Finding peace down deep.(Keeping Your Edge)(Scuba diving).

Q: What kind of training is involved in becoming a certified scuba diver?

A: As with other sports, you go through a progression of training exercises from beginner to advanced level. Since I started six years ago, I've become a Master Scuba Diver, which is as far as I can go in recreational diving. I've started to train for the commercial track, although I have no immediate plans to earn a living doing this.

Q: How do you assemble a group of people to go diving?

A: Divers typically sign up for trips run by dive shops or communities. Last year, however, a group of us formed a new dive community (go to www.scuba-challenge.com for details). It's a club for people who are generally a bit older (38-65), in management positions, and who enjoy places that are a little more upscale than the typical dive venue. We've already attracted about 175 people. I also dive with my children. I introduced my youngest son to scuba diving when he was 15, and now we dive together all over the world.

Q: Where are your favorite places to dive?

A: As a board member of the Internet Association for Australia, I visit the country at least once a year. Invariably I find ways to extend my stay so that I can go to the Great Barrier Reef or the Coral Sea. Another favorite spot right now is Cozumel, Mexico, which has a gorgeous reef, lots of Mayan ruins, and a little place called Scuba Club Cozumel that is really set up for divers.

Q: What keeps you enthusiastic about this sport?

A: You can dive all of your life, since swimming and diving are low-impact sports that still give you a first-class workout. And as stressful as it is these days being an association executive, diving lets you fall into the water, go down 60 feet, and watch fish and coral. It's unbelievably relaxing and peaceful.

It's also a hobby that keeps you sharp, because there is always something worth investigating, and you must be alert for the good of the group. If there is something worth seeing, we let each other know. And if we have an emergency, we've all got to pitch in and help. I feel so strongly about the benefits of diving that I work with association executives to get their certifications in either Florida or the Caribbean. Besides, there's never a bad vacation at a tropical resort.

Source Citation
"Finding peace down deep." Association Management 56.7 (2004): 88. General OneFile. Web. 27 Nov. 2009. .

Gale Document Number:A119952422