It’s a blizzard in Madison

It’s a blizzard in Wisconsin today. Not the greatest conditions to be out and are about in, so stay home, drink hot chocolate and dream of warm water diving!

The shop is closed tonight but will be open 9am – 4 pm on Saturday for that last minute gift for your diver or snorkeler.

Stocking stuffing dive related trinkets, jewelry; accessories and small items the a diver always needs; a super sale on the remaining 2012 wetsuits (3x? we have it for you) and great deals on in stock wet suits in 3, 5, and 7 mm.

Let’s get wet (in a warm place) soon!

12-12-12 = 12% sale

While the world is worried about 21-12-2012 we like 12-12-12! Let’s celebrate this once in a 100 year event with 12% off (regular retail price) on all current sale items.

Talk to us about special 12-12-12 pricing on other in stock items.

One day only. Limited to stock on hand. The shop is open 5pm – 9pm on Wednesday night.

See you there!

Sale starts today!

Wes and Tilly are off to Cozumel for a well deserved bit of R&R for a week so we are having a SALE!

All in stock wet suits are $10-$20-$30 even $40 off. This includes our Henderson models for children and adults in 3, 5 and 7 mil. Even the Aqualock in stock is included in this sale.

Make us an offer on remaining 2012 Waterproof wetsuits. Just a couple left. Make a reasonable offer on these fine wetsuits. Let’s make a deal.

Rental/Training gear is reduced to $150 for our Cressi AquaPro 5 BCDs and $300 for our Cressi 3 gauge console Reg sets. Gently used for the past year, this is a great opportunity to get into your own gear.

We also have a wide variety of gadgets and accessories, masks and snorkels, fins and BCDs.

Stop out today or this week. This sale ends Dec 15 and is limited to stock on hand.

It’s that time of year!

It’s that time of year when all of the holiday cheer (Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday, Make Me Crazy Tuesday) takes place around the retail world. We hate to bug you, but we are a retailer also!

We have a great selection of gear for the diver or snorkeler on your holiday list. If they need a complete set of gear or just some of those things that are nice to have along on a dive, we have it for you.

A large selection of masks from Cressi, TUSA and more. Dry snorkels for your snorkeler on your list. Wetsuits in 3mm, 5mm, and 7mm in children’s, youth, women’s and men’s sizes.

Don’t know exactly what to get? How about an air fill card or gift certificate? Give the gift of a course – we teach EFR and Nitrox each month.

How about a rental for that tropical diving vacation? We have complete travel rental kits available so you have a set of gear that is familiar to you and reliable for you.

From all of the staff at MadisonScuba we wish you a safe and happy holiday season.

Let’s get wet! (Lake Mendota is only 42F with no ice yet)

Lights, Cameras, Action

Just added – Camera Class with Stick!

One classroom session on Tuesday night November 27 and then a pool session on Sunday morning Dec 2.

Tryout some new cameras, learn some new techniques and pick up some good pointers of what to do and what not to when taking those National Geographic moments underwater.

Sign up now, spots are going fast.

The Great Underwater Pumpkin Carving Contest

It wasn’t as cold as it could be (only 52 in the water, 40 out of the water). The viz was really good (15′). The sun was shining. But that wind, that darn wind. That’s what made it cold.

Five intrepid carvers set off with Wes and Brian for the 91st annual MadisonScuba Pumpkin Carving and Halloween Dive. Chuck, Frank, Mike, Adam, and Mehgan all went out with pumpkin, carving utensils and weights in hand, creative thoughts in mind and a lot of neoprene on their bodies. Personally, I was warmer in the water than in the wind…..

Trama surgeon Frankie came up with the most intricate and well carved pumpkin (as judged by the contestants.) A nice video shot by Wes of Frank with his instruments in the sand, gentle but sure knife (scalpel?) strokes and a steady hand at the job is on our Facebook page.

Most interesting (IMHO) comes from Adam. When he was carving, I was thinking – What’s the tic tac toe board got to do with Halloween? Then, after getting back to shore – viola! A hard hat diver! Wow!

See you at the next event! Let’s get wet!

AOW Certified

I got certified at the end of september up at Lake Wazee near Black River Falls. I really like the boat dive and the deep dive. I liked the deep dive because its fun to try and reach a certain feet. Yes the deep dive was cold but it isn’t really that bad once you get down there. When you come up your like wow was I really that deep. For the boat dive or our navigation and naturalist dive I really like the platform because underneath it are little fish almost like minos. There are like 100 of them everywhere and when you do go to the boat its fun to swim around it or stand on top for a picture. I just like to look at it it’s so cool especially how its covered in algae there’s also a plaque on the tip of the boat to tell you a little about how it got there.

By: Meg Ziegelbauer (age 11)

New Gear

Hey I’m Meg Ziegelbauer and I got a chance to try out the new Cressi BCDs and regs. I also got to try out a new wet suit. The wet suit it was comfortable and fit great! I was nice and toasty for the whole dive. I could also move around pretty good in the suit. The BCD was amazing, it fit really well and wasn’t too tight or too loose. I didn’t have a problem with anything. It was also very comfy on the shoulder straps. The regs were nice. They felt nice and I really like the gauges. They worked really great. I could see the numbers on the gauges really well.

By: Meg Ziegelbauer (age 11)

Lavacore – My New Dive Buddy

For anyone who knows me, they know that I get cold when I am diving.  I have run the gamut from doubling up on suits ( a 3 mm under a 5 mm, looking like the Michelin man), to my really nasty P….. suit.  It keeps me warm, but I hate it because it has no flexibility.

But, now comes Lavacore. Lavacore is a fleece-lined undergarment to wear under your wetsuit.  It comes in a variety of pieces, full jumpsuit, shirts, hooded shirts, vests, socks, and much more.  You get to choose the piece to keep you warm where you need it most.  And the great thing is it is neutrally buoyant so you don’t have to add more weight.

I recently did two dives.  Ok, I live in Wisconsin and it is October, but what’s a girl to do if she wants to dive?  I dove with my long-sleeved Lavacore shirt under my wetsuit in 61 degree water for 56 minutes and then a few days later dove in 56 degree water with my Lavacore shirt and shorts.  In the first case, I started to get chilly on my upper arms after about 45 minutes.  On the second dive, I was toasty the whole dive.  Again, for anyone who knows me, that is unheard of.

It has taken me only 9 years to find the perfect dive buddy – Lavacore.  If you are like me and get cold easily, maybe you want to dive with my dive buddy, too.  Come visit your friends at MadisonScuba to pick up this great addition to your dive gear.

I’m No Longer a Scuba Snob

I confess; I’m a scuba diver. Since I live in Wisconsin, when I’m in clear, blue, warm water, I try to dive as much as I can. Unfortunately, there’s that whole flying before diving rule. So, a couple years ago when on Grand Cayman, I found myself snorkeling the morning before I flew back home. I almost always have my snorkel on when diving, but had never actually just snorkeled. What a surprise!

My friends and I went to the far east end and it was amazing! I saw so many different types of marine life that I hadn’t seen all week while diving, including an Ocean Sunfish.

I was all over the place following fish and seeing what I could see. The time went too quickly.

The next year found my husband and me in Australia. Now, my husband is not exactly a water person. His first experience of throwing himself in the ocean in “rental snorkel gear” was not what I would call a positive one. He didn’t like when water got in his mask and the snorkels were open and the mouthpieces hard on his mouth. Besides, all the masks and snorkels just went in one big tub after use. One size fits all doesn’t really work for masks plus there was that whole hygiene thing. My response when someone says “just spit in your mask” is ewwwwwww! Even with 50 pound luggage limits, I always find room to carry my own defog.

But, the next year found us in Dominica. This time I was prepared. I brought along a nose purge mask for my husband and gave him my dry snorkel with the soft mouthpiece.

Instead of him floundering in the water, I found him enjoying himself and pointing to fishes and asking me through his snorkel “what’s that?” Every time he breathed out through his nose, he forced any water out of his mask. The dry snorkel made sure he didn’t inhale any water and the soft mouthpiece was easy on his mouth. With the right gear, his comfort level had risen to a point where I found it a challenge to keep up with him. Meanwhile, I dealt with a rental snorkel that constantly leaked water I had to blow out about every five breaths and a mouthpiece that was hard and didn’t fit my mouth. But, I’m used to the water and so just dealt with it.

This fall will find us in Fiji. This year’s gear addition for my husband is a pair of extra-wide snorkel fins to fit his size EEE wide feet. Rental fins just aren’t made for extra wide feet. I know he will be even more comfortable in the water this time. After all, having the right gear makes the difference between a positive experience and “I’m just doing this for my wife – can I get out now?”

What’s next for him? Scuba? Doubtful. But, with the right gear, we are able to share the marine world I so love, even if it is on the surface.

JoAnn

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