Notable items for this year include:

* Wyland Paints with Kids

* Special Guest Speakers Stan Waterman and Marty Snyderman

* $20,000 in Door Prizes including travel and gear

* Over 60 Scuba Manufacturers

* Over 100 Scuba Travel Locations

The SCUBA Show features the largest exhibit hall for a consumer dive show in the Unites States. Any type of diver, from casual to expert, will find a multitude of interesting exhibits. Whether you are an openwater diver, a tech diver, a photographer, a hunter, a divemaster or a foreign location diver, there is something for you at the show.

This year has more exhibits on photography, rebreathers, foreign locales, freediving and spearfishing, and dive gear than has ever been featured before. Check out revolutionary fins, innovative dive computers, camera designs and more. You will see new styles of wetsuits, dry suits, innovative regulators and BCDs. Allow for two days as it may take you that long to see it all. Almost every major scuba manufacturer is represented at this show.

There is no better place to plan dive travel than at the SCUBA Show. Dive destinations representatives from nearly every place imaginable around the world will be there. Scores of destinations and live-aboard dive boats are represented, most offering show specials, saving you hundreds, even thousands of dollars. And many are presenting free drawings for special dive trips. Here you can talk to the destination experts directly and find out every detail of the resort or live-aboard of your interest. Pick up brochures, coupons and, better yet, book your next trip at the show itself for substantial savings. Bring your calendar to plan and save!

Rounding out the exhibits are a myriad of local dive centers (many offering specials and drawings) and dive boats, certification agencies, and companies of interest to any diver. You can even find quite a few non-profit agencies if you are looking to get more involved. 

Returning special exhibits include superb photos from local chapters of the Underwater Photographic Society, as well as expanded displays from the California Wreck Divers.

World famous marine artist Wyland will be appearing in person to do a live painting at the show and exhibit a large portion of his artwork.

Don't miss this unique opportunity for your child to help Wyland create a unique mural of an underwater scene. In 15-minute intervals, Wyland will bring up a group of children and guide them in creating their own masterpiece to be incorporated into the larger mural. This is a once in a lifetime chance for your child to paint with one of the most widely recognized marine artists, Wyland. Space is limited, first come, first served.

Legendary filmmaker Stan Waterman will be presenting four unique seminars throughout the weekend. Mr. Waterman is one of the true pioneers in today's diving community. Over the years he has produced over 50 documentary films and videos. He received five Emmy awards and was a cameraman for two feature films, The Deep and Blue Water, White Death. Stan is a seminal inductee into the International Scuba Divers Hall of Fame and a winner of DEMA's Reaching Out Award.

A big part of the SCUBA Show is its extensive seminar programs; 33 seminars will be presented throughout the weekend. Subject material is quite diverse, with seminars ranging from underwater video and photography to dive travel smarts to local diving to marine life. 

Key star seminar speaker will be noted dive magazine columnist Marty Snyderman, authority in marine life and underwater photography. Featured speakers for this year's show include photography experts Jack and Sue Drahafl, who will tell you how to get the most out of your underwater photography in and out of the water. Always popular speakers, Ken Knezick, Ken Kurtis, Dale Sheckler and Bruce Watkins will be on hand to give you some expert opinions on a variety of topics.

One low price covers admission to all the seminars for that day. See the insert in this issue for specific schedule, subject material and advanced registration information. Full seminar descriptions and speaker biographies can be found online at ScubaShow.com. Advanced registration is highly recommended for time and money savings.

Using a mega-sized screen actually in the exhibit hall, the continuous underwater film festival is always a popular draw. Excellent and several premier video films from around the world will be screened. A different schedule of films will be screened each day. Most are screened twice each day so that you can schedule your SCUBA Show experience to see films and the exhibit hall as well as take in some seminars.

All paid admissions will be given a door prize entry that will be eligible to win prizes for that specific day. Winner need not be present to win, but the sooner you get to the exhibit hall the more prizes you are eligible for.

A large variety of prizes are coming from these prestigious companies: Anthony's Key Resort * Blue Steel * Cane Bay Dive Shop * The Divers Platform * Diver's D/Lyte * Divi Resorts * Fourth Element * IST Diving System * Jack's Diving Locker/ScubaLuv Maui * Lahaina Divers * Lissenung Island Resort * Mares Diving * Miss Scuba * Ocean Reef Group * Performance Freediving International * Scuba Shack Maui * SeaLife Cameras * Sunset House * Unified Team Diving * Utila Dive Ventures/Laguna Beach Resort * Waterproof USA * World of Diving.

For a detailed description of door prizes visit ScubaShow.com.

One of the West Coast's premiere dive charter boat operators, Truth Aquatics, will be bringing all three of their stellar dive charter boats to Rainbow Harbor immediately adjacent to the Convention Center. SCUBA Show attendees are invited to tour these premiere dive charter boats (Truth, Conception, and Vision) for refreshments at anytime during the show.

The Conception and Vision are two of the largest dive charter boats serving California waters. Kept impeccably clean and comfortable, the Truth Aquatics boats run regular single and multiday dive trips to all eight of the Channel Islands as well as eco-adventure trips that include diving, snorkeling, kayaking and hiking. 

Sponsored by Truth Aquatics, California Diving News/SCUBA Show and California Ships to Reefs (CS2R), a full-on blow out party will take place aboard the Truth Aquatics boats Saturday evening. Tied together dockside, these three massive boats will be the venue for a fun benefit party. There will be drinks, food, music and dancing, games, a silent auction and prizes. Tickets are $20 if purchased in advanced, $25 if purchased dockside. Tickets are limited. Advance purchase is strongly encouraged. 

The party will benefit California Ships to Reefs (CS2R), a non-profit organization, working to sink ships to enhance the ocean environment as artificial reefs to grow marine life biomass and become attractions for diving enthusiasts. To register in advance visit the CS2R website at http://californiashipstoreefs.org or visit the CS2R booth at the entrance of the show.

A highlight of the Saturday evening party will be the presentation of the California Scuba Service Award. This award to created in 1989 and awarded annually by Saint Brendan Corp., home of California Diving News and the SCUBA Show, to recognize those that have made long-term positive contributions to the California sport diving community. 

This year's honoree is Dr. Bill Bushing, affectionately known simply as "Dr. Bill" among the diving community. Dr. Bill began diving in 1961. He has logged thousands of dives mostly in Southern California waters for research and educational purposes. He has published over 450 newspaper columns and peer-reviewed scientific papers. Dr. Bill has been a resident marine biologist on Catalina Island since 1969 and served as a consultant for Jean-Michel and Jacques Yves Cousteau in Cousteau's Rediscovery of the World television documentary.

Dr. Bill's Ph.D. in marine ecology from the University of California Santa Barbara focused the giant kelp forests around Catalina Island. His research developed a methodology for creating a network of marine reserves.

In the 1990's Dr. Bill served as a consultant for the Santa Catalina Island Conservancy. During this period he instituted a number of important conservation programs including non-native invasive plant control and active ecological restoration of damaged sites. 

Bill writes a weekly newspaper column, Dive Dry with Dr. Bill on marine life and ecology, and has two cable television programs. He has provided footage for PBS, NBC, ABC, CBS, The Weather Channel and other broadcast outlets as well as several DVDs on Southern California. Dr. Bushing has also produced 22 educational underwater videos, and lectures for various dive clubs and other marine or conservation oriented groups. 

Dr. Bill has served on the Advisory Board of Oceanic Defense and was named to California Ships-to-Reefs Science Committee.

ADVANCED REGISTRATION, HOTEL, PARKING, ETC.

To save time and money, register in advance online at ScubaShow.com or see the insert in this issue. Advanced registration deadline is May 21st. Make a mini-vacation of your show visit. Nearby is the Aquarium of the Pacific, Queen Mary, the new Pike entertainment and shopping complex, and dive-charter boats. The Hyatt Regency is next door to the Long Beach Convention Center and is offering a special rate for SCUBA Show attendees. Call 1-800-233-1234 and mention the SCUBA Show for the convention rate or visit the SCUBA Show website for a direct link to the hotel's website to make reservations online.

For complete details on the SCUBA Show, including online advanced registration, visit ScubaShow.com.

June 4-5, Long Beach Convention Center -- THE Diving Event of the Year!™, SCUBA Show 2011 -- Be there!