A small point about snorkel floats
Hello.
A free diver from Okinawa.Like thisis.
This time, I would like to talk about the recommended way to use a snorkel float.
It's a very small point, but it will definitely be useful in case of emergency.💁♂️
What made me decide to use a snorkel float?
A snorkel is one of the basic pieces of equipment for free diving, skin diving, snorkeling, etc. Have you ever lost it in the ocean? I have.😅It is not uncommon to hear stories of fellow divers losing their dives.
If you always keep your snorkel attached to the mask belt, this is unlikely to happen.
During free diving training, you may use and remove your snorkel many times. When you are not using it, you put it inside or on top of the float, but when the wind is strong, it may be blown away, or it may fall off the float and sink into the sea while you are preparing various things such as changing equipment or drinking water, and when you come back, it may be gone.
I started using snorkel floats because they allow the snorkel to float on the water surface, making it easy to retrieve if I let my guard down and the snorkel falls out of my hand.
This alone is not enough to ensure safety
However, using a snorkel float does not mean you will never lose your snorkel. There are some things you need to be careful of.
If you are not careful and your snorkel falls off your hands, it may continue to float on the surface of the water and be carried away by the current or wind. If you forget about your snorkel for a long time, when you need it again, you will not know how far it has drifted away.😢
Or, even if they are not far away, when the waves are rough the floating snorkeler will be hidden by the waves, making it difficult, although not impossible, to find them.
Therefore, I believe that making the floating snorkel as easy to find is an important aspect of using a snorkel float.
How to use a commonly seen snorkel float
This pattern is attached about halfway around the snorkel, as shown in this photo.
Of course, this method of attachment is not bad. However, from the viewpoint of making it easier to find a floating snorkel, I do not recommend it.🙅♂️
In this case, the snorkel floats sideways as you can see. If you float like this, it may get hidden by the waves.
You can see a snorkel floating sideways in the center of the picture, but it's more than half hidden. There weren't many waves at the time, but the water surface was constantly choppy.
Recommended ways to use snorkel floats
When attached to the tip of the snorkel,It stands on the water surface and floats, as shown in this photo.
This pattern was taken at the same time on the same day.You can see that it is much easier to find compared to when it is floating sideways.It's much easier to see in the water than in this photo.👍
However, if there are waves, the object may still be obscured by them, but it will be easier to find since more of it will be visible than when viewed sideways.
How was it?
It may seem like a trivial point, but if you imagine a scene where you suddenly realize you don't have a snorkel, it would be useful, right?😉
UMMY snorkel floatIt has a large logo and white text, so it's easy to find.💁♂️