{"id":691,"date":"2011-08-15T15:03:36","date_gmt":"2011-08-15T08:03:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/?p=691"},"modified":"2011-08-17T15:59:58","modified_gmt":"2011-08-17T08:59:58","slug":"similans-liveaboard-mv-scuba-cat-carls-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/liveaboards\/similans-liveaboard-mv-scuba-cat-carls-story","title":{"rendered":"Similans Liveaboard MV Scuba Cat – Carl’s story"},"content":{"rendered":"

We first had the opportunity to try out the Scuba Cat fleet when we went out on a Day Cruise on Scuba Fun to Racha Noi back in 2005.\u00a0 My Wife, Amy and myself, Carl McKay were on a larger family vacation and we were all aboard, some certifying, some diving in what was our first visit to Phuket. We feel in love with Phuket, the water, the people.<\/p>\n

\"Scuba<\/a>

"Scuba Fun"<\/p><\/div>\n

We have been back almost every year since.<\/p>\n

……..Second trip to Scuba Cat<\/p>\n

Our family had encouraged us, to move up to the next level of diving:\u00a0 A live-a-board.\u00a0 A what-a-who?\u00a0 Hadn\u2019t done that before and after an explanation of the location at the Similan Islands, the boat and what we could see, we went for it.<\/p>\n

\"Scuba<\/a>

"MV Scuba Cat"<\/p><\/div>\n

The first trip was three diving days.\u00a0 We arrived from Scuba Sport, the transfer boat, to the remote Scuba Cat Boat.\u00a0 We didn\u2019t know what to expect.\u00a0 Surprise was our first expression.\u00a0 Out in the middle of this clear blue water, we find some islands, a few boats and this mobile diving \u201cexperience\u201d \u2013 I think you have to look at Scuba Cat, not only as a dive boat, but a place that you quickly connect with new faces that work on board and other guests who are there for the same reason.\u00a0 It\u2019s like going to a convention and finally everyone has a story to share, because you simply showed up and attended.<\/p>\n

\"Scuba<\/a>

"Ready to Dive"<\/p><\/div>\n

I think what made the experience so nice was how easy the diving became.\u00a0 Setup in the back of what I think is one of the best ever designed platforms, wide open where easily four people can enter at the same time safely.\u00a0 The crews at the back are able to help and quickly learn everyone\u2019s needs and are always looking out for you.\u00a0 They wash your gear off after every dive and clean up for the night too.\u00a0 Easily you can do five dives in a day!<\/p>\n

\"Scuba<\/a>

"........Splash!"<\/p><\/div>\n

The Dive Masters, are comforting, knowledgeable and don\u2019t stray from the manual; safety was always first.\u00a0 The orientations prior to every dive spot on.<\/p>\n

My Wife was in a peculiar position.\u00a0 Unlike me, I was up for every dive.\u00a0 She is safety conscious and honestly does a great check every time.\u00a0 No shortcuts.\u00a0 I was a Husband who wanted to have her on every dive.\u00a0 What I needed to learn was that by doing that put her in a rushed mode and her comfort zone was being tampered with.\u00a0 I just love doing stuff with her.<\/p>\n

\"Scuba<\/a>

"Amy, Andy and Kate"<\/p><\/div>\n

This is where Sarah came in and became Amy\u2019s most trusted Dive Buddy and now a dear friend.\u00a0 At that time, Sarah was on board as a Divemaster, now she\u2019s the Queen of the fleet.<\/p>\n

\"Scuba<\/a>

"Amy"<\/p><\/div>\n

As mentioned earlier, Amy is safety conscious.\u00a0 She likes to drop down when she is ready.\u00a0 Diving shouldn\u2019t be stressful as it is a vacation and why bother if you are worried.<\/p>\n

I would go off with the rest of the family, Amy, still not too many dives in, was guided by Sarah. The perfect combination; Sarah\u2019s experience and understand built confidence in Amy\u2019s skills.\u00a0 In a nutshell, they would usually jump in last and take their time.<\/p>\n

\"Scuba<\/a>

"The Family"<\/p><\/div>\n

Amy has since moved towards Advanced.\u00a0 In addition, while most folks don\u2019t care for night diving, within the first two days Sarah and Amy were down at night!\u00a0 It blew me away.<\/p>\n

Something that weighed heavily in building that trust was when Sarah approached us both to discuss an issue with Amy.\u00a0 She was moving towards Advanced certification with the additional dives she as doing and taking tests on board Scuba Cat.\u00a0 Sarah said that she didn\u2019t want to move Amy towards Advanced, but offered an Adventure certification.\u00a0 Simple put, given Amy\u2019s regularity with diving and her comfort, she didn\u2019t want to put Amy in a situation with another Dive Company somewhere out there and their expectations be a burden to her and put her at risk.\u00a0 It allowed her to learn, move forward with skills and build confidence, but not rushed.<\/p>\n

There are a lot of outfits that push you to move quickly through the certification because it makes revenue, I\u2019ve seen some real bad skills and people call them selves Advanced.\u00a0 Example:\u00a0 No touchie, just lookie\u2026\u00a0 Yes, \u201cAdvanced\u201d folks touching! NO!<\/p>\n

I know that strays from the intent of this entry, but I am trying to show the consciousness of the now owner and integrity over selling another certification.<\/p>\n

Diving is a great sport, opens travel to a whole other world, but like in any other sport you need to know your comfort level.\u00a0 The addition of water isn\u2019t to be scared of, it needs to be respected on every dive.\u00a0 Experience isn\u2019t the only factor, relearning and doing every check is important too.<\/p>\n

Back to the \u201cCat\u201d \u2013 Every Divemaster has been great, the food, amazing and the deck crew always smiling.\u00a0 By the way, a reminder, if someone is taking extra care of you, it\u2019s good to remember them when they are saying bye to you.\u00a0 These folks work hard and are another fail safe in an experience on any boat.<\/p>\n

\"Scuba<\/a>

"Island 8"<\/p><\/div>\n

We have been out to the Similan Islands five times now.\u00a0 Every moment leading up to the transfer boat and the first glimpse of Scuba cat are Exciting.\u00a0 Meeting new people, bumping into old friends, and sharing new stories.\u00a0 The tough part is leaving.\u00a0 A magical experience;\u00a0 There may be other boats, but Scuba Cat was one of the first.\u00a0 We just wish it were closer to get to\u2026\u00a0 I always say \u201cBye for now\u201d then I know I will be coming back to visit and see great people soon too.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We first had the opportunity to try out the Scuba Cat fleet when we went out on a Day Cruise on Scuba Fun to Racha Noi back in 2005.\u00a0 My Wife, Amy and myself, Carl McKay were on a larger family vacation and we were all aboard, some certifying, some diving in what was our […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,203],"tags":[212,211,27,50,733,209,731,208,210,755,36],"class_list":["post-691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-liveaboards","category-similan-islands","tag-dive-buddy","tag-divemaster","tag-liveaboard","tag-padi-advanced","tag-phuket","tag-racha-noi","tag-scuba-cat","tag-scuba-fun","tag-scuba-sport","tag-similan-islands","tag-thailand"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=691"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scubacat.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}