The Great Dive Podcast

The boys get a Happy New Years gift in the mail and then take some time to discuss some Old School Diving Facts. Bridging the gap between the last 25 years, James and Brando have a fun discussion about DCI, Safety Stops, Tables and Dive Computers and a look at the gender issue in diving over the last few decades.

Are you an ice diver? A nice diver? Do you know the difference?? Have you ever written a letter to the editor? Are you a member of the NRA?? Your buddies Jamesy and Brando explore some of Mid-West America’s best Ice Diving locations for a nice diver… or an ice diver…. You decide.

Your favorite dive buddies from TGDP try to get to the bottom of the first dive up at the North Pole. Turns out, it’s 14,000 FSW. With the help of a couple other Hosers, a couple brewskies, and a lot of flannel, eh… we figured out it was the Canadians back in 1974, eh. Please enjoy this very Canadian 12 Days of Christmas with a couple of our teenage idols as well as some good old regular Canadian...

If this is the first episode you’ve heard from us, we’re sorry about the graphic nature of this week’s podcast. It is not politically correct and sometimes it is downright inappropriate. But, so is nature sometimes and that is what we are talking about. Eventually we get to some great health benefits of diving, you can skip the first 15 minutes if you’re easily offended. Listener discretion is adv...

LMAO! You need to listen to this episode ASAP. Jamesy and Brando get into a real SNAFU talking about BPW's. Are you still diving a BCD? BCV? BCJ?? LOL! SMH:)

Do you feel like you may be "that guy" on the dive who just doesn't seem to be able to see all those cool critters that the other divers are seeing? If so, this episode is for you!! (it's for you if you aren't that guy too!!) So have a listen as we discuss the how's and why's of diving with those incredible underwater creatures!

Ho! Ho! Ho! Thanksgiving is over and Black Friday is upon us and as with tradition here at TGDP, we have a review of The Scuba Holiday Wishlist giving our thumbs up (abort the dive on that gift!) or thumbs down (Heck Yeah!! I'll dive it!!)just in time for your loved ones to have for you for your holiday!

More Zenny Diving talk from your favorite dive podcasting duo. James & Brando discuss a book called "Zen Guitar" by Philip Toshio Sudo and how it's approach to guitar playing and mastery can be extrapolated to diving and mastery of diving.

Is it for the C-card, the recognition and admiration, the ego or do we dive to make us more human? To return us to the elements and to learn something about ourselves. Your buddies Jamesy and Brando know what it is. The it, the zone, that missing human element that takes technique beyond technology.

It’s 7 something in the morning and your favorite dive buddies are deep into a philosophical conversation that most people rarely enjoy this early in the day. Except maybe for that small group of old guys at the coffee shop at 6 in the morning. The problems of the world, we discuss them. How to make the world a better place, we figure it out. https://www.tdisdi.com/the-world-would-be-a-better-plac...

James and Brando dive into a classic Great Lakes ghost story. This story about the Erie Board of Trade is chockablock full of skullduggery. So hold on to your halyards and mizzen up your main stays, this tale will have you warming up your wetsuits.

The boys take on a touchy subject this week that most shops and instructors are hesitant to discuss. It involves the F word! Yes, the one you’re thinking of and also others like Fathers and Fatality and Float and another one that is not very PC today. But it’s important, so of course they make jokes about it to lighten the mood.

What do you get when you mix 2 cups of Jamesy, 2 parts Brando, 3 tablespoons of Skin Diver Magazine and a dash of Near Death Experiences? BAM! You get, Disaster Lasagna!

The boys get back to some serious talk about helping you prepare to be a better diver. They found a Smart Guide to Safe Diving, put out by the Divers Alert Network. Listen in as they discuss how to avoid 7 God DAN Mistakes that divers make.

Hey all You Sexy Thangs! It's getting a bit chilly out there and may be time for some Hot Chocolate!! If you're interested in underwater photography (or not) we are sure you'll dig this week's episode of TGDP! Have a listen... have a chuckle or two... learn a bit about underwater photography as the boys from TGDP examine an article from the 90's from one of the greats...Marty Snyderman!

Just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale, a tale of fateful diver. That started from an Open Water course, then he wanted to dive a mighty ship. The boys back-roll into the summer of 2001 and find an instructor who wrote an article in Scuba Diving Magazine that sounds like it could have come right from the lips of your little buddies. Was that a Gilligan’s Island reference? Yes, it was. Enjoy th...

In Part 2 of Menduno’s interview with Cronin, we get into who he was when he first started diving. The frustration with the industry, a vision of the future and how to put scuba on every home computer. Join us as we learn more about this tough son of a bitch. No, this honest son of a bitch, John Cronin.

In a time where scuba was a bunch of sporting goods shops that started selling a new toy, The Aqualung, John Cronin had a vision of making it mainstream. The overbearing military approach to education was a roadblock in getting the masses into scuba classes and what would happen next was going to be the largest scuba diving education company, PADI. In 1995 aquaCORPS magazine published a cover stor...

The boys get back to the early 90's in the scuba diving industry. A time where breathing Nitrox was pure evil. The Devil's Gas was banned by many and the scuba giant PADI did not embrace it. Ol' Jamesy tries to stay on course, Brando gets fired up... it's everything you've come to love about TGDP.

The Sandusky is a wooden sailing brig that wrecked in the Straits of Mackinac in 1856. Still lying on the bottom mostly intact with beautiful bowsprit and figurehead, it is a magical sight for divers. But diving a wreck like this is so much more than just blowing bubbles and taking pictures. James and Brando talk about the real essence of being in the moment underwater. The Zen of diving on this s...

In a world where anyone can sue anyone else for virtually anything, is it a good idea to hold a Scuba Instructor responsible for a diving accident based on the "image" that instructor may have created for him/herself based on both his on duty and off duty behavior? Should Jamesy portray Jethro or Ellie May in the upcoming remake of "The Scuba Hillbillies"? Will Brando ever figure out what the heck...

The Deeper we go underwater the greater the risk begins to climb. Unlike other sports where pushing the limits is encouraged, with diving we are given a list of limits to begin with. James and Brando discuss whether diving should be considered a sport or an art. What is the difference? No two dives are the same, but what if you are twins?? https://www.scubadiving.com/why-is-130-feet-depth-limit-fo...

In the fall of 1995, Rodale’s Scuba Diving Magazine published the most controversial article ever to hit the scuba industry, Cayman Cowboys. This article chronicled the secret life of your favorite dive masters living in island paradise. Well, your buddies, James and Brando dug it up and had a blast rereading it. So, stop checking your 401k report, who cares about your IRA, join us in our Big Esca...

James and Brando take on the very touchy subject of “Sexism and Scuba Diving” just as the world celebrates International Women’s Dive Day. The boys found an article written by Jill Heinerth for Diver Magazine, “Sexism, Alive and Well in Scuba Diving!” The Hot Pink cover was hard to miss! With a little bit of the TGDP humor you’ve come to enjoy and a few “middle-schooler” jokes they eventually disc...

The boys ramble on in an "off the cuff" conversation while rustling through Brando's library of ancient dive mags!! The more things change, the more they stay the same! A look into the future from 20+ years ago, before there was an Air McDoodle there was an Air Whopper and an Air Quarter Pounder! Diving Personal Ads looking for friendship, fortune, and love!! All part of this week's episode of The...