Sink Date for Yukon Postponed to July 15.
You can Still Push the Button to Sink the Destroyer!

As this publication was going to press notice was given that the sinking of the Yukon would be postponed until July 15.

You could still be the one to push the button to sink the Yukon. Enter the San Diego Oceans Foundation Project Yukon Push-the-Button contest and you could be the one to sink the Yukon. On July 15 the 366-foot former Canadian naval destroyer will make her final voyage to the ocean floor with full honors. The Push-the-Button contest winner will be flown to San Diego for an all-expense-paid, three-night stay with VIP entrance to all sinking and celebration activities.

The Yukon is being cleaned and prepared according to environmental and diving safety standards. Rather than cut any corners, extra time was needed to match or exceed these standards.

Artificial reefs like the Yukon create a haven for marine life by revitalizing damaged or barren ocean areas. Help promote the growth of underwater environments by entering the Project Yukon Push-the-Button Contest today at www.hmcs-yukon.org, or by writing Project Yukon at P.O. Box 90672, San Diego, CA 92169 or call (619) 523-1903.

For the past 40 years Sport Chalet has provided adventure seekers in Southern California with a wide assortment of premier sporting good products and expert technical advice. Now the retailer will take that experience to the Internet. "The development of SportChalet.com was a strategic business decision for us," stated Sport Chalet's President and CEO Craig Levra. "The demographics of our customer base mirror those who are shopping online."

The retailer plans to extend many of its land-based programs to the Internet &emdash; linking visitors to worldwide SCUBA, travel, and continuing education. Sport Chalet will also extend its land-based return policy to online shoppers &emdash; allowing online purchases to be exchanged or returned to any Sport Chalet location.

Highly trained SportChalet.com technical customer service representatives will answer questions via phone, e-mail, and through LiveRep™, allowing customers real-time online chat with product experts.

Sport Chalet is a leading operator of full service specialty sporting goods superstores operating in Southern California for more than 40 years. The Company offers over 35 services for the serious sports enthusiast, including ski rental and repair, full dive training certification programs, SCUBA charters, team sales, racquet stringing, and bicycle tune up and repair through its 22 locations. For more information or a store near you, visit their web site at www.sportchalet.com.

Divers Alert Network launched its Diving With Diabetes Study in 1997 to evaluate the prevalence of hypoglycemic episodes associated with scuba diving and to analyze current blood glucose monitoring guidelines for insulin-dependent scuba divers, and DAN will finish its study this year.

The next phase will take place in Belize aboard the Belize Aggressor. DAN has conducted seven trips, both land-based (Bahamas and Cozumel) and live-aboards (Cayman and the Bahamas). DAN has collected 423 dive profiles from 33 insulin-dependent diabetics (IDDM).

To investigate the effects of blood sugar levels on divers with insulin-dependent diabetes, this field study will log more than 500 dives and record blood sugar levels before and after multiple dives during a multiday dive period. Information on insulin dosage, food, exercise and dive profile (collected with a downloadable dive computer) will also be analyzed.

People with diabetes do participate in strenuous sports above the water, but little data exists on the true incidence of hypoglycemia during scuba diving. Procedures by which divers with diabetes can dive safely have not been defined. This fairly wide selection of divers should generate some insight into the variable blood sugar levels in IDDM divers.

Interested volunteers must be at least 18 years old and have insulin-requiring (require insulin injections) diabetes. For information, contact Donna Uguccioni at DAN Research; email at DUguccioni@ dan.duke.edu or call 1-919-684-2948 ext. 627.

YMCA SCUBA responds to instructor requests and welcomes a contemporary certification card. With the organization's new computers and card printing capabilities, YMCA SCUBA can provide professional, attractive certification cards with all the essential information required by the dive industry.

The new look displays the highly recognizable YMCA SCUBA logo atop a metallic blue card and replaces the 40th anniversary commemorative card issued during 1999. The new plastic cards contain important diver data without compromising the cardholder's sensitive information. Due to the desires of its leadership, YMCA SCUBA replaced the Social Security Number with a serialized, computer-generated Personal Identification Number, based on such information as the diver's date of birth. Another feature of the certification card is the inclusion of the diver's number of logged dives.

According to YMCA SCUBA Director Thomas "Tec" Clark, the most outstanding feature of the new card is the logo.

"Our new trademarked logo is graced with the YMCA of the USA 'Y' symbol, which is recognized by over 97 percent of the population," Clark said. "Our new motto describes exactly what the YMCA does coast to coast, internationally and every day of the year: we build strong kids, strong families and strong communities. All of this makes the YMCA SCUBA certification card represent quality education, training and values. YMCA SCUBA certified divers are confident, comfortable and competent divers. And it shows."

Due to the new card processing system, YMCA SCUBA can now process certifications via fax, and replacement card requests are easier than ever with instantaneous processing. Also, online certification via the Internet is forthcoming.

For more information on the new certification cards or certifications processing, please call YMCA SCUBA at (888) 464-9622.

Project AWARE (Aquatic World Awareness, Responsibility and Education) Foundation is diving into Earth Day 2000. Dive Into Earth Day, an international event celebrating Earth Day's 30th anniversary, is designed to offer dive activities during the week of 16-22 April 2000. Dive Into Earth Day puts an aquatic spin on traditional land-based Earth Day activities by giving participants the opportunity to take action to protect our oceans, lakes, streams and waterways.

"We're encouraging divers and snorkelers to participate in activities like underwater cleanups, fish or reef surveys, mooring buoy installation projects, artificial reef building projects and educational seminars or contests," says Kristin Valette, Manager, Project AWARE Foundation. Participants can sign up for Dive Into Earth Day activities by visiting the activities section on the Project AWARE website, www.projectaware.org.

Dive Into Earth Day is co-sponsored by Project AWARE, The Coral Reef Alliance (CORAL), Center for Marine Conservation, DEMA (Dive Equipment and Marketing Association), Hammerheads, Earth Day Network 2000, Environmental Defense, NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), Oceanwatch, Reef Ball Foundation, Reef Ball Coalition, Reef Check and the Reef World Foundation.

Project AWARE is the dive industry's leading nonprofit 501(c)(3), tax-exempt, organization dedicated to the preservation and conservation of the aquatic environment and its resources. The Foundation funds ongoing environmental programs and initiatives such as beach cleanups, environmental research projects, educational campaigns and more.