Staff Writer
Wyatt Robb
Mira Costa High School Chemistry teacher Bruce Ekstein is an avid scuba diver. With over 500 hours of logged dive time, Ekstein has become an expert in diving and the aquatic world around him.
Ekstein recalls beginning scuba diving at the age of sixteen. Since then, he has been on countless dive trips to places across the world. He considers scuba diving to be a passion of his.
“Scuba diving is a blast; It’s the freedom to explore, it’s the freedom to see things that people don’t normally get to see,” Ekstein said.
Due to a diver’s reliance on others, strong friendships often form between dive partners. For Ekstein, scuba diving has allowed him to accumulate a core group of friends and diving partners. This group has taken many trips to exotic, and mostly tropical locations.
“It’s unbelieveable the places you go and the people you meet since diving introduces you to so much,” sophomore and certified diver Max Severo said.
Despite the fact that Ekstein has travelled all over the world to dive, his favorite location is in the United States. According to Ekstein, the coast of New England is home to some excellent dive spots; however, Ekstein’s absolute favorite location is in Rhode Island.
“That area is great. It makes you feel like you are diving in Atlantis, especially with the abundance of sea life” Ekstein said.
Divers rely heavily on the support of others when they are subsurface. A dive partner becomes essential especially during emergencies. For example, if one diver runs out of air, he might be forced to breathe from his partner’s tank.
“When you’re down there, everyone is completely reliant on the buddy system” Ekstein said.
Scuba Divers often discover a sense of peace when they are below the surface. The silent beauty of the underwater world is enough to leave some divers in awe. Many claim that the feeling of breathing in water is unmatched by anything they have ever experienced.
“Time feels so much slower underwater; You sort of forget about everything on land,” Severo said.
When explaining the overall experience of diving, Ekstein reflects on the immense differences between being on land and being underwater. He believes that scuba diving is the closest many will ever get to seeing space. Ekstein finds the feeling tough to explain to someone who has never experienced it.
“You have the terrestrial world and you have the aquatic world. Being in the aquatic world allows you to see things that you have never seen before” Ekstein said.
In order to begin doing something as unique as scuba diving, Ekstein believes that you have to be open to new ideas. In his case, taking a risk and trying something new ultimately led to a life-long passion.
“To start doing something like scuba, you’re going to have to try new things” Ekstein said.
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