(In Memoriam) David Purkeypile, PADI Master Instructor

It is with deep sadness for us at Rumblefish Adventure and GoPro Thailand to announce the passing of our good friend and colleague, 'Big Dave.'

What led to his death is mostly hearsay, and I gathered as much info from his girlfriend, his ex-business partner of his new restaurant, and Mike Marchbanks. I found out about Dave's condition from Mike in the morning of the day after...

The story..."Dave went to Phuket International Hospital for severe stomach pain on the 9th September, 2009. After 3-4 hours of waiting for tests and x-rays etc, PIH doctor diagnosed that he has pancreatitis, however, PIH does not have the facility or equipment to treat him. He was directed to Vachira Hospital, after he went into unconsciousness and was unable to confirm his ability to pay for his treatment (eventhough he does have insurance, credit card, cash in the bank etc). His girlfriend finally contacted Mike Marchbanks hours later, and Mike authorized his admittance into the ICU. During that same evening, his liver failed and Dave went into a coma. Blood dialysis was initiated the next morning, however he never regained consciousness."

He passed away at Vachira Hospital, succumbed to acute pancreatitis, which led to failure of his liver and kidneys, on the evening of the 10th September, 2009.

We will always remember Dave for his wicked laughs, hearty smiles, a larger than life personality and generosity to all those in our dive communities of Kata Beach, Phuket and Bakersfield, California.

Here are some of Dave's photos at our Picassa Site.

Stop Whining & Dive Already...

I'm ranting, so be prepare to hear some harsh comments that may offend you...

All I hear lately is how the global economy crisis affecting every part of everyone daily activities. People are shelving their plans, postponing their lives just because apparently all of this current economic problems suddenly thrusted upon us without any warnings. Of course, the way some people carried on with their lifestyles in the last few years had nothing to do with this... NOT!
Don't believe me? I can name a few non-essential junks that many of you spent your good diving money on: Do you really need another iPhone? iPod? "Something" handheld devices supposedly will make your life better & work more effectively?

So, now suddenly even the friendliest of people in the world, you know... us, the scuba divers, also joining in on the "whining wagon." Yep, living in the center of Thailand's diving world, I get to see and hear loads of bitching and whining. We hear divers complaint that, "Diving is too expensive; it cost too much for a dive trip; we need discounts, give us more if you want us to go diving with you... blah blah blah! Geez, want more cheeze with your whines?" But, they had no problem plunking down cold hard cash for another "useless toy" that probably will be replaced with a newer, faster and more expensive model in a couple weeks.

The price of dive trips in Phuket hadn't change since Bill Clinton was the president of the United States. Really! it's still around 2,500 - 3,000 THB for a daytrip, not much has changed in boat diving price since the late 90s and early 2000s. However, Phuket's dive services today are much better than they were a few years ago, and back then, we were already pretty good. Today, Phuket is shuttling divers between their hotels & boats with newer minibuses and better equipped passengers trucks. Most operators have Breakfast & lunch on-board for guests, and even pan-cakes for the boat ride home. Tanks are filled during service interval, super attentive boat staff to care for your every needs, three chambers available to respond to any dive emergency, newer and larger boats etc. I can go on and on with the goods... And Phuket does all of this depsite year after year of challenges with natural disaster, political unrests, fuel costs etc. And I bet not much has changed either in other part of the region, Bali, N. Sulawesi, Borneo, Philippines and more.

So, please get over yourselves and be mindful next time you ask for discounts, or giving up your dive trip because apparently you are trying to save money to buy another "iSomething." When your dive shop or boat operator had to discount, something or someone had to be given up. And, usually it will be the cheerful boat staff, the nice office attendant, that cool Dive Guide who will have to do more and get less... Just because some of you are stingy for a 5-10 bucks discount.

With a little planning, you don't have to miss your dives or spend too much for some great diving. Take advantage of many operators offer, multiple trip discounts can add up your savings. It's more affordable to travel by air today than the past, thanks to Air Asia, Tiger Airways and many others regional airlines in learning how to earn without taking from the travelers. I know this because I use these airlines regularly. Want an example? Here's what a little planning result for my next diving trip, using only Air Asia. and please don't even try to tell me that I don't watch my spending because I'm a Yank. I am Vietnamese by birth, and we as people don't waste money by paying full price for anything if we can help it :-)

• 24th June - 12th July (Flight: AK823 & AK836, Phuket to KL to Phuket, fare 2,383 THB Return)
  
• 24th - 28th June (Flight: KL - Tawau AK5154, fare 87.50 RM one way)
  
• 29th June - 1st July (Flight: Tawau - KK AK6127, fare 50.50 RM one way)
  
• 2nd - 3rd July, (Flight: KK - KL AK5109, fare 84.00 RM one way)
• Prices for flights are inclusive of fees, 15kg baggage allowance, Goinsure Premium and Advance Seat Selection.
• Total: approx. 4,603 THB or 460 RM (135 USD)

The cost of diving is pretty much the same in Semporna and Sabah as in Thailand. Though I highly doubt the boat service will match Phuket standard. However, I am a Scuba diver and a lover of the sea. I care deeply about the dive industry. So, I'm going to dive on published price during this trip and many more this year.

I plan to spend more of any money I save in the diving industry in 2009. Yes, I am cutting down on my eating habits (most expensive in my monthly budget :-) so that I can dive, and support the dive businesses around the region. If you are passionate about the sea, about diving, I challenge you to do the same... Get in the water, it's good for your soul!

Seven Days, 3 countries, 4 Cities... Life on the Road

I've logged quite a bit of "air Km" in the past few days, I'll say a bit too much for an active Course Director, instructor, and lover of scuba diving! But, duty called, so I packed up and go... So here some tidbits of my airport experiences, airline faux pas, and the annoyance of dealing with inept or lack of service by the airline industry.

First up, Tiger Airways served as my transport mode for my trip from Phuket to Singapore. With 2 counters opened, 3 staffs assisting the guests, Tiger won the mark as my favorite no frilled airline in the Indochina area. Reasons? How about efficient check-in process, clean plane, attentive staff, empowered to assist guests without having to defer to their supervisor... I wish though that Tiger would fly to more destination within Thailand, now that Nok air & 1-2-Go are out of business!

The worst service for my trip descended down to Jet Star Asia, winning the "lame-ass award" for the second time within 4 months. To keep it precise, Jet Star canceled all their flights to Phuket from Singapore starting April 2008. With me traveling to Manado, I received an email notification only 2 weeks prior to my travel date with them. I called the customer Service office for Thailand, received "a sorry about that, would you like to change to another destination and pay the different, or receive a refund " comment. Well, home is Phuket, and in need of a flight back from Singapore for me, Jet Star could not book me on another airline. and by the way, they will refund my canceled ticket in 3 months. I had to scrambled while in Singapore to find a flight back to Phuket, and guess who did a wonderful job on this, Tiger Airways.

a week after I have returned to Phuket, Jet Star sent out an apology email and a voucher of 50 SGD (valid until June 30th) to paid for our trouble because they had canceled flights to Phuket.

So, now back to this trip, I flied Jet Star to Ho Chi Minh City after my stop in singapore. During checking in, I was informed that my Vietnam "Visa on Arrival" is not allowed for me to get on the plane (Uh, I'm a Vietnamese, and traveled to Vietnam using this method all the time...). After a few minutes, the counter staff cleared with her supervisor that indeed it is valid (like we didn't know that!). Then came the real kicker, she said the name in my booking does not match with the name in my US passport. Jet Star Booking has my Family name: DO, Given Name: THIEN; my passport showed my Family Name: DO, Given & Middle Name: THIEN XUAN. apparently that's not acceptable since I was suppose to include my middle name in the booking, under the First Name. HUH? If Jet Star wants the middle name included, then why not add a box for middle name? I wonder if they demand the same stupid policy compliance from John Thomas Henry if he only entered John Henry?

However, not all is so bad for this "Kangaroo managed" airline (partly owned by Qantas). My flight from HCM to Nha Trang City (domestic) went without any stupid hitch or more policy compliance. I wonder maybe it's due to the Vietnamese staff of Pacific Airlines, which bought out by Jet Star early this year... Either way, Jet Star Asia, and especially the counter staff at Changi, are lame, rude, and offer crappy service...

My final 2 legs of the trip back to Bangkok then Phuket were on the popular Thai Air Asia. with the recent closing of so local routes by Thai 1-2-Go & Nok Air (partly owned by Thai Air), Air Asia is now the number 1 airline for domestic travel inside Thailand. There's not much to tell about this "local bus style" service airline. It's one of the few success stories of new airlines launched within the last 5 years. However, I wonder why they still holding on the silly boarding policy, of everyone get up and go at the same time when boarding the plane? If they did indeed model themselves after the successful Southwest Airline (US no-frilled carrier who has continue to post profits year after year), why not use the simple practice of assigning a numeric to each passenger checking in, so that when it's boarding time, call passengers with number 1-30 to begin, then 1-60, then 1-90 etc. eliminating the "cattle rush"...

conclusion, flying will be more expensive & annoying as ever, and it will continue. so, if you want a little decency and also save a little bit of cash by using no-frill airlines, here my rank:

1. Tiger Airways: assign seating, 20kg check luggage & generous allowance for sports equipment, new plane, well trained & attentive counter staff at check-in, and efficient both on the ground and in the air... Hoping more destinations will be added to SE Asia!
2. Air Asia: More destinations, relatively cheap, more flights to popular destinations, 15kg allowance for check luggage, and will charge you extra for sports equipment.
3. Jet Star: 20kg allowance, assigned seating. AVOID Them unless you have no other choice...

Have any horror stories about no-frilled airlines? Tell the world about it, as they are getting away with too much now...

THE JOURNEY OF A DIVER MANUAL

Ever wonder when you choose to do your dive course (either the beginner level of Open Water, or the Advance, Specialty or Rescue), why you pay so much money for the manual you use during your training? Well, me too!

As an ambassador for a very large certification organization, I have gone and completed more courses than the casual diver. However, you and I should wonder in this day and age of environmental conscious, reducing carbon foot print, save the rain forest, or cut down CO2 emission etc., why on earth are paper products still being printed, wrapped, packaged, driven, loaded, shipped, unloaded, driven, stocked, re-packed, loaded, shipped, unloaded, driven, stocked, and finally delivered to you, the student diver? Why organizations who preach conservation would continue with this wasteful business practice and environmental unfriendly education model? Is the answer lied somewhere in the name of protecting intellectual property or cold hard cash or just lip service?

Anyway, here's the journey...

A diver manual (any language) is printed somewhere in the US of A. It is then wrapped, packed, driven to a dock and shipped to another continent (let's say Sydney, Australia) where it will be driven (picked up) from a shipping dock to a warehouse, stored, and is ready to be sold. Once it is sold, the diver manual is re-packed, driven (or picked-up) to a dock, shipped to the buyer in let's say another continent (Thailand, Asia). However, its journey is not done. The poor diver manual will be unpacked, fondled & flipped (custom officer duty), re-packed, driven, then un-packed and stored at a warehouse, awaiting you the diver to book the dive course.

You can free this poor diver manual from its wasteful journey by booking a diver course. The diver manual is then get sold to a dive school where you will take the dive course. Then, it gets picked-up, wrapped, written on, driven to the post office (or dive center), and then handed to you, the rightfully owner, the one who set it free... at a cost of 3,477 THB, if it was an open water course manual.

am I the only one that is questioning this method of environmental damaging & cost ineffective business model? As a consumer, shouldn't you ask is it really necessary?

My thought:

1. southeast Asia (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Viet Nam, & Cambodia) is the most traveled destination for tropical holiday makers, and avid divers. Why can it pay for the right to distribute dive manuals? Is the printing machine out here not as good as the US of A?
2. do you think Mc Donald or Starbucks would ship any of their products in the same manner to stores around the globe?
   
3. Have any of these dive organizations heard about digital manual?
4. Since new diver certifications are decreasing annually, wouldn't it be better to put as many of the digital open water manuals into the hands of interested divers FOC?
5. Ah, lost of revenue in book sales if it's free? not to worry! Why not raise the certification card fee to cover the net profit margin?
   
6. Isn't it better to have the rain forest last a little longer by cutting the use of paper product instead of trees, even by just 10%?
7. Imagine the itsy bitsy reduction of carbon dioxide release into the atmosphere... LEAD by Example anyone?
   

Well, it's just my jumble thought... But, all of you environmentally conscious divers must wonder the same, and shouldn't take rules, policies, or blah blah blah as a cope out answer.

Is the life of a tree any less important than a coral? Or a reef any more important than a forest?

TDEX 2008: re-Launching BEUCHAT

TDEX 08

Five months later we're finally here! The Rumble Fish team headed to Bangkok to officially launch our new arm in the group, Gear Square Co. Ltd. With Beuchat as our anchored brand, one of the most experienced, oldest, and durable dive equipment brand in the world. See the photos from the album above for the action took place during the show at our booth. Beuchat Thailand also sponsored the Photo Competition where we awarded the winner with a VR200 Regulator, runner up won a Masterlift Voyager BCD, and the five categories winners walked away with a brand new Beuchat "inspired by the sea" rash guard.