dean miller
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FYI...BAJA, Spear Fishing and Diving
FYI...BAJA, Spear Fishing and Diving
In 1954 there was only one certification agency in the world: LA County Underwater Instructors Association ( LA Co UIA.) In August 1960 LA County
Instructors established National Association of Underwater Instructors, ( NAUI) --It was a true association of Underwater Instructors. Ten years later
the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, (PADI) was established as private enterprise for profit organization (and it certainly is for
Profit!).
In the genesis of the recreational diving and Baja spearfishing many of the SoCal spear fishermen were also LA Co & NAUI Certified Underwater
Instructors. Many like Harry Vetter, NAUI Instructor #4 and I, NAUI Instructor #27 were frequent visitors to Baja beginning in the late 1940s and
early 1950s
What follows is a story of a recent event celebrating NAUIs 50th Anniversary and my involvement.
NAUI 50th Anniversary celebration
March 2010
About a month ago I received a special richly engraved invitation to attend the NAUI 50th Anniversary celebration to be held at the new NAUI Head
Quarters building in Jacksonville, Florida. It was not just a invite but a invitation to an all expense paid trip to the event.
I was certainly free and available but do to several circumstances I like to travel with a companion; My dear wife was the first choice, but since she
has her doctorate in school finance & budgeting and in view of the current California school crisis was booked up with conferences and seminars,
second choice was my son who is a NAUI Life member, a Pro 5000 diver, a Hyperbaric doctor (in Santa Maria) and a former member of the Long Beach
Neptunes, (as I was in the 1950s) was a logical second choice, but he also was booked solid.
With total dismay I telephoned NAUI and expressed my regrets that I would not be attending. At 8;05 the next morning Jim Bram the president of NAUI
called and immediately stated "I will not take no for an answer, I want you to attend, I am sending Mike Dusnst the former SoCal district manager to
accompany you." "But he has moved to Texas" I replied. "That correct! He will fly into California and accompany you on your trip, so get your bags
packed!" he commanded. I did and Mike accompanied me.
The trip was interesting worthily of at least several paragraphs, but that story will need to be deferred a the dark of the night over a cool one.
I walked into lobby of the hotel right in to the middle of the "California section." Setting around a table were octogenarian instructors ; Harry
Vetter, NAUI #4, Nick Icorn NAUI # 431,Glen Egstom, NAUI # 937, Home Fletcher NAUI #1833 and two past NAUI directors Art Ulrich, NAUI #601and Sam
Jackson NAUI #2972. Greetings were exchanged and space was made for me to join the venerable circle of vintage instructors. The twice told stories
were told and retold each time the embellishments made them better that the previous telling,
At 3:00 PM the General meeting began. As one who can recall the humble genesis of NAUI I was surprised at the number of instructors from all over the
world in attendance-- and how young so many appeared.
Immediately after the general meeting there was a champagne c-cktail reception on the patio. A time for pictures and renewing of old friendships and
cementing of new friendships. I was joined by Dave Woodward, NAUI # 29 who hadn't seen in 35 years who now resides in snowy Colorado.
On to a Jim Bram personally conducted tour of the new and very exciting NAUI headquarters building. What a building! Modern with all the latest
electric technologies with the light blue color and the NAUI "Wave" a a general theme though out all ares. So very very impressive!
Their was only one word for the banquet-- Fantastic! The quality, quality and variety of food was equal to a Las Vegas buffet. we heaped out plates
and settled in. Once again the California Mafia had their own table; Glen Egstrom, Nic Icorn, Tommy Tillman ( son of LA Co & NAUI founder, the
late Al Tillman,) Zale Parry and your truly.
The informal program began with a trivia question which I immediately blurted out the answer and won the prise.
Harry Vetter, a long with me was a former member of the Southern California Skin divers club (recall that one? we won the 195I Spear Fishing meet) a
diving buddy and veteran LA Co Underwater Instructor and the oldest living NAUI instructor # 4 (FOUR!) singled me out for special recognition as NAUI
Instructor # 27 as one of the the four oldest living NAUI instructors and the oldest NAUI instructor still living in California- where it all began!
The recognition spot light was some what embarrassing but also concurrently ego satisfying.
It was a night and an event that the participants didn't want to end but to every thing there is a beginning, a middle and an end. As the oldest
California NAUI instructor my life and my diving has been enriched as one who has experienced the beginning, the middle, but the end is many years in
the future and I suspect that I nor the readers of this post will never see the end of NAUI.
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dean miller
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Ernie,
Alive and well in Baja!
Who is Him? Not me-- I haven't seen you since 1980s!
Weren't you in the coaches ICC? Along with Ted Jolly NAUI #1000.
I was the 2 or 3 Underwater Instructor in OC --LA Co certified #11, then in 1960 NAUI-27.
Set up the ADP at OCC in late 1970s and taught there until about 1985
27 total years of SCUBA instruction! Long enough for me!
But I still lecture on occasion.
Suggest that you check out www.portagequarry.com, Ledgens of diving..some of my historical articles and a picture or two..
No Dean is not my name,
sdm
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elgatoloco
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Location: Yes
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Wow! Lots of great stories and a history lesson, too.
http://www.internationallegendsofdiving.com/Articles/archive...
I was late to SCUBA although I always enjoyed free diving and snorkeling as a youngster it was a real 'mental' breakthrough for me to overcome severe
claustrophobia and learn to relax and enjoy the underwater world. My first full dive at 60+ feet in Belize I emptied the tank in about ten minutes!
The dive guide was sure something was wrong with the equipment. 
My father, now 85, has told stories of the early days in Laguna and Dana Point taking my mother’s makeup mirror and scraping it off to make a lens for
a mask and cutting out ‘wetsuits’ from thick neoprene and sewing them up and sealing with rubber cement. In the family archives we have some old 8 mm
film of a trip my mom and dad took to the Isla Coronados on a US Navy landing craft with their good friend the officer in charge of the underwater
demolition team. They used dual tank setups and all the latest gear and my dad and mom looked like kids in a candy store.
I have sent a link to your stories to my father and will be looking forward to hearing again about some of his exploits including the time he won one
of those spear fishing competitions at Laguna!
Thank you Dean Miller for sharing your stories on this and other venues! Look forward to more!
Mateo
MAGA
Making Attorneys Get Attorneys
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dean miller
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| Quote: | Originally posted by elgatoloco
Wow! Lots of great stories and a history lesson, too.
http://www.internationallegendsofdiving.com/Articles/archive...
My father, now 85, has told stories of the early days in Laguna and Dana Point taking my mother’s makeup mirror and scraping it off to make a lens for
a mask and cutting out ‘wetsuits’ from thick neoprene and sewing them up and sealing with rubber cement. .....
I have sent a link to your stories to my father and will be looking forward to hearing again about some of his exploits including the time he won
one of those spear fishing competitions at Laguna!
Mateo |
`~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You father and I are in the same age group.. I suspect that we crossed paths in our yesteryear diving adventures.
Yes We made everything; and invented a lot of equipment. Our Motto "If it costs over a dollar we made it!" I assume you read about my homemade mask?
Also made many snorkels..Should have patented several models but didn't!
We purchased the neoprene inm Brea for a $1.00 a sheet.. enough to make a wet suit-- Now they are $4- 500.00 or more
Laguna was my dive site of choice... Made first SCUBA there in 1951... I coauthored a dive guide to Laguna about 40 years ago-- now collectors items.
I also competed a bit and possibly against your father. How about a PM with his name?
Cheers, SDM
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dean miller
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Don Jorge
Your post had me remembering Ernie who taught lots of folks scuba back when NAUI was the card.
...
Thanks again. |
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was under the impression that you were Ernie...
Ernie was certainly one of a kind...Had little or not diving experienced in recreation diving prior to attending the NAUI Coaches' ITC in about
1965-67. He then became very controversial in the professional diving instruction community, basically because of his resistance to adapt but most
importantly he had no or minimum previous diving experience and after becoming an instructor only dove in a class environment.
It took a while but he finally became a decent diver and enthusiastic underwater instructor, Sadly his attitude and arrogance prohibited him from
ever becoming a member of the hard core OC instructor / spear fishing / SCUBA diving inner circle. And that is the sad story of Ernie..
sdm
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estebanis
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Location: Stuck North of the Border. They won\'t pay me
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Carter Breusing #1127
Carter taught at Laguna Sea Sports. He certified me and my Brother in 1971. He passed away a few years ago. I am still diving but sure wish I was 40
years younger...
Esteban
[Edited on 4-12-2010 by estebanis]
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3464james
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In your travels was Dick Paster still present and accounted for? He was Navy UDT, taught for LA County, owned the Bottom Shop, in So. Ca. Big
supporter of NAUI?
Jim D.
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