As you all know Vivienne Whitehead or Viv as we all call her, owns Divewise Malta along with her husband Alan Whitehead. Viv is the lovely lady who answers all your e-mails with regards to diving with Divewise and is always willing to answer your questions when you are at the dive centre. Viv spends most of her time in the office, so she doesn’t have much time to go diving with us, but last week that all changed.
CONTENTS:
- What Is The PADI ReActivate Course
- Who Should Take The ReActivate Course
- Preparation Before The Dive
- Skills Required
- The Dive Itself
- The End Result
What Is The PADI ReActivate Course
The ReActivate™ program is the perfect way to update your dive skills and knowledge from the PADI Open Water Diver Course before jumping back into the water... The ReActivate® program is the perfect way to regain your confidence and comfort levels in the water.
Who Should Take The ReActivate Course
I had the pleasure of taking Viv out for a refresher dive on our House Reef or better known as Merkanti Reef. As she hadn’t dived for over a year and was abit nervous about previous experiences, our plan was to get back in the shallows and do a clean-up along the way. Viv brought along her Project A.W.A.R.E clean up bag as I had my camera, so I could capture some shots of Viv picking up any trash we found on Merkanti Reef.
Preparation Before The Dive
Before the dive, I was a bit nervous I mean, who wouldn’t be if you are taking your boss out for a dive. I kept having this idea that she would keep an eye on me in case I was doing something incorrect, which I failed before we even started the dive. During the gear preparation, I collected the correct sizes she needed, except I gave her two left-handed gloves. This was embarrassing yet Thankfully, she could laugh about it.
Skills Required
Before heading out to the water, Viv needed to sit down with me and discuss the skills required. Not only skills to dive and explore, but skills to keep her safe and enjoy the dive. The skills were run through on land so that if she had any questions, I could give her answers immediately.
The Dive Itself
After completing the skills required in the shallows, we headed out and started her exploration and clean up dive. We didn’t come across a lot of trash, which is a good thing for us, because it states that Merkanti Reef is a clean reef and that we do a good job to keep our house reef clean. Our dive was around an hour, where Viv gained back her confidence and I had good practice with my camera as I’m really into underwater photography.
The End Result
Altogether it was a pleasant dive with Viv, the Boss. I would certainly take Viv out for another dive if she is up for that and not mad at me for giving her two left-handed gloves. We spoke a bit about her skills and buoyancy but she is definitely a good dive buddy, nice and relaxed.
A few days later I showed her the photos I took during our dive, which put a smile on her face, meaning I could stay a few more weeks at Divewise and my job was safe. I don’t think she will let me forget about the 2 left-handed gloves though for a while and she gave me Muppet of the Day Award.
Keep an eye out for the next episode of "Diving with Viv" where Amy refreshes her Drysuit Skills and also introduces her to the Wing and Long Hose system.
Until our next dive Viv!
Written By: Jasper Mulder
