News
Sheffield University wins BSAC club video competition
Danny Copeland, 23, of Sheffield University Sub-Aqua Club (SUSAC) has won BSAC’s Club Diving Video competition. BSAC has awarded Danny with £400 to spend at Cameras Underwater and £500 for his club.
Judges John McIntyre (underwater film maker and journalist) and Mary Tetley (BSAC Chief Exec) were looking for exciting and inspiring videos that encourage both new trainees and already trained divers into BSAC club life and the sport.
Impressed with many of the entries, John said:
“The ones that stood out most had the strongest messages. As for the two top videos, the content was clear and well thought out but for me the winner just edged it in the strength of that message. Danny’s video made me smile, had a punchy message, good humour and is a persuasive tool for attracting new members. The choice of music was excellent and it was well edited.”
SUSAC is already reaping the benefits of the video. At a recent Try Dive meeting where the club showed the video, they signed up six new members compared to the one or two they’d usually recruit from such an event.
Will Whitmore, 18, of Kingston and Elmbridge Junior Snorkellers, came second with a fabulous snorkelling video.
Gerry Allen, 51, of Lisburn Sub Aqua Club was awarded third place. £250 and £100 will be awarded consecutively to the second and third placed clubs.
On the second and third place videos John commented:
“Well done to Will Whitmore. We all thought this video had a lot of charm and some great shots. I thought the use of the drone footage was especially good. The captions were excellent. It was a close call! Lisburn’s entry had a bit of everything. There was a variety of colourful marine life – which is after all why a lot of us dive – and a really catchy but not overpowering tune. The captions were good humoured and overall just the sort of video that a club needs to boost membership.”
A big supporter of BSAC club diving, John added: “I think it’s great that BSAC clubs are getting stuck in when it comes to making videos and posting them on social media. It’s a great way to get the message out that diving and being part of a club is a lot of fun, not forgetting the amazing variety of dive sites we have in the UK.”
You can watch the entries on the BSAC facebook page at www.facebook.com/BritishSubAquaClub.
If you’ve been inspired to create a promotional video for your club, you can download a ‘How to’ guide for creating a club promotional video at www.bsac.com/vidguide.
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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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