The ABC’s of Diving and Recreational Scuba Diving
Here it is, in all it’s glory, our alphabetical list of important and not so important things every diver should know about diving and recreational scuba diving
A
Ambassador Divers, Grand Cayman’s premier valet dive operator! Enjoy diving with our small team of highly experienced instructors. We have been providing unparalleled Grand Cayman
SCUBA Diving services since 1990 and would love to show you around our picturesque Grand Cayman dive sites. Our belief is a simple one, provide the best diving possible with an emphasis on customer service. We choose our favorite sites to share with you including wrecks, reefs and spectacular wall dives. We have dives sites suited for families, new divers as well as sites to thrill the most experienced. Ambassador Divers and Grand Cayman are the ideal location to complete your PADI Open Water Diver Course whether you started with your local shop, started with E-Learning or wish to do the entire dive course with us. Diving with Ambassador Divers couldn’t be easier with our full valet service. We wash, dry and store your gear so it’s ready to dive the next day. Our boat is BIG and NEVER crowded! Grand Cayman diving at it’s finest!
B
Buoyancy Control Device or BCD is a piece of diving equipment containing a bladder which is worn by divers to establish neutral buoyancy underwater and positive buoyancy on the surface, when needed. The buoyancy is controlled by adjusting the volume of air in the bladder. The bladder is filled with gas from the diver’s air tank or from the diver’s mouth. BCD’s come in several styles including the most popular, weight integrated.
C
Chip McLeod has been living and working on Grand Cayman since the 1970’s. Chip is at the helm most days. He can be found chatting away to our customers as they book in their daily activities. “What can we talk you into today” can be heard all through out the day at Ambassador Divers.
D
Depth gauges display the equivalent depth in water. This is a fundamental piece of diving equipment that must be present during all diving activity. Depth gauges come with both analogue and digital displays.
E
Enriched Air Nitrox refers to any nitrogen/oxygen gas mixture with an oxygen concentration higher than the 21 percent found in normal air-32 percent oxygen is the most common–and tanks filled with EAN are often clearly marked with a nitrox tank band and have the mix percentage written somewhere near the tank valve. It is this higher percentage of oxygen, and the proportionately lower percentage of nitrogen, that allows divers to lengthen no-decompression limits, shorten surface intervals and get an added safety buffer for decompression sickness in certain diving circumstances.
F
Fins are a necessary piece of diving equipment used to propel the diver through the water. There are two basic styles of fins, open heel adjustable and full foot. Open heel fins have an adjustable strap that allows you to snug your foot into the foot pocket. You need to wear wetsuit boots (booties) with these fins, which is necessary for colder water and great protection for your feet while walking on shore or a boat deck. Full-foot fins have a foot pocket that slips on like a shoe. These fins are popular for warm water diving, especially from boats and are the most popular among Cayman Islands dive operators.
G
Gear Bags help you organize, protect and carry your scuba diving equipment. Your main bag needs to be big and tough enough to hold all your gear and stand up to the abuse of salt water. You’ll probably want secondary bags, such as a lightweight mesh bag, for your mask, fins and snorkel, or a padded bag for your regulator.
H
Hot Shot is the Stingray City captain for Ambassador Divers. His warm smile and keen sense of humor help visitors enjoy one of Grand Cayman’s most unique attractions.
I
iDive Cayman Islands is the first truly comprehensive library of dive sites in the Cayman Islands. Developed over the last several years, iDive Grand Cayman has collected information from Cayman’s most experienced divemasters, shop owners and boat captains. Local divemaster dive site briefings accompany incredible HD underwater video creating the ultimate dive site resource. From deep walls to shallow wrecks, let iDive be your guide when deciding where to dive on your next vacation.
J
Jason Washington, one of the owners of this fine establishment, hails from NE Arkansas. For the past 18 years, Jason has been the driving force behind Ambassador Divers. An avid underwater photographer, Jason can be found most day hiding behind a very large camera.
K
Kelsie Foley is the newest member of the Ambassador Divers team. Originally from the cold streets of New York, Kelsie decided to move south trading cold winds for sunny beaches and palm trees.
L
Lawrence Cook is the foundation on which the Ambassador Divers house is built. He’s a little bit like a soft boiled egg, hard on the outside but soft and gooie on the inside..and he smells a little bit like an egg too.
M
Multi Level Diving allows divers to maximize time underwater without following strict table no decompression limits. Ambassador Divers offers daily multi level dives on some of Grand Cayman’s most spectacular wall dives. These profiles usually have a maximum depth of 100 feet, followed by an ascent to the top of the wall around 60 feet. The wall dive ends with an ascent to the safety stop, and the the dive boat.
N
Nitrogen Narcosis is a reversible alteration in consciousness that occurs while diving at depth. It is caused by the anesthetic effect of nitrogen at high pressure and may be completely reversed in a few minutes by ascending to a shallower depth.
O
Open Water Certification is the entry level diving certification offered by Ambassador Divers.
As a certified PADI Open Water Diver, the most widely recognized and respected rating in the world, you have the freedom to dive with a buddy independent of a professional. For more information on receiving your Open Water Certification click here.
P
PADI is the world’s leading scuba diver training organization. PADI Five Star Instructor Development Dive Resorts, like Ambassador Divers, are dive resorts that meet all PADI Five Star Dive Resort standards, plus offer PADI instructor-level training.
Q
Quick Disconnects are connectors that allow divers to quickly and efficiently disconnect certain pressure bearing hoses like low pressure inflator hoses and air integrated computers.
R
Roger Holowach has been with the Ambassador Divers crew for some time now. Originally starting as an intern, Roger rose through the ranks becoming a permanent member of the Ambassador Divers team.
S
Sigrid Menschaart, our wooden shoe wearing, queen of the dive shop Duchess has a smile that will make you feel right at home. Her kind demeanor and friendly approach make “Siggy” one of Grand Cayman’s best scuba diving instructors.
T
Tank Pressure is the amount of air pressure inside your scuba diving cylinder. A scuba tank is considered to be full above 2800 PSI.
U
Underwater Photography is the process of taking photographs while under water. It is usually done while scuba diving, but can be done while snorkeling. Ambassador Divers offers courses in underwater photography. Contact us here to find out more.
V
Visibility is the distance you can see underwater in a horizontal fashion. The Cayman Islands are home to some of the best visibility on the planet, boasting 100 foot plus visibility on most days.
W
Wall Diving is where the Cayman Islands diving community hangs it’s hat. These dramatic drop offs circle all three islands, starting between 40 and 60 feet falling off to 6000 feet in some areas. Ambassador Divers offers daily two tank trips to some of the most amazing wall dives the Cayman Islands has to offer.
X
Xtreme Sports, although the origin of the term is unclear, it gained popularity in the 1990s when it was picked up by marketing companies to promote the X Games. Activities categorized by media as extreme sports differ from traditional sports due to the higher number of inherently uncontrollable variables, scuba diving is no exception.
Y
Yolk Addaptor: A fitting used to connect a regulator or filling whip with a DIN thread connection to an international connection cylinder valve…boring, I know!
Z
Zach Larrabee has lionfish venom pulsing through his veins. This certified PADI Divemaster can be found humping tanks, leading dives, and of coarse, removing pesky lion fish from the beautiful dive sites of the Cayman Islands.