Skin Diver Assualt on Nitrox

[geary%cf...@cfa.harvard.edu]

I just opened up the latest (Nov.) issue of Skin Diver and was
greeted by an absolutely unrelenting assault on nitrox for sport
diving. Four (that's right, 4 !!) "articles", one after another,
each bashing the concept that sport divers can in ANY way benefit
from nitrox. To quote Bill Gleason's conclusion to his lead-off
editorial: "JUST SAY NO TO NITROX".

I won't go into the details of these "articles" (read "more editor-
ials"), because those interested should read them for yourselves
and draw your own conclusions, but I would like to comment further
on just one point that was brought out prominently. Part IV of the
SD assault, entitled "Nitrox Ban in the Caribbean", details how the
Cayman dive operators have used their organization to essentially
ban nitrox on their islands, INCLUDING BANNING NITROX DIVERS FROM
USING THEIR CHAMBER !!! They cite DAN as supporting them in this.
Is this true ?? Let's hear from somebody close to DAN on this.

I am not a nitrox diver, nor do I have any immediate plans to become
one. However, this assault by SD on nitrox can only be viewed as a
hatchet job for the sake of crass commercial interests (e.g. the
big resort operators that don't like computer divers, let alone the
thought of having divers requesting nitrox too). Their unstated
agenda is clearly that the Cayman ban should be extended EVERYWHERE.
That's my interpretation, anyway, and I look forward to hearing
some other views on this after you have seen these SD editorials.

John Geary
PADI DM-52283
ge...@cfa.harvard.edu