Freeport/Lucaya, Grand Bahama Island, Underwater Explorers Society (UNEXSO), the premiere dive destination and dolphin experience facility located in Lucaya, Grand Bahama Island, The Portage Quarry of Bowling Green, Ohio and The S. C. Public Safety Divers International is pleased to announce the first offshore event for the LEGENDS OF DIVING. Held annually in Bowling Green since 2006, Jeff Rice, Managing Director of the Portage Quarry has attracted notable American diving legends such as Zale Parry, Dr. Sam Miller and Sam LeCocq.

The event in Ohio continues to grow in size and has attracted an international following on the web and at the Legends of Diving event held the first weekend of August each year. According to Rice, “The Legends event has become a popular spot for divers to gather during the summer but we are growing in size and our members are asking if the event could be held in a warm weather destination during the winter/spring months.” A search was underway for a tropical destination.

The International Underwater Explorers Society has formed an alliance with the Portage Quarry to build on the success of the Ohio event. The first INTERNATIONAL LEGENDS OF DIVING (ILD) will be held at UNEXSO on Grand Bahama Island April 2-6, 2009. Keith Cooper, Director of Sales & Marketing had invited Rice down to tour the dive facilities and the adjacent Pelican Bay Hotel - the official hotel for ILD - and numerous on shore amenities. Rice’s decision to choose Grand Bahama Island and UNEXSO was easy.

Linda Osborne, General Manager for UNEXSO adds, “The ILD will bring worldwide attention to a number of unsung heroes who dedicated their lives to scuba diving. We are excited to work with Jeff and be the host facility for this historic event on Grand Bahama Island.”

Joining the historic event will be UNEXSO Legends including – Ben Rose, who discovered Ben’s Cavern located in the Lucayan National Park, John Englander, former owner of UNEXSO, and Dr. John Clement who was in charge of the hyperbaric chamber and one of the original founders of UNEXSO. On hand will be Nick Rolle, Joel Pratt, Presley Knowles and Ollie Ferguson local Bahamians who assisted in the development of the cavern and shark training programs will share their stories about the history of diving on Grand Bahama Island. Cooper added – “UNEXSO is pleased to host The 2009 International Legends of Diving event and allow us to thank the men and women who have made invaluable contributions and risked their lives to improve the sport of diving.”

Bryan Pennington owner of Vintage Double Hose.com has been invited to join the event for a week of diving with the International Legends. The International Legends of Diving event will host the biggest and best vintage equipment trip yet to date for the world famous group at UNEXSO. This is the first event of its kind held at the resort, and will no doubt be a hit with the world wide diving community. These divers will be hand-picked by Bryan to represent the very best in historically accurate vintage equipment configurations and diving techniques. Not only will this group enjoy the finest diving available around the island they will also have an opportunity to serve as ambassadors for the vintage equipment diving community.

Situated on the Island of Grand Bahama Island, UNEXSO features state-of-the-art scuba facilities, dive with the sharks, dolphin experience and eco-education program, photography processing center and retail store. An ideal Bahamas dive operation and training center, located just 85 miles from the Florida coast, UNEXSO offers a host of scuba options and dive certification programs. Located nearby are restaurants, shops, hotels and resorts including Port Lucaya Marketplace, Port Lucaya Resort, Pelican Bay Resort, and Our Lucaya Westin and Sheraton Golf Resort & Spa.

UNEXSO a premier dive destination was founded in 1965 as the first dedicated scuba training facility in the world. UNEXSO’s management team has worked for a number of world-class resort and dive operations in the Bahamas, Caribbean, Hawaii, Europe, Middle East, Australia, and Asia and throughout the continental United States. UNEXSO is one of the most respected and ecology friendly dive operators in the Caribbean.

Read a related Freeport News article HERE from April 2nd