OK, time to get serious! My wife and I have been married for 52 years and have been diving together for 35 of those years (we got a late start!) We have been lucky enough to dive in many of the world's best sites - from the Red Sea to the Coral Sea - Palau, Truk, Yap, The Solomons, Fiji, Caymans, Bahamas, Virgin Islands, Cozumel, etc. etc. and since 1978 have come to Bonaire almost every year. We'll be there in April-May for a couple of weeks - an objective is to decide, as we approach age 75, whether it's time to hang up the fins and reg and make our last dive.

This will be tough because the underwater world has meant much to us. We have long since given up u/w photography and given our Nikonos's and video housings to our sons. We have discovered how liberating it is not to be encumbered with a camera (except when we swam once with a Whale Shark at 80 ft. off the Divi dock!) But, the memory remains.

Question: how have you "seniors" dealt with this question? For you younger folks (that's almost everyone} have you thought about this? If you haven't, reflect on it a bit. How would you approach this decision?

Ted

Hey Ted , you are an inspiration , it is time to quit when : You no longer enjoy the sport
You no longer think it is worth the effort
You no longer feel confident in your self rescue skills
You no longer stop to smell the roses , I mean coral
You are six feet under
Keep it up Ted , I for one would like to dive until I am at least 100

Wow Ted....first, congratulations on the longevity of your marriage. 52 years is a wonderful accomplishment! I hope my husband and I get to enjoy that many years together.

Now to your question....I just got certified two years ago (I got a late start, too), so I haven't given the 'retirement from diving' question any serious thought. But, I suspect I will probably give it up when I no longer feel comfortable diving or my physical condition prohibits me from being self-sufficient.

Until then, though, I imagine I'll keep on diving, although the challenges I take on might change as the years go by.

Dive on, Ted...your story is inspirational!

I'm 68 this year...and if I weren't diving I'm not sure how I would stay motivated to stay relatively healthy, I'm not sure I would be pleasant to be around, and I'm not sure what I would look forward to. I see no reason to stop diving until I can't dive anymore. I may back off (some day) on caves, deco dives, doubles, teaching, solo, high currents, cold temps, all those things that can be stressing, but spending a little gentle time watching critters on a 40-foot reef is better than any book I've ever read or movie I've ever seen.

I'll stop when I have to; it won't be a decision.

Ted, I was thinking about the future as well. I am 42, by wife is 41. She was certified 3 years ago and I started diving again, because of her. My first dive was at age 11. I dove through high school and college, then came grad school and life took a turn away from the water for a while.

I was thinking the other day about our future diving together. There are so many places I'd like to dive with her. But I have to take into consideration that sooner, or later, we'll have to give it up. I am pretty upbeat about the fact that we have quite a few years of happy diving ahead of us but there it's a sweet sorrow. Much like when you adopt a puppy and you know that your time together is limited.

Well, I try to make the best of the time. Diving is one of the activities we both love. So we avail ourselves to every opportunity. Quarries, bath tubs, rain in Ireland (which qualifies as a shallow dive), Bonaire, you name it.

There will be a day when we may not be able to lift a tank and throw it at the back of a truck. Or there will come one day when we'd won't remember anymore what a tank is. That will be the time to give it up.

But as long as we can tell the tank from the truck, and lift the former into the later we'll keep diving.

I dive with a regular senior citizen visitor who was ready to call it quits but with a little help can still have a great and safe dive experience. If it is stuff like carrying tanks, entries and exits etc that you are worried about I'd say don't quit and find someone to help. Or switch to doing more boat dives maybe?

Then again I think you and only you can decide when it is time to retire the old BCD and reg.

I wish you lots of wisdom on the decision and hope that you will be diving for many years to come

Quitting diving IMHO is NOT a function of age..As long as you possess the mental & physical attributes required, I say "dive on".

I started at 13 and hopefully will be able to dive at 100, at least that's what I'm aiming for. My family does have good longevity genes.

Congratulations on your 50 plus years of marriage.
Really, you are as old as you feel. Chronological age is not the end all by any means. Live in the present.

I say...Dive On!

I'm only 35 yrs old (I can't believe how that time has flown by) but one of the most inspirational divers to me has been a blind guy that everyone called "Catfish" in the Florida Keys. Even though he was blind...he just enjoyed being down under and the memories he could recall before his blindness. This guy donned and doffed his gear so easily, did giant strides off the boat and climbed the ladder back up so easily. He just had his partner hold his hand while diving to lead him around. Also, his personality was AMAZING...he was the "life of the party".

So, you too are an inspiration to me and it gives me the hope of many years of diving with my wife.

Thanks for making this thread.

I also think about that issue as I enter my 6th decade. If I'm mentally and physically fit to dive I want to continue as long as I can.

One option is to not stop "cold flounder" but cut back. Dive when the conditions (how you are feeling, weather, water -(temp,current,vis,depth),ease of entry/exit, etc.) are within your comfort level. Other times, snorkeling is a great option.

The older I get the more difficult things get. I play hockey with guys 10 - 20 years younger than I am and who are also much better. I don't go into the corners as much, race down the ice to get a breakaway pass anymore. But I love the game and like diving I'll cut back/slow down and eventually stop - one thing I think about is that in diving and hockey - if I get hurt (seriously) that also affects my wife, and I want to be together and healthy for a lot more years.

Hope we're still diving at 75! We've found Bonaire to be diving freedom and we'll be back there in 2 days!

Wow, Ted, you and your wife have been to so many places and seen so much of our world underwater. That's wonderful!

I'm 43 and have been diving for 5 years. I hope to be diving until I'm into my 90's. Likely not cave or deco by that time, but I always enjoy those long, relaxing 'pretty fish' dives. As long as I stay healthy, I don't think anything could stop me from diving. I always feel privileged to be able to see the world underwater, and am always in awe of it.

As someone already mentioned, maybe boat dives or even liveaboard diving might be easier, or guided dives with a gear sherpa to help you.

Ted - an inspirational story and the others here echo that. I started early as a diver in high school, let if for awhile with school, family, money and time then jumped back in with both fins some years later. I made it to DM finally in my 5th decade of life, instructor in my 6th decade and am nearing my 7th decade now. Diving more than ever.

It does give me reason to live, stay relatively fit and enjoy life more than ever. We have a diver at our dive center who started diving in his 70's and now is a DM in his later 70's. Great diver. Dives within his limits and savors every moment.

I trust I will dive until I can't do it safely anymore, whatever that age is

Ted, this question sounds very much like the classic question, when can you start drinking after diving? The answer, of course, is the second you take the regulator out of your mouth. IMHO the answer to your question is it's time to quit when you can not hold the regulator in your mouth and not a second before.






























I realize that many would say it's time when you can not self-rescue, but what about hiring a guide to help with the equipment. I also realize that certain medical conditions are contraindicated with diving so exclude those.

Hey Ted, I say dive on also. I took my first high sodium breaths in Bon in 1983. I will be returning to Bon this summer for the first time since 1994. In July I'll be watching my daughter make her first under(salt)water breaths. With just under 50 trips around the sun myself, I can't think of a better place to strap on a tank and slip into fins. You have earned your stripes in diving, let those young Dive Masters help with the heavy lifting. Congrats to you and your bride, bubbles forever.
Paul

Ted
I would say keep at it till you don't feel it's safe any more. I dove until I developed asthma at 66. I would put on a tank anytime if that was not the case. Here is something to think about. Stan Waterman is 86 and still guiding trips all over the world. Here's his website http://www.stanwaterman.com/
Mick

Ted, we are in the same boat! Been married 40 years, been diving 45 years, the last ten as buddies. Two trips ago, to Bonaire, on our check out dive, my wife hyperventalated on the surface, and had to go to the hospital. We were shorediving on the housereef of Bonaire Oceanfront Apartments. Easy dive, good dive, but she just tired out that day. To say the least, it scared the he!! out of me. We didn't dive the rest of the 2wks holiday. I had opertunities to dive with other people, but Diane(my wife) is my buddy, and if she is beached so am I.

We are returning to BOA in May and plan on doing more boat diving as it is easyer for us older folks. Shore dive the easy sites, and enjoy ourselves... Last Oct(during Omar)we were there for 2wks and logged 7 dives, but we did dive... Ron

You are in inspiration! I am 52 and have been diving for 20 years and I have been wondering how long my wife and I will be diving. Other vacations have been put on hold until we quit diving, but we love diving too much. I guess that I agree with the theory that we dive until we can't.

Practically speaking, I'd say quitting diving is a good idea when certain problems exist:
1) when leg strength becomes an issue for shore diving or even boat diving, for climbing up the ladder.
2) when any lung/breathing problems occur
3) when any of numerous other medical problems occur which say no to diving

These criteria have nothing directly to do with age. I know a tall fellow who had a collapsed lung in high school who was told not to dive anymore...

Here is the link to DAN about aging:

http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/medical/faq/faq.aspx?faqid=13

Basically - dive as long as you feel physically capable, fit and safe.

And I should add that as an instructor for PADI, SDI, DAN, MFA and most particularly HSA (Handicapped Scuba Association) there are programs for training divers to be safe with major disabilities such as paraplegia, quadriplegia and many other conditions. There are ways to keep diving for as long as you want.

Ted, I will be celebrating my 76th birthday in Bonaire next month. I understand your problem. I can no longer carry the weight to allow me to shore dive but, by sitting in the seat nearest the dive platform, I can get up, sometimes with help, shuffle to the platform and, with a giant step, enjoy an hour of freedom from gravity. As long as you enjoy it and can get up the ladder, even with help, keep on diving. The end is approaching faster than you thought it would at age 20. Bart.

Wow! I am overwhelmed by the number of thoughtful and sensitive responses. Each gave me more to think about and sharpened some of my perceptions. I always knew that Bonaire aficionados are great folks!
All of you agreed that we would dive for as long as we could – terminated by events (such as death!) Doctor’s orders, trauma etc. My problem is that I don’t want anybody or anything to stop me before I’m ready! In the best of all worlds, I want to make the decision to stop before I have to. But, there’s the rub – I’m far from deciding to stop! Yes, we have scaled back our diving. In the 80s we did most of our far flung diving on liveaboards. These are great, but not too many dives go from the boat’s platform. Because of accessibility or currents or both, most dives are from zodiacs or Tinnies many without ladders – hauling yourself out of the water over the side of a Zodiac is a young person’s game. The alternative is to be hauled out by a crew member, looking like a harpooned prize Tuna or a beached whale! A few years back, we were in French Polynesia and had the opportunity to dive Tiputa Pass in Rangiroa, yes, from a zodiac with no ladder. So, I sacrificed my dignity gave the crew a laugh but the experience was memorable! Night dives lost their appeal a ways back – Some Wild Turkey before dinner and some Pinot Noir with the evening meal made getting wet again not appealing and clearly imprudent! So, our diving is simple. In Bonaire, we do a couple of dives a day. In the AM, off the Divi dock and out in a boat in the PM. Pretty boring, you say? Not for us! We go to Africa with some frequency and often compare a game drive to a dive. You start out not knowing what will happen. Often, nothing much does happen. So, you become one with the environment – captivated by the beauty and serenity of where you are. Then something does happen which can be pulse pounding and exciting – a sprinting Cheetah, a charging elephant or – think that Whale Shark I mentioned before.
So, what I’m hoping for is to wake up some morning and feel that I’ve been incredibly lucky to have had 35,40 or 50 years of rare experiences and leave the Reg and fins in the locker cherishing what we have done over those years before someone or some event outside of me rings down the curtain.
Am I reaching for the impossible?

Ted:

Her is the Divers Toast I learned years ago on Roatan. Thought you might like it.

http://www.oldbonairetalk.com/newsgroup/messages/30/388237.html?1233667615

Listen this is an easy one for me.... I don't know how old EBO was when he stopped, but there was no finer diver on Bonaire. He would make things happen by being quiet. Fish would come to him. I think we learn to be better divers each day, I hope that's true. I ref basketball and the mantra goes.."anyone not working on getting better is getting worse"... age can make us better, keep the tool sharp and you can dive til the big dirt nap...

Hi Ted,
First off, congratulations on your long marriage! WOW! That's awesome! Along with what everyone has posted is what I would suggest. I have a long ways to go and just started diving in the past few years but I'll keep going until I can't.

Last December, there was a gentleman at the Divi who was approximately 83 yrs. old. He dove everyday just taking it slow and easy. Another woman, roughly the same age was there with her son. She decided to quit as it was getting physically challenging to carry the equipment. Both were an inspiration to me and every morning I saw them and was just so impressed! I can only hope at 83 I can lug a tank and dive Enjoy it as long as you can and still enjoy the sport!

Ted. To me the secret of diving is enjoying whatever nature throws at you to the max. That is by the way exactly the same when driving through a National Park in Africa (which I have done for 18 months so I know what I am talking about ;). I fully enjoy diving in Holland where the viz is 5 feet, water is cold and it's a long haul from the car to the entry point of the dive. I think this may be the key to your decision. If you can convince yourself to enjoy whatever nature (in this case influenced by limitations that come with age) throws at you you may want to dive for many years to come. I am an instructor for HSA (Handicapped Scuba Association) and from time to time I dive with handicapped divers. It keeps amazing me how fantastic the dive experience is for people with a disability. I also helps me to keep enjoying the small things that make diving so fantastic.

Interesting thread by the way

Like Bas - as an HSA instructor you realize the potential for people from all facets of life to enjoy diving. As a dentist and 30 year dental educator in major academic centers my specialty is people with disabilities and other medical / physical / mental limitations. Not accepting arbitrary limitations is a key concept I have learned and practiced in both of my professional endeavors.

Ted, my wife and I are facing the same problem. We are in our 70's,and have been diving for 35 years. We wondered if it's time to hang up our regulators and just snorkel. The replies you received gave me hope that we can still continue to enjoy what we love so much. Thanks for all the positive reinforcements.

one of my most memorable moments of my first visit to Bonaire was a man in his 80's boat diving with his 3 sons who were all in their mid to late 50'S.

It was obvious for the sons that it was an act of love to dive with their father.

I watched from a distance as one son after another would glide along side the father until his brother would appear to do the same.

Ted,

One of my best experiences was buddying with an 84 year old retired US Army Colonel at Sand Dollar years ago. He was recovering from a broken femur and the staff (and he!) thought it best that he have company.

We poked about in 10 or 20 feet of water for the better part of an hour (lots to see there on Bari Reef) until I saw that he was really shivering. (You know the feeling, everyone. :–) )

I finally had to almost physically drag him to a shallow spot off the beach there and signal to the dive op staff to come and get him and his gear. (We had planned the dive that way.) He didn't go easily but he was cold!!

Stan Waterman is still diving in his 80's.

So, go for it until you are uncomfortable. Especially on Bonaire's west side, diving is so benign I don't see that you have given any reason to stop so early in life! Continue to enjoy!!

On a recent trip to Cozumel a lady from back here ran into a situation, panicked, held her breath up to the surface and died before the boat reached the dock. I do not know any more of the details except that she was 54 and both she and her husband were experienced divers.

The point being that everyone is different and we all need to be able to assess our self-confidence on an individual basis. Just the fact that you (Ted) are contemplating hanging up your fins might be an indication that you have decided that maybe you have seen and done enough and do not want to take any additional risks.

Since no regular medicals are required to keep a diving certification, it is up to each individual diver to use their judgment.

It seems like Ted and his wife are very wise people.

Ted, Congratulations on your 52 years of marriage. Diving is a wonderful activity you have enjoyed together for so many years and sounds like you could enjoy for many more. My Dad just got certified last year in Bonaire at 80 years old, so his diving experiences are just beginning. So as long as you feel up to it, age is just a number. We will be coming to Bonaire in April and he intends to take the nitrox course, which, I understand is beneficial to senior divers.

Definitely go for Nitrox. Any added margin of safety is good.

Starting diving at age 80 is fantastic. WOW !! It may be close to a record for a new OW diver. I would ask PADI about that one.

Let someone else do all the work: carry stuff, drag it out of the water, etc,and give them a big tip! Being under water is a good equalizer.

When I reach this point,as long as I have a guide, back-up I'll be diving forever, and if thats the way I'm gonna go...happy ending.......smile for me.....

Way to go Brenda

Ditto Brenda, I said that earlier, as long as the regulator does not fall out my mouth and I can afford a guide, I'm there.

Kudos Ted! I'm only 39, but have all ready wondered how I will deal with the time I can no longer dive. I don't have that answer, but I would think as long as you felt physically and mentally capable, why not?

That's one of my motivations for getting my butt in shape and staying there...enjoying the underwater realm as long as my body and mind will let me.

You're an inspiration to all of us other divers.

Hey Ted, I am 63 this month and love to dive. David and I have been married for 21 years, he has been an instructor for 15 years but would not do my classes when I finally decided at 49 to become certified. (He said he wanted to stay married, HAHA) David is only 52 so I have a built in sherpa for the time being.

As long as I am healthy I will continue to dive. It is an activity that we enjoy together. David helps me when I need it but then I help him too. That is what being a good dive buddy is!

Nice to see a couple together for so many years, hope ya'll enjoy many more dive years.

Andy

My Grandfather is the 80 year old new diver Deborah talked about. If you have concerns about the safety of continuing to dive, find a dive doctor in your area. They will put you through a bunch of tests and ensure that there is no medical reason you cannot continue. My Grandfather didn't start diving until 80 because his family doctor would not give him permission because he had a collapsed lung when he was younger. It took someone who really knew about Diving and the strain it puts on your body to say that he's in great shape and there is no reason for him not to Dive. Needless to say he is now a very happy diver and trying to make up for lost time.