strategy to stop the trend.
``We need to find some solutions, because we have
very few years left,'' said Todd Steiner, director of the Sea Turtle Restoration
Project, which is sponsoring the weeklong Leatherback International Survival
Conference.
Commercial fishing and development of coastal
property where the turtles lay eggs are the largest threats to their
population, said marine researcher Sylvia Earle.
Because they spend most of their time in water, it's
difficult to get an accurate count of the turtles, which eat jellyfish and can
grow up to 9 feet long and 2,000 pounds.
But in recent years, the number of turtles showing
up to the largest-known nesting beaches - mostly in Mexico, Costa Rica and
Malaysia - has dramatically declined.
Once, more than 1,300 female leatherbacks nested at
a beach along the central Pacific coast of Mexico, but now less than 70 have
been spotted making the yearly trip. In Malaysia, the number of turtles this
year has dropped to only four, and Costa Rica has seen similar declines.
One solution is to buy the nesting beaches to
prevent the development of hotels and resorts. But the true problem lies far
from the coastal shores, where many older turtles are caught in fishing lines.
The commercial swordfish industry is one of the most
serious threats to the turtles and the most difficult problem to solve, Steiner
said. Most swordfish are caught in international waters where it is difficult
to enforce regulations or restrictions.
On the Net:
________________________________________________________________________
April Meeting Minutes, (unapproved)
Divers Anonymous
Meeting Minutes
Next Meeting Note: Our next
meeting will be held on Monday May 20 at 7:30PM at Mario’s Restaurant.
DA Secretary, Richard Mullen,
respectfully submits April Divers Anonymous Monthly Meeting Minutes.
Divers
Anonymous Scuba Dive Club
Mario’s
Restaurant / 710 Van Houten Avenue, Clifton, NJ / (973) 777-1559
April 29, 2002 - Monthly Meeting Minutes
Members Present:
Richard
Bertoldi
Jamie
Cacciatore
Edith &
Rick Farmer
Ian Fryer
Norva & Tom Gormley
Ben Gualano
Mick Lacatena
Fredrick Marcus
Connie
& Leo Mazur
Richard Mullen
Al Nesterok
Lara Padula
Imre Papdi
Derrick Teel
Don Van Dyk
John Young
Guests
Present:
Christine
& Laura Menville
Chris
Rollins
The meeting
began at 7:30 p.m. / 19 active members were present.
Executive Committee Reports
Treasurer Report / Lara
Padula
Lara started accepting
2002 dues in the amount of $25.
Secretary Report
/ Rich Mullen
March meeting minutes
were contained within the March Monthly Newsletter, which were made available
to members by email and posted on the clubs web site. Members present accepted the filed minutes as
unread. NJCDC
Meeting Minutes are available to any interested members upon request.
Pizza and soda was available for $5+$2.
Vice President’s
Report / Al Nesterok
Al suggested the club’s Constitution to be amended –
refer to Legislative Committee report for details. Al is still looking into getting club banner
and taking orders for club hats, T-shirts and sweatshirts.
Special
Committees Reports
Legislative
Committee / Richard Mullen
Al suggested
the club’s Constitution to be amended to reflect definition of current year for
election of club officer eligibility and relax wording for allowing guests to
attend more than one meeting. Rich will
prepare draft proposed amendments and present it at the June meeting for
general discussion and possible adoption vote at the July meeting.
Local
Dive Committee / Ben, Tom, Rick and Rich
The dive season has arrived in NJ - contact any of
the committee members for dive info. Our
calendar includes several shore dives and some picnics.
Membership
Committee / Tom Gormley
Welcome to
new member Jamie Cacciatore and guests Christine &
Laura Menville and
Chris Rollins. We encourage you to invite friends and dive
buddies to become members.
Newsletter
Committee / Tom Gormley
Report all newsworthy articles and events to Tom
before the tenth of each month for possible inclusion into the Newsletter. The newsletter is now being posted on our
website.
Safety & Training Committee / Ian Fryer
Nothing new
to report.
Special
Event Committee / Rick Farmer
Congratulation
to Edith and Rick with the special announcement of expected child – way-to-go
newly weds.
Travel
Committee / Norva Gormley
Ben is
considering putting together another
Web
Site Committee / Rick Farmer
Visit club
web site at https://www.angelfire.com/nj4/divers/
This web site
offers Calendar of Events, Newsletters, Scuba Links and other cool stuff.
If members
want to post any timely club or scuba related activities they are encouraged to
use email group mailing. Members are
reminded to use care in protecting each others private email address and should
not send email to members who request not to receive such group mailings.
Old Business
New
Business
Nothing new to report.
Guest
Speaker
Rich gave brief show and
tell presentation of sample of bottles that club members have been recently
collecting doing local beach dives. Al,
Ben, Ian, Rich and Tom have all uncovered lots of older bottles including fully
intact blob top, torpedo, and other type bottles thought to be over 100 years
old. Club members are encouraged to come
out and join the fun. Contact Tom or
Rich for details.
Elections
Elections were held with the following results:
President: Tom
Gormley
Vice President: Al
Nesterok
Secretary: Richard
Mullen
Treasurer: Lara
Padula
Divers Anonymous
Secretary, Richard Mullen, submits minutes
2002 Calendar
2002
Divers Anonymous Calendar 2002
January 2002
·
1/12 - DA Holiday Party, 8:00 pm, San Carlo
Rest., ·
1/14 – DA Planning Meeting, 7PM, 6 Bros Diner, Rt 46 ·
1/28 - Dive Club Meeting, Featured Speaker: Capt Ted Massotti, How to
become rebreather certified |
February 2002
§
2/16 Third Annual DA Ski Day §
2/17 Tom’s River Flea Market §
2/25 - Dive Club Meeting |
March 2002
·
3/3 NYC Aquarium Trip ·
3/20 Pool Check Out Dive, ·
Beneath the Sea 3/22, 23, 24 ·
Dive Club Meeting 3/25 |
April 2002
·
April 14 ·
4/29 - Dive Club Meeting Annual
Dues & Officer Elections
|
May 2002
·
5/18 - Memorial Day Picnic and Dive ·
5/20 - Dive Club Meeting ·
Boat Diving |
June 2002
·
6/8 Shark River Inlet Dive ·
6/16 Boat Diving Scuba Too ·
6/24 - Dive Club Meeting ·
6/30 Boat diving Scuba Too Mohawk Trip |
July 2002
·
7/7 Dual Wrecks, ·
7/14 Boat Dive Scuba Too ·
7/27 & 28 Dutch Springs Camping and Dive Weekend ·
7/29 - Dive Club Meeting ·
Boat Diving |
August 2002
·
8/4 , 8/18 Scuba Too Boat Dives ·
8/10 Night Dive at Shark River Inlet & Sat Night Out ·
DA Day at Great Adventure ·
8/26 - Dive Club Meeting ·
Boat Diving |
September 2002
·
Labor Day Picnic & Dive, Sun, 9/1, 8AM ·
9/8 Boat Diving Scuba Too Mohawk Trip ·
9/22-23 Long Island Diving ·
9/30 - Dive Club Meeting ·
Boat Diving |
|
October 2002 ·
10/27 Halloween Dive ·
Boat Diving ·
10/28 Dive Club Meeting |
November 2002
·
11/17 Fifth Annual Equipment Maintenance Workshop ·
11/25 Dive Club Meeting |
December 2002
·
12/16 – Dive Club Meeting 2nd
Annual Artifact & Photo Exhibit and Dive Story Contest ·
Happy Holidays |
Pink
Highlighted Events are supported by DA dues: food, prizes, subsidized admission
etc.