role of women in diving

i agree women have a vital role to play in all diving operations as many of you who have been diving for some time im sure you realise surface support is quite important to any succesful dive .just what they write on those clip boards is beyond me but their you go .stoney cove is over run with em and how else would my empty cylinders get to the air station its a hell of a walk .val can now carry two fifteen litre cylinders five hundred yards now with encouraging words shouted from the bar at stoney which is really handy for me when its raining so women really do have a role in diving

Big Rob, I wouldn't want your comments to be misinterpretted by anyone.

It's clear to me that you recognise that female divers are valued members of the team and make excellent Divemasters - due to their brilliant organisational skills and willingness to assist. Obviously you are highlighting the fact that you merely wish to give them every opportunity to gain experience for the role!

Having had a few hours to reflect upon my post, I agree that it is open to misinterprettation by those who do not know me.

Indeed, being the Big Girls Blouse that I am, I fully acknowledge that if it wasn't for the fact that Frogmilla holds my hand, i would never get below 10metres as it is rather scary going deeper than that.
I also acknowledge that Val only carries my cylinders as I am not strong enough to carry them myself, besides, I might break a nail in the process.

In every way, females are better divers than us men. They are safer, they are not "gung ho" about diving saying such things as " I am going to go to 50 metres on a 12l cylinder" nor do they run around giving each other tips. They also look better in wetsuits. I am always worried that my bum looks big when I am wearing mine.

Women are used to bags too, handbags, shopping bags etc..so I guess they would know how to get a dive bag to the surface in the North Sea.. I sure don't!

Big Rob, reflection is a great thing and I'm really pleased that Val is always willing to help you. There is simply nothing worse than breaking a nail, after spending hours at the nail bar. Furthermore, if you are still interested, I still have one remaining place for you to join the Seal team on Sunday - this weeks AquaMission will be right up your street .... it's called: Search & Recovery! What's more, I think Val is available to hold your hand.
(PS - I promise not to turn the lights off, 'cos I know how you feel about the bogey man!)

Being such a great wuss myself, I have asked the permission of my superior leader, Val, before I am allowed to reply to this topic....i digress..Women in diving....well. we all know that the girlies are far superior in every way. For a start, if Val did not allow me permission to leave home, I would never be qualified to dive in the first place. Did I ever admit that it was Frogmilla that qualified me in the first place?? I now know she only did it as a favour to Val to give her some space at the weekends. I am even going to take the "Ironing underwater" speciality so i do not miss out on any of the weekly chores. I also have swapped my dive gloves for a pair of marigolds so I still feel at home whilst round the Nautilus in stoney. They feel good against your skin you know! I still have not mastered the peak performance and bouyancy enough to touch my lipstick up underwater though. I always end up with smudges and that just gets me a reputation. A big girls blouse has an image to maintain you know!

I also accept that me and Val only dive together when i need moral support. I get scared every so often, especially on night dives, and while i make out i am looking after her by grabbing her hand, really it is coz I am scared and don't want her to leave me alone to face the fish.

Women are better on air by the way.....must be all that yakking they do...gives em practice of breathing and doing other things at the same time!

Ps, I can now type using 2 fingers...the exact same 2 I show to anyone who says women cannot dive!!!

i myself the real BIG ROB would like to take this opportunity to tell the world and any body else whos litening that i have had my identity nicked by some by some ginger git who will remain nameless for the minute and the above views apart from the original posting are ones that have been fabricated as a attempt to deformate my good character i still hold the view that women do have a role in diving as a colleague of mine pointed out to me the clip boards are used to make a list of who wants what fetching from the burger bar and whos cylinder is whos when retrieveing them from the air station basically its a tool to be used when multi tasking ...brilliant organisation i say ..... P.S we thought we saw one of them girly people diving last saturday turned out to be just a bloke with ginger hair ....poor soul .....

Surely not!

I was touched by your acceptance that you need female diving companionship. Don't be embarrassed to admit your fears and you should feel comfortable and proud to have a pink Divemaster Blouse in your wardrobe. As for your imaginary friend ..... I'm sure that lots of people have 'alter egos' that haunt them. Don't worry or be affraid about the 'big ginger bloke' - he isn't real , it's just your mind playing tricks on you, because deep down you probably want nice ginger highlights in your hair to match your finely manicured nails and fashion accessories.

PS - does the colour of your new dive computer clash with your BCD?

Hmm, about time I spoke up.

It is clearly apparant from the above postings that Rob clearly has problems with a split personality. By day, he is Big Rob the manly man of a trucker (and I did say trucker before it gets editted!) complete with Yorkie bar and rigger boots to match. He is the diver who tries to chuck you in the water minus essential things such as fins such is his eagerness to be in the water. This is the man who will dive in a puddle. The man who can easily outdrink an un-named Frog who likes funny beer.

By night however, the alter ego Jessie Ryan appears. The Wuss. The one who has a pink dive shirt. The one who used to wear my purple furry GIRLY slippers around the house while sipping cups of tea and cuddling up to an old Staffy dog for protection against the ginger bogey man. Clearly, Jessie Ryan has some issues regarding gender identity and most definitely 2 personalities here, so....

Let me address both of you. Now that you have unchained me from the kitchen sink and allowed me access to the computer of course.

You can shove your clipboard where the sun don't shine.

and finally.....On behalf of Frogmilla, me, Mrs Mad Mullah, nearly Mrs Middle Rob, Tazza, and any other girlies that will be diving this year, we are all good divers. We are safe divers and we stick by the rules. We remember things like buddy checks. We do not run around trying to be tougher than each other. We do not have a codpiece competition to see who's looks the biggest in a wetsuit/shortie. Codpieces do not impress us and neither does anyone who seriously believes that our only role is to run around with clipboards, get the dogburgers in at Stoney and sort all your kit out.

You have been warned.

Val, thanks for clarifying this one and for looking after Mr Jessie. It's nice to see that we can present a united front to help him overcome his issues with the ginger bogey man

On a serious note: I firmly believe that females do actually make better divers - they are less likely to want to mimic the SAS and dive to the abyss and are certainly much more safety conscious

lets face it MEN weve had a good run but with much regret i have to infom you at some point in the not to distant future were gonna have to take the misses and mark diving sorry fellas weve had the water to our selves for the past few months the vis has been outstanding no algae or ginger hair giving us vis probs no whinging no moaning or any tips of an kind but know the unavoidable must happen we must be strong the water will get warmer giving us real divers a strange unfamiliar feeling and grit our teeth and grin and bear it the fact is lads SHES GONNA WANNA GO DIVING there it is chaps the bottom line it will be six metres for the first twenty reorientation dives then if were lucky by about september we just might get a trip to the stanegarth were im sure we will meet other pro divers undergoing the same brutal treat ment the curse of .................................HAVING TO TAKE THE MISSES DIVIVING...................................................

You do not have to take me diving Roberta/Jessie.

In fact, we try not to be in the SAME SEA such is my aversion to diving with you. I have a perfectly good diving buddy in Frogmilla. We are safe together and we look out for each other as all buddy pairs should. I have also dived happily and safely with Little Rob, Joy and Tazza in the past..oh yes and yourdive Buddy Scubaman is also a good dive companion for me. I have dived with Mr Frog before, Christian, Little James and i think Chris King was in our group too up in the Farnes...on a dive trip, I can find a buddy with no problems.

I always worry when diving with you or your alter ego Jessie. If i get Big Rob, i have to get ready in 5 seconds flat and miss out part of my ritual for diving. I do not like to be hurried, i like to be fully satisfied that all my equipment is working and that everything is safe. I do not jump in with no air, O rings missing, no fins on, reg not in mouth, integrated weights missing or any of the other things that you men have done in the last year. ( I even have my hood ont he right way round, unlike a female buddy of mine..you let the side down there with that one froggy)

If i get Jessie, i get the one who wants to wear my dive gear, whose blonde hair causes her mask to leak, the one who worries about whether their bum looks big in their suit, the one who can only dive to 5 metres and then has to come up as they are scared of the fish and they don't like the dark below 10 m. The one who wants to hold my hand for reassurance, the one that like baby sham. The one that suffers from PMT every week, not just one.

Go back into your closet darling!!

Good on you Val.

Female divers also make excellent Divemasters and Instructors - unfortunately they are a rare commodity and are always wlecome!

well the above posting just speaks volumes to me i rest my case enough said any how every time i go diving with lil rob alias keif he always got another half a metre deeper than my computer whys that then

Ah ..... but you have the best of both worlds - perhaps your 'alter ego' is an advantage after all. You can adapt your syle (and gender) to suit the situation!

And yes, you can be our first female Instructor - Jessie Ryan the Big Girls Blouse and Divemistress extraordinaire.

Welcome aboard Jessie

Mr. Frog, us girlies will make excellent Divemasters and Instructors..when we eventually get there.

We do not rush through our training in record time and call ourselves advanced divers after about 10 dives..and anyone of either gender who seriously thinks they are advanced divers (despite what the PADI title says) is misguided in their judgement.

I will eventually add myself to the list of girlie Divemasters in Frog Squad but I want to take my time to enjoy what I can already do and master the additional skills that I learn every time I go diving. When I am super confident with my own ability as a diver and that I can share these skills, support the instructor and assist others confidently..I will become Frogmilla's dive b**ch.!!

In the meantime..you manly men keep going with what you are doing...I am not sure how many people will want to be instructed by Jessie though..bit scary looking for a bird. Looks more like a russian shot putter and twice as hairy.