Weekly Catch Up!

On Friday we had our annual Christmas meal, it was a fantastic event and was great to catch up with everybody, Drinks were continuously poured whilst Elvis gave us a treat....okay so Elvis wasn't so popular. But we all have a wonderful night of laughter, fun and good food! Our staff have put in so much hard work this year and have changed the lives of many people. From instructors to rescue divers to kit boys to shore support, every member of our pod is valued and appreciated. They give their spare time to teach hundreds of people how to dive. It's a pleasure to work with each one of them. We also welcome divers, friends and partners to these events.

This week has been very busy in terms of pool nights! We were very busy with ongoing courses and DSD's. Things will start to get quieter soon so it's the perfect opportunity to jump in and get wet. We  had a new Miflex delivery on Wednesday which means we're fully stocked until the end of the year! We also took even more vouchers to print on Wednesday as so many people have been interested! It looks like we'll have a lot of new divers next year. This year we've had more specialty courses than Open Water courses which means that a lot of our divers have been coming back. We think this is fantastic and we'd like to hear about your experience with us!

On Thursday & Friday, we were assembling/dissembling a lot of kit & checking for O ring bursts as well as our usual checks! We also out together some dry suit regulators which have a green hose to identify them. We then went through each BCD and checked them. Then we took apart all of the little masks, cleaned the lenses and left the rubber to soak to get rid of all the dirt that had built up. We like all of our kit to be clean, colour coded and organised. We then had about 60 cylinders ready to pump! this takes a few hours as the compressor needs to rest every so often. 

On the weekend, the wonderful Patricia completed Dive 1 & 2 of her Open Water course! She wanted to get it done in time for her holiday where she'll be diving with sharks! She's been having two pool sessions a week with us as well as extra theory and has been a lovely student despite being very anxious to begin with! She's shown real confidence and perseverance and will be qualifying this weekend. Good luck Patricia!!

Weekly Catch Up!

This week has been very busy. We've had James in from Scubapro showing us the newest products and revealing some big changes! As well as taking our order, James was teaching Janie the difference between diaphragm regulators and piston regulators and how they work. It was very educational for her as she often fixes small regulator problems but hadn't got a solid knowledge on first stages.  We have now reduced the Seawing Nova fins to £125! In black, blue, white, pink and purple.

Today, we want to take the opportunity to tell you about the dangers of storing kit carelessly over the winter period. We're going to show you some TRUE stories from divers we know.

"I was water often so I never got my BCD serviced. It had always worked perfectly and I didn't see a reason to pay somebody to tell me that my BCD was fine. Little did I know that not spending £25 on a service, could've killed me. For the sake of £25, I endangered the lives of my friends and myself. We were diving a wreck, entering negatively buoyant. It wasn't my first time, I had years of experience doing this so I didn't think anything of it. As we jumped in off of the boat, I started to inflate my BCD but no air was going in. I thought then that I was dead. I was terrified. I kicked and kicked, trying to get somewhere, anywhere. It wasn't working. I got further down, 10 meters, 20 meters, 30 meters.... I saw my buddy struggling to help me and I could tell what he was thinking, he was going to leave me. I shouted NO in my head, he couldn't leave me. At 56 meters, my buddy caught me and helped me get to the surface SAFELY. Only when we got onto the boat did I realize, he put his own life at risk, to save mine. Tears started flooding. He opened my dump valve and it was clogged with dirt and gunk. It turn out that leaving your BCD in a box in the garage for 4 months over winter each year, doesn't class as storing it. I had nearly died and potentially killed my buddy because I couldn't be bothered to clean it, service it or store it properly"

"My dry suit fitted me perfectly, Except the boots were a bit too big. I couldn't dive last year for about 6 months because of a medical problem and then it got to cold. So after getting the Christmas decorations down, I'd decided to store my dive kit in the loft. Including my dry suit that was still wet in the bag. It was fairly cold in the loft so I guessed it would dry eventually and put it to the back of my mind. Then my first dive of this year was at Stoney Cove, I got my kit down, threw it in the car and left. Then whilst diving at 35m, my inflator valve on the dry suit jammed. It was inflating more and more. Then the cuff release got partially jammed. So I grabbed the dump valve on my BCD and emptied the tiniest bit of air that was in there. I rigorously shook my arm in an attempt to get the air out. One of my buddies grabbed my fins and held me down whilst I was doing this. After the panic wore off slightly, I disconnected the inflator valve from my dry suit and kept shaking my arm. I eventually managed to get back down to my buddies who looked worried. Locking arms with the other buddy, we ascended slowly, did our safety stop then we reached the surface slowly. I was probably lectured for about an hour on how to look after kit. I never tempt fate again anymore. My kit is in immaculate condition. But that dive could have been a lot worse and would have been if it wasn't for my buddies and a bit of quick thinking."

Weekly Catch Up!

This week has been all about the preparation for the winter months and new year. We've made our final arrangements for the annual Christmas meal which is just two weeks away! We've been getting more stock in for those must-have Christmas gifts and we've got the heater out because Janie had icicles growing from her nose!

Monday started as usual with a lot of kit to wash, check, sort and put away. It's surprising how time consuming it can be. Gary was mentoring in the afternoon after which he started designing our new vouchers and sent them to print. We're now selling vouchers for all occasions which means you can give a unique gift as well as finding new dive buddies. 

On Tuesday we met with The Jupiter Centre which is a specialist learning centre. They're doing very well in their Open Water course and show extreme enthusiasm at every lesson. We are increasingly seeing growth in each student and it is fantastic to see them growing in confidence too.  Then we had our pool night! It was very busy with three Open Water courses, several DSD's and a lot of people jumping in for a play. 

Wednesday was a prime opportunity to talk to Scuba Travel about our upcoming trips in 2016. We've now finalized all of the details for the liveaboard in April. We'll be staying on The Whirlwind, a beautiful boat that has been voted "Liveaboard Of The Year" at Diver awards. We'll be diving Ras Muhamed, Abu Nuhas & Thistlegorm. As well as many other wrecks and reefs. Kit is available to hire from us and everything is booked through Scuba Travel. This trip is fantastic for divers of all levels. 

Thursday entailed getting ready for the SWF pool night! It was a very eventful night as the Seal team were up to their usual mischief. Whilst we started a new Open Water course as well as doing Dive Master training. We also had Hollie in for a play, she was very nervous when she first started her course but with Carole's help, she has slowly grown confidence. She is now topping up her skills and refreshing her memory before qualifying. This is something we advise as even the most professional divers forget things after not being in the water for a while. 

On Friday, we were preparing kit for the weekend as usual however a few old friends popped in to say hello which is always great. After getting all of the kit ready, we had a good sort through the container, making sure we had enough gloves, hoods and boots to keep us warm through the winter months.

On Saturday and Sunday we had Hollie qualifying as an Open Water diver as well as Lewis and Connor doing their Drysuit course. The water is getting a little bit colder but we're not stopping yet! If you want to join us at Nemes this weekend, you know what to do!

Weekly Catch Up!

Good evening to all of our blog readers!

This week has been mostly about kit. Getting more stock in, reducing prices on sale items (make sure to visit us for a bit of Christmas shopping!) , washing kit from the salty Farne Islands. It's been a fantastic year so far and we've still got plenty of diving to do before the year is over.

Monday and Tuesday were definitely kit based days as all of the kit needs to be checked for damage after it has been used. We even do this after pool use as one of our many motto's' is "look after your kit and your kit will look after you". We also had The Jupiter Centre in on Tuesday afternoon doing dive 2. They were very proud of what they accomplished during their time in the pool. Then we had our pool night! Lots of people turned up which meant that Janie had a lot of kit checks and tidying up to do on Wednesday!

Thursday was interesting as following the mentoring that Gary does at The Basildon Academy, we were recruiting a pupil for work experience. This gives the pupil a prime opportunity to experience work life, this is something that schools are yet to teach pupils as getting qualifications is a huge focal point. However the pupil will be joining us on a weekly basis until the end of the year. They will learn about administration, equipment, office skills and communication.  The rest of the day was used to prepare kit for the pool night at SWF. Where we carried on with the Seal Team and Open Water courses as well as a few DSD's.

On Friday we were preparing all of the kit for the weekend. We also had a lot of admin to catch up with! As well as organizing DIVE FEST. This is an event held annually for both newly qualified and professional divers. It's a great communal event with some fantastic diving and great food!! We've already got a few names down so to book your boat diving, give the centre a call ASAP!

Rhonda & co were at Nemes on Saturday and Sunday with Robin who completed her Drysuit & Open water. Abi and Millie were also there completing the first part of their Open Water course. 

As well as this, Ian H & co were at Chepstow with Connor and Lewis completing their Deep diver specialty. They hope to go travelling next year and will be using this qualification to their advantage. 

Weekly blog: Guest blogger- Danni Ives!

Having qualified as an open water diver in August last year, I decided it was time for my first diving trip, and what better one to do first than the Farne Islands. First I had to complete my dry suit course, which I thought I would not like due to the restriction of the suits, but I was surprised by how comfortable they can be once they are properly fitted to you. I found it difficult at first to control my buoyancy with the dry suit, but after some practice I got used to it. I was not sure what to expect as it was my first boat trip, and my first diving trip. I had also never dived in salt water in a dry suit before so this weekend was a lot of first times for me!

Our dive group were amazing, some I had already met, but some I had not. They were all so friendly and helpful, as they knew I was a very new diver and needed more than a little guidance. We stayed at the B&B our skipper and his family owned which was a lovely, clean, cosy place and perfect for what we needed. It was very close to the harbour too so easy to get to.

Our first day diving was a big learning curve. Learning how to get our kit together and secure it safely, the general boat rules, and safe diving in the sea. On my first dive I really struggled with buoyancy issues due to salt water diving, despite already adding extra weight. Rhonda had the great idea of adding rocks to my BCD, and she soon had me on the bottom playing with the seals. It was such an amazing experience, watching them play and swim so well for their size. The seals appeared as soon as we entered the water! They were very nosy, and were soon chewing on my fins and nudging me. My brother was very confident diving, and did his first 19 meter dive.

Our skippers were fantastic, we felt so safe with them and they tried their hardest to get us the best diving, and even gave me tips on how to manage my sea sickness. The islands seemed to cater for everyone, there were deeper areas for divers wanting to explore, and there were shallow parts for divers wanting to see seals without the depth. I learnt so much in just two days in the Farne Islands, it has made me a better and more confident diver, and it is certainly a trip I will be making again in the future!

Weekly Catch Up!

It's been a busy week for all of Orca. On the weekend we had Nimrod & Jasmine qualifying as Open Water divers, Danni and Ben qualifying as Dry suit divers and Fred, Travis, Laurynas and Arron qualifying as Advanced Open Water divers. There was a huge effort from both students and staff.

Monday and Tuesday entailed a lot of soggy kit being washed,checked and put away. We were in the deep pool on Tuesday with some more DSD's from Writtle college, who will be going on a trip to Egypt next year with us. We also had a new Open Water course starting plus a few people getting in to test their skills before heading up to the Farne islands!

On Wednesday, Janie was putting away all of the kit  whilst Gary was in The Basildon Upper Academy talking to the pupils about self-esteem and his own experiences. Gary mentors in this school every day and often holds these events. Several pupils had thanked Gary and said that his talk helped them to understand a lot about themselves and their affect on others.

Thursday was a very busy day with customers hiring kit for the weekend. We also had to get kit ready for the pool night at South Woodham Ferrers. The Seal Team carried on as usual with one Open Water course and a few swimmers. This was a great opportunity for our trainee Dive Masters to get in and practice some skills as there was not many people in the water. It also meant that they could watch the instructors teach and learn their particular teaching methods.

Friday consisted of putting away kit and getting kit ready for people heading up to the Farne Islands. Everybody was very excited even though they had a long 6 hour drive! Everybody arrived safely and met for dinner.They then headed to bed for an early night!

Saturday and Sunday were fantastic for those up in the Farne Islands despite testing weather conditions on Saturday resulting in us only doing 1 dive. Everybody enjoyed themselves and commented on the great atmosphere. Sovereign Divers are wonderful and ensured that everybody was happy. Lots of seals were spotted as well as, crabs, lobsters, nudibranches, starfish, sun-starfish and lots more! We also had Jamie down at Nemes with Emily and Heather doing their navigation dive in order to qualify as Advanced Open Water divers. They were then joined by, Zoe, Faith and Angelina who wanted to log up some dives! The girls were all from last years Writtle trip and have continued diving with us since, some of which are now Rescue divers!!

Gary and Ian S were also in RAF Lakenheath talking to some staff from the US Airforce about running an Open Water course with them next year. It was great to talk to all of the staff and get to know them. We look forward to working with them in the future

We are currently doing a Christmas promotion! Buy a Suunto Zoop in any colour and get a FREE compass! For more information, call the centre.

Weekly Catch Up!

On Monday, Gary met with Danny Ayling from Anglia Ruskin University to discuss setting up a date for the students to complete some DSD's. We are looking forward to the dive society expanding and encouraging new people to dive!

Then on Tuesday, we had students from Writtle College completing their DSDs, before signing up for a trip to Egypt next year. Joe & Steve S. went through the briefing with them, and although a few were quite nervous, they all enjoyed it and are hoping to complete an Open Water courses. We also had Nick taking a new Open Water course with 3 new students.

Gary & Janie met on Wednesday with Justin - the representative for Atomic Aquatics. Justin showed us a lot of new stock and put in an order for snorkels, masks, BCD's, gloves and hoods! We now have the Zeagle Zena BCD - which is made by women, for women. It is a wing jacket that has a removable front panel making it easier for transitioning from a pool BCD to an open water BCD, as you can buy panels in multiple sizes and colours, but they will all fit the same BCD.

We also have the Zeagle Express Tech Deluxe which is a men's wing BCD. It's a one-size-fits-all design, with the no sewn trim so that you can adjust the length to your preference and cut it to the required length.

Zeagle Zena BCD

Zeagle Express Tech Deluxe

On Thursday we loaded up lots of kit in the truck for South Woodham Ferrers, as we had a busy night. Lucy came to do Confined Dives 4 & 5 of her Open Water course, to get ready for the weekend. We also had the Seal Team carrying on from the previous week, plus a few DSD's and our usual Dive Master Trainees practicing their swims.

Friday was quite a busy day down at the centre, as we had friends popping in for a chat, a theory lesson, and we had to get prepared for the weekend! This meant setting up weight belts and getting other kit ready for students leaving on Friday night and Saturday morning.

On Saturday Gill took a group down to Gildenburgh to start their Advanced Open Water with the assistance of Joe. They all did very well and are planning on completing the course next weekend! We also had Rhonda and Sharon doing an Open Water course and a Wreck speciality. They were then joined by Marc & Janie on the Sunday who helped out too. Lucy did very well in completing her Open Water as well as Lewis and Connor, who are now fully trained wreck divers. Janie also completed her Deep diver speciality. Everybody had a great weekend, and congratulations to everyone!

Weekly Catch Up!

Just a quick reminder that there are still places left if you want to come to the Christmas Party at Three Rivers on November 27th!

In the deep pool this week, Dave was working with the trainee Dive Masters, who had their Knowledge Review and practised Kit Exchange, which proved to be a lot harder than everyone originally thought! We also had four students in for their Dry Suit orientation, including father and son, Andy and Luke. Dad (Andy) quickly found out that if you vent through the wrist seal in an emergency situation, you get extremely wet! We also had a new SEAL Team start on Thursday night with Gill in the South Woodham Ferrers pool!

Over the weekend, we were once again very, very busy! On Saturday we Gill and Rhonda went to Nemes with students who were completing dives 1, 2 and 3, and were also joined by Andy and Luke, who were completing Dry Suit Dives 1 and 2. Congratulations for completing the course!

On Sunday, Gill and Rhonda went back to Nemes with Races and Henry to complete Dive 4, as well as Nimrod and Jasmine who were completing Dives 1 and 2! Gary also went to Nemes on Sunday to have a ‘bimble’ around the lake with father and son, Dave and Travis.

This weekend we are at Stoney Cove Saturday and Sunday, Gildenburgh on Saturday and Nemes on Sunday, so if any staff can help, please get in touch with Gary or the dive centre! Also, if any Trainee Dive Masters want to do their Deep Diver Scenario for their Dive Master Course, this can be done at Stoney Cove this weekend!

Weekly Catch Up!

We had our 1000 'like' on Facebook this week, from Arron Steward, who won an Advanced Open Water course! So keep your eye out in the future for some more possibilities to win something special! 

On Tuesday we had another deep pool night as per usual, with Open Water, DSDs, Scuba Review and Dry Suit courses all running all through the evening. Throughout Wednesday and Thursday, Gary, Rhonda and Carol went to Nemes to work with students from Basildon Academy, who all completed their PADI Open Water courses over the two days! Whilst there, one of the students completed three dives towards his Advanced Open Water Course as well!

It was a quiet Thursday evening at SWF pool, as we are waiting for new courses to begin in upcoming weeks, so we used this opportunity for the trainee Dive Masters to master their skills in the water. And finally on Friday night, Rhonda taught an Enriched Air Course in the dive centre as Kelly is going away overseas, and wanted to take advantage of the free nitrox on board the liveaboard she will be staying on!

We had a very busy weekend! Ian S. took an EFR course on Saturday morning for six students, who then on the Sunday, went to open water for their Rescue Course, while Gary was working with three open water students on their theory on Saturday morning.

At the same time, Rhonda was working with Dani on her Open Water qualifying dives. While Dani was doing her dives, her partner Andy took advantage to have a couple of dives on Saturday with Richard, one of our trainee Dive Masters, and again on Sunday with Gary.

The students from our last rescue course, had rescheduled a dry dive at Whipps Cross, which was on Saturday. Firstly they were all given a talk on Decompression Illness (DCI - what happens to your body when you're surfacing from a dive), Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO - a hole in the heart) and Barotrauma (injury caused by change in air pressure). Everyone was then asked to change into 100% cotton clothing before they sat in the chamber and the air was compressed. This is to make you feel as though you are 40m deep. When the compression was decreased to seem 9metres deep, you are then given pure oxygen to breathe from. Throughout the time spent in the chamber, they were given lots of tests to show their reactions and the differences chemicals can make to the body at different pressures. Everyone thought it was very interesting and educational, but a lot of fun too!

And we're back!

Sorry for the lack in blog posts over the past few weeks, it's been an extremely busy summer for Orca Scuba Diving Academy and the staff!

First of all, we know it's only September, but we would like to mention our upcoming Christmas Party, which is open to everyone! This year we will be going to Three Rivers Golf & Country Club, for a Las Vegas themed night, with drinks and meal included! It is on Friday 27th November, and will be £45pp. If you want to join us, you will need to pay us a £10 deposit by Saturday 3rd October and the remaining needs to be paid in full by Friday 23rd October. The following is included in the price:

• Evening commences at 7:30pm
• Pre-dinner reception drinks
• Four Course Christmas dinner
• Free House bar open 10pm - 12.00am
• Christmas Road show Disco

For any information, call the centre on 01268 520111 / 07960 148520.

The summer started off with a fantastic trip to the Red Sea, where we stayed on the liveaboard Asmaa, which is part of the Emperor fleet, sailing out of Hamata and heading to St. John's via Fury Shoals. With a complete cross section of divers on board, with newly qualified advanced divers to instructors, this trip was suitable for all levels. Orca took up half the boat, but we were lucky that the other half was full of great people, as this can sometimes be a concern for people who go on holiday by themselves and are apprehensive of who they may be sharing their time with! There was lots of wall diving, shallow reef diving, with all kinds of marine life to be seen. One of the highlights of the trip, was Gary's ultraviolet torch for night diving. After seeing it on TV, Gary, who loves scuba gadgets, managed to get hold of one for the trip, and it lived up to his expectations!

On returning from the Red Sea, there was no time to rest for the Orca Team, as we carried on our busy training schedule. With numerous courses over the summer, Orca has had a very busy year so far with over 50 Open Water, over 35 continuing education, over 70 Speciality Courses and over 400 DSDs! And we still have ongoing courses and plenty of time for anyone to complete by the end of the season (around November), just give the centre a call and we will fit you in!

Now the summer holidays are over, Gary is back working in local secondary schools, where he mentors some of the children. He will also be starting an after school club at Basildon Academy in after October half term, where he will be running PADI Open Water Courses for those that attend. We have also started planning next year's Writtle College trip back to Egypt.

Over the past weekend, we had our busiest weekend of the year so far with Rhonda at Nemes completing Open Water dives with Travis and Robin. At the same time, we welcomed back Ian Syvyer, who has been away working with other commitments, and over the weekend he taught the PADI Rescue Diver course. Whilst this was happening, Nick was completing a confined open water course, and Gary was working with a mum and daughter on Sunday, who were having a Dry Suit Orientation before their upcoming open water dive. Gary was also working with Travis, practising his Search and Recovery skills for his Advanced Open Water Course, and finally working with Tiffany and Michael, who work at a US Airforce Base, and were completing a DSD. Gary is hoping to visit the base soon, so the pair can complete a PADI Open Water Course.

Next year we have two very exciting trips, which are sure to book up fast! So to book or to find out any information, don't hesitate to contact Gary on either number mentioned above.

Sunday catch up

As mentioned in our last blog, we were very busy last weekend at Stoney Cove, Nemes and Gildenburgh.

On Saturday, Rhonda was at Nemes with Paul and Robyn who were completing dives for their Advanced Open Water and Open Water respectively.  Paul then carried his journey onward to Gildenburgh Lake on Sunday to complete the deep aspects of his Advanced course.

Ian was busy at Stoney Cove teaching Dan his Advanced Open Water course and also completed his Deep speciality and also his Search and Recovery speciality. 

So all in all it was a very successful weekend with 1 new Open Water diver, 2 Advanced Open Water divers, 4 with their new Deep Speciality certification and 3 having completed their Search and Recovery Specialities. 

On Tuesday, we had a return visit from Grapevine.  They are a charity who provide recreational and educational activities for adults with learning disabilities in Essex. All of the students had a great time doing try dives at Moulsham High School's pool.  It was a great opportunity for us to be able to help out people who would not normally have access to this type of activity, we look forward to seeing you all again next year.  Finally a big thank you to Nicole for helping out Gary. 

The deep pool on Tuesday night was extremely busy.  Jamie started a new rescue course, Rhonda continued with her Open Water course and Gill completed her Open Water course.  There was also dry suit training, DSDs and people in for a play. 

On Wednesday, we were at South Woodham Ferrers Leisure centre doing Bubble Maker courses and DSDs.  These were organised through the summer holiday programme run by Chelmsford Borough Council.  It was then a trip back to the dive centre to sort and organise kit for Thursday night. 

Thursday night we were back at South Woodham Leisure centre. Gary started a Junior Open Water course, Rhonda worked on a new Open Water course and Gill took the DSD students.  Jamie worked with Courtney, who was then off to open water on Friday.  Jamie also took Bernie to finish her Open Water course. Glad to say that Bernie completed her course and Courtney finished dives one and two. 

Rhonda was out all weekend at Nemes with Open Water students; Ryan, Becki, Robyn and Spud. On Sunday, Kate joined Rhonda to finish off her drysuit course. 

The Farne islands is once again proving popular. There have been 4 people booked on the boat out of 12 already! So get in touch quick if you want to come along. 

We are also going to Swanage on the 22nd and 23rd August.  If you want to go or need more information please get in touch with the shop.