July 13, 2011

Date: July 13, 2011

• Meeting was called to order by VP Mike Dupes, standing in for Diane, 6:30pm at Athen’s Café
• Mike thanked Vicky Tyde for her time on the board and welcomed Nica McAnany as a new board member
• Mike introduced the new board member
• Guest – Jenny Lyons
• New members – None
• Treasurer’s report – Lynda Dupes - Dues are now past due, undesignated funds $2147.00
• Secretary’s report – Nica McAnany - we had a meeting in June, minutes on the website
• Vice President’s report – Mike Dupes is working on numerous future programs and speakers, no specific details
• Dive reports – several were given
o Vicky Tyde gave the Roatan report, less than optimum weather conditions, but a great time was had by all. Bob added info regarding 6 divers taking photo classes and everyone working with their white balance slates, Mike chipped in that he expects numerous entries for the photo contest
o Casey Padgett – Pompano – he did 8 dives, shot 13 lion fish, 1 stung him, he stated the pain was worse than getting tattoo’s
o Tony Flaris – cave diving in Manatee Springs
o Daniel Hughes – on 6/27 dove with TISIRI on a pre-deployment dive 18 miles offshore Jax, Viz ~30’, water temp 71 degrees
o Dave gave a belated dive report for May – Cocos Island, tons of sharks, Manta rays, 50+ octopus’s, temp in the 80’s, very rainy, tiger shark and humongous whale shark
• Website – Bob Riddle is looking for a new ISP. Tony offered to help any members upgrade their internet explorer version to current
• Trips:
o Nica McAnany - Offshore Jax August 13th and 9/17th $100 3 tank dive
o Tony Flaris – putting together Pompano dive trip for labor day weekend, info to be sent out via email within the next week
o Casey Padgett mentioned a dive charter 6 pack in southern Georgia and that lobster season in Georgia is year round!
• Old Business – none
• New Business/Announcements – Summer beach party 8/27 club providing burgers/dogs, bring a covered dish and byob
• Copralite award – Bob Riddle gave the plaque to Melissa Siver, who was the current recipient. The following nominations were carefully considered by our members:
o Rusty Thomas AND Phyllis Stoeffel – a joint nomination for sleeping through the alarm which caused Beth and John to have to catch a cab, and they boarded the plane with only 30 seconds to spare
o Phyl for doing a Giant Stride in the water without a mask on
o Rusty for head butting some fire coral
o Casey Padgett for getting stung by a lion fish, standing on the bottom and continuing diving for another 30 minutes before getting on the boat
o AND, the winner is…… Phyllis Stoeffel for diving without her mask!! Phyl stated that she was going to “spruce” up the copralite and make it golden again!
• Tony Flaris – made a statement regarding state park funding issues and that the parks are in danger
• RRT Update – Dan Hughes/Phil Harville – meeting scheduled for 7/20, this month is the Great Annual Fish Count, www.reef.org
• 50/50 Raffle winner – Vicky Tyde $17
• Door prize winner – Casey Padgett won his choice of Scubanaut apparel and chose a t-shirt
• Speaker – None
• Meeting adjourned at 7:32 p.m.

June 8, 2011

Date: June 8, 2011. The meeting was called to order by President, Bob Riddle, at 6:30 PM.

Recording Secretary: Diane Schleissing

Guests Welcomed: There were no guests present.

New Members: Unanimous vote to accept Scott Hoffman as a new member.

REPORT

Treasurer Report: Lynda Dupes reported that there is $2125.40 in undesignated funds. May 31st marked the end of the fiscal year. Annual treasurer reports are available for review. There is a Fiscal Year gain of $407.37.
Membership dues are due.

Secretary Report: Lynda Dupes recorded minutes of the May meeting and they have been posted on the website.

Vice President: Mike Dupes stated there was nothing to report.

RRT Update: Denise Hughes reported that Daniel Hughes conducted the Fish ID course for the RRT students. He will be conducting the same course at the RRT team meeting next week.

Dive reports:
Vicky Tyde reported that visibility on the Memorial Day club trip to Venice ranged from 3- 12’. They found “big stuff.” Vicky found a mastodon tooth and a whale vertebrate. She passed it around for members to view. There was a brief “show and tell” of the findings and Pam Kurtz awarded prizes to Vicky and Nica McAnany.
There were no additional dive reports.

TRIPS/ ACTIVITIES
Nica gave an update on the club trip to Roatan and reminded travelers to check flight information and to bring C- cards and passports. She received a report of Lionfish sited at every dive site.

Nica will reserve dates for Offshore Jax. trips in August and Sept. Cost is $100 for a 3 tank dive. Details to follow.

New Business:
2011Christmas Party: Large room at Clark’s Fish Camp has been reserved by Peggy Barnes for Dec. 9, 2011. The party will start at 6:00 PM.
Officer elections:
President, Bob Riddle announced that there were no additional nominations or volunteers for officer positions and that the officer positions discussed at the May meeting would be filled accordingly. Peggy Barnes asked for clarification as to who was filling the positions since she did not attend the May meeting. Bob was relinquishing his position as President. Nica McAnany had volunteered to fill this position and the remaining officers had agreed to retain their positions: Mike Dupes- Vice President, Diane Schleissing- Secretary, and Lynda Dupes- Treasurer. Diane Schleissing was nominated for President by Peggy Barnes. She accepted the nomination and Nica withdrew her name from the ballot. Diane Schleissing questioned the now vacant Secretary position. Nica McAnany then volunteered for the Secretary position. Mary Lyons made a motion to accept the officers by acclimation. There were no objections and there was a unanimous vote: Diane Schleissing- President, Mike Dupes- Vice President, Nica McAnany- Secretary, Lynda Dupes- Treasurer.

Old Business/ Announcements:
Members were reminded that there is still club logo merchandise for sale.
Denise Hughes announced that it was Daniel’s 50th birthday. The club celebrated with a birthday song and chocolate covered Key Lime pie on a stick provided by Denise.
Mary Lyons announced that her daughter, Jenny, was participating in the annual “swim a lap” fundraiser. Mary was accepting contributions.
Vicky Tyde has been contacted by a reporter from Channel 12 regarding Lionfish found Offshore Jacksonville.

50/50 Raffle: Mike Dupes won $23.00.

Doorprize: Nica McAnany’s name was drawn. Since she was a previous winner, a second name was drawn. Li Flaris won a gift certificate to Athen’s.

Copralite award: The award remains in Melissa Siver’s possession.

Speaker: Sea Grant Extension agent, Maia McGuire, gave an excellent presentation on invasive Lionfish.

Meeting adjourned at 7:55 PM

May 11, 2011

Date: May 11, 2011. The meeting was called to order by President Bob Riddle at 6:30 PM.

Recording Secretary: Lynda Dupes (acting for Diane Schleissing)

Guests Welcomed: Joseph Buettner was welcomed as a returning guest. He turned in his application and check for the 2012 dues tonight. Scott Hoffman was also welcomed as a returning guest. Krysten Tyde (Vicky’s niece) and Michael Tyde (Vicky’s brother) were also guests.

New Members: Joseph (Joe) Buettner was voted in by the membership in attendance.

REPORTS

Treasurer Report: Lynda Dupes reported that there was $2,098.40 in undesignated funds. She thanked all who are going on trips in May and June for their prompt payments, and said that the FY-2012 dues will be due in June. Shirts and caps with the Scubanauts logo are still available.

Secretary Report: Diane Schleissing was absent, and the Secretary’s Report was waived. Reports may be found on the web site.

Vice President: Mike Dupes presented Tony Flaris with the first place underwater category prize from the 2010 Photo Contest. Mike said there will be a speaker for the June meeting, an environmental professor with a presentation about lionfish.

RRT Update: Phil Harville reported that the RRT manned a booth on Earth Day at the Landing, and that it was a long day for their limited booth personnel. Their current class went to Ft. Lauderdale last weekend. They are in the process of finishing some grant work. The next meeting is next Wednesday, May 18th, and next Saturday they will be working on Adopt-A-Highway. All are invited to come out to help.

Dive reports:
Crawdaddy and Dana did Crawdaddy’s annual birthday dive, but he wouldn’t say how deep they went. They dove Orange Grove Sink. He also reported that Peacock Springs State Park has now officially been renamed Wes Skiles Peacock Springs State Park.

Michelle Bennett went diving at Palm Beach in April, and reported good sea turtle sightings, and good water temp and visibility. Michelle also dove in Cozumel while on a cruise, and saw garden eels and juvenile drum fish. She said the vis was 150’+ and that she had an opportunity to help save the divemaster, who experienced trouble due to an exploding air hose.

Curtis, Frances, and Melissa Siver went diving at Riviera Beach. Frances and Melissa were completing some dives for an advanced certification, and Curtis was just along for the dives. He said the dives were nice.

TRIPS/ ACTIVITIES
Pam Kurtz has two spots left for the Shark Tooth Dives in Venice for May 28- 30, 2011, Memorial Day weekend. All payments are due now. Contact Pam for details.

Casey Padgett will be leading a Key Largo Memorial Day dive weekend through Scuba Tiger. They will be diving with Horizon Diver and staying at the Keys Inn. Flyers were available with details.

Roatan/CoCoview: June 11-18, 2011. There are 14 divers going on the trip. The trip has been fully paid to the dive charter.

New Business/ Announcements:
Bob opened the floor for nominations for officers, but there were none. He said Nica is willing to take the President position for the coming year. Diane, Mike and Lynda are willing to return in their positions as Secretary, Vice President, and Treasurer respectively. Bob urged members to think about submitting their name for one of the positions. Elections for club officers will be held at the June meeting. Please notify a current club officer if you are interested.

Copralite Award: Tony Flaris nominated Melissa Siver for the Copralite Award for leading the navigation dive directly into the designated swimming area. The nomination passed almost unanimously (Curtis voted NAY).

50/50 Raffle: Curtis Siver won $22 in the 50/50 Raffle, and also received a bonus Shark poster.

Doorprize: There was no door prize drawing as we did not have name tags.

Meeting adjourned at 7:08.

April 13, 2011

SCUBANAUTS/ MEETING April 13, 2011

Date: April 13, 2011. The meeting was called to order by Past President, Vicky Tyde at 6:30 PM. President, Bob Riddle was absent.

Recording Secretary: Diane Schleissing

Guests Welcomed: Joseph Buetner was welcomed. He lives in Pompano Beach and works in Jacksonville. Scott Hoffman was also welcomed as a returning guest. He also recommended the book “Sex, Drugs, and Sea Slime.”

New Members: No new members to vote in.

REPORT

Treasurer Report: Lynda Dupes was absent but sent report. Diane Schleissing reported that there was $1654.99 in undesignated funds.

Secretary Report: Diane Schleissing reported that Peggy Barnes recorded minutes from the March meeting.

Vice President: Mike Dupes was absent. Diane Schleissing reported on possible speakers. Maia McGuire, Sea Grant Extension Agent, to give a presentation on Lionfish and Diane and Peggy to give an update from the Turtle Permit Holders meeting regarding the cold stunning and oil spill.

RRT Update: Phil Harville reported that the next meeting is Wed. The St. Johns River Celebration and Clean up was a success. There were 95 people that picked up “lots of garbage.” RRT grants have been submitted.

Dive reports:
Nica reported on pool diving. Water temp. was 68’. There will be a meeting at Bob’s house in preparation for the Roatan trip. Members can use the pool to check out their gear.

Casey went diving at Pompano Beach. Water temp. was 77’ on Sat. and 79’ on Sun. They dove with Pompano Dive Center and did 2 wrecks. Seas were flat, there was no current, and visibility ranged from 35- 40’. He saw Goliath Groupers, 5 lionfish, eels, and lobsters.

Crawdaddy dove his 50th Anniversary dive at Blue Springs. He made his 1st dive there in March, 1961. He had 0’ visibility on this dive!

Joan dove Blue Grotto and Devil’s Den and got to 80’ at the bottom. It was very crowded with lots of students. She got lost in Williston.

TRIPS/ ACTIVITIES
Pam Kurtz has scheduled another Sharks Tooth Dive in Venice for May 28- 30, 2011, Memorial Day week- end. There is space available. Accommodations will be at the Best Western. See Pam for details.

Casey will be leading a Key Largo Memorial Day dive week end through Scuba Tiger. They will be diving with Horizon Diver and staying at the Keys Inn. Flyers are on table with details.

Roatan/ CoCoview: June 11- 18, 2011. Currently there are 14 divers signed up for the trip.

Nica may schedule a second Sharks tooth dive in June.

New Business/ Announcements:
Elections for club officers are next month. Please notify a current club officer if you’re interested.

Crawdaddy will be making his traditional birthday dive at Orange Grove Sink on Sunday between 10- 10:30 AM. He needs to dive to 78’. Contact Dana if you’re interested in joining him.

Nica reported that visibility Offshore Jax is 70- 80.’ The water is still cold at 68’. She’s willing to give OJT for flounder gigging.

Phil mentioned an article on predators in Coastal Magazine.

Diane informed the club of a turtle clambake fundraiser in St. Augustine next Wed. Details to be sent via e- mail.

50/50 Raffle: There was no 50/50 raffle. Lynda will resume it next month.

Doorprize: Pam Kurtz was the winner of Ned DeLoach’s pocket Fish ID book.

Copralite award: The award remains in Bob Riddle’s possession.

Meeting adjourned.

February 9, 2011

SCUBANAUTS/ MEETING February 9, 2010

Date: February 9, 2011. The meeting was called to order by President, Bob Riddle, at 6:35 PM.

Recording Secretary: Diane Schleissing

Guests Welcomed: There were no guests present.

New Members: No new members to vote in.

REPORT

Treasurer Report: Lynda Dupes reported that there is $2346 in undesignated funds. There are still club shirts and hats for sale.

Secretary Report: Diane Schleissing reported that the November minutes have been approved and are available upon request.

Vice President: Mike Dupes: The Photo Contest will take place at tonight’s meeting. Next month’s program will be about the hyperbaric chamber.

RRT Update: Daniel Hughes reported that there are 4- 5 RRT students. Four students completed the UW Scientific Photography module. The Adopt- A- Highway clean up is next month. Check the RRT website for date and exact location. The Jax Spots revision is in progress to be converted to GPS locations. There was some discussion by Bob Riddle.
Additional report by Phil Harville: RRT handout was updated.

Dive reports:
There were no dive reports. Offshore Jax water temp. is 55’ and 65’ at the buoy. Seas have been running 2 ½ - 6’ and vis is only 20’.

TRIPS/ ACTIVITIES
The Super Bowl party was a great success. It was well attended and the food was plentiful and delicious. A big “thanks” to Bob and Nica for hosting the party.

Roatan/ CoCoview: June 11- 18, 2011. Currently there are 15 divers signed up for the trip. Airfare has increased astronomically.

Pam Kurtz has scheduled Sharks Tooth Dive in Venice for May 28- 30, 2011, Memorial Day week- end. There is space available. Accommodations will be at the Best Western.

New Business/ Announcements: Crawdaddy has been nominated and is under consideration for the DAN Man of the Year Award.

Old Business: Members were reminded that there is still club logo merchandise for sale.

50/50 Raffle: Nica had the winning ticket and won $15.00.

Doorprize: Nica (again) was the winner of a Reef Fish ID book signed by Ned DeLoach.

Copralite award: The award remains in Bob Riddle’s possession. There was a repeat of the story and a discussion about a statute of limitations for the award.

Photo Contest Results
Underwater category:
1st prize ($20 gift certificate to the Outback) won by Tony Flares for “Who Tapped on the Glass”
2nd prize ($15 gift certificate to Al’s Pizza) won by Daniel Hughes for “Pretty Invader”
3rd prize ($10 gift certificate) won by David Dempsey for “Hunkered Down”

Above water category: One prize ($20 gift certificate to the Outback) won by Phil Harville for “My Magic Finger”

Photos will be posted on the website.

Meeting adjourned.

January 12, 2011

SCUBANAUTS/ MEETING January 12, 2011

Date: January 12, 2011. The meeting was called to order by President, Bob Riddle, at 6:35 PM.

Recording Secretary: Diane Schleissing

Guests Welcomed: There were no guests present.

New Members: No new members to vote in.

REPORTS:
Treasurer Report: Lynda Dupes reported that the Club needs to sell $77.00 worth of merchandise to “break even.” There is an inventory list and there are mostly shirts and caps available. See Lynda or Mike if interested.

Secretary Report: There was not a meeting in December. November minutes have been approved and are available on the website.

Vice President: Mike Dupes informed the club that the program for March will be on the Hyperbaric Chamber and the speaker will be from Baptist Hospital.

Dive reports:
Diane Schleissing reported on Grand Cayman and Cozumel diving at the beginning of December. Visibility for both places was >70’ and the water temp. was 78’. Diving was typical of the areas, current was ripping in Cozumel. Several lionfish were seen in Grand Cayman.

David Dempsey gave a report on PNG, Papua New Guinea. He did a live- aboard on the Stardancer. Water temp. was 82’ and the number of “small critters was amazing.” He claimed it was the best place for macros and coral. He also made a shark dive but the number of sharks was minimal due to overfishing. He stopped at Cairns, Australia on the way back and dove on the Great Barrier Reef. He was not as impressed as he thought he would. It seemed to be “beat up.”

Crawdaddy and Dana dove Troy Springs on Christmas Day. There were no lionfish.

TRIPS/ ACTIVITIES
Roatan/ CoCoview: June 11- 18, 2011. See Nica for details.

Pam Kurtz has scheduled a Sharks Tooth Dive in Venice for Memorial Day week end, May 28- 30, 2011. There are 11 spots available, sign up if interested. Accommodations will be at the Best Western and diving is with Megaladon charters. .
Old Business: All entries for the photo contest must be submitted by the end of the meeting. Crawdaddy volunteered to be the judge.
Lynda Dupes reported that the total cost of the X- mas party was $1341. The club paid $628 and attendees paid $713.

New Business: None

Copralite award: Crawdaddy was the owner. Curtis nominated Bob Riddle because of a computer/ room fiasco on their last trip to Roatan. Bob’s hard drive ended up in the salt water and he also left his computer in someone else’s room thinking it was his own room. The club voted to award the copralite to Bob and there was some discussion about a statute of limitation for the award.

RRT Update: Phil Harville informed members that the Jan. meeting is next Wed. at 6:30 PM at the library location. The new class has started and has 5 students. The revision of the safety manual and forms is in progress, The calendar and the website need to be updated.

Doorprize: Lynda Dupes was the winner of a gift certificate for Athen’s Cafe.

December, 2010

(No normal meeting is held in December. Annual Scubanauts Christmas Party always conducted instead that month.)

November 11, 2010

SCUBANAUTS/ MEETING November 11, 2010

Date: November 11, 2010. The meeting was called to order by President, Bob Riddle, at 6:35 PM.

Recording Secretary: Diane Schleissing

Guests Welcomed: There were no guests present.

New Members: No new members to vote in.

REPORTS:

Treasurer Report: Lynda Dupes reported that there is $2910.65 in undesignated funds. Please pay for the X-mas party by the end of November.

Secretary Report: Diane Schleissing reported that the October minutes have been approved and are available upon request. Bob Riddle informed the Club that the current minutes were on the website for review.

Vice President: Mike Dupes: The rules for the upcoming Photo Contest will be in the newsletter. Photos need to be submitted by the Jan. meeting and the contest will take place at the Feb. meeting.
Mike is working on future programs for next year.

RRT Update: Phil Harville informed members that the Nov. meeting is next Wed. at 6:30 PM at the library location. The RRT Adopt a Highway is this week end. The RRT class will begin in Dec. instead of Nov. The Right Whale Festival is Nov. 20th at the Jax Beach Pavilion. Divers are needed for the last RRT dive of the season scheduled for this Sun.

Dive reports:
Nica McAnany reported on an Offshore Jax. dive. They dove EF ledge and she “gigged” 7 flounder which is unusual for this time of year. The water temp. was 80’ at 90’ depth. Bob Riddle said “there were not a whole lot of lobster.” The Offshore Jax boat, Diamond Diver” is not operational at this time.

Denise and Daniel Hughes were not on a dive but were at an altitude of 7,000’ at the Grand Canyon. They had an unplanned meeting with Jim and Peggy Barnes, who were also at the same place at the same time!

Crawdaddy told an amusing story of his and Dana’s Troy Springs adventure. He reminded everyone of the 7 P’s which should be applied to diving: Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance. He and Dana did not plan properly because Crawdaddy blew an “O” ring and neither one of them had a spare OR a “Save a Dive” kit. They also paid $30.00 per person for Troy instead of the $5.00/ carload. They finally found a dive shop to purchase an “O” ring and eventually made a “beautiful” dive. They were also reimbursed their $$ by the park ranger.

TRIPS/ ACTIVITIES
Roatan/ CoCoview: June 11- 18, 2011. See Nica for details. Cost is $1164 pp double occupancy, excluding airfare. Currently, there are 15 divers signed up for the trip.

Pam Kurtz has scheduled Sharks Tooth Dive in Venice for May 28- 30, 2011. A sign up sheet will be at the Jan., 2011 meeting with details. Accommodations will be at the Best Western.

Tony Flores is planning another Bonaire trip in March. There’s also a springs dive trip to Orange Grove Sink at the end of the year. See Tony for additional information.

Old Business: Diane gave details of the X-mas Party scheduled at Clarks Fish Camp on Dec 10th. The cost is $20.00 for members, $27.00 for guests, and $15.00 for juniors. In order to offset the expense to the club there will be a $5.00 up charge for anyone wanting the Joan’s cut and “special tickets” will be issued. The menu has been expanded to include more choices than previous years and is attached to the sign up sheet. There will also be doorprizes and a gift exchange. Sign up on the sheet and pay Lynda.
There is still $110.00 worth of club merchandise for sale. Club T- shirts and golf hats are still available for purchase. See Mike or Lynda for list of items and cost.

New Business/ Announcements: While giving his dive report, Crawdaddy informed the club that there is a new dive shop in Mayo. Tony Flores also gave an update on fees for Peacock and Troy Springs ($5.00 per carload.)

50/50 Raffle: Phil Harville had the winning ticket.

Doorprize: Crawdaddy was the winner of a gift certificate for Athena’s.

Copralite award: Because of his Troy Springs “O” ring fiasco, Crawdaddy was nominated for the Copralite award and there was a unanimous vote to make him the recipient. He was also presented with a full package of “O” rings attached to a dive tank keychain.

Speaker: Don Dingman spoke about some of his diving/ fishing adventures. He also talked about the “Live the Dream/ Hook the Future” fishing program.

October 7, 2010

SCUBANAUTS/ MEETING October 13th, 2010. The meeting was called to order by President, Bob Riddle, at 6:35 PM.

Recording Secretary: Diane Schleissing

Guests Welcomed: Jackie was almost a returning guest for the 4th time but she decided to pay membership dues.

New Members: Jackie was voted in as a new member.

REPORTS:

Treasurer Report: Lynda Dupes reported that there is $2838 in undesignated funds. There is $39.00 collected for the 50/50 raffle of which $19.50 will go to the winner. Club shirts are still available for sale.

Secretary Report: Diane Schleissing reported that the September minutes are available upon request and will be posted on the website. Bob Riddle informed the Club that the current minutes were on the website for review.

Vice President: Mike Dupes: The rules for the upcoming Photo Contest will be in the newsletter. Mike and Bob reviewed the rules. Photos need to be submitted by the Jan. meeting and the contest will take place at the Feb. meeting.

Don Dingman is the speaker for the November meeting. Possible future speakers are someone from the JSO dive team, Anna DeLoach, and someone from the Baptist hyperbaric chamber.

Dive reports:
Li Lorez reported on the Bonaire trip. They had rain! There were “all kinds of critters.” Tony made a calendar from some of his photos. Water temp. was 86’. David Dempsey commented that he thought this was the top Caribbean spot for macro photography.

Jackie attended an underwater wedding at Alexander Springs. Current admission fee is $3.00

Daniel Hughes reported on a RRT mapping and fish counting dive he and Denise made on the Coppedge culverts. They had a “turtle encounter.” The turtle was acting like a “cleaning station” for Triggerfish. Unfortunately his video camera malfunctioned so he didn’t get any pictures. Water temp. was 77’ with measured vis. of 30’ with a lot of “crap” in the water.

TRIPS/ ACTIVITIES
.Diane gave details of the X-mas Party scheduled at Clarks Fish Camp on Dec 10th. The cost is $20.00 for members, $27.00 for guests, and $15.00 for juniors. In order to offset the expense to the club there will be a $5.00 up charge for anyone wanting the Joan’s cut. The menu will be expanded to include more choices than previous years. There will also be doorprizes and a gift exchange. Information will be in the Nov. newsletter. Sign up on the sheet and pay Lynda.

Diamond Diver is scheduled to go Offshore Jax this Sat.

Pam Kurtz is planning another Sharks Tooth Dive in Venice for the last week end in May 2011. Details will follow.

Roatan/ CoCoview: June 11, 2011. See Nica for details. Deposit is due. Cost is $1164 pp double occupancy (does not include airfare).

RRT Update: Phil Harville informed members that the RRT class will begin in Nov. The Oct. meeting is next Wed. at the library location. The International Coastal Clean up was on September 25. They collected all types of “garbage” from Helen Cooper Floyd Park. The Right Whale Festival is Nov. 20th at the Jax Beach Pavilion.

Old Business: Club T- shirts and golf hats are still available for purchase. See Mike or Lynda for list of items and cost.

New Business: There is a lecture about the reef life in shallow water and the effect of artificial reefs on marine life this Thurs. evening at Whitney Lab.

50/50 Raffle: Diane Schleissing had the winning ticket.

Doorprize: Gordy Schleissing was the winner of an underwater Reef Fish Pocket Book signed by Ned DeLoach that was donated by Li.

Copralite award: Bob Riddle is the proud owner.

Meeting adjourned.

September 7, 2010

SCUBANAUTS/ MEETING September 7, 2010

The meeting was called to order by President, Bob Riddle, at 6:40 PM.

Recording Secretary: Diane Schleissing

Guests Welcomed: Jackie was a returning guest for the 3rd month in a row. She dove Offshore Jax on August 22nd. There was 40- 50’ visibility and she cut her dive short because she got overheated in her 5 ml wetsuit! Keven Reed, speaker from last meeting, returned with his wife as guests. Keven was certified in 1972 and his last dive was in Troy Springs.

New Members: Keven was voted in as a new member.

REPORTS:

Treasurer Report: Lynda Dupes reported that there is $2894.95 in undesignated funds. There are a few members that have not paid annual dues. Mike Dupes has the list. Scubanaut shirts are still available. There is $34.00 collected for the 50/50 raffle of which $17.00 will go to the winner.

Secretary Report: Diane Schleissing reported that the August minutes are available upon request and will be posted on the website.

Vice President: Mike Dupes reported that Diane and Peggy are the guest speakers for this meeting. Their program will be about sea turtles. Fishing guide, Don Dingman, will be the speaker for November.

Dive reports:
Phil Stoffel reported on Troy Springs diving. There were “sand vents” and water temp. was 70”.

Seth went snorkeling with his niece and nephew in the Atlanta Aquarium. They now want to take up scuba.

Joan Tourney went to Blue Grotto and Devil’s Den. She broke her toe snorkeling!

Bob Riddle reported on “mini season” Offshore Jax. The lobster were “unattainable.” He commented on “his uncocked spear gun and he was carrying too much stuff.”

TRIPS
Sept. 18th Offshore Jax trip is on hold. Visibility is only 4’ due to all the recent storms.
Roatan/ CoCoview: June 11, 2011. See Nica for details. Deposit is due.
RRT Update: Phil Harville informed members that there was no RRT class as of yet. The Sept. meeting is next Wed. at the library location. August 21st was the highway clean up. Approximately 52 volunteers collected 2 bags per person over a 4 mile stretch. This was about 30 lb. of garbage/ person.
The RRT is participating in the International Coastal Clean up on September 25th and welcomes Scubanaut members.

Old Business: Christmas Party reminder: Dec.10th at Clark’s Fish Camp. There will be a gift exchange and a sign up sheet at the October meeting.

Bob Riddle reported that the August Beach Party was a success. A good time was had by all and past club members, Bob and Terry Wallace, made a surprise visit.

Announcements:
Daniel Hughes informed the club of the Gray’s Reef Ocean Awareness Film Festival from Sept. 17th- 19th. If interested, refer to the program schedule of speakers and videos.

Scuba Tiger was sold last month. Brian Nettles is the new owner and is taking a “hands off/ business as usual” approach. Dave is running the operation.

Divers Supply is having a soft opening of their new building on Sept. 20th.

50/50 Raffle: Mike Dupes had the winning ticket.

Doorprize: Denise Hughes was the winner but since she won last month, the prize went to Crawdaddy.

Copralite award: Bob Riddle was nominated for “carrying too much stuff”, including a spear gun and pole spear. He broke the knuckle of his finger and lost a flounder. The vote was unanimous to award the Copralite to Bob.

Speaker: Diane Schleissing and Peggy Barnes gave a presentation on the nesting sea turtles for the area. Barbara Haasis commented that “it was a fabulous presentation by our own turtle ladies.”

Meeting adjourned.

August 10, 2010

SCUBANAUTS/ MEETING August 10 ,2010

The meeting was called to order by President, Bob Riddle, at 6:35 PM.

Recording Secretary: Diane Schleissing

Guests Welcomed: New guest, Glen Akins was welcomed. He’s a long time diver, enjoys all types of diving with the Philippines as his favorite place to dive. Jackie was a returning guest who just received her Cavern Diving certification with Orange Grove Sink as her checkout dive.

New Members: Tracy and James from Arizona were voted in as new members.

REPORTS:

Treasurer Report: Lynda Dupes reported that there is $2683 in undesignated funds. An annual report is available upon request. There was a loss of $994 due to an inventory of extra shirts and the changing of the fiscal year to June.

Secretary Report: Diane Schleissing reported that the July minutes are available upon request and will be posted on the website.

Vice President: Mike Dupes reported that Diane and Peggy will be the guest speakers for the September meeting. Their program will be about sea turtles. Vicky Tyde is working on scheduling a future speaker.

RRT Update: Phil Harville gave a RRT report informing the Club that the last RRT Highway pick up is August 21st. There is a Coastal Clean Up on Sept. 25th from 9 AM- 11AM. The next RRT meeting is Sept. 18th at The Seven Bridges restaurant. There was a discussion regarding the Bridge of Lions placement off shore St. Augustine. There was a Lionfish round up in the Bahamas with a total of 21 Lionfish collected with the largest measuring 19”.

Webmaster report: Bob Riddle announced that there have been problems due to outages and to notify him if you notice any problems additional problems.

Dive reports:
Crawdaddy reported on Troy Springs diving.
He also reported on diving in Perry Lake, north of Toronto, Canada. Water temp. was 67’ on a 35’ wreck. He and Dana also dove in TobraMore, “a drinking village with a diving problem.” It’s an underwater park full of wrecks. Water temp. was 66’ with 0 visibility for Crawdaddy.

Jim Barnes reported on diving off of Pompano. It was typical south Florida diving with rough seas for the 1st dive.
Tony Flores conducted a 90’ checkout dive in Orange Hole Sink. There was an overgrowth of algae until the cavern opening.

Joan Tourney reported on the Scubanauts Offshore Jax dive. They went 20 miles offshore. Water temp. was 68- 72’ and they saw several “unusual fish”, hybrid Angelfish, and large Florida stingrays.

Daniel Hughes reported on mini lobster season. At 26miles offshore visibility was 80’ at 111’ depth. There was a thermocline at 50’ and water temp. and visibility dropped drastically. No lobster were taken, they all had eggs but they did see a very large Grouper.

Nica McAnany reported on Offshore Jax diving this past Sat. She made 4 dives and gigged several flounder. Water temp. was warmer at 78’- 72’ with better visibility inshore and 58’ offshore.

Bob Riddle added that they saw the “largest rays ever” on the Pressboxes with 55’ visibility which dropped to 25- 30’. They also saw 7 Cobia and a “clear nosed skate” which is usually seen in cold water. Water temp. was 68’.

TRIPS
Offshore Jax trip on Sept. 18. “New boat, great operation.” Sign up on sheet or see Nica. Cost: $80.00 for 2 tank dive or $100 for a 3 tank dive. Boat leaves at 6:30 AM AM from marina off Hecksher Dr.

Roatan/ CoCoview: June 11, 2011. See flyer for details. Deposit is due. 15 divers so far. Approximate cost is $1100.

New Business: Cookout/ Beach Party at Windjammer condos on Sat. August 28th. Details will be posted on the website and sent via e- mail.

Old Business: Christmas Party is Friday, Dec. 10th at Clark’s Fish Camp. Details to follow.
There are still Scubanaut t- shirts for sale.

Announcements: Peggy Barnes reported that there is now a ban on using sea turtles for food in the Bahamas.
Crawdaddy gave an update on the death of Wes Skiles. Wes had changed a medication which possibly caused an interaction with other medication. Death was ruled as a “medical accident.” Wes used to give a lecture to Crawdaddy’s Basic scuba classes. Tony Flores reported on the memorial service at Ginnie Springs.

50/50 Raffle: Barbara Haasis had the winning ticket.

Doorprize: Denise Hughes was the winner of a book, “Hazardous Marine Life” which was donated by the speaker, Kevin Reed. The book should be available for purchase through DAN.

Copralite award: Melissa Severs is still the proud owner.

Speaker: Kevin Reed, OD gave a very informative presentation on “Updating Management of Venomous Marine Life Injuries.” The most useful update was that most venomous stings (jellyfish, Man of War) should be treated with hot water as soon as possible.

Meeting adjourned.

July 13, 2010

SCUBANAUTS/ MEETING July 13,2010

The meeting was called to order by President, Bob Riddle, at 6:30 PM.

Recording Secretary: Diane Schleissing

Guests Welcomed: Guests Jackie and Marlene were welcomed. They found out about the Club on an Offshore Jax trip.

REPORTS:
Treasurer Report: Lynda Dupes reported that there is money in the bank. A complete report is available upon request. 2010 dues are due.

Secretary Report: Diane Schleissing reported that she has been absent for the last 3 meetings. Minutes were recorded by other members and are available upon request.

Vice President: Mike Dupes reported that Richard Nunn is guest speaker for tonight’s meeting. Mike is working on scheduling future speakers.

Dive reports:
Vicky Tyde reported on the July Pompano Beach dive trip. Dives were great on Sat. and Sun. except for the storms on Sunday. There was a lightning strike on someone else’s dive on Sunday afternoon. They saw Lionfish, squid, turtles, lobster, shrimp, and drum.

Phil Stoffel reported on diving in St. Johns, USVI. She referred to the group as “Rumheads!” Visibility was about 70- 80’, there was extensive coral damage, saw octopus and squid, and the snorkeling was better than the diving.

Bob Riddle reported on Offshore Jax diving. There is a new dive boat operation that has a 12 pack 40’ Newton. Visibility was 50+’, water temp was 79’, and there was an abundance of spadefish, snapper, tomtate, grunt, some cobia, large Atlantic stingrays, and a Goliath grouper. “It was a great trip!” and Offshore Jax Club trips are being scheduled.

Tony Flores reported on Peacock Springs diving. The water level was high and there was a fatality while they were there.

Daniel Hughes reported on his trip to Fiji. Diving was mostly on coral “pinnacles” and Fiji is considered the soft coral capitol of the world. There was a ripping current and they saw all kinds of the Pacific fishes. He gave an extensive report on the shark feeding dive where they had approximately 36 bull sharks with an average size of 11’. He also reported on the islands: where they stayed and what they did.
TRIPS
Offshore Jax trip on July 25th. Sign up on sheet or see Nica. Cost: $80.00 for 2 tank dive. Boat leaves early AM from marina off Hecksher Dr.

Roatan/ CoCoview: June 11, 2011. See flyer for details. Deposit is due.

RRT Update: Daniel Hughes indicated that there have been no Lionfish seen Offshore so far this year.
Phil Harville arrived late and gave a RRT report informing the Club of the next RRT meeting and the Coastal Clean up.

New Business: No new business.

Old Business: Pam Kurtz had drink cups for the shark tooth dive winners: Vicky Tyde for her large Mako tooth, and Denise Hughes.

50/50 Raffle: Mike Dupes had the winning ticket but declined and Pam Kurtz was the subsequent winner.

Door prize: Joan Tourney

Copralite award: Melissa Severs is still the proud owner.

Speaker: Richard Nunn from Channel 4 spoke on lightning storms, the tropical weather forecast, and the Deep Horizon oil spill.

Meeting adjourned.