News
Deepblu Leads Dive Agencies into the Digital Age
Three dive training agencies are now working with social network Deepblu. The International Technical Diving Agency ITDA, the International Diving Association IDA and the Diving Instructor World Association DIWA are adopting Deepblu to extend their reach and complete their e-learning programs.
Keeping up with the times, the three European agencies had already begun offering electronic resources to their instructors and students, allowing part of the learning to take place at the students’ own convenience.
As a free social platform where divers can log their dives and discuss anything diving-related, Deepblu completes the agencies’ digital learning resources. Seeing the value of a global online diving community, the agencies now officially recognize Deepblu digital dive logs for certification training and are encouraging their students to join the Deepblu community.
“The International Diving Association is convinced that the new Deepblu app will hit the mark,” says IDA founder Karsten Reimer. “Many divers are still posting their photos and adventures on Facebook where the majority of users aren’t divers! Deepblu offers a much better audience.”
Wilfried Dickes, DIWA’s president is confident that “integration with Deepblu adds value for our dive instructors and divers. Deepblu combines a modern diver community with an online dive log solution and we are glad to be one of the first training agencies to be on board.”
The Deepblu Cloud: A Place for Digital Dive Logbooks and More
Dive logging is a crucial part of the certification process, but the conventional paper logbook has many drawbacks. Not only is logging your dives by hand a tedious and time-consuming task, the logbooks and instructor stamps are also likely to get soggy, illegible or lost.
Deepblu digital dive logs solve this problem by storing all dive-related information safely in the cloud. Instructors can easily certify the dive log online and students can enrich them with photo and videography to serve as a memory of their dives.
The agencies also recognize the value of staying in touch with their students and instructors, which is facilitated through Deepblu, where every diver can create their own profile, and tag their diving buddies and instructors in dive logs or other posts that concern them. Divers can also easily find instructors and divers based on their agency association.
“Deepblu not only enables certification bodies to digitize their training processes but it also helps new divers to start capturing their adventures from day one,” says James Tsuei, CEO of Deepblu. “Our community welcomes divers of all experience levels to stay immersed in the lifestyle.”
New Organization Profiles Link Businesses and Their Members
As part of the cooperation between Deepblu and the diving agencies, Deepblu is also piloting the organization profile. With full social media functionality, this new, customizable profile allows businesses and organizations to engage with to their members and the larger diving community.
The three dive training agencies IDA, ITDA and DIWA, the non-profit organizations Green Fins and The Watermen Project, as well as a select number of Deepblu COSMIQ Resellers will take part in the pilot program. Later this year, every ocean-related business or organization will be able to sign up for an organization profile.
“We are very excited to connect ITDA Members, Divers and Professionals through this innovative platform,” says Stephen J. Craig-Murray, CEO and Chairman of ITDA. “This is a big step forward and opportunity for our divers to share and be a part of a global community.”
See www.deepblu.com for more information.
Free Octopus with every purchase of a SCUBAPRO regulator system
Just in time for the spring season, divers can save money with the FREE OCTOPUS SPRING PROMOTION! Until July 31st SCUBAPRO offers an Octopus for free
with every purchase of a regulator system!
Get a free S270 OCTOPUS with purchase of these combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with A700
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with S620Ti
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with D420
MK25 EVO Din mit S620Ti-X
Get a free R105 OCTOPUS with purchase of the following combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with G260
MK25 EVO or MK17 EVO with S600
SCUBAPRO offers a 30-year first owner warranty on all regulators, with a revision period of two years or 100 dives. All SCUBAPRO regulators are of course certified according to the new European test standard EN250-2014.
Available at participating SCUBAPRO dealers. Promotion may not be available in all regions. Find an authorized SCUBAPRO Dealer at scubapro.com.
More information available on www.scubapro.com.
Jake Davies boards Ghazala Explorer for an unforgettable Red Sea diving experience…
Overnight, the wind picked up, making the planned morning dive a bit bumpy on the Zodiacs to the drop point on Thomas Reef. There, we would dive along the reef before descending through the canyon and then passing under the arch before ascending the wall with a gentle drift. The site provided great encounters with more pelagic species, including shoals of large barracuda, tuna, and bigeye trevally.
Once back on the boat, it was time to get everything tied down again as we would head back south. This time, with the wind behind us, heading to Ras Mohammed to dive Jackfish Alley for another great gentle drift wall dive before then heading up the coast towards the Gulf of Suez to moor up at the wreck of the Thistlegorm. This being the highlight wreck dive of the trip and for many onboard, including myself, it was the first time diving this iconic wreck. I had heard so much about the wreck from friends, and globally, this is a must on any diver’s list. Fortunately for us, there was only one other boat at the site, which was a rarity. A great briefing was delivered by Ahmed, who provided a detailed background about the wreck’s history along with all the required safety information as the currents and visibility at the site can be variable.
Kitting up, there was a lot of excitement on deck before entering the water and heading down the shoreline. Descending to the wreck, there was a light northerly current which reduced the visibility, making it feel more like the conditions that can be found off the Welsh coast. At 10m from the bottom, the outline of the wreck appeared as we reached the area of the wreck which had been bombed, as our mooring line was attached to part of the propeller shaft. Arriving on deck, instantly everywhere you looked there were many of the supplies which the ship was carrying, including Bren Carrier tanks and projectiles that instantly stood out.
We headed around the exterior, taking a look at the large propeller and guns mounted on deck before entering the wreck on the port side to take a look in the holds. It was incredible to see all the trucks, Norton 16H, and BSA motorcycles still perfectly stacked within, providing a real snapshot in time.
Overall, we had four dives on the Thistlegorm, where for all of the dives we were the only group in the water, and at times, there were just three of us on the whole wreck, which made it even more special, especially knowing that most days the wreck has hundreds of divers. Along with the history of the wreck, there was plenty of marine life on the wreck and around, from big green turtles to batfish, along with shoals of mackerel being hunted by trevally. Some unforgettable dives.
The final leg of the trip saw us cross back over the Suez Canal to the Gobal Islands where we planned to stay the night and do three dives at the Dolphin House for the potential of sharing the dive with dolphins. The site, which included a channel that was teeming with reef fish, especially large numbers of goatfish that swam in large shoals along the edge of the reef. These were nice relaxing dives to end the week. Unfortunately, the dolphins didn’t show up, which was okay as like all marine life they are difficult to predict and you can’t guarantee what’s going to be seen. With the last dive complete, we headed back to port for the final night where it was time to clean all the kit and pack before the departure flight the next day.
The whole week from start to finish on Ghazala Explorer was amazing; the boat had all the facilities you need for a comfortable week aboard. The crew were always there to help throughout the day and the chefs providing top quality food which was required after every dive. The itinerary providing some of the best diving with a nice mixture of wreck and reef dives. I would recommend the trip to anyone, whether it’s your first Red Sea liveaboard in the Red Sea or you’re revisiting. Hopefully, it’s not too long before I head back to explore more of the Red Sea onboard Ghazala Explorer.
To find out more about the Northern Red Sea reef and wrecks itineraries aboard Ghazala Explorer, or to book, contact Scuba Travel now:
Email: dive@scubatravel.com
Tel: +44 (0)1483 411590
Photos: Jake Davies / Avalon.Red
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