Scuba club heads for the tropics

The scuba club is headed down under this spring. More precisely, the members of the two-year-old club will be exploring the life under the coastal waters of Cozumel and the Bahamas. In only its second year, the University's scuba club has grown from 15 thrill-seeking members to nearly 70. The club includes undergraduate and graduate students as well as faculty members, with abilities ranging from novice to professional. Several members of the club received their certification cards for the completion of the first series of diving courses at the club's first meeting of the semester Thursday night. These students are now qualified to dive with the rest of the group. A slide show was also presented with pictures of the Bahamas and Cozumel, Mexico -- the two main trips the club will be taking in the spring. The divers will explore the waters of the Bahamas for four days in February and of Cozumel for eight days over spring break, according to Engineering sophomore Graham Dickson, founder and president of the scuba club. "In the Bahamas, we'll do a shark-dive," he said. "The advanced divers can do some deep dives. There'll be some coral reefs, of course." In Cozumel, divers can usually brave the waters in just their swimsuits, according to Dickson. "When we're in Cozumel, we're going to have the same guide that Jacques Cousteau uses," Dickson said. "There's a lot of swim-throughs and caves and fish." When not heading off to the warm waters of the Caribbean or the South Atlantic, the club does several local dives. While many of the divers like the warmer waters, others prefer exploring sights off the East Coast. "We've done a couple of New Jersey boat dives to [ship]wrecks -- some warships and schooners," Dickson said. "We always do different sites." Anyone may join the club, with or without experience, according to Dickson. The club offers courses from beginner to dive master, at the professional level.

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