My parent are both scientist which meant that growing up we would go to conferences around Mexico about twice a year. Happily enough these conferences where always at the beach, however there is only so much you can do as a 14 year old kid in a hotel, so my father encouraged me to do something while they where working. This is how my diving career started, I had nothing to do so my father decided I would go diving. I was reluctant at first because there is a lot of theory and reading that has to be done in order to have a certification and I didn’t want to spend my vacations studying. Everything changed the moment I got into the water. I felt weightless, calm and at peace. It was a meditative experience that made me feel free. After these vacations I did not miss a chance to get more certifications. I had a drive to learn more, go deeper, get better. 

After gathering some diving experience, I wanted to challenge myself with more demanding certifications. Cave diving specially called my attention, but it is recommended to start the course once you have over 1,000 dives. I was well under 100 at that point, so I decided to go for wreck diving. I had to start somewhere. There are mainly 2 skills required to complete the course: planning and keeping calm under pressure. When entering a wreck you must make sure you know it inside out and have everything you need go in and get out without hiccups, otherwise you will not be the first or the last to stay there permanently. Usually wrecks are ships with tight and narrow passages. So, to avoid hitting the walls you need to be extremely careful and aware of your movements and breath. This is usually simple enough, but add to this that in order to go in and out safely you must carry a line from start to finish making knots at every turn and entry while keeping it from tangling to your gear. It is not easy. Breathing in and out slowly and staying relaxed under pressure (pun intended) is the only way to safely wreck dive.

To be continued…