History of Spearfishing and Scuba Diving in Australia: The First 80 Years 1917 to 1997Discover the pioneering days of spearfishing and scuba diving, read about the sports early spearmen and women and the founding fathers of scuba diving in Australia. This book takes you month by month from 1917 to 1997, through the good and bad times, the discoveries, the tragedies, the undersea explorations, as well as instructor organizations, diving achievers, and a number of important events which together comprise the history of underwater diving in Australia. Within the pages of this book is a large section dealing with the Chronicle of Sport Diving, events reported as though they had recently happened, recapturing all the important occurrences that took place during 80 years since Alex Wickham first speared fish in Sydney Harbour. Special features include newspaper reports of early spearfishing, the establishment of the first spearfishing association in 1948 and the appearance of the first home-made scuba regulator. There are thrilling and sometimes tragic stories of shark attacks. A woman skin diver was lost at sea for nearly three days and nights, and survived. There is the story of Australias first and so far only world champion spearfisherman and that of two scuba divers who swam with a white pointer shark for half an hour in open water, yet were not attacked by the beast, the devastating deaths of four scuba divers in a sinkhole at Mt. Gambier, the rapid advance of underwater technology in Australia and much more. This is the only book of its kind dealing with the history of spearfishing and scuba diving in this country. For some, it will bring back old memories, for others a readable and authoritative history of spearfishing and scuba diving in Australia. For every diver, man or woman, it cannot fail to stir emotions as it recaptures exciting and historical events. At the end of the Second World War, a Frenchman, Michel Calluaud brought plans of the Gagnan-Cousteau regulator to Australia and he built one of the first in the world here. Australians could then use this equipment for work and pleasure and it has furthered their knowledge of life in the sea. As we push beyond the boundary of seashores and venture further under water we begin to discover many things that were once beyond our grasp and it is the aqualung that has enabled us to journey beyond the confinements of land. THE HISTORY OF SPEARFISHING AND SCUBA DIVING IN AUSTRALIA not only deals with the scuba diving, but also, as the title suggests, with a wealth of information concerning spearfishing and related underwater activities. |
Contents
9 | |
33 | |
1960 to 1969 | 67 |
1970 to 1979 | 96 |
1980 to 1989 | 144 |
1990 to 1999 | 197 |
2000 to 2007 | 290 |
1917 to 2007 | 368 |
Acknowledgments | 425 |
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Common terms and phrases
Adelaide anchor aqualung Association Australian divers Award Barrier Reef Barry beach became boat bottom breathing Brisbane camera cave diving club coast competition coral Cousteau cylinder decompression deep diving depth dive shops diving equipment diving in Australia diving industry diving magazine early feet film fins gear grey nurse shark instructor Island kilometres looked marine mask Melbourne metres minutes Mount Gambier Nitrox Noel ocean organised oxygen Pacific Divers PADI Perth photographer pioneer police protection Queensland rebreather recreational regulator rock rubber safety scuba diving shark attacks ship skin diving Skindiving snorkel South Australia South Wales spear fishermen spear fishing spear gun sport diving surface swam swimming Sydney tank Taylor Trimix Underwater Explorers Underwater Explorers Club underwater fishing underwater photography Underwater Research Group unit USFA Valerie valve Victoria weekend Western Australia whilst white shark women wreck