It promised to be a huge day. Of 6 dives, 3 were national record attempts and 2 world record attempts. After Megumi had surfaced from an easy 56m CWT dive it was time for Natalia to test her ears for another attempt at the CNF world record.Mike Trousdell, Vertical Blue Safety freediver writes:
There is a lot of expectation when Natalia dives. She has been chasing the record for over 2 years, and she must feel the weight of that expectation heavy in the air that she breathes as she sits cross-legged on the platform before her dive.
Judging by the sonar we were fairly certain that she had been to the plate, but we weren't entirely sure.
Seeing her swimming back to the surface still relaxed and in control smiles started to appear on the faces of the surface crew.
She finished the protocol in 10" or less. Everyone could see she was still holding the tag in her hand, so at that moment we knew it was just a question of waiting out the minute for it to be official.
Meanwhile Natalia was already jubilant. As soon as she had finished the protocol she hooked her feet around the line, pushed her head back and let out a cry of joy that subsided into ecstatic laughter. Everyone was smiling, while Fran Rose, the AIDA judge counted down to the minute. White cards, and finally everyone could celebrate the moment.
It was quite a buzz being there, seeing her so elated to have the record. Some people try to mask their emotions on the surface, but it was apparent that Natalia really appreciated the significance of what she had done and was expressing it openly and naturally.
Frank Pernett made a very easy dive to 45m in FIM, but when he was asked if he had the tag he momentarily dipped his airway beneath the surface to retrieve it, and was disqualified. He has a lot more in him, and will go back to CNF before attempting something deeper in FIM.
Kathryn had a triumphant dive to 48m CNF, returning in 2:08. She is diving in an ultrathin Orca speedsuit, which has no buoyancy but good hydrodynamics, and this seems to be the best configuration for her in the warm water of the Blue Hole.
William Trubridge was the last to dive, and had announced a world record attempt in Free Immersion of 107m. During his descent at about 102m his lanyard carabiner became lodged and actually snapped his lanyard wire next to the crimp. We later discovered that the carabiner carrying the tag had become wedged at this depth. William writes:I continued to the plate and spent several seconds rummaging amongst the carabiners trying to find a tag (measured from the bottom camera it was about 5"). 
When I was satisfied that it wasn't there and that it wasn't just narcosis playing with my vision I turned to start my ascent. On about the second armstroke my arm hit the mass of carabiners and my lanyard still wedged 5m from the plate. I felt something brush my foot, and thinking that it might be the tag I reached out to try and grab it, but I was flailing without reference, and losing time (in hindsight it might have been the wire from my lanyard). The rest of the ascent was uneventful, and narcosis was tolerable. Initially Will was given a yellow card for not having the tag or carabiner but this was later changed to white upon review of the bottom footage. So the most successful day in Vertical Blue so far, with 2 world records and a national record.
With 3 comp days left the event is still far from over, and the Blue Hole is giving us its best conditions: 30-40m visibility, and oily calm waters. Stay tuned for a thrilling finale! 
DAY EIGHT - A long time comingCommentsComment Entry FormNavigation... |
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Vertical Blue is both a Freediving School and Freediving Team directed by Apnea Academy Instructor and double World Record Holder William Trubridge that operates at Deans Blue Hole in the Bahamas
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A huge congratulation goes out to Natalia. I can't help but smile as I read about her dive. That is incredible and I wish her the best for future goals. Will, I can't believe you have the courage to delay your ascent and look for the tag on a WR dive. Congrats, mate!
by DN on 2008-04-08 14:59:09
Hugs and Kisses to you Natalia, I'm so happy for you finally breaking the spell, overcomming. Cannot wait to see a video of you surfacing and celebrating! And William, you're also moving up another level man, great job! Personally I've experienced similar tag on carabiner get stuck problems, and those are really anoying. Hopefully you find a suiteble solution for the remaining dives, now Dave and others are trying to put a few more meters to a already great Vertical Blue Competition. Love, Courage and Water, Kars
by Kars on 2008-04-08 16:33:49
wonderful news! we are really enjoying the whole event (which you cover so well) from our laptops, and get even more excited when world records fall. onward and downward!rnlove from us all
by davidad and lindamama and sambro on 2008-04-09 01:52:53
Hello rnrnMy English is not very good and what I am writing seems crazy. Annex this comment in Spanish, to translate who can understand it better. rnrnrnI congratulate: rnrnAll Vertical Blue team for the excellent organisation of this event. rnrnWillimam Trubridge on his excellent physical condition and the achievement of world records. rnrnFrank, my brother, for his personal commitment and achieve national records. rnrnLeo Muraoka for his performances clean and progressive. rnrnRyuzo Shinomiya for being in the group of the few who have managed more than 100 meters and alright. rnrnDave Mullins as one of the greats of Freediving. rnrnThe trial of AIDA, it is still flawed because it seems to ignore the efforts of the athlete. rnrnWhy only 15 seconds? One minute should be the total time to give the protocol surface and leave the water. If someone does not come out very well, but does not require assistance aid should be valid. The assessment should focus on requiring or not assistance. rnrnThe work of the divers safety must come from observation and not so much of the reaction, as there are behaviors like my brother, putting his head in the water that does not need help, but to analyse the situation and understand why he did. rnrnIn any case, the event has been excellent and a new example to follow. rnrnWe also congratulate all apneistas to give the best of themselves.rnrnrnWith peace and tranquillityrnrnrnKarl.rnrnHola rnrnMi Inglés no es muy bueno y lo que estoy escribiendo parece una locura. Anexo este comentario en español, para quien lo traduzca pueda entenderlo mejor.rnrnrnFelicito a: rnrnTod el equipo de Vertoical Blue por la excelente organización de este evento. rnrnWillimam Trubridge por su excelente condición física y el logro de records mundiales. rnrnFrank, mi hermano, por su compromiso personal y lograr rercords nacionales. rnrnLeo Muraoka por sus desempeño limpios y progresivos. rnrnRyuzo Shinomiya por estar en el grupo de los pocos que han logrado más de 100 metros y bien. rnrnDave Mullins por ser uno de los grandes de la Apnea. rnrnEl juzgamiento de AIDA, todavía es imperfecto, ya que parece ignorar el esfuerzo del deportista. rnrn¿Por qué sólo 15 segundos? Un minuto debe ser el tiempo total para dar el protocolo de superficie y salir del agua. Si alguien no sale muy bien, pero no requiere ayuda debería ser válido. El juzgamiento debe centrarse en si se requiere o no ayuda rnrnEl trabajo de los buceadores de seguridad debe provenir de la observación y no tanto de la reacción, ya que hay comportamientos como el de mi hermano de meter su cabeza en el agua para mirar algo y no porque necesitase ayuda, se requiere analizar la situación y entender por qué lo hizo. rnrnEn cualquier caso, el evento ha sido excelente y un nuevo ejemplo a seguir. rnrnFeliciot a todos los apneistas por dar lo mejor de sí mismos. rnrnrnCon paz y tranquilidad rnrnrnKarl.rn
by Karl Pernett on 2008-04-09 08:54:58
Will ,can you describe your breathing before a dive?Thanks
by Alex on 2008-04-10 06:16:40
It is very simple: about 7 minutes of 'passive breathing' where I try to breath as if I was sleeping, then the last 3 minutes I lengthen and deepen the breaths more, and take 3-4 quick deep breaths before the last inhale.
by will on 2008-04-14 05:37:11
Thanks Will!
by Alex on 2008-04-15 04:53:26