DEMA Show 2008

My wife and I attended our first DEMA Show. DEMA Show 2008, held in Las Vegas, Nevada was an exciting and well attended Diving Professional Conference. To the uninitiated, it was sensory overload. Vendor products from all over the world, travel, accessories and professional training as well as advice could keep a diver running from room to booth and back for a week or more. Without some sort of plan, one would only get a fraction of the value available during the four days of the show.

I am a relatively new PADI Professional (although I’ve been certified for over 20 years), only getting my Dive Master Certification earlier this year in May. My wife is a retail professional and together we are very interested in operating our own dive shop. For us, this DEMA was very special, encouraging and inspiring. Between the PADI Pro mini seminars, interactions with the PADI staff, and DEMA seminars, we learned an immense amount and made contacts that will undoubtedly help us reach our goals. Additionally, personal interactions with leaders in the vendor industry were invaluable and exciting. By the end, we were much more knowledgeable and definitely more pumped and ready to go!

If you are a PADI Professional, my wife and I recommend you attend DEMA next year (Nov 4-7) in Orlando. Try it and you’ll love it!

DAN and the Diving Emergency Provider Course

I just completed one of the best advanced courses I've taken to date. The DAN Diving Emergency Provider course was outstanding, interesting and a natural follow-on to the PADI Emergency First Responder Course. I was able to hone my EFT skills while getting advanced training and confidence with O2 (includes use of the MTG and BLG) , Neurological Assessments, additional Marine Life first aid and of course additional AED and CPR training. Great course. I was certified a DAN Diving Emergency Specialist by completing all portions of the Course. Splash Dive Center in Alexandria is now a DAN course provider and I highly recommend them. Go DAN!