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Over the last year I have been working on a new book. SCUBA: A
Practical
Guide for the New Diver is designed to be used as a supplement
for the
Basic Open Water text of any agency. It contains those items that you
may not have been told in your OW class but are, in my opinion, crucial
for the new diver to know. Safe Diving Practices, Diver Responsibility,
Buddy Skills, Dive Planning, Gas Management, and how to choose a number
of things. Including equipment, instructors, courses, and even your
Local Dive Shop (LDS). Some may find it controversial as it does expose
some truths that are often not revealed to new divers until later in
their diving careers. This work available on disc, pdf and in limited
print editions.
UPDATE! Prices are as follows Print -$20.00 plus actual shipping, CD-
$12.50 plus actual shipping, Pdf -$10.00 check, M/O to James
Lapenta 615 McNary Ave #2, Canonsburg, PA 15317 include email
and shipping address. or Paypal to jimlap212@comcast.net .Thank
you! Please address all inquiries about the book to jimlap212@comcast.net
Posted by
jimlap212 on Monday November 22, 2010 5:46 pm
Drysuit Course- $155.00- The SEI Diving Drysuit course I offer is designed for those who are considering or have purchased a Drysuit and wish to shorten the learning curve involved with diving dry. There is increased task loading involved with using the suit but it is not rocket science. Having the drysuit certification will also allow you to rent a suit in places where such a certification is required. The course involves classroom and a pool session followed by 2-3 open water dives. During the course you'll learn proper weighting with the suit, buoyancy control and trim, and how to use the suit and BC to compliment each other. There are also emergency procedures that will be covered as well as rescue of a diver who is in a dry suit. Divers may rent gear or are free to use their own equipment. Back Plates and Wings are welcome as are double cylinders!
Nitrox Course- 145.00- The SEI Diving Nitrox course will allow you to take advantage of what was once known as VooDoo Gas! Called that by some still, it is nothing more than breathing air with an oxygen content greater than 21% up to 40%. You'll spend 3-4 hours in the classroom, An hour or so observing how nitrox is blended and how to use an analyzer to verify the contents or your cylinder. And unlike the direction many agencies are taking you will do a min of two dives with the gas that you analyzed. Nitrox will allow you to reduce your surface intervals or lengthen your bottom times before reaching your no decompression limits.There are depth restrictions however and you will learm about these as well. There is a common misconception that with Nitrox you can dive deeper. This is false and we'll see why in the course.
Search and Recovery 1 - 165.00 - New from SEI is the latest addition to our expanding specialty course offerings. Search and Recovery I from UDM Aquatics will teach you the methods used to locate and salvage small to medium sized objects such as fishing rods, small boat anchors, wallets, glasses, trolling motors and perhaps small chests of pirate treasure! Use of lines and reels for search patterns, use of lift bags, determining a search area, and other necessary techniques will be covered. Documentation of the site will also be covered. For this course the SEI AOW course offered by UDM Aquatics or equivalent is strongly encouraged as well as Underwater Navigation.
Search and Recovery with PSD Awareness + Component - 225.00 - This level of search and recovery will include all of the itmes in S & R 1 with the addition of those items necessary to meet the standards for Public Safety Diver (PSD) Awareness level. Items such as low or no vis searches, evidence preservation, site documentation, and other more detailed search and recovery techniques will be covered. This level of training and this particular specialty will be very demanding and require high levels of basic skills. An evaluation of the student's skills and knowledge will be conducted before entry into this course.
Posted by
jimlap212 on Monday July 12, 2010 1:32 pm
Do you want to know where you are going? Do you want to know how to find your way underwater to objects, sites, and points of interest? And most importantly, do you want to be able to find your way back? Then this is the course for you! Over the course of 6, yes 6 dives, and a minimum of 6 hours of classroom you will learn to use a compass, natural features, and for the first time in a recreational navigation course, the use of lines and reels to successfully navigate underwater. In the classroom we will cover the equipment, techniques, challenges, and hazards of underwater navigation. You will also learn about why these techniques are used and when to use them. I'll teach you to make decisions on what to do when navigating a site and conditions change or are not what you expected. In addition you will do something that no other agency offers until the divemaster level. You will learn how to create a map of the site you are diving and create this map during your dives and surface intervals. Then as part of the exit requirements you will turn in a finished version of the map and take your final exam. You will need to furnish your own compass, slate, and dive kit. I will provide the lines and reels.There is also a student handbook that accompanies the course which you should also have that covers the navigation aspects as well as a section on gas management and it's applications to navigation which is also covered in the classroom portion. For complete details email or call to set up a time to personally discuss this exciting chapter in your diving education.
Posted by
jimlap212 on Sunday March 22, 2009 10:22 am
The Diver Rescue and Accident Management course is one of the most valuable courses for the recreational diver. Prerequisites include First Aid, CPR, AED, Oxygen Provider. For more details call.
Posted by
jimlap212 on Friday March 13, 2009 5:37 pm
Full Face Mask Diver, Ice Diver
Posted by
jimlap212 on Monday January 05, 2009 10:14 am
Open Water, Open Water Plus, Advanced Open Water, Advanced Plus Diver, and Master Scuba Diver, Specialties available include- Dry Suit Diver, Equipment Service, Nitrox, Diver Rescue and Accident Management. We can also begin your pro level training with DiveMaster and Assistant Instructor! And now I'm pleased to announce that I am able to offer the new SEI Underwater Navigation course! Details will be posted in the very near future but this is like no other recreational navigation course available today in terms of course content, number of dives, and skills taught and utilized. Watch for details or email me if interested. I offer these courses to students in Pittsburgh Pa, Washington Pa, Wheeling West Virginia, and all surrounding areas.
I am now offering courses from SDI/TDI/ERDI in the following areas. From SDI - Deep, Underwater Navigation, Computer Nitrox, Wreck, Night/Limited Vis, and Open Water Scuba Diver.
Under TDI - Edge/HOG Equipment Service Clinic, TDI Nitrox, and TDI Intro to Tech. Stay tuned for details and prices on these courses as I determine those items over the next few weeks.
Posted by
jimlap212 on Monday January 05, 2009 10:14 am
The underwater world is a fascinating place that can be discovered with a minimal amount of effort and the use of a mask, fins, and a snorkel. This class is all pool work with poolside lectures and training tips.
Posted by
jimlap212 on Monday January 05, 2009 10:13 am
The SEI Diving Open Water Diver course is for individuals ages 12 and older. It involves equal parts of classroom amd pool instruction along with 5 open water checkout dives. Completing this course may be the start of many wonderful hours spent beneath the surface. It will challenge and thrill you at the same time. You may discover things about yourself that you never knew. You will discover more about life on our planet than you ever dreamed possible. Give me a call or send an email to begin your new adventure!
The Open Water Course consists of 24-32 hours of instruction in the classroom and pool. During this training you will learn about diving history, equipment, physics, physiology, dive planning, the environment, and rescue skills. You'll develop skills that you'll use on every dive. You will also discover more about yourself than you thought possible. In addition to the $339.00 tuition cost you will need to purchase a text book and workbooks. These total approximately $60.00. Call for information on discounts for couples, groups, and students. Due to the current economic situation I am now including the classroom materials in the basic cost of $339.00! In addition I am also offering a 25.00 rebate for every new student you would refer who takes any OW or Specialty class! So If you want a quality education and the chance to not only save money but recover some of your investment sign up with UDM Aquatic Services for your scuba training! Following your classroom and confined water (pool) training you will need to rent the actual scuba unit itself (bc, tanks, regulator, exposure suit) for your OW checkout dives. I recommend you do this through Dive World where we will be doing your training. You will know the equipment and be very familar with it. In addition the cost is as good as or better than that at any other shop in the area. The cost for it is set by the shop and is separate from from my costs. Not having to maintain my own inventory of student gear allows me to keep training costs down.
I offer this course to students in Pittsburgh Pa, Washington Pa, Wheeling West Virginia, and all surrounding areas. For the finest in Scuba Instruction in Pittsburgh, Washington, Canonsburg, Pa, and all of SW Pa, and Northern West Virginia, give me a call or send an email via the contact page. Note if you are willing to make the drive as some recent student have I can set a schedule to accomodate students from as far as Zanesville Ohio!
Posted by
jimlap212 on Monday January 05, 2009 10:12 am
SEI Diving's Open Water Scuba Diver course that involves an additonal 2 dives under instructor supervision. During these dives we'll work more on your buoyancy and spend more time on your naviagtion skills with a compass and using natural navigation. It will enable you to feel more comfortable in the water and with your hew found skills. The best thing to improve your diving is to dive! Having a little more professional guidance is just icing on the cake.
If taken in conjunction with Basic Open Water the total cost is $379.00. To add it to an existing OW certification is $50.00. In addition it will involve an extra day of diving as we are limited to a maximum of 3 training dives per day of which 2 count towards certification. Standard practice is to do two dives per day. This allows us plenty of time for setup, debrief, and relax after the dives.
Posted by
jimlap212 on Monday January 05, 2009 10:11 am
The SEI Advanced Open Water Diver course. This course gives you an additional 6 dives beyond your open water training and whatever dives you have done since then. We will add to your experience by exposing you to deep dives(100 feet max.), search and recovery, underwater navigation, and night. Along with an Advanced Skills dive and a Buddy Skills and Assist dive that is in reality an intro to the DRAM rescue course. We'll spend more time in the classroom than is common in other AOW courses giving you the information you need to conduct these new dives safely. Depending on your level of comfort and desire to dive this may be the perfect time to plan the direction of your Advanced Plus course (10 dives vs 6). It will definitely give you more experience and knowledge.
There will be two classroom sessions of approx. 6-8 hours total covering communication, navigation, search and recovery, deep diving, gas management, and night low vis techniques. In addition we will look at rescue skills for these types of dives and equipment considerations and recommendations. This would be in addition to 2-3 hours of on site instruction between dives. An all day classroom option is available on a very limited basis with advance arrangements.
Dives would include- Search and Recovery: Navigation using compass, natural, and lines or reels: Deep ( to 100 feet): Night/Low vis and an Advanced Skills dive covering shooting of bags, propulsion techniques(frog, back, helicopter turns), uw communication and fine buoyancy control. In addition you will carry and deploy a redundant air supply on at least 2 of the dives. Note that buoyancy, trim, and proper weighting will be addressed on ALL dives. In addition a replacement for the search and recovery dive can be tailored to the needs of the individual diver(s). For example a Wreck Dive may be substituted for the Search and Recovery dive.
Buddy Skills and Assist is a dive that is now also required and will allow you to take your buddy skills to the next level and as stated introduce you to more rescue skills beyond the OW level. Prereqs are: OW plus 10 dives or OW and a skills checkout in the pool if I do not know you or your certifying instructor.
Note that this course and all other advanced courses are scheduled according to the needs of the student. I also offer private instruction in advanced courses at a small extra charge for tuition (currently $75). Extraordinary travel (airfare, etc), boat fees and quarry entry fees are the responsibility of the student. Again this course also has a prerequisite of 10 dives post OW cert and may include a skills evaluation pool session and possible ow dives to assess your skills in order to determine if you are indeed ready for Advanced Training. You must provide your own gear for this class and tank rentals can be arranged. In that vein for the deep dives you must have a min of 95 cu ft capacity tanks which you may rent from me ($10 per tank) or bring to the class yourself. I also require a redundant air supply in the form of a pony or stage bottle of at least 19 cu ft capacity. I have three of these for rental use with regulators ($15 per tank and reg set up). "Spare Airs" or smaller bottles are not acceptable.
I offer this course to students in Pittsburgh Pa, Washington Pa, Wheeling West Virginia, and all surrounding areas. In addition the all day classroomn option is available to anyone willing to travel to me. I have had students from South Carolina, Philadelphia, and Cincinnatti, Ohio make the trip for this course. If you have 4 students who wish to take this course in their own area I can also travel at your expense for this class. Prior advance notice of a min 6 weeks would be required and availability for this is extremely limited at this time.
Posted by
jimlap212 on Monday January 05, 2009 10:11 am
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