Cannon Ball

[SLIM]

The weekend started out as an awesome one. It started with a CDS mini workshop here in MO in the St. Louis area. It was technically the second since Sheck did one many years ago. The presentations were informative.

Let's get it on with the diving afterwards. Several of us went to Cannon Ball to do some diving and we all had a great time.

The best part was how all them NFL divers came up here to dive since I guess that most of the spots down there were kind of blown out. Out of all that could stay and dive were Bill Rotella, Gene Melton, FW and R Blackburn from down yonder ways. Some of us got 2 dives in that day but some had to get back on the road.

In my group on the first dive I was in the lead, then RB, FW and a local buddy of mine WJH. We decended down to the opening which is a restriction about 20-24 inches high but goes in about 20 feet and then it opens up. We had already decided to take the 2 jumps so that we could get a decent dive time without going deep and racking up some deco. I set the spool and we all continued down the first jump. Followed that around and I then set my stage on the main line when we got back to it. I had used it to enter with so as to save some gas for a second dive today. Set the second spool on the second jump; when we got back to the main line we followed it up to the pit and decended down the pit to 110 feet. As I looked up I saw FW going on down to look at the shelf there instead of the one at 90 feet and we call the dive. On the way back up at the rim of the pit I see RB there and he lets FW get back in the correct exit postion. They all pass over the arches and I noticed RB looking so I went under them. We continued to follow the main line out so as to just enjoy the dive and see some of the formations. As we exited we ended up with no mandatory deco and just did a safety stop at 20 feet for 5 minutes. Vis was about 40 feet in the back areas and around the pit. It was kind of amazing to be exiting and seeing 2 other groups come in. I mean it was as if we were on a slow day at one of the springs in NFL. Kind of cool and it could be close to a record as to how many have been in CB at one time. Who knows.

During the SI I hear FW and RB talking about what a great time they had and how they were so amazed at what we have right here. Then I see Bill Rotella and Gene come out and Bill is going ape over it and just acting like a kid in a candy factory with all the candy he can take home with him along with Gene enjoying also.

Second dive of the day. WJH and I just go in the main line and go around the top of the pit and just make it a slow, relaxing dive. The plan was to do the jumps backwards but our gas supply would not allow us to do the first one which is the second one it but since we were going to do them backwards it would be first. We did do the second one since it is shorter.

Sunday, Doug, MA and I do 1 dive, so that MA could get some photos of the areas he had sketched to do some drawings later and just to help get another perspective on it.

K Bubba this part of the report is for you.
W e j u m p e d d a w a d e r a n s w a m r o n d I n d a c a v e. S a w s o m e k u l s t u f. H a d f u n. Bubba k o m u p d a r I s a b I g ole cat fish dat you need 2 cee. You should see the bobber that it kept puling under. You Know your ole bleach jug lines you hav. Well it could pull it under wid no problmmmm.

Sorry again bubba if I got to typing to fast, see you lader buddy.

SLIM

Dive 1
Sunday Aug 14th
109 feet 58 minutes

Dive 2
Sunday Aug 14th
55 feet 41 minutes

Dive 3
Monday Aug 15th
37 feet 66 minutes

Oh maybe next time we can have more fun if you all stay longer. I was looking for TJ and Starry Skies and a few others to come up but I guess they were scared of the warm 57-85 degree water.

[WJH]

Great report . . . of some really great dives.

Now the pressure is on Michael Angelo http://www.michael-angelo-art.com/index.html to produce a drawing or 2 that do justice to our beautiful MO resource. Considering his other works that I reviewed at the workshop I have no doubt that I will be buying more of his work soon!

Bubba, you MUST come up and dive with us. I nearly dived with you once in NFL, but had to skip that day to let the drugs catch up with a sinus infection I was nursing. Only took 1 day since I had some of SLIM's home brew to activate the antihistamines. Forward this paragraph to SLIM if you need reverse translation.

WJH

[zdiver]

Slim,

Good job teaching them the hill, don't let them know the shortcut. Did you teach them to use that special Cannonball reel? Still use one of them?

I miss that cave.

Marvin Zaske

[SLIM]

Zdiver, we miss you also. Nope Lary was there and did help shuttle some on Sunday but no boat Monday. I told them about how to use a special CB reel. I had to impress them and got lucky first try and just dropped down and tied a up line with a flag on it.

SLIM

[rblackburn]

Zdiver, we miss you also. Nope Lary was there and did help shuttle some on Sunday but no boat Monday. I told them about how to use a special CB reel. I had to impress them and got lucky first try and just dropped down and tied a up line with a flag on it.

SLIM

Some of us hoofed our tanks down/up the hill... it wasn't THAT bad... More uphill, but not much worse than the hike back from Freidmans Sink at Manatee.

[FW]

Thanks for the report Slim. I meant to ask you, what were you flashing about on the deco stop?

[Bill Rotella]

Then I see Bill Rotella and Gene come out and Bill is going ape over it and just acting like a kid in a candy factory with all the candy he can take home with him along with Gene enjoying also.

You mean that there was no candy factory around??????????

God, I LOVE MISSOURI & CANNONBALL CAVE!

Bill Rotella