On Wed, 18 Apr 2001 19:22:38 -0400, Lee Bell <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>In the back of the magazine there is a story of a dive gone wrong.  The
>essence of the story is that the diver was certified while on vacation and,
>on the same trip, was taken on a relatively shallow dive that included
>penetration of a cave.  You heard me right . . . the instructor took him
>into a cave.

One thing I've learned over the years of reading scuba magazines,
newsgroups, lists, and ESPECIALLY the "I learned" articles in Skin
Diver Magazine, is NOT to take every article, especially those
written by novice divers in the "I learned" articles as gospel
truths in every detail.

Here seems like some PERTINENT FACTS, posted in rec.scuba, about the
same article and topic Lee introduced there, because the poster
seems to have some information about that diver and dive location
NOT mentioned in the article:

From: "icediver" <[log in to unmask]>
Newsgroups:  rec.scuba
Subject:  Re: Skin Diver Magazine "I Learned" Stupidity
Date:  Fri, 20 Apr 2001 22:04:10 -0500

>"Lee Bell" <[log in to unmask]> wrote in message
>news:9boa3q$sct$1@slb4.atl.mindspring.net...
>> So, I assume that you think that a brand new diver, certified
>> within the last couple of days is perfectly OK diving in a cave
>>(which is what the diver called it) or even a swim through, right?

> The diver wasn't "brand new."  He had logged 12 dives already,
> and was diving with an instructor and a divemaster in an area
> (Kona) familiar to these divers.  They entered a swim-through,
> or "cave" as the author called it, which is hardly the type of
> cave you would have us believe.  Get a grip Lee, a coral cave
> in Kona, HI ain't even close to a cave in Ginnie Springs, FL.
> Your statement was misleading.

The above paragraph should give a better perspective about the
article, to those who wishes to discuss this same thread, also
posted by Lee in rec.scuba -- in which I ALSO did not participate.

Earlier "ice-diver" had written:

> I read the article today.  The "cave" Lee Bell mentions was a
> coral cave in Kona, Hawaii.  Coral caves are swim-throughs or
> recesses in the coral structure, and nothing like the caves in
> Florida that I (and you) inferred  from Mr. Bell's inaccurate
> and incomplete tirade.

Just FYI.

-- Bob.