An old diver in a Pensacola dive shop told me to pack a spare mask strap in my save-a-dive kit, and it saved a job last month. | Commercial Divers - Rigidtalk
Oh man, @christopher_craig, you're not wrong. My last dive bag basically turned into a science project after one wet weekend. The smell was something special, like low tide mixed with regret. I had to just throw the whole thing out.
@harper_rodriguez97 you made the right call tossing it. That low tide and regret combo is the worst. I had a bag once that got so bad I left it in the garage and it started attracting raccoons. They didn't even want it after a sniff. Those things are basically sponges with zippers.
and honestly that's the kind of advice that sticks with you because it's so simple but nobody thinks about it. I've seen guys lose a mask strap at the worst possible moment and it's game over for the whole dive. you're just floating there with a mask hanging off your face, trying to fix it with a ziptie or something stupid. spare strap is tiny, weighs nothing, and costs like five bucks. why wouldn't you have one? it's like the dive equivalent of a spare tire. people pack all this fancy gear but skip the stuff that actually saves a trip.