50 years ago, a diver by the name of Richard Long founded a company called Diving Unlimited International – or DUI. DUI has become famous for their top-of-the-line drysuits but unbeknownst to me, they do a lot more than that. They provide equipment for recreational weekend divers, technical divers, public safety divers, commercial divers, military special ops divers and the list goes on and on. Basically, if you need to keep something dry, DUI is the place to go.

 

One of the huge benefits of the Rolex Scholarship is the incredibly generous sponsors that give not only gear but their time and support as well. Back in March at the Beneath the Sea Dive Show in Secaucus, New Jersey, I had the pleasure of meeting Faith Ortins, sales manager at DUI, and Susan Long, the president and CEO of the company. Faith took my measurements for my customized drysuit while Susan helped me with the color scheme (I was lost otherwise). Next, I had to decide on the accessories. My mind was spinning with all of the options, they have so many choices for customization! Do I want the rock boots or turbo soles? One pocket or two? Or none? What type of pocket? What type of socks? And so on and so forth. It was like Christmas on steroids.

 

A few weeks later, I picked up my drysuit from the DUI factory (I never realized they were located just down the road from me in San Diego!) and Faith was kind enough to adjust my zip seals and give me a tour. Did you know that each drysuit is hand-made?! So much care goes into the assembly and examination of their products, from the stitching to the pressure tests for leaks. I am now a proud DOG (DUI Owners Group) and I feel confident that my new drysuit is going to last a while.

 

I immediately had to try out the new suit and was able to dive the following weekend at La Jolla shores. It was fantastic! I stayed warm and comfortable the duration of the dive and stepped out of it nice and dry.

 

Thank you so much to Faith Ortins, Susan Long and the rest of the DUI team for your generosity and support. I’m excited to continue diving dry!

Follow along on my adventure by subscribing to the blog and by following me on instagram! Also, you can learn a little bit more about me in my Bio section. More to come soon about my time in St. Croix with rebreathers and turtles. For all of you drysuit owners out there, what is your favorite part about diving dry?