Beverly resident Todd Randall couldn't stop fidgeting with a bright orange cable keeper on a recent idyllic Sunday morning.
Randall, 44, had accompanied his scuba diving buddies from the North Shore Frogmen to Old Garden Beach in Rockport. He was with them on the shoreline even though he can no longer make the walk down to the water, weighed down by 80 pounds of gear, because of a life-changing injury suffered three years ago.
But that doesn't mean Randall has given up the hobby he loves. As Randall's friends disappeared into the horizon, he shared several tales of underwater adventures and his genuine happiness that he's still able to dive off the back of his boat. Because once in the water, his body becomes weightless.
"Once you're in the water, you're in another world," Randall said. "I've been diving since I was 12 years old. I love it. It very quickly turned into a passion. So, yeah. It makes all the difference in the world that I can still dive."
A field service engineer by trade, Randall didn't think much of the little splinter in his left index finger he got on the job in February 2004. He pulled it out with his teeth and moved on with his work. But he became concerned later when his left hand ballooned and blood oozed from painfully splitting skin. Doctors never determined exactly what the infection was, but amputated some of Randall's fingertips and knuckles during six operations before removing his entire lower forearm in October 2006.
"It still hurts every single day. It definitely put a crimp in my style," Randall said with a self-deprecating laugh. "I'm just thankful that I have a child who's into the same stuff that I am - I love the salt water and I love being in it."
Without the aid of his 12-year-old daughter Alexis, and his scuba pals, Randall wouldn't be able to continue diving. As Alexis pilots the boat, Randall's friends dress him in his wetsuit and scuba gear, using a cable tie to clamp the wetsuit around the lower part of his forearm. He then slips right off the bow of the boat, avoiding the difficult shore walk with the steel tank affixed to his back.
Randall became an official member of the North Shore Frogmen last month.
"I just fall off the back of the boat and then go wherever I want to go," Randall said.
His underwater sightseeing trips include a recent visit to World War II German submarine in waters 130 feet deep off the shores of Block Island with his wreck-diving buddies Dan Turner of Cambridge and Dan Hering of Beverly. Hering, 33, also toured the sunken USS New Hampshire (the sister ship of the USS Constitution) off Manchester-by-the-Sea recently, where he found two spikes made in the Paul Revere foundry.
Randall, 44, had accompanied his scuba diving buddies from the North Shore Frogmen to Old Garden Beach in Rockport. He was with them on the shoreline even though he can no longer make the walk down to the water, weighed down by 80 pounds of gear, because of a life-changing injury suffered three years ago.
But that doesn't mean Randall has given up the hobby he loves. As Randall's friends disappeared into the horizon, he shared several tales of underwater adventures and his genuine happiness that he's still able to dive off the back of his boat. Because once in the water, his body becomes weightless.
"Once you're in the water, you're in another world," Randall said. "I've been diving since I was 12 years old. I love it. It very quickly turned into a passion. So, yeah. It makes all the difference in the world that I can still dive."
A field service engineer by trade, Randall didn't think much of the little splinter in his left index finger he got on the job in February 2004. He pulled it out with his teeth and moved on with his work. But he became concerned later when his left hand ballooned and blood oozed from painfully splitting skin. Doctors never determined exactly what the infection was, but amputated some of Randall's fingertips and knuckles during six operations before removing his entire lower forearm in October 2006.
"It still hurts every single day. It definitely put a crimp in my style," Randall said with a self-deprecating laugh. "I'm just thankful that I have a child who's into the same stuff that I am - I love the salt water and I love being in it."
Without the aid of his 12-year-old daughter Alexis, and his scuba pals, Randall wouldn't be able to continue diving. As Alexis pilots the boat, Randall's friends dress him in his wetsuit and scuba gear, using a cable tie to clamp the wetsuit around the lower part of his forearm. He then slips right off the bow of the boat, avoiding the difficult shore walk with the steel tank affixed to his back.
Randall became an official member of the North Shore Frogmen last month.
"I just fall off the back of the boat and then go wherever I want to go," Randall said.
His underwater sightseeing trips include a recent visit to World War II German submarine in waters 130 feet deep off the shores of Block Island with his wreck-diving buddies Dan Turner of Cambridge and Dan Hering of Beverly. Hering, 33, also toured the sunken USS New Hampshire (the sister ship of the USS Constitution) off Manchester-by-the-Sea recently, where he found two spikes made in the Paul Revere foundry.
"It's quite relaxing being down there. But at the same it, it's a true adventure. I mean, how cool is it to see a shipwreck up close?" said Hering, president of the longstanding scuba diving club, the North Shore Frogmen. "The coolest thing about diving is there are lots of different things you can get into year-round. You can do underwater photography, bug-hunting, hunting for your (dinner) table, wreck-diving, or just check out the marine life. The number of activities are endless."
Hering got into diving roughly five years ago because he was reading a lot on local nautical history and wanted to see what was below the water's surface for himself. Other divers have their own reasons for getting into the sport. Marblehead resident Steven Levy, 60, started in 2000 after his children were grown and his pocket change was his own again. But Levy's scuba desires date back to his own childhood, during which he loved watching Lloyd Bridges' television show, "Sea Hunt."
Turner, 50, started diving for professional reasons, but has come to love the recreational aspects, too. As a deputy fire chief in Cambridge, he started diving in 1997 when the Fire Department began organizing a dive rescue team in reaction to a tragic MBTA bus accident along the Charles River. He casually met Hering while diving last year and decided to join the Frogmen, which he says was one of the best decisions he's ever made. Turner has already racked up more than 85 dives this year alone, many with his new friends in the club.
"I haven't found a favorite place to dive yet. I've done nice dives in Belize, Cozumel, Bermuda, Australia. But there are so many gorgeous spots around the world that I can't be certain what my favorite would be," Turner said. "Every dive is different. There's a whole other world down there."
What to expect when getting wet
So you've always wanted to give scuba a try. August and September are great months for beginners to give it a whirl, as the Atlantic Ocean is the warmest it'll get.
If you want to just try splashing around underwater, you can do so for about $30 through a number of one-time, pool-based, discovery classes. And Susan Copelas of the North Shore Frogmen offers a discover scuba class at the YMCA in Andover that's free for members.
But if you want to go out into the open ocean, you need to be certified to scuba dive. Indoor classes are offered year-round. There's a hot-bed of scuba centers in Southern New Hampshire: Discover Diving in Atkinson, Aquatic Escapes in Londonderry, and Pablo Krooz Dive Shop in Salem all offer scuba certification classes and guided scuba dives. And Copelas teaches certification classes at the YMCA in Andover.
There are different levels of certification, but the two most basic for beginners are the Scuba Diver certification, which allows you to dive with a professional, and the Open Water certification, which allows you to dive with friends, explained Jeff Haskell, who's owned Discover Diving since 1991 with his wife, Deb.
"Getting certified to dive is like getting your driver's license," Haskell said. "You know how to do it, but are you really the best driver you can be just yet? Divers, too, typically improve with time. Everybody is so different, but I've had students tag along with me after they were certified another, oh, six dives, to really feel confident in themselves."
What are some of the trickier elements to master? What are the essential dos and don'ts?
* Learning how to plan a dive and avoid decompression sickness can be hard for some students to grasp. The body absorbs nitrogen while under pressure, so a diver must keep track of how much the body has absorbed based on ratios originally created by the Navy. For example, if a diver goes underwater roughly 35 feet, he can expect to be OK underwater for as long as 3 1/2 hours, Haskell said.
* Learning how to obtain neutral buoyancy can be hard. A diver can inflate and deflate his vest with the push of a button. Figuring out the right amount of inflation to essentially become weightless in the water takes a few tries, Haskell said.
* Getting accustomed to being physically enclosed with a mask and breathing comfortably with a device can take some time, said Ipswich diver Bill Frank.
* Remembering to breathe regularly and adhering to your own limitations is a must, said Beverly diver Todd Randall.
* Knowing that most beginners should stay within the ocean's first atmosphere, or 33 feet, as every atmosphere hits your body like "a martini," said Newburyport diver Graham Smith. But don't feel like you're missing out on too much, because much of the ocean's marine life lives within the first 60 feet of water, he said.
* Walking from the shore and into the water with a heavy, steel tank on your back is physically challenging, noted Marblehead resident Steven Levy, 60, who weighs 180 pounds and wears scuba gear that weighs around 100 pounds.
* Monitoring how much air is in your tank regularly, to catch any potential problems quickly. "You'll know if you have a leak quickly. It's like if you fill your car up with gas and you use half a tank within five minutes," Randall said.
Gear to go
When Beverly resident Dan Hering first learned to dive roughly five years ago, he didn't have a lot of money to spend on the sport. However, he was able to buy all his essential equipment used and take his open water certification class for less than $1,000.
"I went for the used equipment," Hering said. "You can get some real deals. A dry suit can cost as much as $3,000. I was just outfitted in a dry suit for $500."
A beginner scuba student looking to get certified can expect to spend roughly $250 for an initial investment on certification classes and very basic equipment, like a mask, snorkel and fins, said Jeff Haskell, owner of Discover Diving in Atkinson.
And while students can certainly find gear for less, think twice before going real cheap.
"Sometimes students will come into class with a scuba kit that cost $19.99 or even $50," said Dan Foley, owner of Pablo Krooz Dive Shop in Salem, N.H. "That's like rolling down the window on (Route) 93 and just letting the money go. A mask is the window to your world down there. (A poor quality mask) can wreck your experiences if your face is all squished or (the mask) starts leaking."
Once the diver decides that they want to pursue the hobby more regularly, they will need to make a second investment of roughly $700 to $800 for their breathing device, an inflatable vest, and computerized console features a compass, depth gauge and pressure gauge, Haskell continued.
"I like to remind folks that unlike skiing or golf, we have local opportunities to scuba dive for free," Haskell said. "The upfront costs equates to a better long-term value."
But just like skiing or golf, you can spend a whole lot of money of fancy scuba equipment. Newburyport diver Graham Smith, 50, purchased a $2,500 dry suit because it keeps him warmer while ice-diving in the winter. This is quite an improvement from the early days of diving, he said.
"Old-school divers would cover themselves in baby oil and just dive in a wet suit in the winter," Hering said.
Where to go
Newburyport diver Graham Smith's dive log include spots in Egypt, British Columbia, and the Merrimack River in Haverhill. His favorite spot on Cape Ann, however, is Pickett Ledge in Manchester-by-the-Sea, just a few miles north of Singing Beach. Where are some local favorite scuba spots for the Frogmen?
* Folly Cove, Gloucester
* Lane's Cove, Gloucester
* Old Garden Beach, Rockport
* Pigeon Cove, Rockport
The Froggies turn 50
Founded in 1957, the North Shore Frogmen's Club claims to be the oldest sport-diving club in the world. The group's early years were celebrated in the pages of LIFE magazine, which featured the local divers in a glossy photo spread back in the late 1950s.
For more than 20 years, the Froggies have met every Sunday morning at 8 a.m. at a Beverly rest stop off Route 128. Depending on which way the oversized flag is blowing, they generally head out to either Old Garden Beach in Rockport or Lane's Cove in Gloucester.
The club's 100 members are scuba lovers of all experiences levels. Ipswich diver Bill Frank said the club keeps casual divers involved in the sport because there's always somebody to dive with - making the solitary sport more social.
Danvers resident Dawn Denneler became the first female club president in 1979, just two years after she took the plunge for the first time.
"For our second date, my husband and I went snorkeling in Marblehead," Denneler said. "The big thing for me is being able to experience the world underwater. It's just incredible."
And don't think that when the weather turns cold, the Frogmen stop diving. Current club president Dan Hering of Beverly brags that he dove in 32-degree waters last February, which was not to be outmatched by diving pal Graham Smith of Newburyport.
"I dove all last winter when there was ice on top of the water. My lips got incredibly chapped and there was steam coming off of my body when I got out of the water," boasted the 50-year-old Smith. "The visibility (underwater) is better in the winter. You can see much more marine life."
The club plans to celebrate its 50th anniversary on Saturday, March 29, 2008 at the Salem Waterfront Hotel in Salem, Mass. Current members are crossing their fingers that a number of previous club members and old-time divers will participate in the festivities. If you're an old member - or know of one - drop an e-mail to frogmens50threunion@gmail.com.
