Happy Holidays!
2007-12-17 @ 16:32:05
My apologies for the delay in writing the Log. We have had such a busy Fall with full boats, large groups and outstanding diving encounters. Coupled with the customary boat haul outs, staff vacations and other important issues has left little time to write.
The traditional slow times of September and October didn’t materialize this year. Instead we saw steady numbers all the way through to this week! September has always my favorite month to dive in the Cayman Islands. The water is a balmy 84 plus and there just seems to be a more frequent large animal encounter. Sharks are seen on a regular basis on the North side, Eagle Rays tend to patrol the walls in battalion like fashion and there just seems to be an overall big show of creatures. No whale sharks this summer but the usual Hammerheads, Caribbean Reef and a suspected Bull shark were all reported on our dives.
The house reef is the jewel in the Sunset crown. Night or day the reef delivers positive results with incredible regularity. Octopus, nesting Yellow Headed Jawfish, schools of Squid and of course a seemingly endless supply of Hawksbill turtle make Sunset Reef the best ‘back yard’ I know.
07 will go down as a memorable year for our Media partners. We had the []DEMA "Be a Diver" film shoot which you will see on National TV through out 2008 - 09,quickly followed by the SSI Training Dept who had 10 days of solid filming for their updated training DVD’s. Thousands of divers around the world will see Sunset Divers and Grand Cayman at its very best and with luck will enthuse many to come visit our home.
Ikelite Underwater were here on 3 occasions. Twice to test new products and lastly to promote their incredible range of underwater housings, lights and strobes at Total Sub. Jean is now considered one of the family and is always freely available to answer your housing questions.
Theresa and the gang from PADI put on another superb event and we were glad to be part of their success. Sunset attracts hundreds of photographers a year pro and amateur alike so it’s worth considering that if were good enough for the big boys we might just be able to help you learn, improve and or compete with them!
An excellent year for training with Pete just about to surpass his 100 student annual quota. His goal is to train 100 students a year which he seems to do with ease. He also recently became a IDC Staff Instructor so congratulations to him.
Young Tom Banfield just passed his IE with flying colors. No longer the lonely Divemaster Tom now finds he can walk with us rather than behind us! Well done Tom and welcome to the big house! New arrivals include Andy Barnes from Reading England. Watch out for his bio next month. Texas Sam just finished helping us out through some busy times and has left for Christmas. In between diving and driving boats Sam could be found kite boarding in the North Sound. We only had to rescue him once- from a tree!
Good news is that our beloved Jax has had successful surgery and will be back to sort the boys out. We sure have missed her around the place this last 3 months. She will be leaner and meaner and after a quick dose of snowmobiling she’ll be back on track taking care of the team here at Sunset.
Freddy moved onto to pastures new though we still see him on a regular basis and he’ll be found at My Bar every Friday night to catch up with his old pals.
Boat wise it’s been a hectic year for Rob who has been frantically busy at the Marina. He is just about to complete his second project this year. A totally rebuilt, refitted and repainted Michael Fitz v-hull should be launched in the next 2 weeks. That would bring our fast fleet up to 3. He is the unsung hero who methodically keeps the fleet going. His next project will be refitting Leopard Ray completely. When he’s good we let him dive with the guests so some of you know him. A big thank you to Rob because we wouldn’t have a 100% boat departure record if it were not for his skills. Thanks Rob.
Group business continues to increase with some excellent business coming in over the next month. Late December and Jan will stretch us to the limit but the team can be assured to step up and provide the usual great service.
If we didn’t do so returning groups wouldn’t come back so often. Pan Aqua, Underwater Safaris, The Dive Shop Memphis, Lake Norman Scuba and our great friends Mildred & Dan from Down Under Divers , to name a few are all regulars and we thank them for the continued support.
Special mention this month to our latest Divemaster candidates. Local lad Dan Neville and not so local Ned Vansise have just completed a rigorous 14 day program. Mike B was the Lead Instructor and he reports a superb effort by both candidates. In particular Dan deserve extra praise. We see a lot of students but very few who go that extra mile, study for hours on end and find time to contribute to the overall running of a busy resort. Dan has been a huge asset to the organization and I would like to thank him on behalf of the crew and all the guests he has helped over the last few months. A job well done Dan and we hope you carry on- you are the Instructor of Tomorrow. Ned Vansise should be congratulated also. His unending support and mentoring have helped both himself and Dan become excellent DM’s. You earned it guys. See you at the bar!
So what does 08 hold besides the obligatory great service, superb diving and unrivaled instruction?
It’s our Anniversary year so watch out for great deals and special events. In July we’ll see the first SSI scuba week which is all set to become a wonderful Sunset/SSI tradition. We’ll also have some SSI Instructor Training Programs. We’ll have new boats, new staff and a new baby in June- but one thing that will be assured. Sunset Divers will continue to provide the great service you have come to expect. The recipe is simple and we intend to keep cooking!
WE look forward to seeing you all in the coming year.
To old friends and new, Mike, Pete, Rob, MikeB, Jax, Tom, Sam and Andy would like to wish you all a Happy Christmas and a Safe and Prosperous New Year.
By the way-We’ve seen your weather-
here its 88 degrees and the water’s perfect- come on down!
Safe Diving
Mike
Mike can be contacted on [email]mikep@sunsethouse.com[/email
The traditional slow times of September and October didn’t materialize this year. Instead we saw steady numbers all the way through to this week! September has always my favorite month to dive in the Cayman Islands. The water is a balmy 84 plus and there just seems to be a more frequent large animal encounter. Sharks are seen on a regular basis on the North side, Eagle Rays tend to patrol the walls in battalion like fashion and there just seems to be an overall big show of creatures. No whale sharks this summer but the usual Hammerheads, Caribbean Reef and a suspected Bull shark were all reported on our dives.
The house reef is the jewel in the Sunset crown. Night or day the reef delivers positive results with incredible regularity. Octopus, nesting Yellow Headed Jawfish, schools of Squid and of course a seemingly endless supply of Hawksbill turtle make Sunset Reef the best ‘back yard’ I know.
07 will go down as a memorable year for our Media partners. We had the []DEMA "Be a Diver" film shoot which you will see on National TV through out 2008 - 09,quickly followed by the SSI Training Dept who had 10 days of solid filming for their updated training DVD’s. Thousands of divers around the world will see Sunset Divers and Grand Cayman at its very best and with luck will enthuse many to come visit our home.
Ikelite Underwater were here on 3 occasions. Twice to test new products and lastly to promote their incredible range of underwater housings, lights and strobes at Total Sub. Jean is now considered one of the family and is always freely available to answer your housing questions.
Theresa and the gang from PADI put on another superb event and we were glad to be part of their success. Sunset attracts hundreds of photographers a year pro and amateur alike so it’s worth considering that if were good enough for the big boys we might just be able to help you learn, improve and or compete with them!
An excellent year for training with Pete just about to surpass his 100 student annual quota. His goal is to train 100 students a year which he seems to do with ease. He also recently became a IDC Staff Instructor so congratulations to him.
Young Tom Banfield just passed his IE with flying colors. No longer the lonely Divemaster Tom now finds he can walk with us rather than behind us! Well done Tom and welcome to the big house! New arrivals include Andy Barnes from Reading England. Watch out for his bio next month. Texas Sam just finished helping us out through some busy times and has left for Christmas. In between diving and driving boats Sam could be found kite boarding in the North Sound. We only had to rescue him once- from a tree!
Good news is that our beloved Jax has had successful surgery and will be back to sort the boys out. We sure have missed her around the place this last 3 months. She will be leaner and meaner and after a quick dose of snowmobiling she’ll be back on track taking care of the team here at Sunset.
Freddy moved onto to pastures new though we still see him on a regular basis and he’ll be found at My Bar every Friday night to catch up with his old pals.
Boat wise it’s been a hectic year for Rob who has been frantically busy at the Marina. He is just about to complete his second project this year. A totally rebuilt, refitted and repainted Michael Fitz v-hull should be launched in the next 2 weeks. That would bring our fast fleet up to 3. He is the unsung hero who methodically keeps the fleet going. His next project will be refitting Leopard Ray completely. When he’s good we let him dive with the guests so some of you know him. A big thank you to Rob because we wouldn’t have a 100% boat departure record if it were not for his skills. Thanks Rob.
Group business continues to increase with some excellent business coming in over the next month. Late December and Jan will stretch us to the limit but the team can be assured to step up and provide the usual great service.
If we didn’t do so returning groups wouldn’t come back so often. Pan Aqua, Underwater Safaris, The Dive Shop Memphis, Lake Norman Scuba and our great friends Mildred & Dan from Down Under Divers , to name a few are all regulars and we thank them for the continued support.
Special mention this month to our latest Divemaster candidates. Local lad Dan Neville and not so local Ned Vansise have just completed a rigorous 14 day program. Mike B was the Lead Instructor and he reports a superb effort by both candidates. In particular Dan deserve extra praise. We see a lot of students but very few who go that extra mile, study for hours on end and find time to contribute to the overall running of a busy resort. Dan has been a huge asset to the organization and I would like to thank him on behalf of the crew and all the guests he has helped over the last few months. A job well done Dan and we hope you carry on- you are the Instructor of Tomorrow. Ned Vansise should be congratulated also. His unending support and mentoring have helped both himself and Dan become excellent DM’s. You earned it guys. See you at the bar!
So what does 08 hold besides the obligatory great service, superb diving and unrivaled instruction?
It’s our Anniversary year so watch out for great deals and special events. In July we’ll see the first SSI scuba week which is all set to become a wonderful Sunset/SSI tradition. We’ll also have some SSI Instructor Training Programs. We’ll have new boats, new staff and a new baby in June- but one thing that will be assured. Sunset Divers will continue to provide the great service you have come to expect. The recipe is simple and we intend to keep cooking!
WE look forward to seeing you all in the coming year.
To old friends and new, Mike, Pete, Rob, MikeB, Jax, Tom, Sam and Andy would like to wish you all a Happy Christmas and a Safe and Prosperous New Year.
By the way-We’ve seen your weather-
here its 88 degrees and the water’s perfect- come on down!
Safe Diving
Mike
Mike can be contacted on [email]mikep@sunsethouse.com[/email
