THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, September 13, 1994 TAG: 9409130323
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LANE DEGREGORY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: HATTERAS VILLAGE LENGTH: Short : 48 lines
Surging ocean currents in the Gulf Stream kept two divers from plunging to record depths on two tries over the weekend.
But the men hope to return to the Outer Banks next spring to dive to a World War II-era German submarine - and set an East Coast record for scuba diving.
``It was a very disappointing weekend for us,'' Ken Clayton said Monday morning from his home in Springfield, Va. ``We went out anyway and did some other, shallower dives. But there was just no way we could attempt the one we've been planning and working up to for more than three years.
``The currents were so strong we couldn't even drop anchor to the wreck,'' Clayton said. ``We're not going to give up, though. This dive can happen still.''
A 56-year-old systems analyst who has been diving for six years, Clayton and his partner planned to descend 550 feet below the ocean surface last weekend.
Most recreational divers seldom dive below 130 feet.
But Clayton and partner Harvey Storck, 44, of Potomac, Md., hoped to break their own 417-foot dive record, established off Virginia Beach in June.
The men also wanted to be the first people to see the 300-foot-long U-576 submarine since American aircraft torpedoed it about 25 miles off Cape Hatteras in 1942.
To view the sub, however, the divers needed currents of less than 1.5 mph so that they could descend directly to their destination. On Saturday, the currents flowed up to 3 mph. Sunday's currents ran between 4 and 5 mph, Clayton said.
``There was just no way we could get out,'' he said. ``The Gulf Stream wouldn't let us.''
Although most scuba divers carry a combination of nitrogen and oxygen in their tanks, Clayton and Storck intended to use a mixture of neon and oxygen. Unlike nitrogen, neon is not narcotic at great depths. So divers can maintain their mental sharpness - and breathing - on the ocean floor.
``You can't conquer Mother Nature,'' Clayton said. ``The best you can do is accommodate her moods, conform to her wishes and adapt your skills and techniques to the challenges with which she confronts you.'' by CNB