“We’re trained in demolition, we get to blow stuff up. I don’t know if you’ve ever gotten to blow stuff up..but it’s really cool! It’s as cool as you think it would be.”
When most of us think about the military we think of guns, combat, and camo. There are, however, many different branches of the military. While all are fully trained for combat, some are a far cry from the default image that we conjure up in our heads. Today’s guest spent a good portion of his life with the Seabees, a smaller group of an already small group of naval divers. The Seabees, a heterograph of C.B., are members of the naval construction battalion, and they help to ensure that fixed underwater structures are kept in working condition. They also get to blow stuff up.
“The one thing I loved about being a diver is, my worst day at work was probably still better than a lot of peoples best day.”
“Water gets a bad rap. It’s not as bad as you would think. It’s not as problematic as you would think.”
Interview Contents
2:45 - Joining the Navy and trying to become a diver.
4:25 - Learning new ways to swim to try and make it as a diver.
6:30 - Failing the diver test 3 times and not being allowed to be a diver.
8:15 - Deciding what you would like to be trained in in the military.
12:00 - The Sea Bees of the Navy.
13:45 - Becoming an instructor in the Navy.
16:15 - Deciding to try becoming a diver again thanks to an 18 year old kid.
20:15 - The tasks a Sea Bee diver does.
20:00 - Blowing stuff up.
23:30 - One of Steve’s favorite jobs.
25:00 - The other jobs of a Sea Bee diver
27:00 - Diving with tanks vs. surface supply.
28:00 - The amount of time you can stay underwater.
31:30 - Steve’s deepest dive.
32:00 - Air vs mixed gas.
36:00 - Light and visibility on dives.
37:00 - Setting concrete under water.
38:40 - Advice for failures.
Links
THIS EPISODE WAS MADE WITH THE SUPPORT OF
Marcus Batson
Roxanna
Michelle & Jim Wortner
Janelle Swanson
Jimmy Seymour
