1960s Review Article: Lots of Divers On the Coastside (2)

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“Other exotic hazards of skin-diving, the sport which has drawn an estimated million participants in the last decade were also on the agenda.

“Swimming at 100 feet, a diver may feel the first gentle tug that could carry him to his death. The effect is like one martini.

“From that point on, if he chooses to dive deeper, he may develop the effect of one more martini with each 25 feet in depth.

“This is the famed ‘rapture of the deep,’ which develops as heavy underwater pressure forces changes in the body’s ability to use effectively the air from a scuba self-contained underwater breathing apparatus.

“But panic can be equally destructive. If he is untrained–and for every trained diver five are untrained–he may tangle himself hopelessly in kelp.

“Virtually every diver in northern California interested in spear fishing or photography, said Lloyd Austin, diving control officer in the UC Berkeley, dives in kelp.”

…to be continued…

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