The Simple Guide to Boat & Wreck Diving DVD
Hammerhead Video recently announced the release of their latest DVD video, The Simple Guide to Boat and Wreck Diving. Filmed by Steve and Kristine Barsky, this 45-minute program contains extensive information on diving from large charter boats, small boat operations, wreck diving gear, and wreck exploration. This is the third DVD from Hammerhead Video.

The program includes diving adventures filmed aboard the Truth Aquatics fleet out of Santa Barbara, the Lois Ann out of San Diego, and in the Bahamas. Equipment was provided by Abyss, Diving Concepts, Inc., Diving Equipment Specialties, Diving Unlimited International (DUI), and Trelleborg-Viking.

For dive stores in the western states who use the Truth Aquatics boats, this program is an excellent way to familiarize divers with the operation of this particular fleet.

The underwater portions of the wreck diving program were shot on the wrecks of the Yukon and Ruby E, off San Diego. For retailers who run wreck diving courses, this is a great preview for students who will train on these wrecks.

The video is an ideal supplement to any training agency’s educational programs or as a stand-alone introduction for new divers who are interested in learning about these specialties prior to enrolling in training. Divers who are unable to take an agency course due to time constraints or location, frequently buy videos from Hammerhead Press to learn about specialty areas rather than purchase the agency videos. Hammerhead’s videos provide more in depth coverage than most agency videos.

Steve Barsky shot the underwater footage using a Gates housing for his 3-chip Sony video camera. The program was edited in Final Cut Pro and mastered using DVD Studio Pro software. Duplication was by Duplitech of Torrance, California.

The Simple Guide to Boat and Wreck Diving has a suggested retail price of $17.95. It’s available directly from Hammerhead Video at www.hammerheadpress.com. Retailers can purchase the video from Hammerhead Press at (805) 985-4644, or through distributors National Divers, Pacific Books, and Trident.

Naval Forces Under the Sea
Naval Forces Under The Sea details one of the most interesting and historical symposiums ever presented at the U.S. Naval Academy. Sponsored by the Office of Naval Research, the primary objective of this symposium was to address and highlight the U.S. Navy’s significant developments in science and technology related to diving, special warfare, and submarine search and rescue. The symposium attracted national press coverage and highlighted the U.S. Navy’s contributions to diving and submarine rescue through lectures, panel discussions, and oral history recordings.

A secondary objective was to capture and preserve the historical base of knowledge in these disciplines that in many cases reside only in the minds of the contributors. The many attendees, students and faculty listened to historians and naval experts from around the world discuss some of the most daring and dangerous missions of the past century, as well as learned about the future of undersea technologies. In effect, it served as the “passing of the torch” from one generation to another and yet it refocused attention on the future of undersea warfare.

The symposium was a once-in-a-lifetime assembly of living icons in U.S. Naval Undersea Warfare from the past 60 years. The hope is that these proceedings will help preserve the history of this important component of the U.S. Navy’s past and plant seeds for future leaders in our Naval Forces Under the Sea.

Naval Forces Under The Sea is hard cover, coffee table style, 295 pages. For more information, visit Best Publishing’s web site at www.bestpub.com or call (800) 468-1055.

The Simple Guide to Commercial Diving
The Simple Guide to Commercial Diving is the latest book from Hammerhead Press of Ventura, California. Written by Steve Barsky and Bob Christensen, the book is geared towards the person who is considering a career in commercial diving, or who is enrolled in commercial diving school.

The book emphasizes the work ethic and philosophy of the commercial diving industry, but still provides details on the tools used, and duties required of, both tenders and commercial divers. It’s not a sugar-coated version of the business, but lays out the plain facts about what it takes to be a commercial diver, both good and bad.

Some of the information included in the book includes chapters on how to select a commercial diving school, job hunting, working as a tender and practical tools for tenders, diving, using tools underwater, rigging, and the future of commercial diving. It’s richly illustrated with over 150 photographs and drawings, and is an ideal reference for the person who is uncertain whether or not commercial diving is for them.

Authors Barsky and Christensen were both successful commercial divers who are still associated with the industry.

The Simple Guide to Commercial Diving is 178 pages, softbound. For more information, or to download a free sample chapter, visit Hammerhead Press’ website at www.hammerheadpress.com. Or call Hammerhead Press at (805) 985-4644.