"Claire Walter eloquently provides answers to hundreds of questions about what it takes to venture into the waters of the world. Half of all birds who fly are female, as are half of the fish, dolphins, and whales who swim. Why not half of the humans who dive? Both men and women will find Walter's book entertaining, instructive, provocative, and a sure source of inspiration to plunge into the lake, river, or ocean of their dreams."--Dr. Sylvia Earle, Explorer-in-Residence, National Geographic Society

"Claire Walter's "Scuba Diving: A Woman's Guide makes this wonderful sport accessible to anyone who has looked at the mounds of dive equipment and said, 'No way I can do that.' While preparing women to enjoy the basic scuba experience, this book will also stimulate its readers to explore the far-flung reaches of this planet's last great wilderness."--Maurine Shimlock, Secret Sea Visions

Discover a New World

If you've ever wondered what it would be like to glide effortlessly underwater, side by side with amazing sea creatures, then turn your dreams into reality and join the tens of thousands of women of all ages who have discovered the joys of scuba diving. Claire Walter demystifies scuba diving, while filling you in on everything you need to know to get started in this most magical of recreational activities. She provides insights and answers to common concerns women have regarding scuba diving, and walks you through the entire process, from learning the basics to becoming certified. You'll find out how to

Check the fit and condition of rental gear to ensure a successful first dive; Buy the right kind of gear and estimate how much you can expect to spend; Find a great instructorand learn to dive safely; Choose dream vacation diving locations, and find other women to dive with; Learn the safe and environmentally friendly ways to view corals, dolphins, and other sea life; Become certified to dive anywhere in the world; Extend your training and learn to teach others or make a career from your skills

Plus, you'll find personal accounts by women who share their fascinating underwater adventures, and tell you how they began to scuba, overcame their fears, met challenges, improved their skills, and made diving an irreplaceable part of their lives.

This guide offers information on the best places to witness the underwater wonders of the Virgin Islands, covering the region's dive sites. Each regional chapter also includes a directory which provides essential information on resorts and useful addresses and telephone numbers.

Dive instructor Greg Dombowsky introduces the first of a series in practical, well-illustrated, regional guides to the best dive sites on the B.C. coast and Puget Sound. In his debut book, Greg offers guidance to over 50 dives in surrounding Victoria, B.C. These dives offer high visibility waters, with outstanding sealife. This is the most functional guide available for these waters. Diver's Guide, Vancouver Island South is fully illustrated with Greg's own computer-generated maps, based on his personal exploration of these underwater environments. Includes excellent photos taken on these dives. To further appreciate the calibre of this book, visit Greg's website at www.dive.bc.ca.

Springboard and Platform Diving is the authoritative guide to the sport. Thoroughly researched and painstaking compiled, it covers it all, including coaching, competition, and conditioning. Internationally renowned coach Jeff Huber has worked with divers at all levels-from novice to Olympian-for more than four decades. Now that lifetime of knowledge, analysis, and expertise is distilled into Springboard and Platform Diving. Inside you will find comprehensive coverage of every phase of the dive: * Forward approach * Backward press * Takeoff and connections * Positions, spotting, and come-out * Line-up and entry Along with detailed instruction, developmental drills, and coaching tips, you'll discover in-depth coverage on teaching, using skill progressions, and creating annual training plans for each diver. The definitive guide for coaches and divers, Springboard and Platform Diving has garnered the endorsement of USA Diving. Make it your go-to resource for diving excellence.

Sometimes the best things in life happen when you dare to get out of your depth. Abby lives and works in the heart of the Lake District. She splits her time between bringing up her daughter, working in the Plum Pie Bakery - and dreaming of the time before her husband, Ben, left. Lori is on holiday from the States, hoping to find her way to the lake that she's looked at for years in a picture on her wall back home. Rebecca is contemplating taking the plunge too. Despite her immaculate appearance Rebecca is keeping quiet about a childhood trauma which has left her scared of the water. Clarissa is the founder of The Wildwater Women. An all-year-round open-water swimming veteran, and with a fearsome manner, she knows the lakes like no one else and her boundless energy defies her years. Four women, all from very different lives, all with reason to step into the water and wash away their past. But will the friendship they build be enough to keep them afloat when they each must face their fears?

A new re-issue of the cult swimming classic, a beautiful read filled with detailed description and powerful prose. WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY AMY LIPTROT 'A luminously romantic history of swimming' Guardian Haunts of the Black Masseur is a dazzling introduction to the great swimming heroes, from Byron leaping into the surf at Shelley's funeral to Hart Crane diving to his death in the Bay of Mexico. Bursting with anecdotes, Charles Sprawson leads us into a watery world populated by lithe demi-gods - a world that has obsessed humans from the ancient Greeks and Romans, to Yeats, Woolf, Fitzgerald and Hockney. Original, enticing and dripping with references to literature, film, art and Olympic history, this cult swimming classic pays sparkling tribute to water and the cultural meanings we attach to it. 'This splendid and wholly original book is as zestful as a plunge in champagne' Iris Murdoch

How do you invent an Olympic sport? For Katharine Whitney Curtis, it took the right idea, great talent, some good timing, and the determination to make it happen. The originator of synchronized swimming as we know it today, she even wrote the first book on the subject in 1936. But there was much more to her life and career. After the start of World War II, Curtis became a recreational director in the American Red Cross and followed the troops wherever the course of war took them, serving under Generals Patton and Eisenhower, before becoming a director of travel for the U.S. Army in Europe during the Cold War. Unbound by fear or the narrow expectations of society, this was a woman who lived ahead of her time, making things happen along the way. As her first biography, this book generously features Curtis's own words, selected from more than 2,000 pages of letters, and contextualized by her surviving friends and family members.

Longlisted for Autobiography of the Year, Sports Book Awards 2022 The Instant Sunday Times Bestseller A deeply personal and inspiring memoir from one of the most celebrated and influential names in British sport. Tom Daley captured the hearts of the nation with his unforgettable medal-winning performance in the London 2012 Olympics. At this year's Games in Tokyo, he triumphed to win gold and became the most decorated British diver of all time. In this deeply personal book, Tom explores the experiences that have shaped him and the qualities to which he owes his contentment and success; from the resilience he developed competing at world-class level, to the courage he discovered while reclaiming the narrative around his sexuality, and the perspective that family life has brought him. Candid and perceptive, Coming Up for Air offers a unique insight into the life and mindset of one our greatest and most-loved athletes.

The Definitive Guide to Scuba Diving and Snorkeling in The Grand Cayman Islands "The collection of Reef Smart Guides is a great resource for the touring diver. Incredible detailed 3D maps and up to date editorial content based on information from local dive experts, these cutting edge guidebooks are a must have for all scuba divers before they travel." Clearly Cayman Dive Resorts #1 New Release in Scuba Travel Guides, Caving & Spelunking, and Swimming For Lonely Planet fans comes a unique and essential scuba, snorkel, and surf travel guide. A great Caribbean travel book. The ultimate guide for beach and marine activities in the Grand Cayman Islands. The detailed descriptions and illustrations of beaches, coral reefs, shipwrecks, and other dive spots are ideal for divers, snorkelers and surfers. Make the most of your time on the Island and in the water. Detailed descriptions and map art. Reef Smart catalogues the beaches, surf spots, and dive and snorkel sites in the Cayman Islands. With the help of Reef Smart's unique 3D-mapping technology, learn all you need to know about the regions' top dive and snorkel sites. These maps provide useful information such as depths, currents, waves, suggested routes, potential hazards, unique structures, and species information. Don't go diving without it. This indispensable resource will help you plan and execute dives without a hitch. Pack this guidebook with the rest of your scuba gear. Guidebook provides: The best locations for diving, snorkeling, and surfing, and how to access them Detailed 3D maps, graphics, and information to help you plan your time in and out of the water Species guide to help you identify and understand the marine creatures in the Cayman Islands and its surrounding areas And much more! A unique and comprehensive SCUBA diving book. Also look for Reef Smart Guides Florida: Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, and Deerfield Beach; Reef Smart Guides Barbados; and the best-selling Reef Smart Guides Bonaire.

Live a more creative, content and fulfilled life by reconnecting with nature. Brothers Jack, Calum and Robbie have been swimming together their whole lives, and have never lost the sense of wonder, excitement and relief that getting in open water brings. In this book, we learn about their swimming feats, from tackling the 145km River Eden to setting the world record for swimming in the Arctic. They take us through their preparation for these expeditions, including sourcing wild spots in the heart of sprawling cities in which to train. They document the challenges they encounter and the successes often achieved in the most unexpected ways. And with everything they've learned, they give tips for those wanting to take on their own aquatic foray, whether a beginner or a seasoned swimmer. This book will show people of all ages how they too can take part in open water swimming and reconnect with the natural world around them. Their experience will embolden readers to escape their status quo and build confidence and contentment by challenging themselves to try something new and reconsider their relationship with nature and the wild. At its core, this book will provide advice, reassurance and inspiration for anyone in search of something more joyful, peaceful and, ultimately, meaningful.

Roger Deakin set out in 1996 to swim through the British Isles. The result a uniquely personal view of an island race and a people with a deep affinity for water. From the sea, from rock pools, from rivers and streams, tarns, lakes, lochs, ponds, lidos, swimming pools and spas, from fens, dykes, moats, aqueducts, waterfalls, flooded quarries, even canals, Deakin gains a fascinating perspective on modern Britain. Detained by water bailiffs in Winchester, intercepted in the Fowey estuary by coastguards, mistaken for a suicude on Camber sands, confronting the Corryvreckan whirlpool in the Hebrides, he discovers just how much of an outsider the native swimmer is to his landlocked, fully-dressed fellow citizens. Encompassing cultural history, autobiography, travel writing and atural history, Waterlog isa personal journey, a bold assertion of the native swimmer's right to roam, and an unforgettable celebration of the magic of water.

'An important, inspiring book by someone that has encouraged million of people to experience the wonders and friendships of Britain's rivers, lakes and seas' ROBERT MACFARLANE 'A treasured guide for anyone who wants to venture into rivers, estuaries, lakes and seas for a dip, a moonlit swim or a great adventure. I loved this book!' LYNNE COX Capturing the freewheeling spirit, community and wisdom that defines The Outdoor Swimming Society movement, founder Kate Rew reveals everything you need to know to explore rivers, lakes, seas and estuaries. Sharing tales of her own inspiring swims, Kate explores the rich and varied life of outdoor swimmers, from the physiology of cold to planning lazy hazy downstream swims. An exquisite guide for beginners and enthusiasts alike, The Outdoor Swimmers' Handbook will lead you to the shore and become your trusted companion for the adventures ahead.

In 1857 Everard Digby, an extrovert Cambridge scholar, published the first scientific treatise on swimming - and one of the first on any modern sport. Six months later he was expelled from his college, and died in obscurity as a country parson. Nicholas Orme rehabilitates Digby as a great pioneer of the history of sport.

The book opens with a detailed history of swimming in Britain from the Romans to the sixteenth century, which is followed by an account of Digby's life and work and its impact on swimming down to the eighteenth century.

The book also includes the first modern edition of Digby's treatise, in the English version of 1595, with the 43 original illustrations.

One Breath is a gripping and powerful exploration of the strange and fascinating sport of freediving, and of the tragic, untimely death of America's greatest freediver Competitive freediving-a sport built on diving as deep as possible on a single breath-tests the limits of human ability in the most hostile environment on earth. The unique and eclectic breed of individuals who freedive at the highest level regularly dive hundreds of feet below the ocean's surface, reaching such depths that their organs compress, light disappears, and one mistake could kill them. Even among freedivers, few have ever gone as deep as Nicholas Mevoli. A handsome young American with an unmatched talent for the sport, Nick was among freediving's brightest stars. He was also an extraordinary individual, one who rebelled against the vapid and commoditized society around him by relentlessly questing for something more meaningful and authentic, whatever the risks. So when Nick Mevoli arrived at Vertical Blue in 2013, the world's premier freediving competition, he was widely expected to challenge records and continue his meteoric rise to stardom. Instead, before the end of that fateful competition Nick Mevoli had died, a victim of the sport that had made him a star, and the very future of free diving was called into question. With unparalleled access and masterfully crafted prose, One Breath tells his unforgettable story, and of the sport which shaped and ultimately destroyed him.

Be confident in the pool or open water with Swimming: Steps to Success. This proven program will help you master these techniques: * Freestyle * Backstroke * Breaststroke * Butterfly * Starts and Turns * Open Water * Survival Swimming Step-by-step instruction and color photos show basic arm and leg movements along with proper body position for each skill. Drills reinforce the instruction and help you practice each stroke. There's even a scoring system for gauging success and determining readiness to advance to new skills. Whether you're instructing, learning to swim, or looking to improve your aquatic skills, Swimming: Steps to Success will let you develop at your own pace. Part of the highly successful Steps to Success Sport Series with more than 2.5 million copies sold, it's your guide to in-water excellence.

Immersion is about the extreme sport of marathon swimming. Drawing on extensive (auto)ethnographic data, Immersion explores the embodied and social processes of becoming a marathon swimmer and investigates how social belonging is produced and policed. Using marathon swimming as a lens, this foundation provides the basis for an exploration of what constitutes the 'good' body in contemporary neoliberal society across a range of sites including charitable swimming, fatness, gender and health. The book argues that the self-representations of marathon swimming are at odds with its lived realities, and that this reflects the entrenched and limited discursive resources available for thinking about the sporting body in the wider social and cultural context. The book is aimed primarily at readers at undergraduate level and upwards with an interest in sociology, the sociology of the body, the sociology of sport, gender and the sociology of health and illness. -- .

Ian Thorpe's achievements in the water are nothing short of phenomenal. He has won a record-holding 11 World Championship titles and ten Commonwealth Games gold medals. He has broken 22 world records and won five gold, three silver and one bronze Olympic medals. Having been under the spotlight since he was a young teenager, he retired from competitive swimming in 2006, but after five years he mounted a comeback for London 2012, and intense media attention followed. Thorpe is one of the world's most famous sportsmen, but it is the way he has managed his success and his commitment to helping others that has earned him respect and admiration internationally. This is a man who has had highs and lows away from the pool, who has led an extraordinary life of an elite athlete that most of us will never know, and who had the courage to come back and stake his claim for the ultimate goal once more.

The beautiful locales, exotic plant and sea life, and relaxing environs of dive locations are even more peaceful when you are armed with the expertise and skill to stay safe in any situation.

With self-rescues, buddy rescues, open-water resuscitation, and towing techniques, "Scuba Diving Safety" will become your most valuable diving companion. Covering a full range of underwater environments, as well as dangerous marine life, entanglements, and equipment failures, this vital resource is an essential reference for every underwater enthusiast.

Do not rely on someone else--or chance--to keep you safe. Let "Scuba Diving Safety" help you prepare for the unexpected and provide the confidence to enjoy your underwater adventures to the fullest.

Chris and Chrissy Rouse, an experienced father-and-son scuba diving team, hoped to achieve widespread recognition for their outstanding but controversial diving skills. Obsessed and ambitious, they sought to solve the secrets of a mysterious, undocumented World War II German U-boat that lay under 230 feet of water, only a half-day's mission from New York Harbor. In doing so, they paid the ultimate price in their quest for fame.

Bernie Chowdhury, himself an expert diver and a close friend of the Rouses', explores the thrill-seeking world of deep-sea diving, including its legendary figures, most celebrated triumphs, and gruesome tragedies. By examining the diver's psychology through the complex father-and-son dynamic, Chowdhury illuminates the extreme sport diver's push toward -- and sometimes beyond -- the limits of human endurance.