DIVELOG JUNE 406

Dear Mike and Vikki, Many years have passed since I had my time in the fabulous underwater world. Today, there have been some really important and wonderful studies and works produced now performed by divers from all over the world. You have both managed to capture the world underwater scene spectacularly well. It is as good as any dive publication I have ever seen. For this I have to congratulate you both for putting together such an amazing and beautifully prepared magazine. It is one of the best and most complete presentations I have ever been fortunate enough to read. My old diving legs wanted to experience the wonders of the ocean once again. Of course at 87 years old that is not possible. But you bring this fabulous world back to life again in your Dive Log. There have been many important and valuable marine discoveries brought about by research and exploration. I am also reminded that when my friends and I started to explore the magic of the underwater world, we did so with inner fear and trepidation with mostly homemade gear that consisted of a mask, short fins and a snorkel with a ping pong ball on top.. By much good luck we survived those early years. We were always expecting to be faced with man eating sharks. We did see them but they did not attack us! I am sure that you will be aware that way back in the 1970's I pushed to have the Julian Rocks, Byron Bay, declared a marine sanctuary. After nine years of facing a lot of animosity, in 1982 we won the verbal war when it was declared a protected zone, and divers could now explore its waters properly. The benefits have been enormous. Anyway, I must again congratulate you on producing such a beautifully illustrated and informative publication. • Hello Bill, It is great to hear from you. Thank you for your kind words about Dive Log Australasia. I always look back fondly about diving with you so many times in the late 70's early 80's at Julian Rocks. I recall very clearly that mind blowing dive we did at the pinnacle in fifty metres visibility. We enjoyed sapphire blue water with the biggest Grey Nurse sharks I have seen, loads of cobia and that massive school of huge kingfish that formed a chimney around us as we ascended from ~40 metres. I remember clearly your reaction. You were famous for your very enthusiastic and frequent post dive bursts of excitement, sheer ecstacy and pure joy that we had after a great dive. After that dive, we were all in a seventh heaven. We were stunned at the superb spectacle that we had just experienced. So many divers over the last 50 years have benefited from your development of the amazing diving at Byron Bay. The protection of Julian Rocks was a battle you fought for us Long may it continue! Regards Bill Silvester.

for nine years. Now thousands of divers owe you a debt of gratitude. You were a very important part of the early history diving in Australia and will always be remembered fondly as a true pioneer, trailblazer and diving legend. best wishes Mike and Vikki Dear Mike, I hope this email finds you well. We don't know each other yet. I'm part of the NovoScuba team and my name is Sara Roncati. I am happy to reach you with the first news about this brand new company. NovoScuba's innovative approach to diving education - with its ground-breaking subscription-based training platform - is something that has never been seen before in the diving education industry and I believe this news may resonate with your readership. I believe this story would be of great interest to your audience, especially those passionate about diving, education and innovation in technology. Would you be interested in running this story in your publication? I'm also happy to provide any additional information or arrange an interview with Mark Spiers, CEO of NovoScuba, if that would be of interest. Thank you for considering this opportunity, I'd like to get to know you and the editorial team, I think it's the only healthy way to get involved in the diving community. I look forward to hearing from you soon, Best regards Sara Roncati - NovoScuba * Thank you Sara, we have published your article in this issue of Dive Log Page 88. Hi DL Been reading DL since started diving in 2008 so was fantastic to see it revived onto the internet. Just reading latest issue (April #405) I saw the DAN article talking about being aware of and managing the 3 'D's of disorientation, distraction and discomfort. Article had a discussion and mentioned how things like being stressed or on drugs etc can contribute to the 'D's . I found that 3D list not really an actionable checklist, so I use the Aviation checklist of IM SAFE = Illness, Medication, Stress, Alcohol, Fatigue, Emotion as a more thorough way of checking if any of the 3D issues will be likely? If I am indeed safe and not affected by any issues on the checklist then I am good to dive. Perhaps we can share this checklist in the next Dive Log? Regards David - Melbourne • Thank you David for your comments and sharing your own safety checklist.

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DIVE LOG Australasia #406 - June ‘24

www.divelog.net.au