August 2007 Newsletter

Your August newsletter comes to you a little late as we have been making the most of the sunny weather which has finally arrived ! So at last we can get in the water and enjoy reasonable viz and warm sunshine up top too.

June was not a great month for diving, with most planned dives called off due to the weather. Our annual get together at Chesil for a dive and barbeque was also cancelled and so far there's been very few Monday BBQs at Kimmeridge, but July has seen some improvement and let's hope things continue for the rest of the season.

Jayne

Update ... what has happened in the club since the last newsletter

IPSAC Summer Ball

A great evening was had by those who came along to the Summer Ball, kindly hosted by Keith. A showery start to the evening didn't help the barbeque get going too well, but this was all resolved and a real feast was enjoyed by all. Pass the Buck provided the musical entertainment and there were quite a few sore legs and feet the following morning due to the amount of dancing that went on. Have a look at the gallery for some pics from the night.

Training Updates

In June, Nick held a Nitrox course at Durlston which was very well attended; thanks to Nick and John Ives for organising this for the club. There was a lot of maths to exercise the grey matter so late in the evening, but well done to everyone for getting through it ! Nick plans to run a further Nitrox course for those who couldn't make this one; if you're interested, contact Nick direct.

The BDMLR course advertised in the last newsletter takes place this coming weekend; we understand that there has been a very good response from club members and we'll report back on how it went in the next newsletter.

Diving

Although the weather has not been kind to us, many members made the most of a sunny Tuesday to dive out of Kimmeridge. We had our own IPSAC flotilla, with Jane and Keith bringing their boats along. Several dive sites visited; Lulworth Banks, the Black Hawk and Jeremy's reef, picnic lunch on the grass in between, a lovely day out.

Some of us met Kim Atkinson, the artist involved in the DWT project to raise awareness of the marine world. Despite the weather, Kim managed to dive several times in the week she was here, in Kimmeridge Bay and under the Pier and was very enthusiastic about the things she saw down there, returning with sketches made on slates. We look forward to seeing the end results.

IPSAC Diver

Thanks to those members who've joined in with the regular scrubbing of IPSAC Diver's bottom ! Many fingernails were ruined on Sunday picking off keelworms. Special thanks go to Keith for exceptional services to boat cleaning, having removed an entire ecosystem from underneath her last Tuesday at Kimmeridge. New scrubbing brushes have been purchased and will be kept on board ready for the next session!

Thanks also to Terry for providing IPSAC Diver with a new dive flag and bungees.

Up and Coming ... details of forthcoming events

Annual General Meeting

The club's AGM will take place on Friday 28th September at Durlston. Please bring a plate of food to share for the post-meeting buffet. Full agenda and so on will be e-mailed to members by Chris in due course.

Christmas Party 2007

Summer is barely here but already we need to start thinking about our next Christmas party. Last year's meal at the Lookout Cafe was very well received and people felt it was good value for money.

Do we want to do the same again ?
Do members want a sit down meal or would they prefer a less formal, bring-your-own buffet event with a band, dancing etc ?
Would you like to have a traditional, Christmas meal but think that a new year party, late in January, after all the christmas events have finished and the winter blues are setting in would be a good idea ?

The choice is yours ! Obviously, we have to consider the cost of any event and without sufficient support from club members not all suggestions may be feasible. To gauge interest, we have set up a poll page where you can vote for your preferred option. There's also a comment field where you can post any other suggestions or ideas you may have, be they for a different type of party, a different venue for a meal, or anything.

Please take a moment to vote; we'll keep the poll open until the end of this month. Click HERE to go to the voting page.

Club Diving Rates

Evening Dives (Mondays and Wednesdays) £8.00 per person (Guests £10)

Daytime Dives (Tuesdays and Weekends) £20 per person, per day (based on 2 dives)
(Guests £22 per person, per day)

Private Boat Hire
£20 (£22 for guest) per head including fuel. When hiring please ensure that the boat is left ready for use, especially fuel and oil levels topped up. Please see treasurer with fuel receipts for refund.
Any bookings for the club boat should be made with Kate.