INDEX sport


licence to then enjoy many years of diving at home and abroad. “Across our team we have decades of experience and can help people to make the most appropriate purchasing decisions. And provided you don’t eat too many crisps or cream cakes it’s an investment that’ll last you for years and years!” But what’s on offer to the newly qualifi ed diver who doesn’t have the budget to go deep under the Caribbean or Indian Ocean? “What can often surprise people is the fact we have some truly excellent dive sites off the UK mainland – and we’re especially blessed here in the south.


“For example, we do a lot of our


training around the shores of Brighton, Eastbourne and Ilfracombe in Devon but there are also places like Lundy Island with its colony of grey seals. There are some wonderful diving conditions around the UK with a fascinating array of species. I describe it as a ‘rainforest under the water’,” says Samantha. “Once qualifi ed, people tend to make a decision about the sort of diver they want to be and that could be diving off the British coast and in fl ooded quarries or they may


The INDEX magazine www.indexmagazine.co.uk


decide to make diving a part of their travels, in which case the sky’s the limit with places like the Red Sea, Maldives, Mauritius and the Philippines offering some of the world’s fi nest opportunities.”


This is a skill that can take you around the world


Dive Machine operates as a career development centre offering on-going training for instructors as well as a full range of activities designed to nurture the next generation of divers. This begins with snorkelling sessions and progresses to Bubblemaker – a programme for eight


to 12-year-olds in which they use full equipment to experience the thrill of breathing underwater for the fi rst time. And for those youngsters who want to


progress, Dive Machine runs a number of opportunities from Master Seal to the PADI


junior scuba diver and PADI junior open water diver courses. “The PADI Team Seal programme is a brilliant way to introduce youngsters to diving,” explains Samantha. “We offer it at swimming pools around Kent, allowing participants to complete a series of ‘aqua missions’ using full scuba equipment especially designed to fi t them. They learn a range of techniques which they then can, if they choose, use to progress to speciality missions such as night diving, wreck diving and under water photography.” But isn’t diving just for the young and adventurous? “Absolutely not,” says Samantha. “The oldest person to complete the PADI course with us here was a gentleman of 86. If you’re reasonably fi t and are curious about the planet then scuba diving is a great way to acquire a new skill, meet like-minded people and go explore, whether at home or around the world.”


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, visit www.divemachine.com. Also try: • Tunbridge Wells Sub Aqua Club (www.twsac.org) • The British Sub Aqua Club (www.bsac.com) • PADI (www.padi.com) You will be required to complete a medical questionnaire before embarking on any sub aqua course and, if in doubt, you should always seek medical advice.


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