The only things that separate humans from fish are the ability to breathe underwater and aquarium glass. Learn to swim with the fishes with today’s Groupon: for $189, you get an SSI-recognized, entry-level scuba-certification course at Midwest Aquatics in Overland Park (a $395 value). The course includes:
- Four open-water dives
- Study materials
- Logbook
- Certification fee
- Equipment rental for pool training (except mask, snorkel, fins and boots, to be provided by student)
- Six-month subscription to Dive Training magazine
- DiveAssure student insurance
- Pool tuition<p>
Midwest Aquatics’ staff of professionally trained instructors teaches water-plunging pupils the foundational knowledge and skills they need to dive safely without supervision during the entry-level Open Water scuba-certification course. During the 17 total hours of classroom and pool time, six to eight students at a time take part in a combination of four open-water dives and academic sessions to practice skills such as breathing, controlling buoyancy, and resisting siren songs. Students learn the best methods of entering, exiting, and moving in the water. The facility’s indoor pool houses divers in a safe environment for supervised practice without the distraction of showboating fish. For daring youths, the Junior Open Water Diver program is open to students aged 10–14.
Customers can check out Midwest Aquatics’ calendar for a list of dates and times when the classroom and pool portion is offered, which can be completed over the course of select Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Hours may also be split up among available sessions. Divers must also complete required open-water dives that can be accomplished during one of the company’s trips to Table Rock Lake, which are listed on the calendar and often via skywriter.
Midwest Aquatics
At Midwest Aquatics, no one lounges poolside. Instead, students, 10 years old or older, learn scuba skills such as buoyancy control, underwater breathing, and aquatic movement in an on-site pool custom built for diving. Highly certified and trained instructors draw on more than two decades of scuba experience to teach underwater exploration in courses that range from introductory scuba sessions to open water dives, complete with off-site certification dives in locales such as Bali, Curacao, and local brewery tanks.