I have been lobbying for this option for a while
As you probably already know, many wrecks sunk around Malta’s waters. Close to shore we have the artificial wrecks which are 30-40m deep. Jumping on the boat you can find the historical wrecks starting from 50m to 110 plus.
But there is a gap. Most of the “not too deep” and most popular wrecks are between 60-75m. These are the HMS Southwold, the Le Polynesien, HMS Nasturtium , Schnellboot…
TDI Trimix course had a great disadvantage here that it gave the maximum of 60m for the divers.
This restricted access to the most popular wrecks which would be otherwise easily diveable on open circuit.
What did divers do? Either sign up for the Advanced Trimix course, which is very pricey on OC, plus not many of these divers were actually interested in diving to 100m. The other option was that people simply exceeded their certification limits.
So what is this new option now? Click to read more
First of all, what is Normoxic Trimix? According to some definitions, normoxic gas is which contains a “normal amount” of oxygen, which would be 21%. This would give a maximum depth of 54m. So even for 60m, we usually reduce the oxygen level. Divers, who use standard gasses, take 18/45 for this depth. 18% of oxygen has a maximum depth of 68m.
But some divers call “normoxic” trimix up to the limit what you can still breathe safely on the surface.
This is 16%, a widely accepted limit between the dive community and medical professionals. With this oxygen level, you could dive up to 77m without the need for travel gas. In this case, you can use the same procedures you are learning on the TDI Trimix course, needing only two stages.
TDI Trimix – 75m
Recently took a course with Jani Santala, and during some conversation, I have mentioned my issues with the TDI Trimix course limits. He suggested the great idea to apply for a unique speciality explaining the situation in Malta about our stunning wrecks.
As soon as I had some time, contacted Mark Powell and TDI HQ about whether this would be possible and they all found the proposition interesting.
I only had to write the standards and procedures for the course… Which I quickly did. The best thing was, that about ten minutes after I sent the email to HQ, got the first student asking about whether this option exists in TDI. I replied: no, but yes. Soon.
After some emails there and back we finalised all the necessary details. Thank you Wes Kilgore for your support!
What does the course include?
You have two options. Either take this course straight away after your Advanced Nitrox and Decompression Procedures. It has one extra dive compared to the standard Trimix course (remember, you have to prove that you are ready for the depth and your skills are top-notch)
If you are already a Trimix diver, just need to prove your readiness on a shallow skill dive and then one dive below 60m.
This course doesn’t give you credit for the Advanced Trimix course since there are no new skills introduced compared to the Trimix level.
Who can teach this course?
Any TDI Trimix -75m instructor. Since I just wrote the course outline, right now it is only me… I am sure more instructors would like to achieve this level soon, but I can say at the moment, that today I am the only one in the world who can teach it. (Wow, it sounds very cool saying that. Hahaha)
If you are interested, the course is available from today (17/06/2022)
Looking forward to hearing from you!
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