Articles

Below are some of the articles I have written.

Intro to Tech - Several people have asked me about my Intro to Tech Courses, what is involved with them, and what a person can expect to learn. I’ve put this article together to help people understand the purpose and value of taking this course. First off, let me explain what “Technical Diving” means to me. Historically, there have …
Cave DPV Dive Planning - In this article I am going to make an attempt to tackle the subject of proper dive planning while using a DPV when cave diving. I am writing this article to try and dispel some myths that continue to permeate around the cave diving community, as well as try to make the reader consider things …
A Frank Discussion on In-Water Recompression - Decompression Illness (DCI), a medical diagnosis that encompasses both Decompression Sickness (DCS, aka “The Bends”) and Arterial Gas Embolism (AGE), is an unfortunate reality that cave divers may be forced to face. Inert gas stress, caused by deep dives and lengthy bottom times, coupled with the exertion of carrying heavy equipment to and from the …
Thoughts on cave training - For years, there has been a myth that the best divers in the world are cave divers. In support of that myth, perhaps you have heard that the hallmark of a cave diver is to have incredible buoyancy control, the ability to move through a narrow passage without disturbing the least bit of silt, and …
Lights are life support! - So you need a primary light? A question I get asked frequently is “what primary light should I buy for cave diving?” Although light and battery technology is constantly changing, I am going to explain some general guidelines for things to look for in a primary light that will hold true no matter what lights …
Always check your gas! - I recently heard a story that happened to a good friend and it compelled me to write this article. My friend was doing a dive on his CCR and everything went flawlessly on the dive. I wish I could say that the story ended there, because I would have not spent the time putting together …
Cave Exploration in Merida (1999) - (ed. I wrote this article in 1999 after returning from Merida. I never published it). Merida.. Where do I start? Oh yeah, the beginning.. Some guys from Texas A&M contacted a friend of mine, Jesse Armantrout, to have us explore an underwater cave system they had received permits to dive. The A&M guys had done …
Mending a broken heart (or how I found out I had a PFO) - Over the past five years I got used to getting bent. A lot. I really mean a lot. I never really thought much about how frequently I got bent, I just sort of took it for granted that I would get some form of DCS every now and then. Skin bends? Yup, that one was …
Successful OW Checkout Dives for New Instructors - I originally wrote this article to help out a couple of new instructors at the UF scuba program. I am releasing it to the public for any other new instructor. Successful OW Checkout Dives By Ken Sallot There’s a saying, “failure to plan is planning to fail.”  Given that scuba diving is a recreational activity …
Falmouth – Cathedral Radio Locations - Some of you know that I have been spending most of my free time over the past few months working on the Falmouth-Cathedral Springs project, which is a joint project between Karst Underwater Research (KUR) and the Woodville Karst Plains Project (WKPP). I will be writing up a lengthy article in the near future, but …
How to choose an instructor — my opinion - There is a very interesting thread on scubaboard titled “Choosing a cave instructor — my opinion.” Jim offers some valid questions you should ask your potential technical instructor. Here’s his list: 1.How long has the instructor been an instructor? 2.Ask about the experience of the instructor: is the instructor qualified to teach other advanced dive …

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