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Dive Cozumel |
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Friday, April 13th through Tuesday, April 17th |
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CLICK HERE FOR MORE COZUMEL INFORMATION
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Join the fun.
We get together at 8 pm on the second Tuesday of every month to socialize, reminisce, make plans and discuss.
There are no dues, no reports, and no politics.
Food and drink are optional. Friendly and cordial good fellowship is the only requirement.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE GET TOGEHER INFORMATION
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Our Commitment
With more than 37 years of history behind us,
"Excellence In Customer Satisfaction"
is still our number one priority.
We promise to do our very best to keep it that way.
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Our special gift is for the "not yet" divers in your life: Give them the chance to try scuba diving as our guest: absolutely free and without obligation. They will be given classroom orientation followed by a scuba diving experience in our pool.
Try It - FREE
CLICK HERE FOR "Try It Free" DETAILS
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Your gift is fully refundable if your recipient elects to not start their training.
718.648.4232
CLICK HERE FOR DIVE TRAINING DETAILS
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ON-LINE TRAINING STANDARDS
BASED ON RSTC RECOMMENDATIONS
At a meeting on April 3rd, 2006, the members of the Recreational Scuba Training Council (RSTC) determined it was important to provide collective clarification regarding agency-neutral on-line training programs.
Over the past several years a number of websites not affiliated with a training agency have launched on-line scuba training programs. On these sites, the customer is led to believe that all training agencies will accept these programs to meet their academic requirements for scuba training.
This is not correct. Because of concerns about the educational validity of these programs and the inability to monitor the quality of education and services, as well as liability and insurance issues, each RSTC member organization has independently determined it cannot accept these non-affiliated training programs to meet its academic requirements.
Before customers sign up for any on-line training program, they should first check with the retail store, instructor or training agency they wish to receive certification through to verify if that on-line program is acceptable for meeting the training agency's certification requirements.
For any questions regarding Kings County Divers' position please contact Mia Interrante, Director of Education, 718-648-4232 or training@kcdivers.net
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The dolphin dive at Freeport, Bahamas is one more of those very special dives for scuba divers. Rather than just swimming with dolphins at the surface of the water, scuba divers can interact with dolphins underwater in this dive and really appreciate how agile these wonderful creatures are in the water.
The video (2 minutes, 37 seconds) is hosted on the Google Video site and set to background music. It comes complete with a T-shirt commercial and is playable using the link below.
A word of caution: This dolphin is a very special lady. You may experience love at first sight.
For those with a slow internet connection, the video might play in staggered pieces. In this case, you should click on the pause button after the video starts and let it completely download. You will see a dark bar go across (left to right) and once the video has been downloaded, click on the play button again.
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Permitted and Prohibited Items
International Travel Information
"ALL persons,
including U.S. citizens
are now required to present a passport book,
passport card, or WHTI-compliant document when entering the United States"
We proudly support the Long Island Divers Association
Thank you L.I.D.A. for your efforts on behalf of the recreational diving community.
You are invited to join our on-line discussions hosted by Yahoo!Groups.
Membership is free and includes unrestricted access to our
MESSAGES, FILES and PHOTOS areas.
We ask that you limit your subjects to KCD activities
and that all messages include your real name.
Join the fun.
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We welcome readers' contributions to this monthly feature.
Long-time KCD senior staff instructor "The Ancient One" (TAO) had taken a week off in September of 1968 to enjoy some kelp diving off the beaches of southern California when he came upon this inspired tidbit of scuba history. Now you should understand that back in those days most of the divers were graduates of the "do-it-yourself-and-learn-the-hard-way" school. We call this event the Disappearing Diver trick.
It seems that one of the locals was not happy having to pay for air fills at the corner dive shop. By scouring junk yards and scrounging parts from an abandon locomotive steam engine, he managed to reinvent a machine that worked very much like a high pressure scuba air compressor. It was actually a brilliant idea - almost. Unfortunately, this gifted inventor had inadvertently reversed the air pump rotation cycle, so that his "output" hose was, in reality, the input source.
The day finally came when he flipped the switch to "on." Failing to notice his design glitch, he proudly attached his scuba tank, and proceeded to create a 3000psi vacuum.
TAO happened to be the only witness when the unfortunate lad put the scuba regulator's 2nd stage mouthpiece into his mouth and attempted to draw his first free breath. We are told that there was this brief moment, less than a blink, when his eyes became very large. And then - swoosh - he was gone. Vanished!
No one ever wanted to verify the young man's whereabouts, but there was a general understanding about where he went. Even today his scuba tank still stands on display in the window of the corner dive shop, with a small sign that announces the current price of scuba air fills.
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NOTICE:
The New York Aquarium is looking for volunteer divers to help the aquarium's staff maintain exhibit tanks and animal enclosures, and eventually to teach the public
about the aquatic environment and the creatures living there. For information select "Get Involved" at www.nyaquarium.org or pick up
application forms at the dive store.
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Old Glory
The waters outside New York Harbor and off of Long Island Sound offer hundreds of sunken shipping boats, submarines,
military boats and more, many of them within the recreational diving limits and well known among our local community of sport divers.
The Stolt Dagali, for example, was a Norwegian tanker that tragically sank in 1964 after being hit by a
cruise ship in deep fog. Today it is a popular dive site renown for its excellent visibility and marine life.
The Oregon was a Cunard trans-atlantic luxury liner that sank off Fire Island in 1886. Still full of
salvageable artifacts, it is now also home to thousands of lobsters.
The Lizzie D was a steel, steam-powered tug that sunk on October 19, 1922. According to the owner's casualty report,
the 84 foot tug was just on a cruise carrying no cargo, but with eight crew members on board when she went down due to unknown reasons. All of her crew were lost. Today, the Rum Runner, as she is more commonly known, rests in 80 feet of water, eight miles southeast of Atlantic Beach Inlet.
The USS Algol, a decommissioned Navy ship, was sunk off the coast of New Jersey in 1991 in order to create an artificial reef, not too far away from The Iberia.
For SCUBA divers,The USS San Diego is one of the premier shipwrecks of Wreck Valley. Lying upside down in 110 feet of water, the wreck provides a fascinating dive to divers interested in history, wreck diving, lobster hunting and exploration.
Kings County Divers offers their unique, proprietary Northeast Shipwreck Techniques program to sport divers who seek the adventure and excitement of exploring these underwater remnants of history.
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You can breathe easy knowing that KCD's air fills are processed with the highest standards of professional care and science. Nowhere else will one find anything even close to our multi-processes of purity. First, our source is dehumidified, ionized, pre-filtered and compressed in several stages. Then it is dehumidified a second time and pre-filtered a second time using a molecular sieve. Next comes over a dozen stages of chemical reaction filtration, each targeting a unique contaminate. Finally individual inline post filters on every fill whip protect the diver from hydrocarbon molecules as small as 2 microns.
As additional assurance, our high pressure storage supply is laboratory analyzed using FTIR, electrochemical, microgravimetry, "sniffing", and spectrographic technology at least 4 times each year with quantitative test results compared to American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards of purity. These test results are posted publicly at our filling station for all to inspect.
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At the heart of the KCD scuba tank filling station are two, completely independent and totally redundant high volume, high pressure compressor systems and a massive series of high pressure breathing gas storage banks. Licensed high pressure systems engineers inspect and maintain our systems regularly, 3 to 4 times each year under annual contracts.
The next time you visit the proshop, please allow us to show off some of our behind-the-scenes life support facilities. Ask for "The KCD Tour".
KCD customers expect the best.
They deserve the best.
They get the best.
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A refreshing checkup for yourself, perhaps? What could be more refreshing than a KC Divers Open Water Refresher Course, absolutely free for alumni, a terrific
value for all others, and a whole lot of fun for everyone.
You are still welcome to retake any of your open water courses #1 through #4 for any reason, as many times as you want *forever* and never pay a second time. If you want a refresher, if you do not think that you did it right the first time, if a friend or family member is in the course and you want to be their partner, or even
if you just want to go diving - - for any reason at all: Join in and stay wet!
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The Social Calendar is updated weekly and distributed during our 2nd Tuesday get togethers. It is also available on the CALENDAR page of this site.
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A refreshing checkup for your equipment? Complete annual inspections and overhaul service can take a couple of weeks. And wetsuits have been known to shrink as the diver gets less active.
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And when your prospective buddies are curious about all this fun; you can invite them to try scuba absolutely free as your guest and ours. Call the proshop to schedule a scuba tryout - no charge, and with absolutely no obligation.
CLICK HERE FOR A FREE SCUBA TRYOUT
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Hundreds of photographs of Kings County Divers' events and activities are available for your viewing pleasure. New photos are being added every week. Use the "Photo Album" link on the home page - no password needed.
Please share your photos of KCD activities with the rest of us. We can digitize your prints and 35mm slides for addition to our public display. We can watermark professional graphics to discourage copyright violations.
Our Underwater Photography specialty course has been updated to include some of the newest technologies and equipment. Several new digital cameras and strobes will be available for your use during the pool and open water. This is still an entry-level course, and it includes entry into the course's underwater photography contest in which the graduating class becomes the judges. No prior photography experience is needed. Tuition $195 includes software CD, tutorials, and the use of the new uw photography systems during pool sessions. Costs of the $16 course manual and open water equipment rentals are additional. Detailed flyers are available at the proshop. Let us know if you want to be notified of future starting dates.
We have added a great new feature to our online photo album. Every individual photographer, from pro to newbie is being given his/her own display page to exhibit up to a dozen examples of their underwater photo-art. Show us your stuff.
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Learn in the comfort of your own living room with the Kings County Divers home study program, developed using our Home Education System. HES allows for customized training on an individual basis at costs only slightly above those following the normal classroom and pool schedule. Best of all, no sacrifice in quality need be made. The student uses coordinated home DVD (or video) with manual to learn the material. (S)he then schedules a private seminar to review and evaluate all required information, and several private pool sessions to prepare for open water.
Open water courses are conducted on a private, semi-private or referral basis. Private pre-class counseling is free of charge to discuss and plan options, costs &
schedules.
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Here are three good reasons to earn your Nitrox Specialty Certification:
Added safety when using standard time limits.
Longer recreational dive times.
Less time needed between dives.
Tuition is $95 including the cost of your Nitrox certification card. A major advantage of our program over most others is the use of the latest Nitrox planning tables. No math is needed.
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New divers begin their KCD training on an average of over three each week - new groups of six to eight start every two weeks. Our introductory course is still only $99 for two sessions of classroom, pool and fun.
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The KCD Stress & Rescue Diver specialty certification program is all about preventing stress and avoiding the need to rescue. This is how you add relaxation to your diving checklist. It is an entry level specialty for all KCD trained alumni and for those with equivalent experience and skills.
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To those important untrained divers in your life. Give them the very best skills, the safest habits and the most comfortable training available anywhere.
KCDivers introductory course is still only $99 for two sessions of classroom, pool and fun.
Reservations: 718-648-4232
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The Kings County Divers Alumni Association has over 10,000 members throughout the tristate area, and another several hundred worldwide. We organize dives, activities, picnics, parties and trips, locally and all over the world.
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Divers Below
The proshop is open Monday through Friday from 2pm to 9pm and Saturday from 10am to 6pm.
voice 1718-648-4232
fax 1718-934-4153
email kcdivers@kcdivers.net
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We teach recreational scuba at all levels, from entry through instructor. There is a selection of several entry level training programs starting as low as $25 for our homestudy course.
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Timely updates about activities and training are sent by email to all those interested. To be included, make your request on the CONTACT page of this website. All requested additions and deletions will be honored within 24 hours.
Be well. Be safe. Stay wet.
( : } o
ScubaSmile
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©1997 Kings County Divers
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Stolt Dagali
The Oregon
The Lizzie D
USS Algol
The Iberia
USS San
Diego
