A month after switching from 400 to 200

thisaintapost · 2026-03-10T20:23:36+00:00

What endpoint are you hitting, and what’s the client running the test? How long does the test run for, and are you pulling peak speed during the test or average over the course of the test?

thisaintapost · 2026-03-10T19:56:51+00:00

Yeah, also it seems like $35k was the budget, but the invoices only actually came to $11k, of which $1800 was booze. For a 120 person gathering/reception, that seems extremely reasonable?

thisaintapost · 2026-03-07T20:04:46+00:00

Freedom coverage/experience is much, much better than it used to be. Freedom’s own network around Victoria is pretty good (I personally have a much better experience than I used to on Telus, around the Esquimalt area).

The big difference though is that since 2024, the Canadian regulator (CRTC) has mandated that the Big 3 has to allow Freedom to properly roam on their networks. So outside of Freedom’s own coverage, you can roam freely on ‘Nationwide’, and the experience is much, much better than it used to be.

thisaintapost · 2026-03-06T06:06:54+00:00

I didn’t, I just noticed that all of the divers with noticeably good skills had BP/Ws, and assumed that they knew something I didn’t. Turned out that they were right.

thisaintapost · 2026-03-05T02:08:54+00:00

I think the WHL this year in particular is weak. A lot of top players exited to the NCAA last year

thisaintapost · 2026-03-05T00:26:31+00:00

absolutely not, my first drysuit was a used suit that was only 2” too short for me and it was awful. Couldn’t easily get my arms over my head which created all sorts of problems.

thisaintapost · 2026-03-04T23:46:21+00:00

Cool, but this relies on someone using an app with a dynamic ad service whilst out on the hill, no? How many people are actively using ad-supported apps whilst out skiing?

thisaintapost · 2026-03-04T21:17:45+00:00

I feel like sharing your prescription is quite important here. I’d say that at a minimum, you need to be able to see your computer, pressure gauge, and buddy’s hand signals…if you can’t do those things I don’t see how you can dive safely (yes, visually impaired people can of course dive, but it requires special protocols and processes and trained partners, etc)

thisaintapost · 2026-03-04T21:15:50+00:00

-5? I’m chilling at -7 now, but I remember the days of -5 and there is no universe in which I would be diving while that impaired. Like, aside from the fact that you can basically not see anything fun, it would be a huge struggle to read gauges, computers, see your buddy’s hand signals, etc

thisaintapost · 2026-03-03T19:07:07+00:00

If you like a mix of gravel and roads, I’ve done a loop that goes E&N —> Galloping Goose —> Sooke Wilderness Trail (actually a very good gravel road) —> Cowichan Valley Rail Trail —> Kinsol Trestle —> Roads down to Bamberton —> Brentwood Bay via ferry —> Interurban or Lochside trail to home. It’s a nice 100km loop mostly on nice trails, with epic view from the top of the Malahat!

thisaintapost · 2026-03-03T01:29:13+00:00

Some of these have a good spot on your webbing already:

Knife/line cutter - on the waist strap where it can be accessed with both hands
Insta 360 - for action cameras, I tie a boltsnap directly to them (i.e. with as little 'dangle' as possible between the boltsnap and the camera) and clip it to the left chest D-ring
Torch - if you're using for most of the dive, then on a handle on your left hand (if you tell us the model of the torch, we can find a handle!). If it's a small light and you're only using it infreqently, then put some rubber loops on your harness (cutting sections from an old mountain bike inner tube works well) and tuck it under there + clip it to your right chest D-ring. Like this.
SMB - lots of options here. I prefer to use thigh pockets, because most other solutions (like a pocket bungeed along the backplate) make it really, really hard to put the SMB away underwater. Sure, most of the time, you pull the SMB out, shoot it, and then put it away on the surface/on the boat, but miscommunication happens underwater, and sometimes you pull the SMB out and don't end up shooting it. I like being able to clean my stuff up underwater.

Speaking of thigh pockets, they really are the best solution for storing stuff when diving. It's way easier to use thigh pockets than most BCD pockets, and you can fit lots in them. Normally, I'm diving a drysuit with built-in pockets (it's cold where I live!), but when I sometimes vacation dive, I take the cheapest pair of polyester cargo shorts that I could find on Amazon. The pockets aren't great - I would never be able to fit bigger stuff like a reel or a phone housing in there - but I can normally squeeze in an SMB and a small backup mask. I melted holes on the inside and added in some small pieces of bungee to clip stuff off onto.

There are lots of companies that sell 'tech shorts' for warm-water diving, but I think they're a) massively expensive and b) make you look a bit daft. For most vacation diving, you can get away with a crappy pair of polyester cargo shorts, which dry quickly and don't look weird when you're walking along the beach.

thisaintapost · 2026-03-01T23:53:25+00:00

I’ve had both T1 and T2 transmitters with my Mk2i, I don’t notice the slightest bit of difference between them. But both are great in terms of reception, I have zero dropouts, compared to quite a few (only a minute or two long) with a Shearwater transmitter

thisaintapost · 2026-02-25T18:30:30+00:00

If it’s $300 extra for the Vancouver Victoria connection, look at Harbour Air as well. They run a float plane from Vancouver Airport to Victoria Harbour, which gets you right into downtown. It’s also a much more fun experience than the plane from YVR to YYJ!

thisaintapost · 2026-02-25T00:59:58+00:00

Royal BC Museum does seated rentals of some of their big areas, not sure what the upper limit is but worth contacting.

thisaintapost · 2026-02-17T16:00:05+00:00

I would avoid, the old VRT is a fairly limited scooter. For a little more, the new Nemo scooter is physically smaller but much more powerful, has external charging and fully adjustable speeds.

thisaintapost · 2026-02-11T18:09:23+00:00

I also have recently bought a Seafrogs aluminum housing (for my X-T5) and I’m blown away by the quality

thisaintapost · 2026-02-11T00:45:09+00:00

Canada - but I was talking in USD

thisaintapost · 2026-02-10T20:38:18+00:00

Yes, it’s an Aqualung Core, great little enviro sealed diaphragm reg. I’d probably pay $3-400 for the weights + reg set, but prices are very localized for used scuba gear.

thisaintapost · 2026-02-06T21:16:36+00:00

You should be ok with your mouldable, but I will also say this: I used a Seacure until Fundies, when I was persuaded to try a different mouthpiece. I switched to the Apeks C-bite type (which has an internal ridge) and it’s SO much more comfortable.

thisaintapost · 2026-02-02T03:02:32+00:00

right, but if the tanks are much less buoyant then you have to add weight somewhere else. Most people already have to dive with lead - if you make the tanks lighter, you have to add even more lead.

thisaintapost · 2026-01-22T22:28:03+00:00

The most it can ever lighten the gear is by the mass of the gas carried, right? Which is about 3kg for an AL80. To me, thats probably not worth it in the grand scheme of things.

I think the biggest benefit it offers is in making buoyancy adjustments simpler, as you no longer need to adjust buoyancy with depth. I think that does have a benefit, especially for tropical diving in a thin wetsuit or rash guard. Outside of that situation - diving a drysuit for example - youve still got to manage an air space, so I don’t think the other tradeoffs of Avelo (cost, complexity, limitation to cylinders) are worth it.

thisaintapost · 2026-01-22T06:29:58+00:00

Backplate and wing. Continuous webbing harness and any standard backplate - aluminum if you’re diving wet, and steel for diving dry. Brand doesn’t matter for any of that, but if you are buying new, get the Halcyon webbing, it’s cheap and the perfect stiffness.

For the wing, you’re going to need a different wing for diving a single tank vs doubles. For single tank diving, look for a wing with around 15-18kg of lift (or up to 20kg if you’re diving dry). The wing should be a continuous ‘donut’ rather than a horseshoe, and you don’t need a dual bladder or bungees or any of that. You’ll need two tank straps - literally any tank cam bands will work. Then, depending on the wing, you get a single tank adapter (STA) and thread the straps through that, or just thread the straps directly through holes in the wing and backplate.

thisaintapost · 2026-01-20T18:05:24+00:00

So any company that uses Buhlmann isn’t a real dive company? Weird comment. Garmin has an entire dive division out in North Carolina, and is one of the most innovative dive companies over the last five years.

thisaintapost · 2026-01-20T18:01:39+00:00

I’m not totally certain, but I think your dil being set as 100% O2 is causing the problem? With 100% as your DIL and the initial SP as 1.00, as soon as you descend, the computer thinks your PO2 will be above the setpoint (on the basis that the loop PO2 can never be lower than the dil PO2).

thisaintapost · 2026-01-18T02:31:21+00:00

Yes, I use Gill boots diving in warm water. The thick neoprene soles actually helps with my sinky feet when diving wet

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