E094 Florian Symoens - "Transitioning to a Full Time Instructor"

This is the amazing story of Joseph Bicanic's decompression sickness (Bends) incident while cave diving at Boesmansgat or Bushman's Hole in South Africa. Joseph joined Richard "Harry" Harris and Craig Challen's "Dark Side of the Moon" expedition. While working on mapping the cave and also achieving a personal depth record of 210m, Joesph was "bent" and subsequently had to medevac to Johannesburg for hyperbaric treatment. Big thanks to our sponsor XDEEP and the patrons of Speaking Sidemount for making this episode possible.

It's great to bring you Episode #101 with Gus Gonzalez, one-half of the dynamic duo behind the YouTube phenomenon, "Dive Talk". Huge thanks to our podcast sponsor, XDEEP and episode sponsor, Seacraft along with the patrons of Speaking Sidemount for their support. In this episode Gus and I discuss his journey from novice diver to prominent figure in the diving community through the YouTube Channel, "Dive Talk". We learn how Gus and Woody met, the evolution of Dive Talk, and the chemistry that makes their show unique. Gus shares insights into his diving experiences, the challenges of balancing a professional career with diving, and the importance of delivering value and the content his audience wants. We discuss the challenges in delivering thoughtful reactions to incidents and respect for fellow divers. We explore dealing with criticism and haters, highlighting the significance of focusing on constructive feedback. We learn about the development of the Dive Talk Go rebreather with Mike Young, and the mission behind the Dive Talk Academy to ensure quality instruction in diving education. We continue discussing the success of the annual Dive Talk Meetup events, which have proved incredibly popular with over one hundred attendees. The conversation also touches on plans for diving events and opportunities for divers to connect and improve their skills. Cheers Steve

Hey, it's great to bring you... Episode #100!!! Six years, a lot of blood sweat, and tears as the saying goes but a huge amount of learning, growth, and fun... I've loved every moment. I want to acknowledge the support of XDEEP who had the vision to join us early as the show sponsor and have been with us every step of the way. I am incredibly grateful to Piotr, Patrick, Bart, Magda, Barbara, and the wider XDEEP team for their support. Other sponsors have also supported us... Shearwater, Seacraft, SEAL Drysuits, Fourth Element... and you'll hear it here first, Insta360. They are all fantastic brands that I love. Most of them I was diving before Speaking Sidemount and I'm very proud and thankful for their support. And then there is all of you. Thank you so much for your support as patrons. You are the group that helps with production costs so you are part of this team and I appreciate the support :). In this episode, sponsored by XDEEP and Seacraft, I catch up with one of the most interesting people I know... Josh Richards. Josh and I have known each other for five years and have knocked out some terrific dives together in some of the premier caves of Mount Gambier, South Australia... an area known as the "Limestone Coast". Josh and I delve into his fascinating journey from military service to stand-up comedy, to being in line for a one-way trip to Mars, and ultimately to becoming a prominent figure in Australian cave diving exploration. We discuss the intricacies of diving, the importance of teamwork, and the skills necessary for technical diving, particularly sidemount diving. Josh shares his experiences in discovering new cave systems in the Mount Gambier region and the dynamics of his team, the Soggy Wombats. Josh's stories emphasise the collaborative spirit of exploration and the joy of sharing discoveries with the diving community. Enjoy :) Steve

Hey great to bring you Episode #99, thanks for your support and XDEEP for sponsoring the show. This episode features our latest Sidemount Diving Secret - Cylinder Section: "Why You Could be Diving the Wrong Cylinders". Big thanks to Seacraft for sponsoring this segment. Check it out here - https://youtu.be/0Ksl9r7zC6I?si=ZNYWiYTGYBPWX_ZB In this episode, I meet Stefan Panis, a Belgian wreck, mine and cave diver, professional underwater photographer, and author. Stef got into diving at a young age through his parents, who were divers. He progressed from recreational to professional diving and eventually became a wreck diver. He combined his passion for diving with photography and started documenting shipwrecks. Stef's favourite exploration project is the Dover Straits in the UK, which has a high concentration of shipwrecks. He wrote a book called 'The Shipwrecks of Dover Strait' that combines history, pictures, and stories of his dives. Stef also enjoys mine diving and believes that Belgium's proximity to various diving sites contributes to the popularity of technical diving in the country. Stef started as a wreck diver but later discovered the thrill of diving in slate mines, which led him to pursue cave training. Stef and his team now explore and document mines in Belgium, providing valuable information for speleologists and emergency responders. He also organizes the Dive Expo Belgium, a dive event that brings together divers from all backgrounds. Stef discusses the challenges of transitioning from warm to cold water diving and highlights the benefits of DPVs in his diving projects, particularly the Seacraft GO. Thanks and enjoy :) Steve

It's great to bring you Episode #98 with the support of our sponsor XDEEP and the patrons of Speaking Sidemount. Huge thanks to both for their support. In this episode, I introduce a new segment 'Sidemount Diving Secrets' where I'll share some inside tips and tricks that I've picked up over the 11 years now that I've been diving sidemount around the world. Inside the episode, I'll give an overview of the tip, and given we are producing both video and audio episodes, I'll point you back to the Sidemount Pros YouTube channel for the detailed video of each "Sidemount Secret". Let me know what you think and also drop me a note back if you have a tip you'd like to share, or have an aspect of sidemount diving you'd like me to explore. To get us started, this month's Sidemount Diving Secret is regarding the routing of your drysuit inflator hose and is brought to you by Sidemount Pros and is featuring my eBook, "Sidemount Diving Fundamentals" which is available complimentary for Gold patrons and for purchase/download via Patreon or the store on my website at www.sidemountpros.com/store. In this episode, I catch up with Por Parasu Komaradat. Por hails from and is based in Thailand an absolute global mecca for all things diving, from beautiful reefs, to wreck diving. As we'll hear, a heap of caves and mines are being explored and opened up to suitably qualified and experienced divers. Por shares his background in mathematics and software engineering before transitioning to full-time diving.  How he learned sidemount diving from Lamar Hires and went on to also train in Mexico. Por has been working as a technical diving instructor for 16 years. I share my own experience transitioning from software engineering to diving. We discuss the similarities between the two fields and the importance of having mentors in diving. Por also talks about the caves and mines in Thailand and the challenges and differences of diving in each. Por also shares his perspectives on the Mine Diving cross-over course and how important it is to understand how mining is conducted and how mines are created in safely conducting mine dives. Por shares his active projects, including exploring caves in Sulawesi and caves and mines in Thailand. He emphasizes the importance of teaching and building dive communities in the region. Enjoy Steve

It's great to bring you Episode #97 with the support of our brilliant sponsor XDEEP and the patrons of Speaking Sidemount, huge thanks to both for their support that makes everything you are about to listen to, possible. If you'd like to support the show become a patron for as little as $5 per month and get early access to every episode plus other benefits… pop over to www.patreon.com/speakingsidemount for all the details. Welcome to our first video podcast episode. I'm excited that we're now adding a different media format for the podcast. We will focus more on video from here on, plus the normal audio format we've been doing for many years. Video episodes will be available both through Spotify and YouTube. It's an exciting new era for Speaking Sidemount, so I hope you enjoy it. Please give me your feedback in the comments. I'm interested in everything... the quality and whether you enjoy seeing video more than just listening to audio. I'd like to know where you're consuming the podcast. Are you usually at home or on the move? Do you use a laptop, or TV, or watch on a mobile device? I'd love to hear your thoughts :). This month's episode is with Jacek Konikowski, an instructor trainer evaluator and IT for CCR CAVE, CCR Trimix levels, and the KISS Sidewinder.  Jacek has chosen to specialize his teaching in the two areas of diving that he loves… Cave Diving and the KISS Sidewinder and as he describes, this match gives him the best of both worlds. Jacek shares his background and how he decided to base himself in Isla Plana to be close to an amazing cave, Cueva Del Agua. We get into a massive discussion on the KISS Sidewinder and the contribution that Jacek made to the pre-production testing of the exciting new Sidewinder 2. We go deep into the Sidewinder 2, covering the new features and the training. Would you believe it, heresy as well!! Jacek and I get into the backmount version of the Sidewinder 2. I think it's pretty exciting that we are looking here at what I consider the world's best side mount rebreather, but it's got a backmount mode. And as much as I said, it's heresy, I think it's going to be awesome to be able to have that opportunity to be able to have a backmount mode alongside sidemount. Jacek and I discussed when the Backmount mode might be useful and what is required to set it up and train on this mode. In addition, Jacek and I chat about Cueva del Agua and the special features of this cave. Enjoy Steve

Great to bring you episode 96 with the support of our brilliant sponsor XDEEP and the patrons of Speaking Sidemount, huge thanks to both for their support that makes everything you are about to listen to, possible  We had a phenomenal response to part 1 of my interview with Steve Martin and Vas Proud of Sidemounting.com. Thanks to everyone who followed up with me for the discount code. I am sure you all will benefit greatly from the online video training. In this part 2 of the interview, we discuss: The path to getting better as a sidemount diver, the value of using video to improve, how to get back into sidemount diving after a break, how the online video training really focuses on the essentials of good diving regardless of the configuration, how a control line supports fast skill development, and we contrast different styles or configurations of sidemount. I am an absolute advocate of the sidemounting.com online video training. I honestly believe it will help any sidemount diver or instructor to improve their diving and as such, I have negotiated a special offer for all listeners of Speaking Sidemount – you can get a 15% discount on any of the training materials if you contact me directly for an exclusive promotional code. This offer is only available via Speaking Sidemount and again by contacting me personally via DM or email to [email protected]. Full disclosure, along with your discount Speaking Sidemount will also benefit financially from every purchase generated which will contribute to the ongoing production of this podcast. I sincerely appreciate your support. Cheers Steve

Awesome to bring you Episode #95 Steve Martin and Vas Proud - "Educating Sidemount Part 1" with the support of our brilliant sponsor XDEEP and the patrons of Speaking Sidemount. Huge thanks to both for their ongoing support of this podcast. I've spoken many times on this show about how I got started in sidemount. Steve Bogaerts' Ponderosa skills video was the trigger but quickly after that, I found Steve Martin's website. He was the first to promote the benefits of sidemount diving to a global audience. His content, images and video were incredibly compelling and form the basis of much that you will read to this day about sidemount diving. While I didn’t get the opportunity to complete a course with Steve, it was his recommendations and testimonials that led me to Tom Steiner and Gozo Technical Diving in Malta. I subsequently, had the good fortune to meet and dive with Steve while I was working and training with Tom. Just a year or so later Steve released his first online video training series. In my opinion, it was a watershed moment in sidemount. From the beginning I was taken with the level of detail in each of the video modules describing everything from setting up your harness, regulators and cylinders to putting it in the water with details on how to weight check properly, diver trim checks and fixes, propulsion training, base sidemount skills, and emergency drills. Over the subsequent years, Steve partnered with his former student Vas Proud to enhance and grow the online video training to the point today where it includes hundreds of hours of content including Intro to Sidemount, Sidemount Essentials, Sidemount Instructor modules, and a whiteboard series covering a huge array of tech diving content plus soon a cave diving series. I have used the videos to improve my sidemount diving and as a basis for my courses and instruction. It is in my opinion an essential part of any sidemount divers toolkit. Now in this episode which is part 1 of a two-episode discussion with Steve and Vas, we go into their backgrounds, how the video series came about, the thinking behind it and the benefits it provides, how the online video training compares and should be used alongside instructor-led training and we catch up and have a few laughs along the way. As I've described, I'm an absolute advocate of the sidemounting.com online video training. I honestly believe it will help any sidemount diver or instructor to improve their diving and as such, I have negotiated a special offer for all listeners of Speaking Sidemount – you can get a 15% discount on any of the training materials if you contact me directly for an exclusive promotional code. This offer is only available via Speaking Sidemount by contacting me personally via DM or email at [email protected]. Full disclosure, along with your discount, Speaking Sidemount will also benefit financially from every purchase generated which will contribute to the ongoing production of this podcast. I sincerely appreciate your support.  Enjoy Cheers Steve

Hey, great to bring you Episode 94 Florian Symoens - "Transitioning to a Full Time Instructor" with the support of our show sponsor XDEEP and the patrons of Speaking Sidemount. Huge thanks to both for their support which helps to make this show possible. Well, there must be something in the water in Belgium. For such a small country, located in northern Europe… there seem to be so many divers from there doing great things. To date I've interviewed David DeBruyne 48, Laurent Miroult 63, Sanne Volja 74, and Ellen Cuylaerts 91… and for some time now I've been following the exploits of Florian Symoens. Florian is an ISE Tech and Cave instructor who for many years juggled his diving passion with his hospitality business. Surprisingly during COVID while his "nightlife business" was in lockdown, Florian's diving activities boomed with more courses and the time to explore the mines in Belgium with Sanne. As the world opened up so did the possibility that Florian could transition from his nightlife business to becoming a full-time Technical Diving instructor. As Florian and I discuss, there are so many of us who juggle our careers and diving so it was outstanding to hear his story and his plans for the future. In this episode, Florian and I discuss his diving background, the Inner Space Explorers or ISE Agency, and ISE's take on sidemount diving. We get into how Florian became a cave instructor and given that much of the diving in Belgium is mines, we contrast cave, wreck and mine diving, covering the similarities and the differences we need to be aware of. Florian takes us through the sale of his business and his progression to a full-time Tech instructor. We talk mine exploration in Belgium and then the tools required including the KISS Sidewinder rebreather on which Florian is now an instructor. Florian has experience on a bunch of rebreathers so we compare and contrast a few, in particular, the Dive Soft Liberty before we share our excitement on the upcoming release of the second generation KISS Sidewinder or Sidewinder 2.0 We close on Florian's plans for this year and beyond. Enjoy :) Steve

Hey, I hope you are having a great start to the year :)!! It's great to bring you Episode #93 Tamara Adame - "The Path to Cave Instructor". Thanks again for your support. Huge thanks also to XDEEP for sponsoring the show. Their support has been instrumental in the success of this podcast and it is sincerely appreciated. One of the pinnacles in the application of sidemount diving is of course cave diving and cave exploration. It's an addictive pastime to research and then ultimately physically search for and then investigate flooded holes in the ground in an attempt to find that euphoric "never seen before… virgin cave passage. Many cave explorers either started their journeys as sidemount and cave instructors or found their way to this profession as a way to pay for their passion. For the vast majority, it's a match made in heaven where they get to earn a living sharing and teaching about how to dive caves and then applying their skills to their exploration. Teaching is also the perfect way to keep their cave diving skills current and built into muscle memory. The path to becoming a cave instructor is long. There's joining courses with other instructors, observing their teaching styles and content, having your skills reviewed and critiqued, then when you are ready… assisting on courses, being evaluated and then eventually qualifying as a Cavern instructor, teaching, building experience and then repeating this process twice more to reach the coveted level of Full Cave instructor. I'm using the TDI agency levels here but they map easily to the levels of other agencies… long story short… it's a journey full of pressure, failures, learning, and ultimately I am sure one of satisfaction when achieving a pinnacle level in the dive profession. In this episode, Tamara Adame joins me to share her journey along this path to cave instructor under the mentorship of Patrick Widmann of ProTec Playa. I had the good fortune to meet and hang with Tamara a bit while I was at ProTec training with Patrick. She's an amazing person, a great diver, and has a real passion for caves and diving. Tamara talks about growing up around the ocean in Mexico and how this shaped her love of everything aquatic. She shares on her time in Belgium building her career before she found herself back in Mexico and ultimately falling in love with caves and cave diving. She shares on how she met Patrick and how he guided her on her path to becoming a cave instructor. Tamara goes into how she came to work at Protec and the standards-driven focus of the team there. We discuss the challenges, failures and ultimately achieving the standards required in cave instructor training and where Tamara is taking her diving including her scientific diving work and the search for "Tamara's Cave". Enjoy :)!! Steve