Boat Philosophy

Every dive boat is it’s own little dive community. While they all take people diving, there are many differences in their attitude towards diving, and their business philosophy. On the John Jack diving is our main focus. We love diving, we want to see people out diving, having a great time. While we of course, prefer to have you diving with us, as long as you are out on the water, diving your butt off, it’s all good to us. With few exceptions, once a dive is set, we go, weather permitting, regardless of wether or not we have a full boat. WE WANT TO DIVE !!

I have a reputation for doing deep, and technical dives. I do make some dives, & run some trips like that. But I also do many beginner to intermediate type of dives. I remember when I started diving as a single tank scuppy diver. I never forget where I came from, what it felt like, holding my instructors hand (Duke Rosseli), on my first ocean dive. Some boats have a macho attitude, dive deeper, carry more gear. We don’t have that attitude on the John Jack. We realize that deep, or decompression diving is not for everyone. That’s okay with us, there is tons of great diving without that. Give me a pretty wreck, that’s an easy dive, I am as happy as a clam. I want to have a fun dive, not necessarily a deep or technical one.

I realize that the “ dive experience “ does not begin & end in the water, it is the whole trip from loading in the morning, to burgers at the dinner after the dive. It is the 5 AM breakfasts on the blowout days, that make you glad that you ignored the weatherman, and drove down to the boat. It is the storytelling and jokes on the way out. It is the naps, and the snacks on the way back in. It is the spirit of adventure, the bond of comradery. Sharing information about a wreck, finding the best place to dig. telling stories about the lobster that got away. As my friend Bill would put it, “the whole enchilada” Some divers like to try to save a trip to the boat, and judge the weather by the forecast. Sometimes this works out, but I prefer to load & go. Sneak our bow out a little, and judge the conditions for ourselves. There is never a charge to go “check it out” This is why I am very hesitant to call a dive the day, or night before. Besides, even if we can’t dive, we can still share a meal, and have a good time.

I realize that the old salt’s of tomorrow, start out as the beginners of today. I will always go out of my way to help any diver get ready for a dive, but I lean especially, towards the newer diver, that could use a helping hand, a little diving guidance. Sometimes, just the slight tweaking and adjusting of gear can greatly improve some ones comfort in the water. Having tried a lot of things in diving, I can help you keep from making the same mistakes. Why reinvent the wheel?? There are no “stupid” questions, ask away, hopefully, we have the answer.

It always nice to dive the tried & true wrecks. It can be like visiting an old friend. But diving new wrecks is cool. I have thousands of Loran's to check out. I have had several trips over the years to “check out new's”. Some days we found nothing, some days we found 2 - 4 new wrecks to dive. Next season, we will concentrate on checking out new #s, and see what’s there. Most of them are either near, or on the way to & from known wrecks. A portion of these's will be nothing, just flat bottom, some will be rock piles, and other junk. Some of these will be wrecks worth diving on. Some of the wrecks while new to us, are known to other boats, but some will be known only to us. There is no telling what we might find, that is the adventure in it. Next season, on at least one of the trips each weekend, we will stop to check out a few unknown #s on the way to our known wrecks. If the unknown pans out, I will give the divers on the boat the choice of, diving that new location, or, we can continue on, to the intended location, divers choice. Once I have located a wreck, using D.G.P.S., I can always return to it. Over the course of the season, we are bound to find a few fun wrecks. During the season, we will also have some days dedicated to just looking for new wrecks. While I can’t promise what we will find, we will always get in at least one good dive, even if it is on one of the known wrecks in the search area. Diving is about adventure. We need to put some effort in, to find it. We can’t find anything, if we don’t look.

On the John Jack, we strive to put as much fun, adventure, and diving, into a trip as possible, but safety is always our main concern. Please be a responsible diver. Plan your dive, dive your plan. While diving, you are under your own CARE, CUSTODY, and CONTROL!