AS part of Haslemere Sub Aqua Club’s 45th anniversary celebrations, the club is inviting people to have a go at scuba diving early next month. Back in 1971, a small group of folk got together to form a scuba diving club, and since then, many hundreds of people from the town have joined the club and learned the skills needed to venture under the sea.

The club is inviting all old HSAC members to get in touch regarding details of a planned summer party for current and previous members – an opportunity to reminisce and share tales of diving over the past four and a half decades.

Bryony Chapman, one of the instructors, all of whom volunteer their time and knowledge for free, wrote a profile of the club for The Herald.

The original club members set about kitting the club out with a compressor to fill the diving cylinders, and a small black dive boat – affectionately known as the ‘Donut’ due to its tendency to go round in circles regardless of where it was aimed!

When the Haslemere pool was at Lion Green, members helped to build the Scout hut behind the pool where our diving lectures were given, and we built a boatshed by the car park to house our various boats – which went through various incarnations following the Donut, through Gordon, Tornado, Floppy and on to RIBs (Rigid Inflatable Boats), and these suffered variously from theft, arson, and simply wearing out.”

Today, the club has two RIBs, the larger being kept moored up on the south coast over the coming 45th anniversary summer, readily accessible for getting out on dives around Sussex and the Isle of Wight whenever the weather allows.

The smaller boat will still be based in the boatshed in Haslemere, ready for action locally or further afield.

Brought together with a common passion for diving, the club has spawned many lasting friendships, and has seen several romances and a few marriages between its members. Social events have always played a key part of the club’s activities, where non-diving family and friends can join members at summer barbecues, bike rides, Christmas dinners, quiz evenings, clay pigeon shoots, skittles and much more.

Over the years, HSAC has run club trips to numerous spectacular diving destinations including Indonesia, South Africa, Red Sea, Caribbean and Mediterranean. However, the essence of the club is enjoying being out at sea and under the sea on the beautiful seabed habitats to be found around the UK. Club members have always enjoyed developing boat-handling skills, driving to and from dive sites, and on days organised out on the club boats while the sea is still just a little chilly for diving.

The club has put its swimming and diving stamina to the test in various sponsored events over the years, raising money for such charities as the RNLI, MacMillan and Marine Conservation Society; it has been involved in archaeological and Seasearch marine life surveys; and recently featured in a video for a local band playing ukuleles at the bottom of the pool.

As a member of the Sub Aqua Association, HSAC follows the SAA diver training programme, leading to qualifications which are recognised world-wide.

To find out more about the next series of pool training sessions, kicking off with the trial dives on March 3, contact the club: [email protected], or check the website: www.haslemeresubaquaclub.com.