Students crowd the IM Sports-Circle Pool to participate in the MSU Scuba Club’s first event. They were taught the basics of scuba diving and were able to put them to use in the pool.
—Six students huddled around their instructor, and on the count of three, they all disappeared below the surface of the water.
On Monday night, about 40 students gathered in the IM Sports-Circle pool to get a hands-on experience with scuba equipment during an event hosted by a resurfacing MSU club. The goal of the event is to draw attention to the new MSU Scuba Club and to get as many people involved as possible, said Jeanne McCarthy of ZZ Underwater World, 2016 E. Michigan Ave., in Lansing.
“There used to be a scuba club here at MSU, but it got shut down for lack of interest,” she said. “We just got certified by (the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, or PADI), and we wanted to get MSU students back involved with scuba diving.”
The new MSU Scuba Club was started by two MSU students who intern with ZZ Underwater World.
They contacted the MSU Outdoors Club to try to draw in as many interested students as possible.
“With the PADI interns involved with it, we think we can definitely get people their certifications,” McCarthy said.
With more students in attendance than available equipment or instructors, the MSU Scuba Club deemed the event to be a success.
“I think that scuba diving could be really fun,” food science freshman Alicia Symanski said. “I used to do some of the breathing with my stepfather, but I really wanted to do it independently.”
Instructors started the students off with the basics — properly fitting the mask to their faces and cleaning the masks. Students were told to press the goggles to their face and inhale to create a suction that would keep the water out. From there, it was into the water with each student being sized up for their scuba equipment.
Once their oxygen tanks were strapped on and they had a handle on their air regulators, it was time for the students to dive to the bottom of the pool.
“We want to promote scuba diving and the exciting lifestyle it provides to college students,” said history senior Kathryn Best, an MSU Scuba Club member.
Four feet down might not seem deep but it can seem like a different world, Symanski said.
“Michigan might not have the typical dive spots people think of when they think of scuba,” McCarthy said. “But with all the lakes around here and the Great Lakes, there are plenty of opportunities to dive.”
Students crowded the edge of the pool deck to see how the equipment worked and to learn what it might be like to finally slip beneath the surface.
“It was definitely awesome,” Symanski said. “I came out because of the Outdoors Club, and I really enjoyed myself.”
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