Doing Our Part

At Springboards and More, "Every Day is a GREAT DAY for Diving"! Our mission is to provide you and your diving team with the finest springboard and platform diving equipment available. At the same time, we strive to be friendly to the environment and we work hard to minimize the waste that we produce.  We feel that protecting the environment is the responsibility of every person and we try to do our part -- no matter how small or insignificant it may seem.

Here are just a few of the things we do at Springboards and More:

* We do NOT print a paper catalog nor do any type of mass mailing of coupons, etc.  -- everything is on-line and available to you 24 / 7 / 365 from any computer, laptop, tablet or smart phone in the world!

* We do not print and pack written instructions for the items you purchase -- rather we make them available on our website or send them as an email attachments with your Sales Receipt.

* Unless you require otherwise, we always email invoices, statements and quotes to save paper, envelopes and postage.

* We reuse boxes and packing materials for parts and supplies that are shipped to us. (We figure you do not care if the order you receive from us is in a new box or a used box -- so why throw away a perfectly good box when it can be used again)!

* We re-use the daily newspaper and other similar items to pack and ship your orders. 

* After completing any diving board installation or repair job, we separate and recycle all the old bolts, nuts, washers and packaging materials.

* We take cracked or worn out diving boards to the local fire department and let the new firefighters gain experience cutting metal (to simulate opening a metal roof) with their high powered saws -- then we recycle all the cut pieces at the local scrap yard.

* All of these things help us to not only reduce the waste we produce but also reduce our costs which allows us to keep our prices low.

Just like every extra half point you get from a diving judge makes a difference in the end -- if everybody did just a little -- it would add up to a lot at the end of the day.

Band-Aid for a Slippery Diving Board

If you have a Duraflex Diving Board and the non-slip surface is starting to show signs of wear, the ONLY acceptable "fix" is to send your diving board back to the Duraflex Factory for inspection and refinish.

Despite what you may hear from friendly sales people at Swimming Pool Supply Stores, there are NO acceptable products sold that you can use on your slippery (Duraflex) diving board that are approved by the Duraflex Factory. The question becomes, what can you use on your diving board to get you through the end of the season at which time you can then send your diving board back to Duraflex for a factory refinish. The factory approved answer is "3M Safety Walk Strips" that are sold at most big box or hardware stores around the country.

As you can see in the picture above, the adhesive backed stair tread strips are placed ACROSS the diving board with a half inch space between them. This spacing allows water to run-off the side of the board. Normally, you need cover only the last 24" - 30" of the diving board (out over the water). Be sure to periodically check these to make sure they are all in place and securely attached. You may need to replace one or two as the season progresses -- it just depends. As soon as the season ends, contact Springboards and More to arrange pick-up and shipping of your diving board back to the Duraflex Factory. While at the factory, your diving board will undergo three different inspections and in most cases be approved for refinish. A factory refinished diving board looks brand new and includes new rubber channels, a new number strip and new attachment bolts. The approximate cost with shipping in both directions is about 1/3 the cost of a new diving board so it is an economical way to extend the life of your diving board.

Common Problem Seen at Summer Swim Clubs

Look at the picture above and (hopefully) you will notice that the diving board does not line-up correctly with the diving stand. If the fulcrum is rolled forward, it will roll off the rubber channels causing an unsafe "metal on metal" situation which is the quickest way to crack your board -- a $3,500.00 problem! This commonly seen situation occurs when a pool upgrades their diving board from a 16' Duraflex Board to a 16' Modified Maxiflex Model B "Cheeseboard." The installation "foot print" for the diving stand is dependant on what model diving board is installed upon it.

Although the two boards look similar to the untrained eye -- they are in fact very different. The Cheeseboard is tapered at BOTH ends of the board whereas the 16' Duraflex Board is tapered only at the end over the water. The Cheeseboard has about 200 perforations in the tip end of the board but the 16' Duraflex Board has none. The placement of the rubber channels on the underside of each diving board occurs at a different location because each board is designed to bend at a different spot.

The quick fix for this situation is to simply purchase a six inch set of rubber channels and attach them to the underside of your diving board in front of the existing 30" rubber channels currently installed. However, the long term (and correct) fix for this situation is to re-install the stand with the correct dimensions between the two parts (the Ladder Assembly and the Main Support). In a nutshell -- they need to be 5.5 inches closer together. This can be accomplished by moving the Main Support BACK 5.5 inches closer to the Ladder Assembly OR moving the Ladder Assembly 5.5 inches FORWARD. You can get a factory installation template as well as engineered Spec. Sheets to help you do this or you can hire a competent contractor to do the work for you.

Please note that the Duraflex Factory makes five different height 1M Diving Stands to conform to the myriad of pool deck to water levels found around the country. Before placing your order for an installation template and spec. sheet -- you will need to get the "casting number" from both your Main Support and Ladder Assembly as well as your pool deck to water level.

Interesting Foods in China

Our group has enjoyed some wonderful meals so far on the trip. From Dim Sum to Moslem "Hot Pot" to a wonderful eight course meal hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (of which Yilla Guan is the chairperson of in San Francisco). We have tried to eat everything with chopsticks and have been very "adventuresome"at table.

See photos above of taken at our Friendship Banquet and our "Hot Pot" dinner (certainly NOT for picky eaters)!!

China Tour -- The Forbidden City

WOW and I mean WOW!! Talk about a palace -- the Forbidden City was built in the early 1400's and was occupied by 24 emperors up until circa 1925 when it was opened to the public. Now millions and millions of people tour this area that takes up 720,000 square meters and it surrounded by a 52' wide moat that was dug by hand by some of the 3,000,000 laborers who built this amazing place in about 20+ years. It has incredible palaces, buildings, pathways, etc. that are too numerous to count and they seem to go on forever and ever! The movie "The Last Emperor" was filmed on location here and it would be hard to get the same shot twice because you simply cannot fathom how big this place is until you walk around it for a couple of hours. No pictures can do this place justice.

China Tour -- National Aquatic Training Center

Jet lag got the best of me so I did not sleep well the first night. Breakfast that next morning was an incredible buffet with more food that any person could even dream of eating. There was not much "American style" breakfast food but as they say: "when in Rome....."

After breakfast we headed to the National Aquatic Training Center. This was a special treat for us because it is not open to the public and there are guards at the gated entrance to the complex. After a brief introduction meeting with the facility director, we were taken to the famous dry land training room where a number of the younger Chinese National Team divers were practicing. Unfortunately, this room is considered "State secret" and we were strictly forbidden from taking photos in the dry land room. However, I can tell you that there were 15 (FIFTEEN) Cheeseboards on Short Stands into foam landing pits. These were surrounded by 6 (SIX) large trampolines with overhead spotting rigs and at the far end of the room was some one meter platforms and another diving board that went into a large in ground foam pit. Oh yeah -- one more thing -- there was another identical room just down the hallway. INCREDIBLE!!

We were then taken to the actual diving well where the training takes place. (See the photo above). There were 10 Springboards and a full set of towers. There was a "Bubbler" machine and overhead spotting rigs above a one meter and three meter springboard. The platforms were covered with 2-Ply Black Rough-tex and there were cameras and other recording devices all over the place. It was VERY WARM and humid in the pool area.

After a VERY short visit, we were whisked out of the building and to our waiting motor coach for travel to the Forbidden City and Tiannaman Square. We did not get to see any of the SEVEN Olympic Gold Medallists from China as they were all in Guangzhou for the 2010 Asian Games which we will attend in about a week.

CHINA TRIP -- Departure Day!!

Our group met at San Francisco Airport; checked in ; went through security and then headed to the international gate where we waited for our13+ hour flight on a large China Air 747. The picture above shows the group near the check-in gate.

Left to Right: Yilla Guan (our hostess from Allied International Resources); Jan Rude (President of Duraflex International); Kathy and Doug Bowman (Duraflex Factory Superintendent); Joanne and Bill Walker (Past President of USA Diving); Micki King (1972 Olympic Gold Medallist -- Women's 3M Springboard); Steve Voellmecke (Springboards and More); Lindsay, Micki and Mark Spry (Duraflex International Engineer); Tony Huang (VP and GM of Allied International).

On the plane, we were able to read the diary (and see the photos) that Micki King kept when she last visited China in 1973 after winning the Olympic Gold Medal for Springboard Diving in Munich, Germany the year before.

Does Your Diving Board "Squeak"?

One question we often get at Springboards and More is "My diving board is squeaking -- what is the problem"?

The first thing you should do if your diving board is making strange noises is to do a visual inspection (while somebody is bouncing on the board) and try to determine from where the noise is coming. Is it the board itself or is it from the fulcrum area? Perhaps the hinge area? Maybe the guard rails? Could it be where the stand is bolted to the pool deck? Could it be a combination of some of these?

Often times, it is difficult to determine because noise travels so fast, it can be hard to pin point.

If you can isolate the noise, you should make the necessary adjustments to the fulcrum, guard rails, stand, etc. If you CANNOT isolate the noise, I would suggest you oil the hinges. Yes, that is correct -- oil the hinges. A Duraflex hinge has a "male" and "female" part that are held together with a (hinge) "pin" that is surrounded by four plastic Nyliners ("bushings") and an "O" ring at either end of the hinge pin to keep it from sliding out of the hinge.

You will notice that Duraflex hinges have a small hole in the center of the "male" portion. This is where you insert oil into the hinge assembly. (The Duraflex factory suggests 3 in 1 Oil). The hinges should be oiled every time you grease the fulcrum (about 2x per month). Every time the board is bounced, the hinge pin pivots inside the Nyliners and Hinge. If you do NOT oil the hinges, the (plastic) Nyliners (bushings) start to dry out and as the board is bounced, the hinge pins have difficulty pivoting inside the Nyliners and this is often times where you get the squeaking sound you hear when the board is bounced.

If the problem has persisted for quite some time, it is very possible that the Nyliners have cracked or broken and you may need to replace the hinge pin, the Nyliners and the "O" rings (aka the Hinge "Guts" Kit -- sold exclusively by Springboards and More).

Regardless of what needs to be done, remember the four "P's" and one "M" of diving board maintenance: Proper Maintenance Prevents Poor Performance (of your equipment).

THANK YOU!!

Springboards and More wants to say a BIG THANKS to all of our customers -- both new and returning -- for your business and continued patronage of our company. Our goal for 2010 will be the same as it has been since we started this endeavor in 1999 -- to provide to you or your diving team high quality products at reasonable prices with great customer service!

Our family and staff hopes you and your family enjoy a very Merry Christmas and we offer our best wishes for a safe and magical holiday season. May your team and the sport of springboard and platform diving continue to grow and prosper in 2010 and beyond.

LET'S DIVE!!


** Springboards and More will be closed from 12/24/2009 - 01/03/2010. Orders can still be placed online, by mail or by fax, but please be aware that your order may not ship until Monday 01/04/2010 when we re-open for business as we will have very limited staff coming in during this time.

DURAFLEX ANNOUNCES PRICE INCREASE!

The Duraflex International Corporation has announced a 5% across the board price increase effective for all orders that ship on or after January 1, 2010.

Due to the lead times involved with diving board and diving stands, the cut-off date for placing orders for these items to guarantee shipment before the end of the year (and therefore get current pricing) is December 1st, 2009. For small parts orders, the cut-off date to guarantee current pricing is December 28, 2009.

Pictured above is current Duraflex President JAN RUDE with her late father RAY RUDE -- the inventor of the Duraflex Diving Board. This photo was taken inside the main entrance to the Duraflex International Factory circa 2002.