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"Since it was sunk in 2000, the Felipe Xicotencatl (C53) has slowly but surely, become Cozumel’s main artificial reef” said Antonio Madrazo, Sales Manager of Scuba Du, “today she is full of many species of marine life and coral polyps continue to cover the inside and outside of this man-made dive site” he added. “We are honored to participate with DiveNav and the National Marine Park of Cozumel in the birth of this new and exciting project that allows future visitors to explore the C-53 from their computers at home or work, so when they come to Cozumel and dive it, they will be better prepared” he concluded.
The 184 ft (56.2 m) Felipe Xicotencatl is the former USS Scuffle (AM-298), an Admirable-class minesweeper built for the U.S. Navy during World War II. She was transferred to Mexico in October 1962. The ship was donated by the Secretary of the Navy of Mexico to be sunk and serve as an artificial reef. She now rests at a depth of 80 ft (24.3 m).
"We are looking forward to completing this project", said Ricardo Gómez Lozano, Director of the for Parque Nacional Arrecifes de Cozumel, "and plan to use the virtual dive of the Felipe Xicotencatl to further promote Cozumel to SCUBA divers worldwide while they are planning their next dive trip", he continued.
Timothy Massimino, General Manager of Scuba Club Cozumel comments, "Most our customers would rather be diving here in Cozumel, but the virtual dive of the C53 will allow them partake in a Cozumel dive right from their computer desktop, any time of day, any day of the week.""We are pleased to collaborate with the Parque Nacional Arrecifes de Cozumel and with local dive operators.", said Alberto Mantovani, President and CEO of DiveNav, "We are calling upon Cozumel's diving community to contribute their expertise to this project so we can make the Felipe Xicotencatl C-53 accessible for a wider audience to experience and enjoy", he added.
DiveNav is planning to demonstrate virtual diving on the Felipe Xicotencatl (C53) at the DEMA Show, booth number 4951.
*************************** About Parque Nacional Arrecifes de Cozumel Cozumel is considered one of the most important diving destinations in the world, its coral reefs are part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef. Covering a surface of 29,620 acres, and because of its biological and economical significance, the Parque Nacional Arrecifes de Cozumel was appointed as a national park on july 19th 1996, it contains the reefs and beaches of the southern half on the island. The park’s objective is to preserve such important resource through scientific monitoring, surveillance, community and environmental education programs. About DiveNav DiveNav Inc., headquartered in Tustin, Calif., is an innovative company developing leading-edge services and products that will enable the user friendly exploration of our oceans by the recreational and educational communities. DiveNav 's patent pending vDive technology is the engine powering its eDivingTM online service. For more information regarding DiveNav or its eDivingTM service, please email us at info@divenav.com or visit our websites at www.divenav.com or www.ediving.us. -###- Contacts Sergio Tapia Medina Alberto Mantovani Parque Nacional Arrecifes de Cozumel DiveNav, Inc. stapia@conanp.gob.mx am@divenav.com www.conanp.gob.mx www.ediving.us Antonio Madrazo Timothy Massimino Scuba Du Scuba Club Cozumel scubadu@usa.net scubacozumel@ecozumel.net www.scubadu.com www.scubaclubcozumel.com (310) 684-5556 Bonnie Pelnar Under Watercolours bpelnar@underwatercolours.com www.underwatercolors.com -###-
############################## About DiveNav DiveNav Inc., headquartered in Tustin, Calif., is an innovative company developing leading-edge services and products that will enable the user friendly exploration of our oceans by the recreational and educational communities. DiveNav 's patent pending vDive technology is the engine powering its eDivingTM online service. For more information regarding DiveNav or eDivingTM, please email us at info@divenav.com or visit our websites at www.divenav.com or www.ediving.us. -###- Contact Alberto Mantovani DiveNav, Inc. am@divenav.com www.ediving.us -###-
ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, FL, and TUSTIN, CA, October 2, 2008 - ScubaBoard and DiveNav are announcing collaboration with two premier dive shops in the Florida Keys to develop a virtual dive site of the USS Spiegel Grove.
"At the time of its sinking, the Spiegel Grove was the largest ship ever intentionally sunk to create a new reef for divers" said Captain Slate, owner of the Atlantis Dive Center, "and as of today she remains one of the largest ships in the world ever scuttled for that purpose" he continued.
The USS Spiegel Grove is a Landing Ship Dock (LSD 32), she is 510 feet in length and 84 feet wide and she now rests at a depth of 134 ft near Dixie Shoals in Key Largo.
"Once this project is completed, anyone with a computer and access to the Internet will be able to virtually dive the USS Spiegel Grove using eDivingTM", said Peter Murray, President of ScubaBoard. "The USS Spiegel Grove is one of the best dive sites in Florida", he added.
eDivingTM, developed by DiveNav, is the virtual underwater world that allows divers, snorkelers and marine enthusiasts to virtually visit real locations.
"The Upper Florida Keys is one of the top destinations in the country for divers and snorkelers", said Captain Gary, owner of the Conch Republic Divers, "by offering a virtual tour of the USS Spiegel Grove, you will be able to see this massive artificial reef and how the abundant sea life have now made it their home", he continued.
"We are glad to collaborate with ScubaBoard and with local experts such as Captain Slate and Captain Gary", said Alberto Mantovani, President and CEO of DiveNav, "we are calling upon the Florida's diving community and upon ScubaBoard's members to contribute their expertise to this project so we can make the USS Spiegel Grove accessible to a wider audience", he added.
Please check with Atlantis Dive Center or Conch Republic Divers to see how you can become a part of this exciting project.
ScubaBoard and DiveNav are planning to demonstrate virtual diving on the USS Spiegel Grove at the DEMA Show, booths number 2409 and 4951 respectively.
############################## About ScubaBoard Scubaboard is a diverse online community of scuba diving enthusiasts dedicated to sharing the wonders of our underwater world in a safe, family oriented environment. Our focus is to advance safety, knowledge and enjoyment within the diving community by encouraging the mutual exchange of experiences, ideas and opinions. About DiveNav Inc. DiveNav Inc., headquartered in Tustin, Calif., is an innovative company developing leading-edge services and products that will enable the user friendly exploration of our oceans by the recreational and educational communities. DiveNav's patent pending vDive technology is the engine powering its eDivingTM online service. For more information regarding DiveNav or its eDivingTM service, please email us at info@divenav.com or visit our websites at www.divenav.com or www.ediving.us. -###- Contacts Pete Murray Alberto Mantovani ScubaBoard, Inc. DiveNav, Inc. NetDoc@scubaboard.com am@divenav.com www.scubaboard.com www.ediving.us Captain Slate Captain Gary Captain Slates' Atlantis Dive Center Conch Republic Divers 800-331-3483 (305)852-1655 capslate@yahoo.com garymace@bellsouth.net www.captainslate.com www.conchrepublicdivers.com -###-
June 21, 2008, Long Beach, California - DiveNav announced the production release of its popular eDivingTM service at the 2008 Long Beach Scuba Show. According to Alberto Mantovani, President and CEO of DiveNav, \"I am pleased that we have completed our beta testing phase. Using input from our beta testers, we have made significant enhancements to create the most realistic underwater rendering engine available. Our beta testers will notice that we have added a significant amount of marine flora and fauna, including sharks, lobsters, eels, and topside improvements such as landmarks and buildings. By the end of the year, we will have all of the major dive sites in California available.
In addition to the two dive sites available during beta testing, the Avalon Underwater Park, at Catalina and the HMCS Yukon in San Diego, eDiving will include 2 new eDive sites - Vallecitos Point, La Jolla Shores and Bird Rock, Catalina Island with plans to add new eDive sites weekly through the end of 2008.
To celebrate the production launch and to urge the trial of the eDivingTM service, DiveNav is launching a contest with prizes worth over $10,000 for divers, dive instructors, and dive retailers. Prizes include BCDs, regulators, split fins, and various dive accessories from leading scuba manufacturers. The Grand Prize Winner will receive two OceanReef Full Face Masks with Underwater Communications.
Dive Retailers, Instructors, Divers, and those interested in the marine environment should
go to http://www.ediving.us and tryout the no-cost eDivingTM service.
DiveNav demonstrated its vDive technology at the recently held Scuba Show 2007 event during which more than 150 divers indicated their intention to participate in the beta testing of vDive. DiveNav is now selecting a limited number of beta testers based on their level of diving expertise and computer proficiency. Any diver interested in becoming a beta tester should complete the vDive Beta Testing Candidate form available at www.divenav.com/vDive/betatest_candidate.html
DiveNav will demonstrate an updated version of its vDive technology that supports multiple dive maps and includes online capabilities at the DEMA 2007 conference and is anticipating the release of a production version of vDive in December 2007.
vDive integrates a custom designed next generation 3D engine, optimized for rendering underwater scenery, with extremely high resolution bathymetry models, satellite and terrain maps, existing habitat, and interactive 3D models.
vDive has been specifically tailored toward the new diver population by adding a customized and easy to use interface together with an accurate behavioral model of the diver that makes vDive the perfect tool to do a "check out" dive without getting wet. With these features vDive will enhance the Instructor's job by allowing students to preview and "feel" some of the aspects of diving (terrain profile and visibility similar to the real check-out site, buoyancy, inertial movements, underwater sounds, variable air consumption proportional to depth and activity) before getting into the ocean.
DiveNav is anticipating the release of a production version of vDive in the fourth quarter of 2007.