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Day 7: June 5th, 2004

Written by Rudi Castineyra

Welcome back all, and yes, yet again, we have a new world record!!! Today David reached the remarkable depth of 63 meters/207 feet in a dive time of 2:05 minutes, improving the existing mark of 61 meters by a full 2 meters. It was a great dive, and he was really good and fresh at the surface. Well done Dave, what a dive, 63 meters with nothing but your arms and legs, and heart!

After yesterday’s dive, in which he did so good, I was certain that the best course of action would be to do back to back deep dives, on the “crest” of a training peak, before taking a rest break. Also, it would be better for him, from the psychological point of view not to have too much time to “prepare” for the world record, just move from one test to the next one, basically repeating the same performance. Let’s keep in mind that, according to our training methodology and philosophy, the difference between yesterday’s dive and today was not “8 MORE meters” but instead we dissect the different stages of the dive. We knew that, based on his results from yesterday, the extra 8 meters at a descent speed of 0.99 meters/second would mean just an extra 8 seconds of free fall, which is easy. And, as for the ascent, it would mean another 8 seconds at a speed of 0.93 meters/sec and only 2.3 more strokes, considering his ER of 3.48 meters/stroke. So, all in all, it would mean an extra 17 seconds underwater, and 2 more strokes, which was something he was certain he could have added to the effort of yesterday’s dive. With that in mind, we set out today to get this dive done, but nevertheless, it doesn’t make things easier or was he feeling more relaxed. After all, you are still going out there to attempt a world record, and this is a REALLY unique and complex one.

(Click on the photo below to watch the video of the dive)

I am even more proud at his speed, which in this category, is a direct result of good technique and nothing else really. If we keep in mind that David did his last record of 51 meters in 2:15 min, still not a bad time, then he managed to shave 10 seconds of the time while adding 12 meters to it. Even for monofin or bi-fin divers, doing 60 meters in 2:00 minutes is a tremendous result. And if you look at the video, you will see that David was not all rushing or firing up his engines, he was composed and calm underwater. I have always believed that this category favors those who really have strong athletic backgrounds, specially top level swimmers who have spent years polishing their breastroke, and to a lesser extent butterfly and freestyle strokes. If you look at Topi Lintukangas, a top-10 triathlon competitor for many years, or Stig Severinsen, whom I’m told was also one of Sweden’s best swimmers, it is easy to see how they can excel in this category, or why they have been so few divers to ever set records in it. So, although David is definitely a very gifted freediver, he has no true swimming background whatsoever, so it is really impressive to see him post this dive time, which equals those of world-class swimmers. David’s statistics were 58 seconds for the descent, for a speed of 1.07 meter/sec, 1 second at the bottom, an ascent of 1:06 min, at a speed of 0.96 meters/sec. He reached the break point after 7 strokes on the descent, and climbed to the surface in 17 strokes, for an ER of 3.73 meters/stroke, an improvement from his rate yesterday. Anyway, we are obviously very pleased to have had 2 world records already, Yasemin’s on only her 3rd dive and David’s on his 4th dive, after having been out of the water for many months both of them. Way to go kids!!! Tomorrow we will try and improve Yasemin’s record, while David will rest, so we will keep you posted. Thanks for joining us once again!

David’s Comments:

Today was a really satisfying dive. But before I go on I want to thank all the guys working the record as they tend to be forgotten. Arthur, Luca, Burak, Okan, Mutlu, Dimitri, you guys are more appreciated than you realize. This whole thing would not be possible without each and everyone of you. So THANK YOU GUYS!

Well, if you were wondering if I was nervous, yes I was. It was 8 months ago that I attempted this same record depth and suffered a ruptured eardrum and a blackout after returning to the surface. Something like this lingering in the back of your mind before attempting the same thing again has a way of causing those butterflies in the stomach, to say the least. Also, this is only my 4th dive on this trip and I was also out of the water for 6 months before. I was sitting on the platform and my breathing was on target and I was feeling strong. I had no doubt that I possessed the apnea capacity and the strength to complete this dive. But what worried me the most was equalizing. I made sure to pack as much air as I could, about 9 packs compared to my usual 6-7 and slid off the platform. My mind was so consumed with equalizing properly I had totally forgotten all I was working on in technique. All in my mind was “equalize, equalize, equalize” Because of this mind consumption I did 7 strokes instead of my usually 6. By the time I go to my break point I was freefalling nicely. Actually too nice. A little too fast which worked against the equalizing I was so consumed with doing properly. Even with a descent speed of 1.07m/s I still was able to equalize fine till about 1m away from the tag. The tag was right there so I just stretched a little further and picked it form the bottom plate. Spending not more than a second at the bottom I started the ascent. When I got to the surface I did my post dive recovery breathing which lasted about 5 seconds then handed the tag to the judge. It was still not verified as a world record until the bottom judge surfaced and conveyed to the surface judge that I had in fact reached the bottom. I had not seen Rudi so happy on any of my dives before. I feel really satisfied knowing that I managed to do this record in only 4 dives and without being in the water for 6 months. I think this is what makes me feel the best. Really an awesome experience……BUT, it’s not over yet ?

Yasemin’s Comments:

I’m very impressed about David’s dive. I know how it feels to attempt a depth after having blacked out on that depth and it’s a very tough feeling to deal with. The only way to overcome this problem is by doing lots and lots of deep practice dives, but because of the obligations with his full time job in Tulsa, and not having easy time finding the financing of deep dives (due to their safety requirements) he didn’t get to do that. He had to train very hard for months out of the water, with Rudi making sure he has everything he needs for this 63 meter dive, enough strength, technique, apnea capacity. But although all this can make you absolutely ready for such a demanding dive, without actually doing lots of deep practice dives, such a dive puts a huge mental load on you that you have to deal with. Even I felt very nervous before David’s dive, not because I wasn’t sure he could do it, but because feeling what I thought he’s going through mentally. But he dealt with everything very good very professionally and handled the dive so well, being able to put all his strength fully, I was very glad and very impressed. Right on David! It’s so satisfying to watch such an accomplishment and I know there is more to come!