UBUC

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** PRESIDENT'S BULLETIN **
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** END WEEK 7 **
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** WEEK: 19th NOV - 25th NOV **
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CONTENTS:

1. Training: - Last Ocean Diver Lecture

2. Notices: - Summer Expedition to Sillies

3. Kit: - Dive bags
- Feeling Cold in the Pool?

3. Events: - UBUC Christmas Meal

5. Trips - Club boat trip to Plymouth (1st Dec)

6. Trip Reports - Babbacombe
- West Bay/Beer


TRAINING:

1. LAST OCEAN DIVER LECTURE ****************************************

Hi everyone

Quick reminder that the final Ocean Diver lecture will be this week (Tues 27th 6pm) As always it is important that you attend. The following week we will be starting Sports Diver lectures which I urge all trainees to attend as they will build upon what you have learned.

John
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NOTICES:

1. SUMMER EXPEDITION TO THE SILLIES ********************************

Hi Everyone,
Good news, we have enough interest in the Isles of scilly trip next summer so here's the plan...

We hire/borrow a van on saturday 23rd August and drive down to Penzance, sail on the Scillionian ferry in the early afternoon, catch the ferry over to St Agnes, unload the large freight container, assemble the boats, collect some fuel from the campsite and then drive them to St Marys to load up with more fuel for the trip. Then do some great diving for a week and some people can depart/arrive on the middle weekend and then carry on for another week until saturday 6th September when we will pack up and load the freight container and get back to Penzance and back to Bristol. After speaking to previous organisers, this promises to be a very chilled out trip with none of the usual multiple waves or rota madness of other trips, just lots of great reefs and wrecks to dive.

I have spoken to Sue at Troytown farm on St Agnes and she has confirmed that there is still space for Saturday 23rd August - 6th September.
Campsite link: http://www.troytownscilly.co.uk/content/campsite.htm

The trip will be run over 2 weeks and will have a maximum of 12 spaces at any one time. The best news is that I might have over-estimated the original costs. The costs are as follows: camping £7.50 per night, ferry £95 return, scillionian freight transport (boats, engines and compressor) approx £300, Boat and compressor fuel for 2 weeks £720 approx, total estimated fuel van hire and fuel costs of £200 for both weekends, food per person per week £30, total UBUC tax for boat and compressor use £75 per week and £30 per person for the whole trip to cover extra unexpected expenses (refundable after the trip if unused).

So based on 12 people being present for 2 weeks, I expect the total to be only £265 for one week or £400 for 2 weeks, excluding alcohol and car fuel costs to get from Bristol to Penzance and back.

So far I have the following people as potentially interested, plus others who emailed Keith by accident.

Nick, Ali, Kara, Hazel, Sam, Andy K, Mel H, Helen, Dougal, Richard and Ed, Mike and Tom.

To confirm your place I will need a cheque from you payable to "UBUC" for only £50 per person. This will be paid into the club Expedition account and is non-refundable unless we find someone else takes your place (a minimum of 2 weeks before the trip). In the unlikely event that the trip is cancelled (i.e. the Scillies is hit by a hurricane) the £50 deposit will not be refunded and the passenger tickets will be subject to a 15% cancelation fee (provided a minimum of 48 hours notice is given)

In January the freight container will be booked which at 2007 prices is £300 (2008 prices still to be confirmed), so £12.50 for one week, £25 for 2 weeks per person
The ferry will be booked after the Easter Porthkerris trip as a group booking and is the main expense at £95 return. Or if you really want to travel in style for an extra £60 you can travel by helicopter and arrive in less than 30 minutes. However, if you choose this option you will be responsible for booking your own tickets and arranging for someone on the ferry to help take some of your kit. Also the helicopter can't fly if its foggy at Penzance or in the scillies which it does happen leaving you stuck until it clears, unlike the ferry which is rarely stuck in port.
Check out: http://www.islesofscillyhelicopter.com/
Everything else like food, GPS cordinates for dive sites, checking boats and compressor and van hire will be organised closer to the time and the rest of the expenses will be payable 4 weeks before the trip.

We have less then 2 weeks to pay the deposit on the provisional booking on the campsite, so time to start speaking to your boss/partner/family and negotiate the time off to go diving!

So to recap:
Immediately - Deposit of £50 per person
Due March/April (after PK) - £95 for return ferry ticket.
Due end of July (after Skomer) - Remaining balance

You will find me at training on Tuesday and Friday (and in the pub afterwards) to answer questions or collect cheques or you can post them to Andrew Kiddier at "8 Limerick Road, Redland, Bristol, BS6 7DZ". Or give me a ring. Please also let me know the dates of arrival and departure on the trip and whether you wish to travel by ferry. Any offers of help or to drive the van first or last weekend will be greatly appreciated.

thanks

Andy Kiddier
Tel: 0775 2746367
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KIT

1. DEAL ON DIVE BAGS **********************************************

Hey All,

Courtesy of a club member I have found out that Simply Scuba are doing a great deal on dive bags - Handy for holding all of your gear when coming to the pool and for on trips:
http://www.simplyscuba.com/ProductDetails.aspx?StockID=41777&Affiliate=mailshot
Have a look, they are 14.95 reduced from 39.95 - pretty good!

Thanks,
Mike
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2. FEELING COLD IN THE POOL? **************************************

Hey Everyone,

If you are cold in the pool, or fancy real tropical diving now is the time to buy a thin shorty or vest. Demand is low and suppliers are selling off old stock. In Bristol there are Sharkbite in Park Row and Windsurfers World at the end of Old Market

Good websites are:
www.watersportswarehouse.co.uk lowest price about £39.99 for a shorty
and the dedicated dive sites
www.godive.net again £39.99
www.kentdiving.com £42
www.deepbluedive.co.uk lowest price £19.95 but probably only if you are a female size 8 or 10. To avoid disappointment always check the sizes available before you get excited about the deal.

Choosing a diving suit is good preparation for government. There is always a downside to a decision. If is not tight it'll be cold, if it is too tight you risk a heart attack. If it is too thin you suffer from hypothermia, if it is thicker you need more weight and may not be able to pack it . For the pool anything between 0.5mm and 3mm will help. Thinner ones can be worn under a 5, 6 or 7mm suit you can use to dive in UK waters.

Hope this helps,
Regards,
Mike (mt5195@bristol.ac.uk)
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EVENTS:

1. UBUC CHRISTMAS MEAL ********************************************

A better, nicer location has been confirmed for the Xmas meal - Stone House in Broadmead (28 Baldwin St). If anyone isn't sure where it is, they can meet me outside the Arts and Social Science library at 18:30 as I will be going down there early.
<http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=stone+house&near=Bristol&fb=1&view=text&latlng=51453161,-2594808,1197346575461865964>

This is going to be cheaper than Racks (£12 a head) with a £10 deposit. The date is now Friday the 7th of December at 7pm sharpish, so you don't have to worry about work/lectures the next morning.

After we have grubbed up, a funky DJ set will commence where we can dance the night away. The VIP list stands as follows:

Alastair McLeod (Crayfish, Turkey, Profiterole) Alex Moisley (Cheese, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) Ali Carpenter (Crayfish Turkey, Xmas Pudding) Amy Fitz (Cheese, Turkey, Xmas Pudding - no baileys sauce - ice cream) Andy Kiddier (Cheese, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) Anthony Whittaker (Crayfish, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) £10
Autumn W (Cheese, Roasted Peppers, Profiterole) Becks Seeley (Cheese, peppers, profiteroles) Becky Shasha (cheese, turkey and profiterole) Beth Buchanan (Cheese, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) Caroline Emslie (Crayfish, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) £10
Chris Owen Craig Rockliffe Dave Liddament (Cheese, Turkey, Profiterole) £12
Dimitris (Cheese, Turkey, Profiterole) £10
Dominic W (Cheese, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) £10
Dougal Ed Carr (Crayfish turkey, Xmas pudding) Elena Couce Ellie Freeman (Crayfish, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) Emma Brennand (Crayfish, Turkey, Xmas Puddding) Hafsa Bobat (Cheese, Peppers, Profiterole) James Lancaster (Crayfish, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) James Mitchell (Crayfish, turkey, xmas pudding) Jess (crayfish, turkey, Xmas pudding) Joanne Kitson (Crayfish, pepper, profiterole) John Liddiard (Cheese, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) John O'Reilly (Cheese, ham, profiteroles) £10
John Readman (Cheese, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) Jonny Day (Crayfish, Turkey, Profiterole) Jonny T (crayfish, turkey, profiteroles) £10
Kate Jopling (Cheese, Turkey, Profiterole) £12
Keith De Blanger (cheese, pepper, Xmas pudding) £12
Matthew Anderson (Crayfish, Turkey, Profiterole) Mette Iversen (Crayfish, Turkey and Xmas Pudding) Mike S (Crayfish, Turkey, Xmas Puddding) £12
Mike Thomas (Cheese, Turkey, Xmas Pudding) £10
Nicola Winstanley Nix W (Cheese, Turkey, Profiterole) Piers (crayfish, ham, profiterole) Rebecca Marsh £10
Richard Alexander (Crayfish, Turkey, Xmas pud) Sandie Cree (Cheese, Turkey, Profiterole) Steph Jordan (cheese, turkey, Xmas pudding) Steve Murray (Cheese, turkey, xmas pudding) £12
Tim Sherratt Tim Walsh (Crayfish, ham, profiteroles) £12
Tom Noble (Crayfish, Ham, Xmas Pudding) Wakana Sah Zardia Swift (Crayfish, Turkey, Profiterole) Zoe Cleaver (Crayfish, Ham, Profiterole) £10
Olivia

E-mail me if you want to come! Don't forget to let me what you want to eat from the set menu as follows:

Starters :
Crayfish cocktail
Goats cheese & Rocotta Bake (V)

Mains :
Festive turkey with gravy, sage & onion stuffing and bacon wrapped chipolatas
Roasted pepper stuffed with cous cous and a fire roasted pepper and tomato sauce (V)
Glazed ham hock smothered with bbq sauce

ALL served with seasonal vegetables and roast potatoes

Desserts:
Xmas pudding with a creamy baileys sauce
Giant profiterole filled with sweet double-whipped cream and smothered with warm chocolate sauce.

Alex
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TRIPS

1. PLYMOUTH BOAT TRIP 1ST DEC *************************************

Hi Everyone

We are planning a club boat trip this Saturday 1st December. The provisional plan is: launching just west of Plymouth to dive the JEL and Scylla - but as the weather looks unsettled we might end up going somewhere else!

This trip is for Sports Divers and above. It you're interested email me with the following details:

Name
Diving Qualification
Date of Last Dive
No. of Dives
Car? Spaces?

Christopher
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TRIP REPORTS

1. BABBACOMBE SHORE/NIGHT DIVES - 11th NOV *************************


"One Sunday morning, 13 divers (Mike S, Stefano, Tom N, Autumn, Ed, Keith, Kate, Seb, Cassie, Dom, Jonny, Oli and Craig) met up for a spot of diving at Babbacombe. A short car drive and a cheeky breakfast later at a McDonalds later, we arrived at the beach to carry out no less than 5 waves of diving.

Not phased by the fact that the tide had reached its low half an hour earlier, our divers enjoyed good visibility and warm seas. Along with the obligatory velvet swimming crabs and other common Babbacombe residents, we heard reports of scallops, quite a few flatfish and the even a scorpion fish. Entertainment was provided above shore too, from the interesting semi-drys on display to a slight navigational blunder, leaving one dive pair somewhere a little nearer to France!

Soon it was dark and the torches came out for what became an exceptional night dive. The seabed was quite literally packed with an abundance of crabs, fish, the odd sleeping dogfish and those-really-cool-bioluminescent-thingeys. Special mention must go to our intrepid drivers, who courageously fought with the slippery slopes up Babbacombe hill on the way home. All in all, it was a very successful day's diving, enjoyed by everyone. Thanks to everyone for their help, entertainment and tasty biscuits.

Photos on the club website: www.ubuc.info"

Cheers, Dom
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2. WEST BAY/BEER 25th NOV ******************************************

Not to be disheartened by the cancellation of the Boat Trip 5 divers, Keith De Blanger, Craig Rockliffe, Mike Shepperd, Chris Owens and Paul Hewson, set off from Bristol in search of some Jurassic (coast) action. Spurning the more common dive sites of Chesil or Babbacombe the choice was made to aim for West Bay.

Arriving at West Bay at the almost sedate 11am allowed for sampling the delights of West Bay which seemed to be full of the Retireosaurs having cups of Tea on the shore and after a pleasant lunch the task of finding ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs came to hand. However with the first divers in the water it became apparent that this was not going to happen as without the visiosaurus nothing was going to be found, including your dive buddy!!

Back on dry land a 'Plan B' was quickly formulated, BEER, no not the pub but a small village called beer which looked like the only possible dive site available that day. So after a quick drive along the coast it was time for some more hunting for the allusive visiosaurus. Well it would have been had Mike not discovered that his Tyrannosaurus Zip was no longer able to shut it's mouth ruling him out of diving for the day.

Having observed the Local Beeriens beach their boats by engaging full throttle and crashing into the beach the 2 hastily rearranged buddy pairs of Keith + Chris and Craig + Paul eventually got to go diving with the visiosaurus in Beer. With tales of the dizzy depths of 430cm achieved and Quotes of 'For once my computer didn't tell me to do a safety stop'. It was later pointed out that you do Safety stops at 6m whoops.

The Conclusion of the day was that whilst it was a pleasant enough day mixing Beer and Divers is probably best left to the Pub after pool training.

Craig
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There are other trips planned for the future so please check the website(www.ubuc.info). Also feel free to organise one yourself!

If you have anything to add to next week's bulletin from a birthday party
to kit for sale, please email me Craig.rockliffe.05@bristol.ac.uk