Aging SCUBA Instructors Gather For Reunion at McP's Irish Pub

Dive Masters Rode The Wave
of SCUBA Popularity in 1970's

     CORONADO - A handful of aging SCUBA instructors and dive masters gathered on the outdoor patio of McP’s Irish Pub last week for a reunion. The group was made up of retired Sheriffs, marketing specialists, writers and model train collectors. The one thing they all had in common was teaching SCUBA diving in the 1970s.

     The group, which operated out of New England Divers Supply – a large dive shop on Rosecrans at the foot of Point Loma – taught thousands of people the art of SCUBA. Their lessons filled pools throughout San Diego County, and in particular Coronado. The store opened in 1967 and served the community for two decades as the center of dive activity in San Diego.

     The phenomenon of SCUBA diving popularity, free diving and chasing fish with nothing but a breath of air and a three-pronged sling captured the imagination of people everywhere in the 1970s. Sean Connery’s James Bond films helped fuel interest in the sport, as did the hit TV series “Sea Hunt,” and Jacques Cousteau’s much-publicized search for the elusive manatee.

     At the reunion a number of surprise guests dropped by – people who had shared ocean adventures with this hearty group over the years. No one was disappointed, as the stories were as vivid (if not more so) today than when these undersea escapades actually took place. Memories of Stan the Underwater Man circulated around the table between corned beef sandwiches and McP’s cold beer. Stan was a former ferryboat worker, turned bridge toll taker, who then cleaned boat bottoms – hence the nickname.

     There was talk of Bob “Deep Divin’ Diecks (who once held the world free dive record and claimed smoking four packs of cigarettes a day helped him to train for that feat). Clive, the mercenary came up in a couple of stories. Some thought he died breathing too much abalone dust, but others had heard he was killed on sniper duty in a warring Third World country. Stories were plentiful of Bill Dexter and his dog, “OB Ranger.” Dexter was the flamboyant head of NED for many years.

     New England Divers Supply taught and certified more divers in the pools of Coronado than any other part of the county. Many of the instructors, dive masters and adventurers came from Coronado – people like George Green, Mitch Bucklew, Mal Hetzer, Alan Hansen, Charlie Free and Joe Ditler.

     George Green stopped attended the reunion. He is a former Navy SEAL (UDT 12 and 13) with two tours of Vietnam. In civilian life, Green did wonders to advance the underwater photography boon with his invention of “Green Things” – underwater camera housings and lenses. He was a frequent customer at NED.

     Mitch Bucklew first came to Coronado in 1961 with the US Navy. He went into UDT in 1965 where he served for 12 years that included five tours of Vietnam. “Buck” later worked on construction modifications for the original Coronado Chart House, eventually becoming one of their early waiters. He shared stories of diving the old submarine off the radar tower at Coronado Heights (on the Silver Strand), long a “secret” lobster diving spot for Coronado divers.

     Adding to the waterfront legends list was Al Hansen, who started free diving at the age of six off the Hotel del Coronado rocks. To this day, at age 67, Hansen continues to free dive and reap an ocean harvest of lobster, halibut and tuna. He’s dived the seven seas and shot everything from 180-pound tuna to 300-pound grouper. He frequently dives to depths of 100 feet on one breath while chasing large fish to feed his family and “family” of neighbors.

     Among those attending were dive instructors and NED workers such as Lou Slocum, Bob Carlson, Ray Miller, Steve Evans and Rick Swanson. Mike Thornhill and Thom “Pago Pago” Page couldn’t attend due to health reasons. The group continues to hold yearly reunions, and each year the stories grow as large as the divers grow old.

     McP’s Irish Pub owner, Greg McPartlin, paid the group a surprise visit. He had served in the SEAL Team with Mitch Bucklew and knew many of the divers in attendance. McPartlin never shows up at a party without a few good stories of his own, which is what makes McP’s such a lively restaurant/bar, and provides just right ambience for divers, warriors and the odd celebrity.