Monthly Speakers

Topic: The Kelp Monitoring Program Jaclyn will discuss Reef Check’s long-term kelp forest monitoring program. She'll detail the training and experience needed to become a volunteer diver and look at some of the ways in which data collected by our citizen scientists is used in the scientific community. Speaker Bio: Jaclyn grew up in Ventura, California where she discovered at a young age that she had an interest and a passion for studying marine biology. She earned her bachel

Josh’s presentation will go through how we should check our gear before a dive, what we should be doing to maintain our equipafter a dive, and when we should bring it to him for service. Speaker Bio: Scuba Solutions, specializing in scuba diving gear repair, was founded by Josh Dykman. A technician with over 15 years in the dive industry, Josh’s training spans intensive technician study in Thailand, scientific diving in Maryland, and high-volume repairs in California and Ma

SPECIAL OFFER FOR CID MEMBERS ONLY! Darvil & American Dive Co. have generously offered discounts on gear ordered before Darvil comes to speak next week. 30% off all gear at americandiveco.com 50% off Beuchat fins and wetsuits! Send your order to Del by April 12th Pick up orders & pay at the meeting April 15th. Not sure something will fit? No problem - order it and try, no obligation.

SPEAKER’S BIO Darvil McBride is a seasoned spearfisherman, educator, and industry leader with global experience across nearly every style of underwater hunting. He currently serves as the Director of Sales for American Dive Co., the largest distributor of spearfishing and freediving equipment world-wide, representing iconic European brands such as Pathos, Picasso, Cetma, Alchemy, Epsealon, and Beuchat, as well as the American brand SpearPro. ​ Each summer, Darvil runs a maj

Our Intrepid Adventurers SAFARI (noun). Origins: 1885–90; < Swahili < Arabic safar “journey". A. a journey or expedition, for hunting, exploration, or investigation, especially in eastern Africa. B. the hunters, guides, vehicles, equipment, etc., forming such an expedition. C. any long or adventurous journey or expedition. In October 2025, CID members Eric Taylor and Laura Forsyth set off on a month-long safari of a lifetime in East Africa. Laura insists that Eric got compl

SPEAKER’S BIO Neail Holland has been scuba diving since 1989. After moving to California in 1991, he became truly passionate about scuba diving. ​ Over the years, he sought additional training while diving the California Channel Islands regularly. In 2005, he became a Divemaster and following became a Technical diver, diving a closed circuit rebreather and cave diving, which increased his knowledge and safety awareness. In 2007, Neail became a NAUI Instructor and started Rec2

January Speaker - Ventura Author Ken McAlpine I will be discussing my book “Islands Apart: A Year on the Edge of Civilization”. The idea behind the book was simple. It’s a fast-paced world we live in, and I felt that I was missing something in all the rush, something that mattered. So I spent a week camping on each of the five islands of Channel Islands National Park, in an attempt to better understand our world and how we spend our precious time here (I did things on the mai