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USCG TAMPA Dive - What Happened??
Apr 8, 2025
So what happened with our plans to dive the USCG Tampa? In this video I explain how the strong wind meant that we were unable to get out and the dive was cancelled. I also talk about plans to try again in May Other topics covered include my next video due for release on Sunday and the videos that have been out since the last podcast. *£20 Off Orcatorch D710* You can get £20 off the price of the Oractorch D710 using the link below (*make sure you tick the Voucher box*) - https://amzn.to/4jhddRk *Competition* To win an Orcatorch D710 then please join the Deep Wreck Diving Group on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/1699048204345081/ *Highlights* 00:00 Tampa - what happened? 04:00 The tragic tale of the Glass Wreck 04:48 Competition - win an Orcatorch D710 06:20 My most terrifying dive *Kit I Use* Note, some of these are affiliate links so help support making my videos:
View Video Transcript
0:00
Last time I spoke to you, I was super
0:03
excited. We were going to go out last
0:05
weekend and try and find the Tampa,
0:07
which is a wreck that we've been looking
0:08
for for years and years and years. This
0:11
time, we think our research is spot on.
0:13
We think we know where it is. It's just
0:15
a case of getting out there and diving
0:17
it. We had the boat booked. We had Chris
0:19
Low from Atlantic Divers in UK in North
0:22
Cornwall. We had a big We had a really
0:24
good team of divers. Uh we had all the
0:27
supporting stuff like the accommodation,
0:29
everything. all was sorted. So it was it
0:31
was looking really good. As of Monday
0:33
last week, the weather forecast was
0:35
looking fine as well. So we were, you
0:38
know, we were really convinced that this
0:39
was going to be our time.
0:42
Unfortunately, what happened is what
0:44
often happens with this kind of diving.
0:47
By Tuesday, the weather forecast was
0:50
starting to turn and it became really
0:52
clear that Saturday wasn't going to
0:54
happen. However, we were still hanging
0:57
on in there for Sunday and that that
0:59
looked as though it was going to be okay
1:00
all the way through the week until on
1:03
Friday morning, we just the weather
1:05
forecast got worse and very reluctantly
1:09
uh the skipper made the call and said,
1:10
"Look, sorry guys, we can't go out
1:12
there. The weather's just not up to it."
1:14
So, uh really sad, but you know what?
1:17
The important thing with this is you've
1:19
got to be safe. Now, I put something
1:22
online and a few people said to me, you
1:24
know, why does wind cancel diving? You
1:26
know, sure, how does that, you know,
1:28
have anything to do with anything? Well,
1:30
the reality is it's not the wind per se,
1:32
it's what the wind means. So, when you
1:35
get wind, inevitably the sea picks up
1:38
and when you get rough
1:39
seas, then we simply uh a the traveling
1:43
out there becomes a pain uh and
1:46
obviously the traveling back as well.
1:47
And when you consider this is probably
1:49
going to be a two or three hour transit
1:51
to get out there. The probably the most
1:53
important thing though is uh is getting
1:56
divers out of the water. More or less
1:58
you can get in the water even even in
2:00
rough seas, but getting out is is the
2:02
real problem. You think about it, you've
2:03
been under water for two or three hours.
2:05
You're wearing a ton of gear and you've
2:07
then got a boat that's moving around all
2:10
over the place. You've got to get
2:11
yourself onto the lift. You got to get
2:13
up on the lift and then you've got to
2:14
get back to wherever you are sitting. So
2:16
if you no matter how good you you are in
2:19
terms of having people to help you and
2:21
all those kind of things, if the sea
2:23
state is too big and the boat's moving
2:25
too much, uh that is simply unsafe to do
2:28
that. The other aspect, well, two other
2:30
aspects to consider really. The first is
2:32
that if the skipper and the crew need to
2:35
get somebody on board who is um
2:37
unconscious, for instance, you know, a
2:39
divers's had an incident, um it becomes
2:41
really really difficult for them to do
2:43
it if there's a strong sea, you know,
2:46
probably even impossible really. The uh
2:48
there's also the issue with with um
2:51
bailout gas. So, our system and if you
2:53
haven't, our system involves um gas
2:57
going over. So we have a whole load of
2:59
uh bailout cylinders on board the boat
3:01
and if the sea state is too strong those
3:04
are you know the uh the skipper cannot
3:06
get them into the water cannot get them
3:08
to the divers. So there's another thing
3:10
as well. So that's the reason we don't
3:13
um go out if the seaate is is uh is too
3:16
big. So sea state for this weekend just
3:19
wasn't up to it and therefore the dive
3:21
was cancelled. However, the good news is
3:24
we've got another date booked in May. So
3:26
fingers crossed the weather will be
3:28
better. Fingers crossed the biz won't be
3:30
awful because sometimes in May you get a
3:31
lot of plankton. But hey, all we can do
3:34
is we put the dates in, give it a go and
3:37
wait and see what happens. So uh last
3:40
weekend blown out the uh date in May.
3:44
Fingers crossed and hopefully uh you'll
3:46
all be doing the same. So that's the
3:48
Tampa trip and um yeah, really sad news
3:52
but but there you go. So, what else have
3:55
I got to tell you about? Well, the first
3:56
thing is since I last spoke to you, I've
3:58
released two more videos. Hopefully,
4:01
you've had a chance to see my one about
4:02
the glass wreck, i.e. the Charwood. It's
4:05
one I'm really pleased with. Actually,
4:06
the Charwood's a local uh a local dive
4:08
site. It's dived loads and loads. It's
4:11
full of glasses and uh various other
4:13
bits and pieces. So, it's a really
4:15
interesting wreck, but um the thing is
4:18
not many people know the actual story
4:20
about it. So, if you've not watched that
4:22
video, u I'd really encourage you to go
4:24
and have a look at it. I really like it.
4:26
I think uh I think it's one that I'm
4:27
pleased with. Some that I'm kind like
4:29
that one's okay, but this one I really
4:32
like. So, I've done that. And the other
4:33
thing is, uh I've really I've done my
4:35
unboxing video. So, I've unboxed one of
4:38
these beautiful little Orca torch here,
4:40
Orca torches. So, um and I've done done
4:44
a video about that. It's a product I'm
4:46
really pleased to endorse because uh the
4:48
green one I shown you there was bought
4:50
for me at Christmas by my wife. So it's
4:52
it's a piece of kit that I personally
4:54
own. So really happy to to endorse it.
4:56
And also with that walk torch. Uh two
4:59
things. First thing is uh there's a link
5:01
and it's it's down there where you can
5:03
click on it. You can get 20 pounds off
5:04
one of them. The second thing is that uh
5:07
I've created a deep diving group on
5:10
Facebook and if you go and join that
5:12
deep diving group then there's the
5:14
opportunity to win that one there which
5:16
has never been in the water. So it's
5:17
completely brand new and one of the
5:20
lucky members of that group will will
5:22
get that or torch. I'll send it to them
5:24
wherever they are in the world. So I
5:26
think that's uh a pretty good deal. So
5:29
what else uh would I like to tell you
5:31
about? I guess um to tell you what I'm
5:32
going to be doing. So, I'm hoping to go
5:35
out diving this weekend and I'm just
5:38
waiting to hear whether I've got a space
5:39
on the boat or not. That will be a trip
5:42
out of Plymouth. So, just to go and do
5:44
some of our local wrecks. Not sure which
5:46
ones yet. Probably one I've done before,
5:49
but they're all pretty great. I'll make
5:51
sure that uh if we go and do it that I
5:53
get some decent video footage and at
5:55
some point it will appear on the
5:57
channel. So, that's this weekend's
5:58
plans. The other thing I'm currently
6:00
doing is producing uh my next video
6:03
which will go out on Sunday. And my next
6:05
video is
6:07
uh it's the most scared I've ever been
6:10
underwater. And hopefully you've seen my
6:13
rebreather bailout uh video. I wasn't
6:17
particularly scared during that uh
6:19
during that occurrence, mainly because I
6:21
felt under control. Um, the video that
6:24
I'm going to put out on Sunday, I felt
6:26
completely out of control and that is a
6:29
really really scary thing underwater.
6:31
Now, I'm not going to I'm not going to
6:33
tell you the details of it other than to
6:35
say it will be out on Sunday and
6:37
hopefully you will all watch that and
6:39
you'll see why I was so terrified. It's
6:41
also interesting enough my most
6:43
expensive dive ever. So, once again,
6:45
you'll find out about that in the video
6:47
on Sunday. So, uh, hopefully that's been
6:51
useful for you, giving you a bit of an
6:53
update on where I am and talked about,
6:55
uh, something to look forward to, which
6:57
is that that next video. If time allows,
6:59
I'm also planning to put together a
7:02
video about the dry gloves that I use.
7:04
They they attract lots of comments, my
7:06
kind of signature yellow gloves. So, I'm
7:08
going to talk about where you get them,
7:11
how I wear them, and what I do when they
7:15
uh, get ripped, which they sometimes do.
7:17
So, I hope that's a useful sort of
7:21
podcast update from me. And as always,
7:24
please uh if you could like my videos,
7:27
if you could like this one, that would
7:28
be fantastic. Leave us a comment. If
7:30
there's something you'd like me to talk
7:32
about on the next one of these, I will
7:33
do that. And I've got all the comments
7:35
from last time, I am going to cue those
7:37
up. Someone suggested maybe doing an ask
7:39
me anything video, so I may well see if
7:42
I can get the opportunity to do that as
7:44
well. But yeah, stick anything in the
7:45
comments you want me to talk about. Uh,
7:48
and as always, um, thank you very much
7:50
for your time and I'll see you on the
7:52
next one.