I have always loved being on the water, just hanging out and kicking back. In 2003 I was on a snorkel cruise in Kona Hawaii where they made an announcement that the pre-dive briefing for SNUBA was about to start and anyone who thought they might like it better attend because they were only going to do the briefing once. That was the day I hung up the snorkel and decided underwater was where I wanted to be. Several months later I was in Mexico and there was this little shack by the beach... learn to dive! $300. I looked at my brother and said "we need do this."

So I started diving in Mexico in 2004 and loved it, but it was just a fun thing to do. In 2005 I did Advanced Open Water and my deep dive was in a cavern in Florida (Blue Springs). The grip on my heart was tightening, but living in the Pacific Northwest I wasn't diving as often as I liked because I had not yet discovered cold water diving.

An intro to dry suits, some underwater acrobatics, a dive light and the the game was on. Cool creatures, a little bit darker, a little bit deeper foot by foot my desire was growing.

Then Rescue Diver (2005) , DAN Dive Emergency Specialist in 2006 and most importantly...CANADA! Porpoise Bay, Sechelt Inlet. Skookumchuck Narrows - the Glory Hole, Agamemnon Channel, and HCMS Chaudiere. Done deal, I'm in... flash forward... Dive Master 2007.

Flash back to 2006, hanging in the shop, excited about diving, nothing to wear that lets me show off my biggest recreational interest. Sure when I go to Hawaii or Mexico every dive shop has some shop shirt, but I noticed most of them are really the same shirts, just with their shop name or location on it. Vancouver WA is not exactly a bustling dive retail area so eventually I figured out if I wanted to find some cool duds I had to search for them and get them myself. So I did, and I continue to look for cool designs and shirts that are more than a dive flag and the name of a shop.

Eventually I figured out that most dive shops do not have a large interest in bringing in many styles, multiple lines and providing a wide range of choices. There simply is not enough space, time and money to do everything. Lets face it, t-shirts are not exactly a cash crop in the arena of regulators, BCs, diver education and charters.

So I decided to take a chance. Here was my thinking:

-Keep it simple, offer cool designs, a wide selection, and try to give buyers a fair value for their money.

I am proud we are firmly in to our second year of operations, and we have expanded our offering to about 100 different styles! In 2008, I hope to find more styles and begin some light marketing.

Please feel free to send me an e-mail with feedback or suggestions.

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