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The History of DUC
The official founding date of DUC is October 1951, however there are
members
(admittedly with increasingly fading memories) that claim an
earlier
founding date.
At any rate DUC is a long standing club and will soon
be celebrating it's 60th year.
DUC was originally founded by spear fishermen, who in the early days
were not allowed to use boats to hunt from and had to "steam' from
shore out to the
reefs. Not only is this an indication of how fit these early
pioneers must have been, but also of how our conservation laws have
changed over the years.
It is now also legal to catch fish specimens on SCUBA!
Within the club founders were a small group of divers who used all
manner of available equipment that they either made themselves,
bought as navy surplus
or, if they had the money, imported from Europe, to enable them to
experience breathing underwater - the birth of SCUBA in Durban.
From this small group of men (and very few women) has grown a club
that now boasts over a thousand members, admittedly many of which
are not divers and
just here for the wonderful facilities the club now boasts, but
nevertheless, who all have a passion for the ocean and the creatures
within it
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Founder members on the beach where the DUC clubhouse is today.
We would like to encourage some of the earlier members to send us
their memories, whether in words or in pictures (digital, please!)
that we can add to
the site to build a comprehensive history of DUC.
We thank Peter Wilson and Ken De Villiers, both founding members of
DUC and now Honorary Life members, for their contributions.
Click here for the story
Ken De Villiers memories of the origin of DUC
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