Dive Eclipse - Castletown, Portland, Dorset
When Dive Eclipse moved from Selsey to Weymouth the boat changed too. Out went Eclipse, a fast RIB with ladders, benches and a hard wheelhouse, and in came what was Top Gun, of Breakwater Dive Centre. Given the competition amongst hardboats, and the generally high quality of boat in the Weymouth area, this was probably a good move.
What didn’t change was the skipper. Dave Applin runs Eclipse and as a diver himself knows what divers want. You always get a good safety briefing and a thorough dive site briefing when Dave is at the helm. You can also be sure that the shot is in the wreck and is staying there. One of his tenents is that you have paid to get on the wreck and he will put you on it. That means that the shot is always hard into wreckage, and if there is a current and you need to haul on the shot there is no fear that you will get to the bottom to find a bouncing shot and seabed.
Top Gun itself is fast, with benches for 12 and a diver lift. The benches themselves are noce and deep, but the layout is a little odd, although this doesn’t detract from the usage. Coffee or instant soup are provided post dive.
As with all of the boats out of Breakwater a logging sysem is used, with a max expected duration given and you are expected to stick to this. You also give a description of you gear so that you can be identified and you are logged into and out of the water. This little extra safety feature enhances the confidence you feel in the operation.
I don’t know what next year (2007) will bring in terms of boats or location for Eclipse, but I will be there to try it out, whatever it is!
