SEA-DOO Sea Scooter |
Text and Photos by The Editor |
Our first trip involving the Sea Scooter was a two-week expedition to Turkey. In the few days before departure Paul had received the scooter and had set about constructing a mounting plate that would allow the videocam to be easily affixed to the scooter (in or out of water) in just a few seconds. Incidentally, the mounting plate was a doctored stainless steel pony-cylinder attachment plate, which I might add didn’t have the look of something home-made! In use the Sea Scooter proved to be better than originally envisaged but it didn’t last long and wasn’t to return with us from Turkey – Oh no it didn’t fail, it was just that one of the Turkish Diving Instructors liked it so much that at the end of our trip he twisted Paul’s arm so much that it was sold to him at the original price that had been paid! On returning to Tenerife a replacement was purchased and since then another two have been added to stock – with all three being well used on a near daily basis!
As stated in the preamble: our kit is used beyond the range of normal recreational diving (as Holiday Diver Magazine is part of the Ocean Eye TV Film/Video Group). I also should have added ‘and at times beyond the recommendations of the manufacturers,’ for example; even the first scooter had been used to a depth of just over 60-metres (the manufacturers recommend a maximum depth limit of 30-metres) with no problem whatsoever occurring. The Sea Scooter is just one great piece of kit! However it must be said, both Paul and myself do get rather annoyed at times when we find ourselves trying to fin against a rather strong current and then Sheila comes streaking past effortlessly, holding on to her scooter with videocam attached without even having to move her fins!
Our latest dive (with the Turtle of El Puertito) indicated to me on just how good and for that matter how versatile the SEA·DOO Seascooter was. The surface swim was so long as to make the scooter a necessity for us to reach the dive site. It towed both Sheila and myself (tethered by nylon strap hooked on to my BCD ‘D’-ring) for at least twenty-five effortless minutes on the surface. It then towed us both back on a journey lasting 20-minutes underwater. We could not have contemplated this dive without the scooter or the use of a boat and even the Turtle took more than an interest as it sniffed and nibbled the SEA·DOO Seascooter!
Various models of the SEA·DOO Sea Scooter are manufactured and can be viewed on their website; however Ocean Eye/Holiday Diver is currently using the SEA·DOO Seascooter Classic ZS01 (2-off) and the SEA·DOO Seascooter GTI (1-off). The complete weight of a Seascooter to include battery is 8·2 kilos with a runtime of 60/90-minutes dependent on battery type. All models of the Seascooter operate with two speeds (normal and fast at up to 3mph). Note: On release of the unit or if an obstruction is encountered the Seascooter will stop – as the unit features an automatic safety cut-off! The Seascooter comes complete to include carrying bag and battery charger; with a full charge from the fully discharged state taking between 4 and 6-hours.
Contact:- www.scootermotion.com
There is no doubt that all the staff at Holiday Diver Magazine rate the SEA·DOO Sea Scooter 10/10 – an excellent diver propulsion vehicle that does it job and goes on and on without any problem for years and years! |
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With an oncoming expedition early in 2004 Holiday Diver Publisher Paul looked into the principal of the purchase of an underwater scooter for use as a mounting for the underwater videocam – the idea being, with a smooth effortless glide underwater at a constant speed a far better TV Video would be produced. Not only did the SEA·DOO Sea Scooter seem to more than meet the requirements it was priced at about a third of the cost of other available underwater scooters on the market. I should also point out that its weight was also considerably less, a big factor when you think that our trips mostly involve air travel.
Before I lapse into the briefest of details on its specification (full details can be found on the website: 
Prices – we now come to a problem as the latest price list I have obtained indicates last minute SALE PRICES in US$ with Classic at $269 (about £140) and the GTI at $349 (about £190).