Verna van Schaik

Izimvo is honoured to introduce the deepest woman in the World, Verna van Schaik.

Verna is the current Female World Record Holder for Depth on Scuba. Her record was 221 meters and was reached at altitude in Boesmansgat. This made it a record for fresh water, altitude and cave.

Website: http://www.te-a.co.za
Twitter: http://twitter.com/Vernav
Location: Johannesburg

Personal

Q: The all important personal profile. How would a close friend introduce you at a social event?  i.e. Name, age, company, interesting fact etc.

A: Verna van Schaik, I own The Exploration Academy, focusing on Transforming Attitudes and Habits to Transform Success and I have just turned 4 (sounds better without the troublesome zero). Oh, and I am also the Deepest Woman in the World (and in the Guinness Book of Records) on scuba, in a water-filled cave. The dive was to 221 meters and took over 5h30 hours to complete.

Q: Tell us something that not many others know about you. This could be anything from a phobia to your favorite movie.

A: Until my mid twenties I was petrified of the dark, an odd fear for someone who routinely dived in dark, water-filled caves.

Q: What do you enjoy doing when you want to get away from it all?

A: Taking the trailer and heading to Botswana, to sit in the bush…. and just breathe!

Deep Diving

Q: You hold the world record for the deepest dive by a woman, 221 meters, which you set at Boesmansgat in the Northern Cape. Can you tell us what was going through your mind as you ascended to the surface knowing what you has just accomplished?

A: Actually ascending is the most dangerous time on a dive. Just because you reached the bottom does not mean you are going to make it out the water, the dive has just started (it only took 12 minutes to get there, 5 and half hours to get back).

I only really knew I had made it 3 hours after I got out of the water and could not stop smiling! It had taken almost ten years to get to that point and I was really, really pleased that I had proved to myself that I could do it.

Q: How did you start in the sport of deep diving and how long was it before you knew that you were capable of attempting the world record?

A: Actually I almost did not start diving. Instead of the usual two months to complete my course it took almost a year and when I started there was no way I was going to dive deep or in caves, I hated it. Getting hooked on depth and caves took a while and was almost accidental, I loved diving and as I mastered each step would then look for the next one, until deep and cave was it.

I got hooked watching the now world record holder Nuno Gomes preparing for his world record journey and after getting invited to be part of his support team. Took a year or so with him before I realised how unique my position was. It was the early 90′s and I was the only woman diving deep in caves in South Africa and one of a handful in the world. The woman’s world record was also relatively shallow, initially 110 meters and then 168 meters, so it seemed very doable. Seemed silly to waste the opportunity really.

Q: Can you tell us about the preparation and support needed for a record attempt of this magnitude?

A: It takes about a year to prepare for the actual dive (that is excluding the years leading up to it getting qualified and more importantly experience and the right level of skill). During that year I am diving every other weekend for 6 months, going deeper and practicing skills and the dive plan. I do a wet run just before winter that is not the same depth but has the same decompression to ensure that my body can handle it (although there are no guarantees).

As for the support, it takes two weeks and around ten divers to manage one dive. Life at Boesmans is quite hectic trying to co-ordinate everyone, their dives and the set up of the deep one. It is also gear intensive requiring well over 15 cylinders all with dv’s.. and that is just for me. Never mind the filling costs, we can not use normal air so have to use Helium and that is danged expensive.

Boesmansgat, Northern Cape

Q: What it is like at 221 meters?

A: Quiet! And very intense. I only had two minutes there and I wanted to remember every moment, take it all in. It was also a little stressful because I had to retrieve the tag that proved I had actually reached my depth, which meant letting go of the one shotline and reaching out a meter to the other shotline… if I lost either of those lines I would  never be able to find my way back…. 221 m in Boesmans there is nothing, no walls, no floor, no ceiling. It is perfect, velvet-black. Truly amazing.

Q: Have you had any close calls while diving?

A: A couple. The one that stands out was one of my build up dives. I was in an abandoned asbestos mine, at 150 meters, about 5 minutes away from my closest support diver (which is a lifetime at that depth, a normal diving cylinder just lasts that long).

I got trapped on my way to 160 meters in a narrow decline shaft full of silt. It took over 5 minutes to solve the problem (and I almost didn’t) which was more time than I had planned for which meant that I had used up most of my gas and still had to get back and then out (which was an issue as well because thanks to staying deeper longer my decompression schedule which ensures I do not bend on the ascent was irrelevant). I had to leave my fin behind to get out and when I finally made my back up gas stashed at 40 meters, had breathed 4 cylinders totally dry and had barely 30 bar left in my other two. It was a hectic experience and one that taught me how easy it is to die… and that living requires commitment and effort.

I have never felt so calm in such a dangerous place, or so supported and safe. Made me rethink my connection with the Divine.

Q: Are you planning any further record attempts?

A: Nope! I am happy with 221m. I learnt what I needed to learn, now there are new challenges for me that are consuming my time.

Life in South Africa

Q: Have you or any of your immediate family been affected by crime? If yes, has it changed your perception of the country and the way you and your family live your lives?

A: I was in an attempted hijacking in the early 90′s where my boyfriend of the time was shot with an AK47 (he survived) and other than that and of course the prerequisite burglaries we have been fortunate. I can’t say it has changed the way I live.

I am aware of crime and I protect myself the best I can (and my belongings). If anything living here has taught me not to be attached to my physical belongings (even the one’s I have inherited and that have sentimental meaning). It is all stuff and can be replaced, lives can’t. I think the constant threat of crime means that I am always aware of what is going on around me, who is around me, always ever vigilant, but I try not to live in fear and focus actually on living, not fearing.

Q: Have you ever considered emigration? If yes, where do you think you would emigrate to?

A: On and off… and there is only one place I would think about going, Australia, simply because it is outdoorsy, big with lots of empty spaces. Down side, no elephants, no Botswana, no game… and no family.

Q: If you were given the opportunity of sitting down with the president, what advice would you offer him?

A: When as a country you are totally focused on what is wrong and why everyone is a victim, you create more of what is wrong and more victims. If we are going to create lasting change we need to start focusing on what we want to create, as a country and for every person in that country. It’s not about ingoing what is wrong or our past, but rather being bigger than both and taking responsibility

Q: To which three attractions would you first take an international visitor?

A: Cosi Bay for endless white beach and stunning surf. Otherwise it is packing up the four by and doing a three-week trip from Cape Town, up the West Coast, across the Fish River canyon through Namibia and then through the game reserves in Botswana where you can still experience the wild.

Life in Johannesburg

Q: Which is your favorite restaurant in or around Johannesburg for a lazy Sunday Afternoon lunch?

A: By my pool! I have a stunning view over Joburg all the way to the Magaliesberg.

Q: Where in Johannesburg would you recommend for beginners wanting to get into the sport of diving?

A: I would recommend Wits Underwater Club. Wits has some of the best instructors in the country, not to mention both world record holders.

Q: What is your favorite destination when wanting to get away for a long weekend

A: Khutse Game Reserve in Botswana…. you are the only vehicle in the whole place and the lions walk straight through your camp site.

General

Q: To what extent do you think your sport has benefited your business?

A: The world record is a way of connecting to people and inspiring them to follow their own ‘impossible’ dream. It enabled me to really ‘get’ that limits are choices.

Until I decided to see what would happen if I really committed to getting the world record, no matter how hard or scary I did not see the box I lived in or even realise that the limits I thought to be set in stone where things I had created and so (for the most part) I could change.

That is why I became a life coach – so I could create an awareness in others that they have choices and so the power to choose their life and create one they would love to live.

Q: Which other records in the sport of diving impress you the most?

A: Anything to do with breathhold. Those guys are diving deeper than I did, with one breathe of air. That is truly remarkable commitment and mental discipline.

Q: One book that you would make required reading for all matric pupils?

A: The Dalai Lama, Advice on Dying and Living a Better Life. It really gives you a different perspective to fear and what we were born for, to live..no regrets.

Q: If you were able to invite 3 South Africans from any era to a dinner party, who would you invite and what would you serve?

A: Cecil John Rhodes and of course, Nelson Mandela. To serve, sushi :)

We’d like to thank Verna for taking the time to answer our questions and wish her every success with The Exploration Academy.