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For immediate release:  August 8 , 2007 (Clyde, NC)

HRH&FC Forming SCUBA Club

Over the past year, the Aquatics department of Haywood Regional Health & Fitness Center has seen itself become a hub for SCUBA dive training.  Since its inception in July of 2006, this cooperative partnership between HRH&FC Aquatics and Azure Seas SCUBA has been responsible for almost thirty “Open Water Diver” certifications. 

Thanks to the talents of resident SCUBA Master Instructor Russ Cain, some participants have been compelled to further their new hobby beyond entry level, pushing forward into Advanced, Rescue, Nitrox, and even Divemaster training.  Group dive trips have been taken to Lake Jocassie, SC, Panama City, Fl, and Crystal River, Fl, among others.  Individually, participants from the curriculum have turned up in a variety of locations:  Nassau, Costa Rica, Cozumel, Great Barrier Reef, and Hawaii, to name a few.  And as the program enters into its second year, the question of ‘what comes next’ is about to be addressed. 

“We will soon be organizing all of our past and present participants into an honorary SCUBA club,” says Cain.  “We’ll also open it to certified divers, whom may not yet be involved in our group, but would like a chance to become a part of something more organized.”  As a diver, the benefits of belonging to such a club are plenty.  Simply put, more diving opportunities equates to more time in the water.  With the club, not only will trips be offered with greater frequency, but they also will be less expensive; most diving outfits and nearby resorts will reduce per-person charges when accommodating larger groups.  In addition, when on location, it’s comforting to be well-acquainted with the folks with whom you’ll be braving the depths.

The club will hold a quarterly meeting, to be located at the fitness center.  Meetings will include slide presentations, discussions on possible dive locations to come, and additional expert training and advice.  Topics will range from marine life identification to emergency preparedness, to a myriad of others.  Club fees will include a one-time payment of $20.  The first meeting will officially be held in the classrooms of Haywood Regional Health and Fitness Center, on Saturday, September 1, at 10:00 am.  For more information, please call (828)452-8056.