SCUBAPRO Platinum Event

In the summer between sixth and seventh grade my family went on a Windjammer Barefoot Cruise to the Bahamas. It was a “barefoot cruise” because the ship was a sail boat with wooden decks and all passengers had to remove their shoes before coming on board to avoid slipping and falling. The ship was significantly smaller than the monstrous cruise ships that hold tens of thousands of people, which meant it could lay anchor at smaller islands. It was on this trip that I was able to sit in the warm shallows of a small cay and have giant stingrays swim over my lap, acting like friendly black labs. At the end of the week, as we were leaving the boat, one of the women we met on the trip was saying how ecstatic she was to be going home to sleep in her own bed. She lived a few miles up the coast and had only been gone from home a week. My family was in the middle of a month-long trip and had no great desire to ever go home. Whether it’s out of the country, out of the state, or just up the road, I never pass up an opportunity to travel somewhere new and exciting. I am lucky to have been to eight countries and eighteen states, but nothing gets me more fired up than thinking about all the places I still have to explore.  

Monday evening marks the beginning of the SCUBAPRO annual Platinum Event, being held in Key Largo, Florida. Pro Scuba was one of only fifty facilities invited to attend this event out of over 2000 scuba shops in the United States. Even more incredible, there was an extra spot and I was invited to this amazing opportunity. The Florida Keys is one of the top scuba diving destinations in the world, with stunning reefs and wreck diving locations. It is a relatively unusual trip for a dive shop in the Western United States, so not many divers from here have had the chance to dive the Keys. For facilities in the Eastern United States, it is as standard as Monterey is for Pro Scuba. A dive shop in Wisconsin might make the trip to the Florida Keys 30 weeks of every year. 

In addition to being able to dive in Key Largo, this trip is an amazing opportunity because I will meet and interact with professionals who have proven themselves successful in the scuba diving industry. I will be diving with accomplished business people and outdoor recreation experts who have years of diving experience. SCUBAPRO will be holding daily meetings and discussions, which is an opportunity to get a better understanding of the company. As a senior graduating from college in May, hoping to eventually be successful in the scuba diving industry, these divers have a wealth of knowledge and expertise. Being that my time at school is almost done, this could be last trip I have to come home from.