Sunday, February 11, 2024
Temperature: 83
Humidity: 62%
Precipitation: Wear (reef-safe) sunscreen
Tag Archives: Caribbean fiction
Blacktip Island Resort Opens Scuba Gear Museum
A Sportsways ‘Waterlung’ regulator, circa 1960, with J-valve first stage is one of the many historical bits of scuba gear on display at Eagle Ray Cove Resort’s new scuba museum. (photo courtesy of John Goodspeed)
Antiquated and abandoned scuba gear will be on display at Blacktip Island’s Eagle Ray Cove resort starting Saturday morning, the resort owner said, in an effort to broaden the small Caribbean island’s tourism footprint.
“It’s amazing how much old scuba equipment piles up here, whether from forgetfulness or advancing technology, or what have you,” Eagle Ray Cove Resort owner Rich Skerritt said. “We’ve been collecting it in our lost-and-found for years. It got to the point it was either throw it all out, or put it on display.
“With this museum, scuba enthusiasts have one more reason to come to Blacktip,” Skerritt said. “And not only will the admission fees benefit us financially, it allows us to pull guests at other resorts into our income stream when they come to visit. There’s really no down side for us.”
Island dive staff were upbeat about the museum.
“It’s a bunch of dreck taking up space and gathering dust,” Eagle Ray Divers divemaster Alison Diesel said. “We can’t give it away, so someone might as well make some money off it. Last time I looked there were still some old 80s-era Dacor regs, a couple of orange horse collar BCs and some fairly manky wetsuits.”
Some residents, however, were critical of the idea.
“This is just Rich’s latest scam to squeeze just that little bit of extra money out of island guests,” Blacktip Haven resort owner Elena Havens said. “He’s putting pieces of junk behind glass display cases and calling them artifacts. I’m warning my guests away from the place. If they have discretionary spending money while they’re on island, they need to be spending it here, at The Haven, instead of that grifter’s crap show.”
Others were eager for the facility to open Saturday morning.
“Having dug through the ERD lost-and-found before, there’s some pieces in there that really put diving, and diving history, into perspective,” Christina Mojarra said. “There’s regulator systems in there with no alternate air source or pressure gauge. People used to dive with get-ups like that, and survive. It shows how far we’ve come in terms of technology and safety. I don’t doubt people will line up to see this stuff.”
Skerritt said he plans to make the exhibit an interactive one.
“As soon as we can find someone who can service this old stuff, we’ll let folks try it out off the end of the dock,” he said. “People’ll jump at the chance to dive with their fathers’, or grandfathers’ vintage scuba gear. For an additional fee, of course.”
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Blacktip Island Weather
Sunday, February 4, 2024
Temperature: 89
Humidity: 67%
Precipitation: Not today
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Blacktip Islanders Will Celebrate Groundhog Day By Repeating Yesterday
Blacktip Island residents will celebrate Groundhog Day today by repeating their Thursday actions and conversations. (photo courtesy of Anthony Quintano)
Blacktip Island residents will celebrate Groundhog Day today by repeating their actions and conversations of the day before as a community-strengthening event, organizers said.
“Blacktippers do this naturally every day, but we decided to really draw attention to it today to pull the community together,” Blacktip Island Chamber of Commerce president Harry Wrasse said. “End of the day, there’s not a lot to do or talk about here, so almost everything gets repeated ad nauseum. Some folks call it repetition. We just call it ‘Monday.’ Or ‘Tuesday.’ Or ‘Wednesday.’
“By celebrating it, we get everyone focused on what it means to exist in this particular time and place,” Wrasse said. “This is one of the things that makes Blacktip unique. It’s actually quite handy—I can walk into the Last Ballyhoo bar and tell you exactly who’s talking about what at a glance. And who’s sitting where, with who, before I even walk in the door.”
Residents say celebrating the repetition will be beneficial.
“A while back, to save time, a bunch of us numbered all the possible conversations,” Marissa Graysby sad. “Instead of babbling at each other, we’d just say the number, and the other person would respond with a similarly-numbered response. That got boring, though, so this is a great way to get folks repeating themselves again.
“It’s comforting, really, knowing exactly what’s gonna happen next,” Graysby said. “You get off this island, you’re never sure what’s gonna happen. Even if you don’t strictly need to have the conversation, you have it anyway out of politeness. And respect.”
The celebration will feature food and drink stands around the island’s Heritage House.
“We’ve asked all the island restaurants and dining rooms to set up stands with the same food they serve every day,” Rusty Bollard said. “And we’re asking people to eat the same things they ate on Thursday. There should be no surprises for anyone. With any luck, today’s events should blur into yesterday’s. Except the food stands themselves.
“We’ll also have a groundhog-costume contest for the kiddos,” Bollard said. “And, later in the day, a greased iguana rodeo to let the little tykes burn off some calories. Oh, and live music’ll be provided by local favorites The Social Morays, TURTLE!!!!, and Young Jacques and the Double Hose.”
Wrasse noted there was concern among event organizers about its potential downside.
“The big worry is by shining a spotlight on an everyday thing, we risk ruining that thing,” he said. “Folks may get here and feel awkward and not talk at all, essentially take us a step back as a community. Me, though, I think it’ll be a home run. And if it does prove popular, we’ll do it again the next day. And maybe the day after that, too.”
Filed under best scuba diving novels, Caribbean, Scuba Diving
Blacktip Island Weather
Sunday, January 28, 2023
Temperature: 86
Humidity: 62%
Precipitation: Not a chance
Filed under best scuba diving novels, Caribbean, Scuba Diving
Blacktip Island Weather
Sunday, January 21, 2023
Temperature: 88
Humidity: 67%
Precipitation: Nothing but blue skies
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Blacktip Island To Launch Inaugural Flying Fish Races Saturday
Blacktip Island sports enthusiasts will cheer on the inaugural Flying Fish Derby Saturday, with racers judged on speed and length of flight. (photo illustration courtesy of Gervais et Boulart)
The Blacktip Island Athletic Society will welcome the new year this Saturday with the small Caribbean island’s inaugural Flying Fish Derby near Diddley’s Landing public pier.
“People on boats ‘ooo’ and ‘aah’ over flying fish all the time, so we figured we’d formalize that,” BIAS president Ledford Waite said. “It’s a new sport for a new year. BIAS members have been raising and training their flying fish for months to prepare for this. Trophies will be awarded for the fastest flying fish as well as the longest glide.
“We’ll line the fish up underwater against a clear sheet of Plexiglas, then drop the barrier and make a sound like a barracuda,” Waite said. “We’ll run multiple heats, in a round-robin format, to ensure each fish gets a fair shot at winning. Judges’ll be posted all around in skiffs to observe each flight.”
Pre-race favorites are already getting attention.
“Gage Hoase’s Icarus is the clear favorite, followed closely by Jessie Catahoula’s Fluffy,” Christina Goby said. “In trial flights, those two have been hands-down the dominant competitors. “Finn Kiick, Alison Diesel and Marina DeLow also have strong fish in the running. It’ll most likely come down to which fish gets the most carbs and the most sleep the night before the races.”
Trainers were secretive about their methods.
“I can’t talk about diet or training regimes, but I can say they’re driven by some pretty serious analytics,” Marina DeLow said. “It’s a new sport, so everybody’s kind of feeling their way to see what works best. There’ll be a lot of adjustments after this event, based on what methods prove most effective. My guess is there’ll a big shift toward plankton-based programs.”
Event organizers have also suggested attire for spectators.
“We’re encouraging everyone to wear white, as well as their most-fanciful sun hats,” Doris Blenny said. “There will also be beverage skiffs providing rum juleps to spectators in boats.”
Island authorities cautioned about potential wagers placed on the races.
“As ever, gambling of any sort is illegal in the Tiperon Islands,” Island Police Constable Rafe Marquette said. “I’ll be on the lookout for any bookmaking or wager-related activities during these races, and will not hesitate to make arrests if I notice anything fishy going on.”
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The Blacktip Times 