New Leaf Literature

With a serviceable kayak comes a lot of new diving territory. Well, a lot of new diving territory and some new obstacles to overcome. Transporting the kayak, my diving equipment, drinking water, a paddle, fifty meters of rope and an anchor several hundred yards to the beach is the first challenge. There's no real trick there, other than keeping things organized. It's just a tough, awkward walk with a boat on your head, a bag on your back, and everything else hanging from wherever it can. I'm fairly sure that it looks as goofy as it feels.

The title kind of says it all. I hadn't been practicing breath-holding for about a week because my brother and Andrea were visiting. I wasn't expecting to break 4:00 - much less 5:00 - which just goes to show it's all in my head, as usual.

Here's the routine:

• "Pack" to full four times, hold ~:30
• Ten very deep, full breaths
• Hyperventilate for ~:30
• Hold breath

My goal is a 2:00 free-dive by Sunday. I'm crossing my fingers.

Static holds and I have had somewhat of a falling out in the past weeks, but I'm glad to say we're back on good terms. After just a few days of conditioning I was able to reach 4:30, a new personal record. The preparation took no more than about six or eight minutes. It included three "packing" stretches to full capacity (and a mouthful of air to apply continuous pressure), some deep breathing, and about thirty or forty seconds of hyperventilation just prior to the breath hold.

Ever since my camera case sprung a few leaks a couple of weeks ago, I've been far less motivated to post anything about diving. Spotting new types of fish has been a bittersweet experience, a mix of excitement and appreciation tainted with a doleful regret that I'm unable to capture any evidence.