Tag Archives: Staff
We’re Like Family
Put on your seatbelt because we are quickly approaching the end of the year. For some, this time of year seems to fly by while for others it seems to drag on. Three months with 4 holidays and BAM, the cold of winter.
We’ve already passed one holiday, next up, Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a time to be with family and to be thankful. Most people even tend to prefer Thanksgiving over Christmas. Why? Because the stress of buying presents for people is removed. It’s all about spending time with family and celebrating.
Family is an interesting thing. The dictionary definition states this:
- A group of parents and children living together in one household
- All the descendants of a common ancestor.
But we’ve all learned at one point or another that family isn’t always blood. Continue reading
A Great Tribute by Brian Head
Today’s blog post brought to you by Brian Head.
A Tribute
I have been watching as folks have mourned Grady Weston. I knew I wanted to say something but it took me a minute to process and figure out what to say. For those of you that don’t know him you probably won’t understand this post but for those of you that know Grady, you will know… Grady is a tough nut to crack. At one moment tough and unyielding and the next taking the shirt from his back to help someone he barely knew. I first got to know Grady and Deb in 2006 on a dive trip to Belize. This was my first trip and yes there are stories. That trip cemented a friendship that endured. It’s been repeated over and over but it’s not only true but remarkable, “once you were a friend you were family”. I came away from that trip knowing exactly who I wanted to dive with and spend my vacations with. Continue reading
Obituary
Thursday, October 24, 2019, we lost one of our own. A husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother, dive instructor, mentor, friend, and Pete’s food giver. Grady Weston gained his wings, suddenly and unexpectedly. Born October 7, 1955, in Joplin Missouri, Grady went on to accomplish many great things. After graduating from Seneca High School in 1973, he attended Crowder College, before joining the U.S. Army in 1975 stationed at Ft. Leavenworth, KS.
On March 7, 1975, he married Deborah Drake. They had their sons Justin in 1977 and Jared in 1982. Grandchildren Shaye, Drake and Tucker. Great-grandson Kyng.
Grady became an owner of Ed’s Electric in 1983, where he was a Master Electrician. After getting SCUBA certified in 1989, his continuing SCUBA education led the Westons to open Extreme Sports SCUBA in 1997. In 2001 he became an instructor. He has logged well over 3,000 dives and made the trip to Cozumel, Mexico over 50 times plus many dives to multiple other tropical locations. Continue reading
Peanut Butter and Tequila – A Tribute to a Great Man
Halloween is basically a contraction of Hallows’ Evening. It has been written in shorthand as Hallowe’en and then shortened even further to Halloween.
Halloween is a celebration observed in many countries that falls every year on the 31st day of October. What you may not know is that Halloween (aka Allhallowtide, Hallowtide, Allsaintstide, or Hallowmas season) is actually a triduum, or 3-day prayer fasting. It is a Western Christian observance of All Saints’ Eve, All Saints’ Day, and All Souls’ Day which lasts October 31 through November 2. This is a time to remember the dead including martyrs, saints, and all faithful departed Christians.
It is believed that the traditions of Halloween originated from ancient Celtic Harvest Festivals. Others believe that Halloween began solely as a Christian Holiday.
The Christian religious ceremonies of All Hallows’ Eve include attending church services and lighting candles on the graves of the dead. Continue reading
The Dive Instructor
Here we are, it’s back to school time. So today we’re going to talk about instructors… sound like a good idea? Think back to school… some of us will have to think back further than others, obviously, but think back to school. We all had those teachers we absolutely loved and some that we were okay when we were out of those classes. Even the most studious student had teachers they weren’t totally happy with. It’s just life.
Now apply that to SCUBA diving. Each instructor teaches differently. They all teach the same material, but maybe in a different way. Or maybe they focus on one part more than another. While I personally have my Master Diver certification, which means I’ve taken many classes… this summer has been where I have really seen the difference in instructor teachings. Continue reading
Getting an Infant Ready for Mexico
People usually think of a big “no” when it comes to taking an infant on an international flight. But for me? Not at all. So, if you’re looking to be adventurous like me or are just in for an interesting read, this is for you.
Flights/Passports
I obviously started with booking my flight. The kicker that I’m not sure a lot of people are aware of is you have to pick the option that you’re taking a child. Click on the “age” option and click “in” for an infant. This was odd to me since my son is under one year so I had no idea. Continue reading
Why Do I Like Working With Students?
Working with students has been a GREAT joy to me for several reasons.
The first brings me back to Mike. He was the first student I had responsibility for. We were on a live-aboard in the Bahamas. He had some reservations about the first dive in the ocean. When we got in the water, he was doing but he was breathing pretty fast. We had a short dive, but he saw many different fish and corals that he had questions about when we got back on board.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t sure about what he was seeing. We solved the problem on the second dive. We each took a slate with us. As he would point with questions, I filled out the slates with the answers to “what’s that?”
He was thrilled and so was I. We spent the whole week together and enjoyed each others company. He was so thrilled that next both of his daughters came in to sign up for classes. Continue reading
Something I Thought I Would Never Do!
Many times people ask “how did you get started SCUBA diving?” Well, let me tell you, SCUBA Diving was not something I thought I would ever want to do.
How it started, Grady won classes at a charity auction so he and his brother took classes. They became Open Water SCUBA Divers. Several months later, Grady and I took a trip to Florida to Vortex Springs.
Somehow an instructor talked me into trying SCUBA. Well, guess what, I could do it and loved it. I then signed up for Open Water classes. That was 1990. Later that year we took a trip to the Bahamas. I remember putting my face in the water and saying “I can see the bottom.” I’m gone. I figured the bottom was a lot closer than it actually was. Grady said I was down around 80 feet or so before I realized the bottom wasn’t just 15-20 feet down. Continue reading
Extreme Sports SCUBA: Who Are We?
I want to invite you to dive with us this summer. The Weston Family owns Extreme Sports SCUBA and Kayaks. Our crew consists of Deb and Grady with two sons Justin and Jared. Then our family grew with three grandkids Shaye, Drake, and Tucker. And one great-grandchild, Kyng (at 6 months old, he does not pull his weight but keeps Deb occupied while Shaye works).
Still, this all would not be possible without many friends that share the passion for diving. Dan, Doug, and Chuck help with classes. Nicole corrects my spelling when she makes me write a blog post for her. Mark keeps equipment serviced for everyone to dive safely.
We started Extreme Sports of our love for the sport and the need for good training. We are a locally owned shop and offer a complete line of SCUBAPRO Equipment. Our training is through SDI, TDI, ERDI, and FRTI Agencies. Continue reading