Scuba Club at Virginia Tech River Clean Up

A few months back, the Scuba Club at Virginia Tech contacted us and inquired about a club discount on our scuba diving clothing -- to which we happily obliged.

More recently, VT Alumnus and club member Michael Ziray alerted us (via Twitter) that the club had participated in a river cleanup and that the local news photographer snapped a photo of him -- wearing a Neutral Dive Gear t-shirt and sweatshirt -- for the story in the Roanoke Times.

Ziray offers the details of the event over at his blog:

On Virginia Tech’s Reading Day (the day between classes and the beginning of finals), the Scuba Club at Virginia Tech (SCVT) performed a clean up on the New River near Radford, VA. We picked up several trash bags of garbage, mostly that were left behind from the fishermen that frequent there. There were plenty of fishing line, beer cans and other trash to keep us busy for a few hours and we do this every year.

As it had been raining for the past several days prior, the river level was two feet higher than normal, and big trees were being swept down river. The visibility was non-existent and we didn’t want to get caught or crushed by the trees coming down, so we didn’t get to go diving. However, there is still a ton more beer cans and other trash left by the fishermen at the bottom of the river that we have yet to get to.

While we were there, a photographer from the Roanoke Times took several photos of us as we worked. I had passed up picking up some trash that was in the water because I was wearing shoes but since I had all my scuba equipment with me, I put on my diving boots and jumped into the water to pick up the pieces I had missed.

It was then that the photographer snapped a photo of Ziray wading through the water, and ended up featuring the picture in the story.

(Click the image to enlarge or download the PDF)

It's cool that Ziray was sporting Neutral Dive Gear clothing, but way cooler that the club took time out of finals preparation to organize such an event. Selfless and environmentally conscience -- these are the sort of folks who epitomize the dive community.

We salute you, SCVT!

If you're a member of a dive club of any sort, feel free to email us at neutraldivegear@gmail.com to set up a group discount. We love working with dive groups of all shapes and sizes!