For those who weren't there, here are a few extracts from Bob's speech at this year's Annual Dinner...
Last year saw us diving in lots of places from the southwest of the UK to the northeast but once again one of the highlights of the diving season, for 16 or so members was the trip on a live aboard to the Red Sea. It must have been good because it made one of the biggest articles I have seen in What's Bubbling. Fortunately no one got lost from our trip although I did hear a little rumour about trying to lose someone - no I mustn't it was only a rumour after all. Last year's diving season, of course, really started in March when we went out to L'Estartit in Spain to dive the Medes Isles. Trips to the Farne Islands, Kimmeridge, Portland three times, Plymouth (Bovisand), Cornwall, St Abbs & Bridlington took place during the year.
Also shore diving continued regularly at Stoney Cove although the club days on the 3rd Sunday of the month during the winter are less well attended particularly by the more senior divers amongst us. This is probably a combination of the overcrowding of Stoney at weekends, the cold and familiarity with the site. It was however noted last year that members continued to turn up at the Stag and Pheasant for the après dive. It was even suggested that the organisation of Club Days in the winter should be taken over by the Social Secretary!
Jane and I went on a cruise last year. Probably why I've not been boat diving since! They have to be about 90,000 tons and as high as Nelson's Column with not so much as a murmur in a Force 8 gale. We went passed some, what looked like, small dinghies in the North Sea on the way back. They looked as though they were making hard work of the sea - quite frightening when you think that they were the size of the average dive boat. We were even treated to an Air Sea Rescue helicopter landing on our bow and as those of you who are on the Dive Leader Course at the moment will learn shortly, they do exactly as it says, but a lot quicker than you realise.
Reminds me a bit of the old days of the club really, when we used to spend our spare time rebuilding outboard motors, practising our woodwork skills making new floors for inflatable dinghies and cobbling together diving gear to run training sessions. It's a good job we've moved on a bit since those days.
No "can't take any mores" on the Red Sea trip last year from what Moley wrote in What's Bubbling. Someone not a million miles away got through so much of the onboard liquid refreshments that they had to make a secret rendezvous with another boat in the dark of night behind a coral reef to replenish the stocks.
I think at last, we are seeing a change in the way the Club operates. For some considerable time it has relied on the few stalwarts to do everything. You sometimes almost felt like part of a dictatorship. The last 18 months has seen a welcome shift to more people getting involved, more people organising and doing. It no longer seems to be a problem to find a "stand in" if someone's not there as a volunteer has stepped forward. The only downside is that we probably haven't got as many "active" instructors as we thought. So if any of you are thinking of going that route, NOW's the time. Your diving club needs you.
I have every admiration for Claire for taking over the training from Matt when he and Vicky went off on their world tour. I'm not sure she new what she was letting herself in for. It's not easy picking up someone else's threads at the best of times but having to launch a new training scheme as well makes the task all the more difficult. In the main it's all gone quite smoothly and I think she deserves of your appreciation.
The social scene has been very active in the last 18 months largely thanks to Annette's hard work. For those of you that didn't, we've been up in the air, gliding, gone to the dogs, racing that is, darts, skittles, ten pin bowling, barbecues, Chinese and Indian meals, the list is endless.
Bob went on to talk about BSAC's 50 years, but that is well covered elsewhere and of course to present the awards. The certificates were awarded to:- Pete Simblet, Michael May & John Fletcher. (Click on the names to see the certificates.)
Bob's speech was interrupted by this little tale which definitely deserves retelling...
It can get you to remote reefs and wrecks where few day-boats go. But, then, you're further away from shore if the boat sinks or you get lost!
That happened! When he got lost from his live aboard, a lone diver struggled to shore on an island with no other people, no supplies... Nothing. Only bananas and coconuts...
After about four months of bananas and coconuts our diver is lying on the beach one day when the most gorgeous woman he has ever seen rows up to him. In disbelief he asks her: "Where did you come from? How did you get here?"
"I rowed from the other side of the island," she says. "I landed here when my cruise ship sank."
"Amazing," he says. "You were really lucky to have a rowboat wash up with you."
"Oh, this?" replies the woman. "I made the rowboat out of raw material that I found on the island; the oars were whittled from gum tree branches; I wove the bottom from palm branches; and the sides and stern came from a Eucalyptus tree."
"But-but, that's impossible," stutters the man. "You had no tools or hardware. How did you manage?" ...
"Oh, that was no problem," replies the woman. "On the south side of the island, there is a very unusual strata of alluvial rock exposed. I found that if I fired it to a certain temperature in my kiln, it melted into forgeable ductile iron. I used that for tools and used the tools to make the hardware." The guy is stunned.
"Let's row over to my place, " she says.
Any way, after a few minutes of rowing, she docks the boat at a small wharf. As the man looks onto shore, he nearly falls out of the boat. Before him is a stone walk leading to an exquisite bungalow painted in blue and white. While the woman ties up the rowboat with an expertly woven hemp rope, the man can only stare ahead, dumb-struck.
As they walk into the house, her long hair blowing in the breeze, she says casually, "It's not much, but I call it home. Sit down please; would you like to have a drink?"
"No thank you," he says, still dazed. "Can't take any more coconut juice."
"It's not coconut juice," the woman replies. "I have a still. How about a Pina Colada?"
Trying to hide his continued amazement, the man accepts, and they sit down on her couch to talk. After they have exchanged their stories, the woman announces, "I'm going to slip into something more comfortable. Would you like to take a shower and shave? There is a razor upstairs in the cabinet in the bathroom."
No longer questioning anything, the man goes into the bathroom. There, in the cabinet, is a razor made from a bone handle. Two shells honed to a hollow ground edge are fastened onto its end, inside of a swivel mechanism. "This woman is amazing," he muses. "What next?"
When he returns, she greets him wearing nothing but vines and a shell necklace strategically positioned and smelling faintly of gardenias. She beckons for him to sit down next to her.
"Tell me," she begins suggestively, slithering closer to him, "we've been out here for a very long time. You've been lonely. I've been lonely. There's something I'm sure you really feel like doing right about now, something you've been longing for all these months? You know... " She stares into his eyes.
He can't believe what he's hearing. His heart begins to pound. He goes all of a quiver. He's truly in luck:
"You mean...", he gasps, "...I can actually check my e-mail from here??"
