Cayman 2004 -
Freediving World Record Event
Day 16 - 100m constant ballast ... check (Czech)
Today is like no other. Anticipation of a 100m constant ballast dive hangs in the air after Martin has taken two days off in a row getting ready. The training's been a long process for Martin and me as we've now been on Cayman a little over two weeks.
Today Doc is taking the day off to rest and catch up on some business back home, although he tells us he's just reading a book :>) The busy mind of a successful CEO very rarely strays off the business path. He's been so gracious in helping us and mentoring us on other issues.
Martin prepares for his dive with the usual routine of facial immersion, two free immersions, negative pressure dives, in other words the usual assortment of preparatory dives. Mandy starts into the water and soon finds that her ear is a little sore equalizing and decides to forgo today's attempt. It's a good move on her part.
We're ready to roll. Soon Martin is sinking out of sight by zero plus 28 seconds. The winds today are out of the west and are blowing us towards the wall. During Martin's facial immersion Danny hooks onto the counterbalance rig to tow us into deeper water so there'll be no chance of the boat drifting onto the wall. I'm not only concerned about the athletes, there's also several thousands of dollars secured below the plate in the form of video recording equipment. This plays a vital role in capturing the athlete's bottom turn.
The tag-grab and turn is our next focused element of training. It's one thing to achieve the depth, it's another to perform it correctly by conforming to a set of specific rules and regulations and under the scrutiny of officiating AIDA judges. We've been examining our turns to ensure that we haven't 'double pulled', an automatic disqualification, and that the video leaves no room for doubt with the judges and with the AIDA officials back in Europe. We are actively trying to work with the judges, not against them.
Soon I hear Mandy calling out "One minute fifty" since Martin left the surface. Now I finish taking my last breath and am on the way trying to avoid bumping the line. Martin has many things to concentrate on and a zig-zagging line from me fooling with it isn't going to be one of them. At 25m I hover in anticipation and in what feels like an eternity, I start to make him out.
Clearly he's working hard as his kick has widened to move the fin(s) and soon he reaches my waving fin. Over the past weeks I've said a little "hello" by waving my fin side to side as it comes into their view. Soon we're face to face and Martin's eyes clearly tell the story. They are transfixed slightly upward watching the line unfold as he ascends. He's clearly in control. But one thing is strange, each time he inhales the air from his mask his face registers a different expression.
We break the surface and Martin finishes off with three hook and three recovery breaths, removes his mask, checks the gauges and lets out a belch like he's just downed a keg of beer in one chug. "I kept getting water up my nose and down my throat when I inhaled the air from my mask". I guess my question about his strange expressions is answered!
Smiles and cheers all around from our team as he's the first to break one of the freediving world's most coveted milestones: 100m constant ballast in a total time of 3:28 (1:28 down and 2:00 up). This is a small celebration compared to the one to come when he will break it again in front of the AIDA Judges. Game day (record day) is a completely different story when compared to a training day. Training with your friends is far different than game day with the added time pressure, media and spectator scrutiny. The number of safety and video divers quadruples. Then there's the general 'circus' atmosphere along with the anticipation, expectation, bustle, noise and distraction of it all. The complexity of the event becomes ENORMOUS!
Eventually we're back at Sunset House for some late afternoon lunch and are reviewing the bottom footage. I see Martin sinking from about 25m above and then he hits the plate hands first, looks up, grabs the tag and is gone. It's great video. But now I worry that he could actually break the acrylic plate as he's hitting it so hard on his sink. Martin jokes with us how this dive felt better and easier than his previous 96m constant and reflects that it was almost the identical time as his 93m dive in Cyprus last June.
Courtney shows up and we're all in amazement at his skill and artistry with a camera. This man is truly a professional behind the lens and we're stunned by what are supposed to be 'practice shots' to get ready for the big attempts. We look forward to putting these on our website to share with everyone.
Tomorrow we'll see Martin with a day off to rest his legs. Actually he swam part way to shore to help release the lactic acid build-up after the dive. Mandy will attempt 74m and Doc will start on his targets after his practice work with a warm-up dive to 31m / 102'.
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