FAVOURITEKIT FAVOURITEKIT
My favourite piece
“ of dive fit is my VMS
Redbare rebreather, it allows complete freedom on dives from shallow to deep. I like breathing the warm air and love the peacefulness of closed-circuit rebreather diving.
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Last year Craig endured the‘ four days of fun in the sun’ otherwise known as the National Instructor( NI) exam. This, he says, was one of the hardest but most rewarding courses he has ever done. Despite that, he says he would definitely encourage all fellow divers to add this unforgettable experience to their bucket list.
When I ask what motivated him to go for NI, Craig replies:“ I used to say that I got into teaching for me. I wanted to improve my own diving skills and found that teaching improved them very quickly.“ Over the years my thoughts have changed and now I strive to help others. Becoming a National Instructor allows me to help and encourage many more people to become divers, instructors and leaders of BSAC.”
Preparation for NI was a long journey, he says, starting with First Class Diver( FCD). On FCD events he saw how the NIs taught and decided that he wanted to be able to teach like that.
Craig took the NI exam twice and says he found the experience different each time:“ I do feel that on the first exam I wasn’ t ready – I learned a lot about myself
and what was expected of me.” This made him more prepared for his second, successful exam.“ I had a lot of help and support from so many different NIs,” he says,“ I will always thank those that have helped me along the way.”
As a new NI, Craig hasn’ t yet had the opportunity to teach on the higherlevel courses but is sure that will come. When not teaching, his favourite pastime is diving wrecks. He has done thousands of dives, but on the subject of logging them he admits he doesn’ t officially write them up, instead relying on his dive computer. His most memorable and favourite dive sites are along the north Cornish coast, including the Pandora and the St Chamond( known as the train wreck).
As diving doesn’ t pay the bills, Craig works as a paramedic in a GP surgery, which, while keeping him very busy does bring weekends off for diving and enjoying life with his partner. At present, he is
" Becoming a National Instructor allows me to help and encourage many more people to become divers "
A day on the RIB with Kingston & Elmbridge SAC
focusing on regional and technical courses, so most of his diving consists of teaching in quarries or pools. Craig is a test diver for the Atlas closed-circuit rebreather( CCR), which should hopefully be on the market this year, and is always happy to facilitate CCR training if there is a demand.
More recently Craig has set up an IDEST testing centre with a collection service. It is located at Kingston & Elmbridge BSAC clubhouse for the time being, with a view to becoming a mobile service in the near future.
Finally, I asked Craig for a top tip.“ Always ensure you are ready for the dive you are about to do,” he replies. And never be afraid to bail out at the last minute if it doesn’ t feel right. You can always get in the water another day. Never take risks or feel pressured to do something you’ re not comfortable with. Keep safe and may you enjoy many years of happy diving.” �
Craig pictured, right, on a rebreather charter
Become an Instructor!
Sports Divers and up( for scuba) and 16 + year olds( for snorkelling) can start instructor training.
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Or visit bsac. com / instruct 47