Sherwood Regulator Recall
May 14,
2002
14,000 Sherwood Maximus regulators may have a serious problem: the
second stage orifices can crack, bend or break, causing a free flow
and the inability to deliver air. The first incident was reported in
early 2001 by a diver in Japan, who reportedly surfaced safely despite
the malfunction. Last fall a California
instructor experienced a similar problem in a swimming pool. A
Sherwood spokesman told Undercurrent these have been the only
in-water incidents reported. However, retailers have returned
five other damaged Maximus orifices. The problems occur in
regulators manufactured between January 1998 and November 2000.
Model: SRB5600, Serial Numbers: K600001 through K611834; Model
Number: SRB5600D2, Serial Numbers: DK60000 through DK62000; Model
Number: SRB5600CE, Serial Number Range: EK60001 through EK62000.
Do not use your regulator until a Sherwood dealer replaces the
second stage orifice (at no charge). Further information at
1-800-469-9929 or www.sherwoodscuba.com.
The
Best of Cayman
May 14, 2002
Grand Cayman's best diving is arguably on the East End and the
one dive operation that covers it is Ocean Frontiers. We gave it
high marks in our full review in September 2001 issue and our
readers continue to laud it. Ocean Frontiers has a fall special
for Undercurrent readers ONLY: $899/person, which provides seven
nights in a deluxe room at the upscale Reef Resort
(www.thereef.com.ky),
and five days of unlimited diving with
Ocean Frontiers (www.oceanfrontiers.com).
You can dive on any or
both AM and PM two-tank dive trips, the three-tank Safari, night
dives and Stingray City. Nitrox is $7.50/ tank. They require dive
computers if you're doing more than two dives per day, which they
rent. You'll get a free Dive Staff T-shirt, and they'll let you
use a digital underwater camera on one dive and burn the images
to CD. The offer is valid September 7 to 15 and September 21 to
October 26. Contact Lesley for more info (Mon-Fri, 9-5) at
345 947 0000 or lesley@oceanfrontiers.com.
That seems like an
awfully good deal to us..
American
Airlines, Bonaire, San Juan
May 14, 2002
Readers are complaining that in Bonaire, American wants you at
the airport three hours before flight time. So, for that 7:00
A.M. flight, you'll be getting up by 3:00 A.M. to get there by
4:00 A.M. That is enough to convince me to go elsewhere. And,
divers connecting with American Eagle in San Juan are having all
sorts of problems trying to reach their destination or get home.
Undercurrent subscriber Arthur F. Graf Jr. (San Antonio, TX), who
ended up with an unexpected airport overnight, learned too late
that his travel agent, Fly Away, hadn't given him enough time
between flights. He says the AA desk told him that at least a
two-hour layover was necessary to make it through immigration and
customs.
Reason
Number 89 to Subscribe to the Undercurrent Newsletter
May 14, 2002
Subscriber Gina Wright sent me this email, offering a reason I
never thought of. "I think the Chapbook is the best dive info
book there is. Whenever our dive group goes anywhere I bring my
book, and the captains of the dive boats treat us extra special
when we tell them that they came highly recommended by another
diver who wrote to Undercurrent." The 2002 Chapbook has more than
1500 dive reviews on its 530 pages and it's yours FREE if you
subscribe now. Click here to
sign up.
This
Year's Winner of the Dedicated Diver Award
May 14, 2002
Christine Fiorini wasn't going to let anything stop her from her
Cozumel dive trip. She didn't, and it cost her big time. Seems
that Fiorini, 33, was a juror on a Cincinnati murder case that
had recessed for a long February weekend. But when the trial
resumed on Tuesday, Fiorini was missing. The judge issued a
warrant for her arrest and put the deliberations on hold. After
cruising Palancar's reefs, and presumably downing a margarita or
two, she showed up a week late. The irate judge locked her up for
contempt of court, saying "You'll have to sit there for seven
days with all of the other knuckleheads." Fiorini told the judge
that she went to Cozumel hoping that she could change her
flights, but when she learned that it would cost her hundreds of
dollars, she decided to stay. She figured the jury's alternate
could take her place, but didn't know the judge had dismissed the
alternate at the start of the deliberations. Fiorini was fined
$660 and had to do forty hours of janitorial work in the
courthouse once her seven days in jail were up. Now that's a
dedicated diver. God love her. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Midway Photos
May 14, 2002
If you been underwater off Midway Island and have some ship shape
ship shots, a writer wants your images. "I am writing about the
doomed fleet at Bikini Atoll during Operation Crossroads in the
summer of 1946. My work is entitled Nuclear Nomads of the
Pacific. and is intended to be a coffee table-type of book with
histories of the ships and lots of photographs. I have no
pictures of the sunken ships at Bikini or Kwajalein
Atolls." E-mail: Fourcorgis@aol.com.
More Flights for
Divers, but Beware
May 14, 2002
US Air is expanding its services to destinations favored by
divers. It expects to begin flying to both Belize and
Providenciales, Turks and Caicos, from its Charlotte, NC hub. You
can expect low prices to introduce US air service, but get travel
insurance. You see, industry analysts have reported that US AIR
is flirting with bankruptcy.
-- Ben
Davison,
editor/publisher
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