By ray fuoto (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #1) on Sunday, November 16, 2008 - 10:20 pm: |
That name recently came up and rekindled a dive of 35 years ago. Using single 72's on our backs and others planted at different points along the dropoff for decompression, we dove this wreck with a bottom time of 15 minutes. Can only be described as stupid, scary but very exciting. No decom meters in those days. Outfitted in cut off jeans, oil filled depth guage, oral fill b.c. and a knife. One diver had a watch and was our leader and commander. God was looking out for us.
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By TWO ROLLS is not enough in Virginia (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #9195) on Sunday, November 16, 2008 - 10:30 pm: |
I would say so!! I'd like to have seen what you saw back then though!
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By ray fuoto (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #2) on Sunday, November 16, 2008 - 11:04 pm: |
the wreck was virtually untouched. Many artifacts lying loosely about. Too narced to think about picking anything up. one diver started down the deck not realizing he was going deeper then the plan. this was cause to blow our tables as we persued him below the depth we had planned. spent 2 hours decompressing. Being as i don't know what the wreck looks like today its hard to define its condition then. To me it was pristine. My usual haunts were the wrecks in the mud hole off new jersy were vis is rather like b&w. Bonaire is technicolor. I suffered severe ear damage as a result of that dive. We broke a lot of rules. My regrets are we had no camera. Capt. Don was the one who turned us on to the wreck. I don't think many knew of it back then. I did cruise through the wheel house and recall the binacle w/ nav. tools etc. The deck was torn open and cargo spilled out. also an escourt of a large baracuda.
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By Vince DePietro (Bonaire Beach Condo ) (Extraordinary BonaireTalker - Post #1763) on Monday, November 17, 2008 - 7:28 am: |
Ray.Welcome to the board. Fortunately for all of us, those days of crazy diving, using equipment which today would only be described as primitive are long long gone!
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By Marcus L. Barnes (Extraordinary BonaireTalker - Post #1073) on Monday, November 17, 2008 - 12:05 pm: |
Whoa. I read another story about of couple of guys who did the Wind Jammer with independent doubles on air for about 12 minutes of bottom time. I bet the fish were talking to you guys and them. DIR would definately not approve.
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By ray fuoto (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #3) on Monday, November 17, 2008 - 4:51 pm: |
hey Vince,It was all we had back then. We din't think it was that crazy as diving like that was pretty much the norm. I'm sure that 30 years from now they will be saying the same about you! Hooray for progress!!! Ray
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By ray fuoto (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #4) on Monday, November 17, 2008 - 4:59 pm: |
There was 4 of us on that dive. One of the guys was a doctor from Fla. who never went below 30 ft. at that time, he had some major ones. The other 3 of us routinely dove in N.J. waters on wrecks between 120 and 160. We belonged to a club called the Golden Sharks, out of Seaford L.I., N.Y. Anyone out there old enough to have heard of them.
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By Vince DePietro (Bonaire Beach Condo ) (Extraordinary BonaireTalker - Post #1764) on Monday, November 17, 2008 - 5:33 pm: |
Ray..I know I know. I was around the dive scene way back then. My first set up was a US Divers double hose aquamaster (you had to roll on your back to clear it), a simple harness to hold the tank, a mae west vest (no such thing as a BC)& the "K"valve (later upgraded to the "J"). No SPG that wasn't invented yet; you'd have to check your air BEFORE you went under, and a big oil filled depth guage on my wrist.. When you run out of air, the solution was simple. Come up to the surface .
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By ray fuoto (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #5) on Monday, November 17, 2008 - 8:42 pm: |
Hey Vince, Ahh, That was the day when men were men ha ha
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By Glen Reem (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #2882) on Monday, November 17, 2008 - 10:34 pm: |
Ah, the 'half bomber jacket' with the CO2 fizz-bottle cartridges that either had already fired (w/o inflating the bladder) or the mechanism was so corroded that it wouldn't function. And they didn't inflate the jacket at any depth anyway w/ so little gas. And, of course, the mouth inflator was also corroded and stuck closed. Or did you actually 'maintain' yours???? Somehow we always seemed to feel safer wearing them!!
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By ray fuoto (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #6) on Monday, November 17, 2008 - 10:37 pm: |
I have some memories of Karpata at night, if anyone is interested??Lost light at @ 90 ft. I don't know how the pass is now, but then it was marked with plastic milk bottles to get you in and out of the reef. Impossible to negotiate at night with no light. Followed another diver through but picked up many spines in my ankles from urchins along the way. I know, by now you must think i was a walking (diving) catastrophe. I was. Thank God i had a good buddy in Jim Baxter who saved my ass on many occasions.
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By Ross Canant (BonaireTalker - Post #98) on Wednesday, January 14, 2009 - 4:13 pm: |
We did it a few years ago on air with Nitrox slings for deco gas. It was all planned, 11 minutes at 180 on the wreck, deep stops on the way out. We have pictures and video of the dive. Safety diver stayed at 140 and watched. Most of the world does 160 on air as a regular thing.
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