Dear Dolphin Divers of Sacramento,

Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United States. The three-day weekend it falls on is called Labor Day Weekend.

Fun Facts About Labor Day

• The first U.S. Labor Day was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, planned by the Central Labor Union.  The Labor Day parade of about 10,000 workers took unpaid leave and marched from City Hall past Union Square uptown to 42nd street and ended in Wendel’s Elm Park at 92nd Street and 9th Avenue for a concert, speeches, and a picnic.
• Oregon was the first to declare Labor Day an official holiday in 1887.
• Labor Day is considered the ‘unofficial NFL season kickoff.’ 99.44 percent of the time, the NFL plays its first official season game the Thursday after Labor Day.
• The first Waffle house opened on Labor Day. In 1955, in Avondale Estates, GA, the very first Waffle House opened its doors to the public.
• What are we celebrating? The contributions and achievements of the 155 million men and women who are in the U.S. workforce.
• On June 28, 1894, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories.

Please note, our next Dolphin Club General Meeting will be held in-person on Wednesday,

September 20^th, 2023, from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm at Round Table Pizza (9500 Greenback Lane in Folsom), and via Zoom for those who would prefer to attend remotely. Marilyn will send information on the day of the meeting. You will not want to miss this meeting…everyone is welcome to join!

Hope to see you in the water and bubbles up!!

Owen Autry,

President

QUOTES FROM THE SEA

“Take me to the ocean. Let me sail the open sea. To breathe the warm and salty air and dream of things to be.” – Erica Billups

“I’m pretty sure my birthstone is a sea shell.” – Unknown

“Advice from the Ocean: Be shore of yourself. Come out of your shell. Take time to coast. Avoid pier pressure. Sea life’s beauty. Don’t get so tide down on work that you miss out on life’s beautiful waves.” – Unknown

Safety Officer’s Message
By: Brad Freelove

Alternate Air Source

Your scuba regulator has two main components. A first stage and a second stage. The first
stage lets air out of the tank and, depending upon the make and model of your regulator,
reduces the pressure to somewhere between 125 and 150 psi above ambient pressure. From
there, the second stage, the piece that you put in your mouth, delivers air to you at a pressure
slightly above ambient pressure. Years ago, safety concerns led divers to hook up another
second state to the first stage. This additional second stage is often called an alternate air
source. If something goes wrong with your primary second stage, you can grab your alternate
air source and continue to breathe. If your partner has an out-of-air emergency, you can give
them a source of air and safely ascend to the surface.
There are two types of alternate air sources that are commonly used. The most common is a
standard second stage attached to a hose that is yellow colored and about 36 inches long. This
“safe second” is usually attached to the diver in a location the is easy to spot and even easier to
get loose and give to the needy diver. There are many ways to attach the safe second to the
diver. Your local dive shop will have a bunch of suggestions on the proper location to secure a
safe second to your equipment. Also, they will have all kinds of information on brands and
models of safe seconds. Having your primary and secondary the same brand and model is a
good idea.

Another form of safe second is the use of a BCD power inflator that also doubles as a regulator.
Scuba Pro Air 2, Aqualung Airsource, Mares Air Control, and Atomics Aquatics SS1 are a few of
the available BCD power inflators/safe second combo units available for divers.

Whichever way you go, remember to practice using your alternate air source. You can do this in
a pool if you want, but during an actual dive would be better. Also, when you use your safe
second during an actual emergency, your first stage is doing double the work. Two people are
breathing through one first stage and probably breathing very hard. Now is not the time to goof
around underwater. Both divers should have one goal – to get to the surface as safely as
possible.

COLUMBUS DAY CAMPING
Oct 2023

An FYI for anyone wondering about the annual Underwater Easter Egg Hunt: The Crazy Horse restaurant, where we held our awards dinner, has gone out of business. I did not find another venue that can accommodate our group of 60+ for a rate that makes sense. Most places charge separately for room rental and food, making them cost prohibitive.

Ken Takata is not hosting the Memorial Weekend camp/dive trip this year because of the historically rough water during most previous events. Instead
I have reserved the meadow campsites at Albion River Campground for Columbus Day weekend, October 6 – 9. Albion River Campground is right on the Albion River where it empties into the ocean. Activities can include kayaking on the river (rentals available) and/or ocean, Diving, visiting Mendocino or Fort Bragg (the ice cream at “Cowlicks” in Fort Bragg is one of the stops I NEVER miss)  or just hanging out around the campfire enjoying each others company. We will also make a couple of motorboat and kayak trips up the river into the redwoods.

If you want to join us contact the campground to make your reservation. You can choose any of our reserved sites from D1 to D25, or one off the rental trailers, B22 – B24,. There are also a few full hookup sites, A2 – A15 with sewer connections, close to the group area. (I am in site A2 because I will be there for 7 nights) When you call for a camping reservation be sure to ask for one of the sites in “D” section, that I reserved for our group. This will be a joint event with the Seahorses dive club. If you camp in a tent bring a heater and extension cord: every site has water and electricity.

Please let me know when you make a reservation so I can keep track of how many, and which, spaces we take. Any spaces not reserved by us will revert back to the Albion CG for renting to non-members.

Jack Millard 916.955.8017
https://albionrivercampground.com/
(707) 937-0606

DDS Membership Presentation Help

Dolphin Divers of Sacramento (DDS) have been giving short ten minute presentations to Open Water Classes at Dolphin SCUBA. The purpose of these presentations is to inform newly certified divers about the DDS and to encourage them to join our club. Over the years, this effort has been highly successful in recruiting new members. Only a few volunteer DDS members have been giving these presentations and we would like to encourage more of our members to volunteer for this worthwhile effort.

If you’d like to give it a try, please sign on for a time and date on the Google Sheet titled “2023 DDS PRESENTATION SIGN-UP” The sheet can be accessed by clicking on this link:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/14dfhsb-RXnr8dPRX7XR9SB4TTpOKuUT32leTKSF4Ngs/edit#gid=0

Please be sure to read the “Read Me Before Presentation” and the “Suggested Script” pages of the Google Sheet.

If you have any questions, please contact
Ken Takata: kennethktakata@gmail.com
Brad Freelove: bradlinda@frontiernet.net
Dave Whiteside: dwhite9581@hotmail.com

Thank You for Helping, Ken Takata, Vice President

FOR SALE OR TRADE

WE HAD OUR FIRST “FOR SALE OR TRADE” SALE!!!!
Now that we know it works, please send in your for sale or trade items to Editor@dolphindivers.org

SeaLife SportDiver Underwater Smartphone Housing Review
By: Brad Freelove

Want to try out an easy way to take photos and videos underwater? Try the SeaLife
Smartphone Housing! As the name suggests, this housing allows you to take your iPhone or Android
underwater and take vids and photos. The housing is easy to maintain and use. You download some
software from SeaLife to your cell phone and take advantage of the camera in your phone. The
housing uses Bluetooth technology to allow you to operate your camera underwater with great ease.

• 

• 

During a recent trip to Cuba, Jack Millard, Owen Autry, Tom Mischley, and myself spent 24 hours
underwater diving with sharks, groupers, rays, crocodiles, barracuda, tarpon, and a host of
other sea creatures.

A few minutes of instruction from Michele Johnson allowed Tom, Owen, and
myself to start taking some very nice photos and videos during our first dive. Jack was using the
SeaLife DC 2000 Camera and Housing and took advantage of the marine life to get some
really nice images.

There were at least six other users of the SeaLife Smartphone Housing on the trip. Everyone was
eager to help us out on using the housing. You do have to maintain the orings (2) in the housing
and use a desiccant pack to keep the housing from fogging up but that is common with most
underwater camera systems. While there were two professional camera rigs on board and a really nice
GoPro setup, SeaLife systems were everywhere.

The SeaLife Smartphone Housing is a game changer for divers. The SeaLife kit is a complete system
that allows you to take advantage of your smartphone camera. The better the
smartphone camera you have, the better photos and videos you will produce. The kit comes with a red
filter to add some color to your photos and videos. Or you can use some of the
SeaLife lights that are available. Some photographers pass on using the red filter and video lights
and use software to add color to their photos. There are many YouTube videos available on how to take advantage the SeaLife system and Dolphin Scuba offers some classes on getting
the best performance from the housing.

• 

• 

• 

• 

MALPELO ISLAND
Colombia Dive Adventures

Member News

Summer Birthdays:
Marylin Campbell (June)
Tyler Hopper (June)
Jeffery Johnson (June)
Keiko Lewis (June)
Chelsae Moltrum (June)
Michael Melvin (June)
Tom Oja (June)
Jordan Oja (June)
Emily Oja (June)
Jamie Sepulveda (June)
Kim Taylor (June)
Cheryl Anderson (July)
John Arnold (July)
Brooke Hudson (July)
Jason Moore (July)
Summer Smith (July)
Michael Soldwisch (July)
Gina Darin (August)
Lindley Ellisor (August)
Linda Freelove (August)
Kathy Hillblom (August)
Stephen Gibson (August)
Dennis King (August)
Cayle Little (August)
Colt Little (August)
Lalaynia Little (August)
James Murdoch (August)
Eric Nesvick (August)
Renee Viehmann (August)
Nicholas Byram (September)
Alexandra Forsythe (September)
Joe Lawson (September)
Holly Little (September)
Paul Niess (September)
Dianna Noyes (September)
Janiece Parker (September)
Tanith Smith (September)
Steve Gilmore (September)
David Smith (September)
Ken Takata (September)

Summer New Members:
Keiko Lewis
Nicolaus Grady
Paul Niess
Lorne Sachs
Alex Chernak
Alexandra Forsythe
Josh Daniels
Jennifer Gaffey
Jeffery Johnson

Are you interested in becoming a Dolphin Divers of Sacramento member?
CLICK HERE TO JOIN

Great American River Clean Up

Great American River Clean Up

For over 30 years, DDS members have been participating in the Great American River Clean Up (GARCU).
On September 23, 2023, divers and boat handlers will meet at the Lower Sunrise parking on the
American River to float and dive their way to River Bend Park. Along the way, we will pull out of the
water all the cans, plastic, bottles AND wallets, sunglasses, GoPro cameras, and other valuables that we
can find. GARCU is sponsored by the American River Parkway Foundation. There will be several
hundred volunteers walking along the banks of the river collecting trash. We will be in the water doing
the same. Boats are donated by the American River Raft Rental company so no cost to our members.
Along with needing divers, we need boat handlers. We will have about 10 large rafts to dive from, and
volunteers are needed to keep the boats going in the correct direction. As we get closer to the
September date, I will send out more information. If you have any interest in joining us, keep
September 23 open. We start around 9 am and should be done by 2 pm.
Got a question about this event? bradlinda@frontiernet.net

MONTHLY MEETING INFO

CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS

FOR THE FULL SCHEDULE PLEASE CLICK HERE

Sept. 1-4, 2023	Spearfishing Contest	Jack Millard	(916) 955-8017 jbmillard@aol.com	Camping, Diving & Spearfishing event, Prizes for event winners
Sept 6, 2023	DDS Board at David Whiteside	Owen Autry	916-730-8282 dwhite95815@hotmail.com
Sept. 9, 2023	Inland Lobster Feed	Jack Millard	jbmillard@aol.com (916) 955-9105	Combined Seahorses and Dolphin Divers	New as of 04/10/2023	Application due on June 12. Corinne and Brad to handle.
Sept 23, 2023	Great American River Cleanup, American River Parkway Event	Brad Freelove	(916) 879-3853 bradlinda@frontiernet.com	DDS diving, snorkeling, and general river cleanup in partnership with the American River Parkway Foundation
Sept. 20, 2023	DDS General Meeting	Owen Autry	(916) 955-9105 ocautry@gmail.com	Gear setup and equipment preferance by 3 very experienced divers
October 4, 2023	DDS Board Meeting at Brad Freelove	Owen Autry	bradlinda@frontiernet.net 916-879-3853
October 7, 8, 9, 2023	Albion River, Camping/Diving/Fishing	Jack Millard	(916) 955-8017 jbmillard@aol.com	Combined Dolphin Divers and Seahorses Event
October 18, 2023	DDS General Meeting	Owen Autry		John Steenkolk giant Manta’s & Hammerheads in Secorro Islands
October 22, 2023	Pumpkin Carving Contest	Brad Freelove	(916) 879-3853 bradlinda@frontiernet.com	Underwater Pumpkin Carving Contest. Prizes awarded
Nov. 1, 2023	DDS Board	Owen Autry	(916) 955-9105 ocautry@gmail.com
Nov. 15, 2023	DDS General Meeting	Owen Autry	(916) 955-9105 ocautry@gmail.com	Presenter to be determined
Nov. 24, 2023	Swap meet	Brad Freelove	(916) 879-3853 bradlinda@frontiernet.com
Dec. 6, 2023	DDS Board	Owen Autry	(916) 955-9105 ocautry@gmail.com
Dec. 9, 2023	Christmas Party	Event Leader Needed
Dec. 13, 2023	DDS Gen Meeting	NO MEETING	NO MEETING	General Meeting Not Held in December

EDITOR’S NOTE
By: Joe Morgan

I AM LOOKING FOR MEMBERS TO SEND IN PICTURES OF DIVING, DIVING VACATIONS ETC.

• Trip Reviews: Let us know where you have been diving, what operator you used, the hotel you stayed at and how was the diving there. Let us know if the operator was safe and fun. Let us know if the hotel was a good deal, give us as much detail as possible and hopefully more Dolphin Divers will venture there in the future.
  
• Recipes: I was told that in the past Dolphin Divers gave each other SEAFOOD recipes that they loved so that everyone could enjoy the bounty of the sea, I hope to continue that each month with at least one good recipe.
  
• Dive and Camping yard-sale items you wish to include in the newsletter.
  
• Dive Activities: Please let me know if there are any dive-related activities you would like included in the newsletter.
  
• Pictures from your last dive. Please make sure to let me know how you would like the picture credited in the newsletter. -example – Picture by John Member, of a Silky Shark, at Roca Partida Mexico.

PLEASE MAIL ALL SUBMISSIONS TO

Editor@dolphindivers.org

DOLPHIN DIVERS OF SACRAMENTO
BOARD OF DIRECTORS

President: Owen Autry
Vice President: Ken Takata
Treasurer: Marlyn Sepulveda
Secretary: Elizabeth Marchiondo
Safety Officer: Brad Freelove
Activity Chair: David Whiteside
Webmaster: Renee Viehmann
Promotions Chair: Tracy Clarke
Newsletter Editor: Joe Morgan
Historian: Jack Millard
Member at Large: Tom Mischley
Member at Large: Lalanyia Little
Member at Large: Ed Hurff
Member at Large: Sally Walters
Member at Large: Douglas Hillblom
Alternate Member at Large: Corinne Fuerst