RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] More youthful wetsub experiences

[Alec Smyth <Asmyth@changepoint.com>]

Absolutely. My dad's partner was a Belgian who was in the resistance until
captured with about 30 others. Half of them were executed on the spot, the
other half sent to a camp. While there, he happened to walk out of their hut
to go to the bathroom when an allied bomb fell on it and wiped out the rest,
so he was the only survivor of the original 30. When liberated at the end of
the war, his lungs were in really bad shape and the doctors told him to go
somewhere with a warmer climate, so that's how he ended up in Argentina. He
married and went on his honeymoon to Bariloche, a mountainous part of the
country with Swiss and German architecture and traditions. Guess what, he
started running into his former jailers on the street, and cut his honeymoon
short 'cause it wasn't much fun. That said, there are also lots of great
Germans down there who have no such record. In fact, the owners of the pool
were German and were my closest friends. Please read no grudge into the
story, it belongs to another time altogether. You're all getting me off
topic! I don't mean to waste everyone's time. 

More on topic, this morning my sub project became like a Gruyere, with lots
of holes in the hull. Tomorrow it gets all the inserts welded in, and within
the next two days it should get the endcap on the stern and the dome seat on
the bow. Pictures soon.

- Alec

-----Original Message-----
From: Gregory Snyder [mailto:gsnyder@mn.rr.com]
Sent: Tuesday, February 05, 2002 3:47 PM
To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
Subject: RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] More youthful wetsub experiences


Growing Up in Argentina, you could probably find some real Nazi's.
Didn't a lot of them flee to South america?

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-personal_submersibles@psubs.org
[mailto:owner-personal_submersibles@psubs.org] On Behalf Of Alec Smyth
Sent: Tuesday, February 05, 2002 2:42 PM
To: 'personal_submersibles@psubs.org'
Subject: RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] More youthful wetsub experiences

We were limited in depth by the length of the hose, since we'd leave the
tank floating along the surface. If I remember right, it was about 4-5
feet
long. Which is probably just as well since we had no idea one had to
exhale
upon surfacing. It was a friend's pool, hence no lifeguards. But my
friend's
mom was a real disciplinarian. That's because when she was young she'd
been
a bit of a nut herself... once she was pulled over by a motorcycle cop
for
speeding, and while he was writing the ticket she rode off on his
Harley. 

It was fun growing up in a place (Argentina) where liability lawsuits
were
unheard of and cops were too busy fighting terrorists to worry about
crazy
kids. I find safety nazis depressing.

Damn, I'm rambling. Better get back to work.

- Alec

-----Original Message-----
From: Michael Holt [mailto:mholt@richmond.edu]
Sent: Tuesday, February 05, 2002 3:19 PM
To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] More youthful wetsub experiences


Alec Smyth wrote:
> 
> One can get away from some amazingly unhealthy things as a teenager. I
once
> got hold of an insecticide tank of the kind gardeners wear on their
backs,
> with a little hand pump for pressurizing it. After a rinse... presto,
scuba
> gear for the swimming pool. We'd just stick the nozzle in our mouth
and
pull
> the trigger for each breath of air. It actually worked!

Any idea how much pressure there was?

And did the lifeguards at the pool stop you?



Mike