Never Thought I Would Take it this Far!

In April 2004, Vikki took me to a Discover SCUBA class.  Before the end of the class I knew I had to be certified, but never did I think I would take it beyond the first level: Open Water SCUBA certification.  As a matter of fact, when I finished that first level I told Vikki I might try to do Advanced Open Water certification, but that I would NEVER take it beyond that.  Well, never say never.

Not only did I do my Advanced Open Water just last year, but earlier this year I certified to be a Rescue SCUBA Diver and even now I am finishing my requirements, specialties, and final dives for Master SCUBA certification.  I should finish in October when I do my last two specialty dives in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.  But the goal doesn't end there.  Through a series of events that I will not get into, I've accepted the challenge to become a Divemaster.

What's the difference you ask?  Master SCUBA diver is the highest recreational level in SCUBA.  A Divemaster is the lowest professional level in SCUBA.  I start the official certification process next year in February or March.

A more carefree time in my SCUBA training.

Up to this point the training and testing has been relatively relaxed.  SCUBA is supposed to be relaxing. You learn to breath slow, take your time, enjoy the moment and so on and so forth.  I absolutely love diving.  It is a wonderful experience and I recommend everyone to give it a try.  And to be honest, it has come fairly easy to me so far.  However, that is all about to change.  I just got the physical requirements for the Divemaster program.  It's not the relaxed little world I've come to enjoy so far.

SCUBA has physical demands, but the average healthy person can handle it with little or no extra training.  Like I said, it's supposed to be relaxing.  But the Rescue Diver training I did earlier this year was fairly rigorous.  It was the first time I really had to physically work at what I was doing.  However, I was able to get through it with my dignity still in fair shape.  Even now finishing up my Master Diver level has been straightforward and no outside physical training has been necessary.  But that took a major change just three weeks ago.

Learning to do rescue breathing in the water.

I've been at the SCUBA Shop here in Mesa, AZ quite a bit this past summer with my son getting Open Water certified and me working on my stuff.  While talking to one of the instructors about the Divemaster program it came up that I could get the syllabus for the course to look over now.  (Probably the most lucky thing that could happen for me at this point.)  As I looked over the course materials, required equipment, and knowledge requirements, everything looked pretty normal.  Then I looked over the physical testing requirements and had ... oh what shall we call it ... an "O.S." moment.  Yeah, I'm pretty sure I profaned under my breath right there in the middle of the shop based on the giggling that ensued from the people around me.

Like I said, SCUBA is supposed to be relaxing.  I've spent the last six years learning to take things easy, plan ahead to avoid strenuous activity underwater.  Now I've got four major physical swimming requirements ahead of me.  And let's face it, I'm a middle-aged, moderately-in-shape, non-muscular kind of guy! Standing there in the shop I felt pretty much hosed.

Of course, I'm actually too stupid or too proud (or maybe a lot of both) to give up.  And so, three weeks ago I started training as to not embarrass myself or my family name.

My biggest problem is I'm really not a true swimmer.  The first test is a quarter of a mile swim to be done in under 11 minutes for a routine score or under 8 minutes for a superior score.  That ain't easy to do unless you are a natural swimmer.  Now you may be asking yourself, "Well moron, what did you think you were going to be doing when you got in the water to SCUBA dive?"  And that's a fair question.  But the truth is, you don't do a lot of real swimming when you SCUBA dive.  You've got a lot of equipment that makes the experience much easier and gives a great sense of confidence.  I've learned to put a lot of faith in my equipment, I take extraordinary care of said equipment and it has served me very well.  But stark swimming in the open water?  That's like being naked in the wilderness  ... there is only you to take care of you in the moment.

I've done a lot of water sports in my life, but there has always been some type of extracorporeal equipment involved to give a sense of safety.  Any type of water-related skiing or boarding has always required a life vest.  Same thing for kayaking, rafting, or any other type of watercraft I've been on.  But raw, unaided swimming has never been something I've done.  Sure, short distances across a pool or to a boat or to a dive line is a piece of cake.  But long-distance, continuous swimming is a completely different type of activity.  Olympians make it look easy, but it really isn't!  It takes real talent and real skill to do that.  I, of course, have neither.  

Well, knowing that is half the battle and so I've started to teach myself how to long-distance swim.

Three weeks ago I dragged my sorry caboose down to the gym to get started.  There is a 25-meter lap pool that I get to use as part of my membership.  My brother gave me encouragement and my first goal.  

He said, "Just don't throw up on the first day."  I didn't.  First goal realized.

Like I said, I'm stupid and proud.  The two are not great qualities in a person, but when you have to do something you don't want to do and have little natural talent for doing it, then those qualities really come in handy.  So on my first foray into completing 400 meters (1/4 of a mile) I made it the distance.  It was, however, not pretty.  And it did, in fact, take me over an hour to complete.  At the end of each length it left me sputtering, coughing, panting, and wheezing (in that order) for 3-5 minutes at a time.  I was battered by the experience, but not beaten.  Humbled greatly, but not thwarted.  I returned the following evening to do it all over again, but this time I was able to do it in thirty minutes. And the following evening less and so on and so forth.

Right now I feel like a Beluga Whale when I go to the gym.  
Definitely as white as one.  I'm just more hairy.

Last night I did the 400 meters in 12 minutes.  I'm able to swim the first 200 meters non-stop and the second 200 meters with 10-second rests every 50 meters.  (It's just the way I'm slowly working my way to swimming it non-stop over the next few weeks.)  Last night I went on to swim an additional 800 meters (a total of 1200 meters or 3/4 of a mile) in an hour.  I will continue to work at it until I can swim 400 meters non-stop and go on to swim a full mile in an hour.  After that I will try to bring the times down and add weight training to the regimen.

The silver lining to this is when I do finish (and drag myself out of the pool) all the upper body muscles are very tight at first.  For about 15 minutes I look RIPPED!  Well, maybe just ripped.  Ok, not ripped, but there is definitely some major definition that my chicken-boned body is not used to!  SO I FELT RIPPED!

The other tests are more in the realm of what I know and employ the SCUBA gear that I have learned to rely on.  One is an 800 meter fin and snorkel swim.  Another is tread water for 2 minutes and then float for 15 minutes without any SCUBA equipment.  Last, but not least I have to do a downed diver tow in full SCUBA gear.  I've done all that before in other courses.  It is more what I'm used to.  But that first 400 meter swim is what makes me keep training.  Again, stupid and proud.  It's working for me.

And with that in mind, good night.