Malaysian Under Water

Is diving safe? How do I clear my mask underwater? PADI? NAUI? SSI? What is BCD, fins? OMG! If you have all these questions about Scuba diving burning in your mind, MUW is your answer.

Malaysian Underwater or MUW as it is fondly known is the biggest scuba diving community forum in Malaysia. MUW was started by a group of diver friends whose main interest is scuba diving. Since its inception some 2 years ago, this social society has become a platform for sharing of knowledge and passion for diving. With 1900 active members, this social club is set out to educate divers and non divers on the importance of good sensible diving.

According to Alfian aka Mephisto, one of MUW’s main objective is preservation of the environment, which includes all marine life, coral, reef and turtles. Their on going project at the moment is the discovery of sea horses in our very own Redang Island. Gypsy Divers hand in hand with MUW have created an artificial reef sanctuary to encourage the breeding of sea horses. Where is the dive site? Alfian informed me that this location is being kept a secret for the moment to give the dive site and the sea horses a chance to prosper. It is exciting to know that this project is sanctioned by the Terengganu government, which means we may be able to see more sea horses roaming freely in our Redang waters soon.

Safety is MUW’s second objective. According to Alfian, a lot of divers forget to perform the basic checklist that is required by a diver before hitting the water. Some of these check such as equipment and buddy check maybe be life saving but are neglected by some people. Alfian further explained that performing these tests are crucial before jumping fully equipped into the wide sea.

MUW is also the one and only online club in Malaysia to promote free diving. This form of technical diving has been around since 1992, but is pretty much new in Malaysia, with Perhentian being the only place where you can perform free dives. What is free diving you ask? Free diving is any activity that involves the practice of holding your breath under water. That includes freedive photography, underwater diving, to a degree snorkeling and spearfishing. Ooo err.. look ma.. no tank!

Another interesting fact to look out for with MUW is their logo. The logo was designed after an incident a few years back in Kelantan, where the group had gone diving, and saw another friend dive fully equipped wearing a sarong! Truly logo Malaysian, I say!

This year, MUW even had their sarong clad mascot at the MIDE 2008 Exhibition (Malaysian International Dive Exhibition 2008) In its 3rd year, with 120 exhibitors from 25 countries, MIDE aims to promote best diving destinations in Malaysia and its surrounding waters.

Alfian Abdul Rahim aka mephisto is MUW’s moderator for free diving.

Nuggets
Top 10 dive sites of the world ( taken from Scuba Travel)
- Yongala, Australia
- Thistlegorm, Egyptian Red Sea
- Blue Corner Wall, Palau, Micronesia
- Barracuda Point, Sipadan Island
- Shark and Yolanda Reef, Egyptian Red Sea
- Navy Pier, Australia
- Manta Ray Night Dive, Kailua Kona, Hawaii
- Big Brother, Egyptian Red Sea
- Liberty, Bali
- Elphinstone Reef, Egyptian Red Sea


Did you know that year 2008 has been designated second International Year of the Reef by the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI)