- NEWS FLASH -
HDS-USA Conference - September 25/26, 2004
The HDS-USA 2004 Conference and Banquet will be held in the Los Angeles Harbor area this year and the California Classic Equipment Divers will be co-host. This has been in the planning stages for several months and we are excited to be a part of this historic event.
The Conference will be held at the Banning's Landing Community Center in Wilmington on Saturday, September 25, from 9:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. (Set up time 8:00 a.m.) Scheduled speakers include Phil Nuytten, President, HDS-Canada; Phillippee Rousseau, Vice President, HDS-France; Sid Macken, HDS-USA, E.R. Cross Award Recipient; and last, but not least, our favorite "Lady Diver" Norma Hanson, Women Divers Hall of Fame Inductee. There will be exhibits of rare equipment and a special exhibit relating to the career of E.R. Cross.
The HDS-USA Conference Banquet will be held the same evening at the Marina Hotel in San Pedro. Dinner at 6:00 p.m. Guest speaker will be Andreas B. Rechnitzer, Ph.D.
Tickets: Tickets for the Conference ONLY are $25.00 including lunch. Banquet tickets are $55 (limited seating). Save $5 by ordering a Combined Conference and Banquet ticket for $75. Banquet seating is limited so order ASAP. Tickets are available from the HDS office at (805) 692-0072 or e-mail at hds@hds.org.
The Conference Hotel will be the Marina Hotel, San Pedro, California. HDS Conference room rate is $99 plus tax. Early reservations are strongly re-commended. Call (310) 514-8945. This is a beautiful hotel located on the water front between the Cabrillo Marina and Cabrillo Beach.
On Sunday, the CCED will be diving at Banning's Landing from 10:30 a.m. until about 4:30 p.m. (Set up at 9:00a.m.) Heavy Gear and Vintage Scuba only. (Sorry guys, no rebreathers because of Port Security).
Our group will be helping with a number of "chores" required to make this an outstanding event. We will need people to help with registering quest at both the Conference and the Banquet; set up and man the display; set up the dive station; and act as security. Anyone who is willing and able to lend a hand should contact me ASAP so that we have the all bases covered well in advance of the big day.
Also, there will probably be an informal gathering Friday evening (September 24) at the Marina Hotel for those who wish to drop by and spend an hour or so getting acquainted and greeting old friends.
Banning's Landing Community Center
100 E. Water St., Wilmington, CA
Marina Hotel - Port of Los Angeles
2800 Via Cabrillo Marina, San Pedro, CA
www.marinahotelsanpedro.com
Charlie Orr (310) 834-7051
Neverbent@aol.com
College of Oceaneering
San Diego - May 1, 2004
The parking lot quickly filled up as students, instructors, CCED members and guest gathered to enjoy the Open House at the COO-SD. Tours of the facility, dive demonstrations and a delicious barbequed lunch rounded out the day long event.
The day was one of those hot, brassy days that sends everyone looking for a shady spot instead of sitting on the deck with 150 lbs. of dive gear on. But even at that, eleven brave souls took their turn in the tank. The highlight of the day was when Harold Nething dressed in Mark Howell's Scuba gear and made his first Scuba dive in over 50 years.
COO Instructor Bob Cave, aka "The Cork," made a hard hat dive and demonstrated how to do a blow up without even trying. His students gave him a lot of good natured ribbing when he claimed it was done on purpose to show them what not to do.
New member Mike Shultz made his first dive and can hardly wait to try it again. Other members who attended included Mark Howell, Jocko Robinson, Al Pilkington, Brad Speer, Ken McElvain, Ben Briggs, Kevin Monahan, Charlie Orr, Ruby Nething, Mom Orr and Dorothy Barstad.
Late afternoon found everyone gathered in the shade of the dive tank enjoying cold drinks and making plans for the next dive in San Diego. A long day, a lot of fun, and good company. What more could a person ask?
Next COO Rally at San Diego - Oct. 16, 2004
Setup 10:00 a.m. Diving to continue until about 4:00 p.m. Lunch provided by the COO-SD. Call Charlie @ (310) 834-7051 for info.
College of Oceaneering
Wilmington - June 5, 2004
Not only did we have a good turnout of CCED members, but we had the Navy, the Coast Guard, LA Fireman, and even some actors and a filming crew from Edelman Productions.
All morning we "dunked" sailors and firemen while Ken "Mr. Hollywood" McElvain was interviewed by the filming crew. Edelman Productions is putting together a documentary for the "Tactical to Practical" program on the History Channel. The film will be about Swede Momsen and the Momsen Lung and hopefully will be aired shortly after the first of the year (2005).
After lunch, the filming crew really went to work filming the dress-in and the Mark V diver in the water. Brad Spear volunteered to be the diver with Ken McElvain and Ben Briggs as tenders. Alan Pilkington acted as safety diver to make sure there was no chance of a camera cable tangling up with an air hose or the diver himself.
Ben Briggs brought along an Aqua Bell Diving Helmet he acquired at a garage sale. The helmet was produced during the 1970s and is a modern shallow water helmet made of clear plastic. They were used for fun in swimming pools or by boaters to inspect the hull of a craft. They sold for $49 and was used together with a 12 volt or 110 volt air compressor. Ben used a pair of scuba tanks. Check our webpage for pictures of Ben diving his Aqua Bell.
The COO out did themselves with a terrific lunch of BBQ burgers, chips, potato salad and ice cold watermelon.
Many thanks to Ella Morgan, Haydee Malacas and all the other COO staff who work so diligently to make the open house such a success.
Next COO Rally at Wilmington - Aug. 7, 2004
Set up at 8:00 a.m. Diving to continue until about 4:00 p.m. The COO will provide lunch for us. If you have new gear to try bring it along and plan on having a good time! Call Charlie Orr @ (310) 834-7051 for additional info.
What's Happening
Harold Nething - As many of you already know, Harold suffered a stoke (aneurism) in early May. He underwent surgery a few days later and is slowly recovering, but remains in the hospital. Currently he is at the Kindred Hospital in Westminister, CA. Flowers are not accepted at the hospital, but cards and notes of encouragement are greatly appreciated by him and his family. Please send mail to his home address - 4380 Adenmoore Ave., Lakewood, CA 90713.
Travis Robinson - Congratulations and Best Wishes to Travis who graduated on June 4 from North Salem High School, Salem, Oregon. Travis will be attending Western Oregon University this fall.
Safety Guidelines
While working for Mobil Oil, safety was foremost. Rules and guidelines were established by the Company that we were expected to follow. When these guidelines were ignored, usually for a short cut, the results could be disastrous!
It is no different for diving. Our Safe Practices guideline was established several years ago and everyone is expected to follow them, whether guest or seasoned member.
These guidelines were not snatched out of the air. Sources for the guidelines included Parkers Dive Service Safe Practices, US Navy Dive Manual, OSHA Regs and the knowledge of our senior members who are, or have been, professional divers.
It is up to our experienced members to make sure the novice understands the basics including rope pulls, line tending, and helmet controls. And, that the Release of Liability has been signed and that they have read and understood our safety requirements.
Hopefully, soon, we will again have a scheduled semi annual meeting when safety and other concerns can be discussed and ideas exchanged. But, until then, please feel free to contact me if you see a problem or have an idea of a better way to handle the equipment or diving procedure.
~ Charlie Orr
All of the following books are a "must have" for the diving enthusiast and collector. Each story is unique to the colorful lives and diving experiences of each author. The books are available exclusively through the Historical Diving Society.
Between the Devil and the Deep - Murray Black
One of the pioneers of commercial oilfield diving. A graduate of E.R. Cross' Sparling School of Deep Sea Diving, his career
progressed through the ranks from abalone diver to the founder of DIVCON. His adventures took him under the world's
oceans and around the globe. Limited edition (1,000 copies). Hard bound, 200 pages. $37.50 plus postage. ($2.91 CA Sales
tax)
NOTE: Also available at the L.A. Maritime Museum Gift Shop, Berth 84 (foot of 6th St.), San Pedro, CA
More Than Nine Lives - Al & Norma Hanson
This book covers Al's work in abalone, harbor, salvage, construction and commercial diving. As a husband and wife team
the Hansons' gained international attention as a tourist attraction with demonstration dives under a glass bottom boat at
Catalina Island. The couple are well known and respected divers. This unique book is the result of their combined memories
of an amazing journey together. Limited edition (500 copies). Hard bound with 703 pages. $40 plus $10 Priority mail ($3.10
CA sales tax).
Hard Hat Divers Wear Dresses - Bob Kirby
An autobiography of American commercial diver and equipment designer Bob Kirby. The book chronicles the events and
characters involved in his nearly 50-year diving career. From US Navy diving, abalone diving to designing helmets and his
partnership with Bev Morgan. His story is told with humor and an occasional dose of terror. Limited edition (1,000 copies).
Hard bound, 262 pages. $40 plus $8 postage. ($3.10 CA sales tax)
The price and cost of postage for each book is listed above. California residents add 7.75% sales tax. To order contact the HDS office at (805) 692-0072 or hds@hds.org.
California Wreck Divers Meeting
I had the privilege of being a guest at the California Wreck Divers Meeting on June 24 at the Round Table Pizza in Lawndale. My reason for going was to hear Leslie Jacobs who was to be their guest speaker. Leslie, who is a free-lance writer and co-author of "Between the Devil and the Deep," which is the memoirs of Murray Black. Murray, among many other things, was a graduate of the Sparling School, a good friend of E.R. Cross and founder of DIVCON and Associated Divers in the early days of off shore oil drilling. (Murray passed away on March 2, just three days after his book was released.)
Leslie did a wonderful job talking about her friend Murray Black, his life and his new book. Her presentation was backed up with slides and followed with answering questions about his diving career.
Other CCED members in attendance included "Wild"Bill Kurka, Jocko Robinson, Rick Eriksen, Carol Gross, "Big" Al Pilkington, Travis Robinson, and Patti Balian We also had the pleasure of having Norma Hanson in attendance.
It was a terrific evening shared with people with like interest. Not only was the pizza good, but so was the hospitality of Bill Wilson and the other Wreck Diver members.
Question, Compliment, Complaint???
Get it off your chest and send your ideas to "The Com Line." We need stories from members about their diving experiences with scuba and hard hat. Interesting info on the gear or historical facts about the equipment and the people who used it.
Have an old moldy Mark V, a rusty set of triples, or a pair of Churchill fins in your garage that your wife says "MUST GO"? We offer free ads in our Swap and Sell column.
The Com Line is to keep the lines of communication open within our group, so let's use it!
~ Duke Drake
Swap & Sell
CCED T-Shirt
A new shipment of T-Shirts will soon be available. You will be sure to want one of these great looking shirts to wear at the HDS Rally in September!
Shirts are Hanes Beefy-T's in grey, black or navy blue - size medium to XXL. $15 plus $4 postage. Shirts are also available at most of our events. Contact Charlie (310) 834-7051 or neverbent@aol.com