Vehicles
All vehicles over the past few years have been hired through the union because the union has a preferred hire company which we are supposed to use and given that the union give us money every year it is advisable not to annoy them for no good reason, Also its nice and easy to sort out!
Mini buses
To drive mini buses hired through the AU you need to complete a union mini bus test (contact the safety office Jim Lucas). To do the test you need to be over 21 and have had your licence for 3 years. You can drive the union mini buses on a category B licence. If the vehicle has more than 8 seats then you will need a category D1 licence.
Vans
For club boat trips you will ideally need some kind of towing vehicle and it works best if it is a van. Currently the Union company (Thrifty) do not have vans with towbars, There are to my knowledge (Jun 07) only 3 complanies that have vans with Towbars, Junction Hire, Toolgate Hire and Burnt Tree, however they don't have many so book early!
An alternative way to run a club boat trip is to hire a Mercedes Sprinter (imagine a LWB van and add an extra meter or so) and roll the boats up and put them in the back, It is possible to fit them in a LWB van but you tend to need the extra space for the other stuff you need for diving. Remember to have a cylinder for each boat as it will take most of a cylinder to fill one boat up.
For PK and Skomer a Van with a Towbar is almost a neccesity as we will be taking the Boats trailer and the Box trailer, if you can find two people with towbars bribe them with free fuel for towing but still try and find a Van with a towbar as the added flexiblity is always good and can save you a lot of problems if one of your drivers has to pull out at the last minute.
Anyone with a category B driving licence can drive any vans hired through the Union. You are able to tow with this licence so long as the combined weight of the van and trailer to not exceed 3500kg and the weight of the loaded trailer does not exceed the weight of the unladden van (which unless you are driving an Artic or tractor is a very bad idea anyway). See DVLA for more info.
Guide lines to weight loading in vehicles
| Car 1 | Car 2 | Van | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 people | 5 people | 3 people (250 kg) | |
| 5 weight | 4 weight | 26 bottles (400 kg) | |
| | 2 engines (150 kg) | ||
| | 3 weight belts (50 kg) | ||
| | boat fuel (100kg) | ||
| | Boat trailer * |
| Car 1 | Car 2 | Van | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 people | 5 people | 3 people | |
| 5 weight | 4 weight | 26 bottles (400 kg) | |
| | 2 engines (150 kg) | ||
| | 3 weight belts (50 kg) | ||
| | boat fuel (100kg) | ||
| | Compressor(250kg) | ||
| | Boat trailer * |
| Car 1 | Car 2 | Van | Mini bus |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 people | 4 people | 2 people | 14 people |
| 5 weight belts | 5 weight belts | 30 bottles (450 kg) | 14 Weight belts |
| | 2 engines (150 kg) | Camping kit etc if required | |
| | boat fuel (100kg) | ||
| | Compressor(250kg) | ||
| | Boat trailer * |
- Note taking 24 people means that you will have to get some bottles pumped. I have therefore assumed that a compressor is taken on these trips.
| Van | Mini bus | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 people | 10 people | ||
| 30 bottles (450 kg) | 12 weight belts | ||
| 2 engines (150 kg) | Camping kit etc if required | ||
| boat fuel (100kg) | |||
| Compressor(250kg) | |||
| Boat trailer * |
| Van 1 | Van 2 | Mini bus | Cars |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 people (250kg) | 3 people (250 kg) | 17 people | 2-3 people plus all personal kit including weight |
| 2 Engines | 1 Compressor | ||
| 10 Weight belts | 40 Bottles | ||
| boat fuel (100kg) | 16 weight belts | ||
| Boat trailer * |
| Van | Mini bus (or two mini buses) | Cars | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 people (150kg) | 14 people | 4 people/ car plus weight | |
| 1 compressor | 14 weight belts | ||
| 40 Bottles (600 kg) | Dry stuff | ||
| All personal kit for people on trip | 16 weight belts | ||
| Club kit |
| Van | Cars | |
|---|---|---|
| 2 people | 2-3 people per car with personal kit and weight | |
| 2 weight belts30 bottles (450 kg) | ||
| 2 engines (150 kg) | ||
| Boat fuel (100kg) | ||
| Compressor(250kg) | ||
| 40 Bottles | ||
| Club kit | ||
| Boat trailer * |
Costing for trips
This guide is here to help you budget your trips for club boat diving. I would be surprised if figures varied by more than 5 pounds per person. Some of these figures might be a bit on the high side, check the assumptions are re-calculate if you are unsure.
As a rule of thumb use £22 per person per day (providing you have 12 or 24 divers) this should cover most costs. If this sounds a lot then remember that hard boat diving will cost about twice this per day when you include transport costs. Taking club boats is economical even for day trips.
Day trips will be slightly more per day and weekend and long weekend trips slightly less. Generally you want to have 12 or 24 people on a trip as these are the “magic numbers” where cost per person is minimised.
The table below gives approximate prices per head.
| Number of People | Taking compressor | Approx. cost per head (£) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Day trip | Weekend | Long weekend | |
| 8 | No | 28 | 59* | 89 |
| 8 | Yes | 28 | 55 | 81 |
| 10 | No | 26 | 54 | 81 |
| 10 | Yes | 26 | 50 | 73 |
| 12 | No | 22 | 47 | 71 |
| 12 | Yes | 22 | 43 | 63 |
| 24 | No | 23 | 46 | 71 |
| 24 | Yes | 21 | 42 | 63 |
- Could probably take enough bottles to mean that a compressor or buying air fills would not be required.
Assumptions:
- Van hire, insurance and VAT £50 per day
- Van petrol 19 ppm (pence per mile)
- Minibus petrol 20ppm (needs confirming)
- Car petrol 11 ppm
- Boat and compressor fuel about £50 per day (£100 if taking 24 people)
- Each diver is using 2 bottles of air per day
- If the compressor is not taken then air fills are charged at £2 per fill
- Day trips total miles cover 300
- Weekend trips total miles covered 400 miles
- Long weekend trips total miles covered 500 miles.
- You are following my van and car loading guidelines
- Accommodation £5 per person per night
- £2 per person for use of boats for a day
- £5 per person for use of boats and compressor for weekend
- £7 per person for use of boats and compressor for long weekend
- Parking, launching and other costs £20 per day
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