Rolls Flipped: Under the Sea
By Shaun Fleming on May 02, 2019 from Roles Flipped
Just in time for summertime adventure inspiration, our stay-at-home dad blogger Shaun Fleming shares his passion for scuba diving. The remainder of Fleming's blog and video of his adventures can be found at rolesflipped.com.
Have you ever wanted to explore an alien world? Go some place that very few others have gone? See things that no one else will ever see? Then scuba diving may be the answer for you. It was for me. Scuba diving is awesome!! Check this video out below. I took it from my GoPro at Tygart Lake, which is my local diving spot. It’s pretty clear water for freshwater diving. Most freshwater places are nowhere near the visibility of the Caribbean.
How it Started:
I’ve always loved the water. Whether it be the beach, lake, or river, I always wanted to be around whatever water I could get near. My dad taught me how to snorkel at an early age and that was all I would do when I was swimming. I loved taking a deep breath and diving down as deep as I could go before having to come up for air. I always thought, “Man, if only I could stay down here longer.” Then came Scuba!!
Back in 2010 when I was a Deputy Sheriff I had the privilege of working with another deputy by the name of Tige Pratt. Tige was an avid scuba diver and had just received his instructor certification. I was one of his first students.
This Will be on the Test:
There is a course you have to take to get certified to scuba dive. It starts with some classroom work and then goes to skill tests in the pool and then an actual body of water. When I took the classes we had to meet in person. These days the classroom work can be done online.
There are many different levels of certification you can achieve in scuba. All require their own classroom and open water skill tests. The very first level you get is called “open water diver”. When you pass you get an official card and everything. From there you can go to “advanced open water diver”. After that the certifications you can get branch out in many directions. Some gear you towards a professional level diver, with the goal of eventually becoming an instructor. You pick your direction. I’m still at the advanced open water diver level and I’m perfectly happy with that. It lets me go on whatever dive I want and none of the responsibilities of a more advanced level.
Can’t Get Enough:
Once I got my certification I started diving as much as I could. I saved up money and bought all the gear I needed. I didn’t want to go through the hassle of renting equipment. Like any sport or hobby it can be expensive to get the right equipment, but with proper care it lasts for years.
There was a core group of maybe 6 or 7 of us that frequently dove together locally, most of us cops or firefighters. (Jokes aside we really do get along) We usually went to Tygart Lake in Grafton, WV or Mt. Storm Lake in Mt. Storm, WV. As far as I know diving is not permitted at Mt. Storm anymore unless you are diving from a boat.
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