Trident Divers

Trident Divers Trident Divers was established to safely bridge the gap between exploration and education. Competen

Founded in 2013, Trident Divers was the result of a lifelong love of the ocean, exploration and devotion to the ideal of safety through education. As a former ocean lifeguard, and lifelong waterman Joel's focus is on competence in the water, both swimming and diving - while in pursuit of exploration.

The 2026 calendar for the Rocks, Reefs and Rips has been approved and will be posted shortly to their website. The refr...
03/31/2026

The 2026 calendar for the Rocks, Reefs and Rips has been approved and will be posted shortly to their website.

The refresher course for all active instructors, safety swimmers and volunteers has been scheduled: Saturday, 9 May 2026 from 0630 a.m. until 12:30 p.m.

I will be opening 8 slots for those who have yet to obtain the DFA certification. If you are an active volunteer or safety swimmer for the Council of Divers, please reach out to sign up for the course. Sign ups are first come, first served. If you would like to learn more about the specifics of this course, please visit https://dan.diverelearning.com

DFA course dates/times:
Friday 17 April, 2026 - 6pm-9pm
Saturday 18 April, 2026 - 10am-3pm
Friday 24 April, 2026 - 6pm-9pm
Saturday 25 April, 2026 - 6pm-9pm

Lastly: If you are a current volunteer, safety swimmer or instructor...or you would like to become one [you must be a competent swimmer with ocean experience] we have slated 15 open water swim practices for you. Please arrive 15 minutes early, bring your suit, towel, water and a positive attitude.

2 April - DeAnza Cove 1730 pm
4 April - La Jolla Shores 0600 am
7 April - La Jolla Cove 1730 pm
9 April - DeAnza Cove 1730 pm
11 April - La Jolla Shores 0700 am
14 April - La Jolla Cove 1730 pm
16 April - DeAnza Cove 1730 pm
18 April - La Jolla Shores 0700 am
21 April - La Jolla Cove 1730 pm
23 April - DeAnza Cove 1730 pm
25 April - La Jolla Shores 0700 am
28 April - La Jolla Cove 0730 pm
2 May - La Jolla Shores 0700 am
5 May - South Casa Rip 1730 pm
7 May - DeAnza Cove 1730 pm

03/26/2026

Pre-season workout #2 [Rocks, Reefs, Rips]
This workout is intended for our instructors, safety swimmers, and volunteers.

For those outside of the 3R's community - modify the below activity to fit your desired fitness goals.

Weights:
Lat Pull Down: 60% max weight/15 reps; 1 set
Leg Extension: 75% max weight/20 reps; 1 set
Bench Press: 75% max weight/20 reps; 1 set
Hamstring Curl: 75% max weight/20 reps; 1 set
Bench dumbbell fly: 60% max weight/20 reps; 1 set
Hammer Squat: 75% max weight/20 reps; 1 set
Seated dumbbell curl: 75% max weight/20 reps; 1 set
Bent dumbbell pull: 75% max weight/20 reps; 1 set
Bench Pullover: 50% max weight/20 reps; 1 set
Preacher curl: 60% max weight/20 reps; 1 set

Elliptical: 10 minutes @ 70% maximum RPM
Treadmill: 30 seconds at each speed from 3.5 mph to 7 mph - increments increase at [0.1] mph increments. After reaching 7 mph, reverse increments at same time duration [45 minute constant movement]

Swim: (Free) 50-100-150-200-150-100-50 ladder
15 second RI after 50; 30 sec RI after 100; 45 sec RI after 150; 1 min RI after 200; 45 sec RI after 150; 30 sec RI after 100; 15 sec RI after 50

Swim: (Free) 4x50 sprint; on 1 minute

Swim: (Free) 5x100
sprint 25/recovery 75 RI after 100 30 sec

Cool Down: (Free) bilateral breathing - 50 m of each: breath every third stroke; breath every 5th stroke; breath every 7th stroke; breath every 9th stroke; breath every 11th stroke

submerged kick, belly up, 1 foot above pool floor: 10x25 - focus on exhaling entire length of 25 on one breath.

The San Diego Council of Divers Rock's, Reef's and Rips season is just around the corner. For all of our safety swimmer...
03/11/2026

The San Diego Council of Divers Rock's, Reef's and Rips season is just around the corner. For all of our safety swimmers, volunteers and instructors...that means it is a good time to get your body back into the water (if you took time off) and start prepping.

Today's workout:
1000 m Pull
250 m kick with fins
250 m submerged sidestroke
5x100 swim [25m sprint/75m easy; 30m sprint/70m easy; 50m sprint/50m easy; 70m sprint/30m easy; 50m sprint/50m easy]
Cool Down:
50m each - breath every 3rd stroke; 5th stroke; 7th stroke; 9th stroke; 11th stroke
4x25 m - submerged kick on back, controlled exhale for entire length

If you have been sedentary for more than a few weeks, speak with your physician first to confirm you are healthy enough to exercise vigerously.

03/11/2026

Lauren and I headed out for a bit of exploration outside of the La Jolla Ecological Preserve...specifically out along the southern edges of Boomer or Point La Jolla. Plenty to see, despite visibility which was slightly impaired due to an uptick in opposing wave energy. A great morning dive overall...and Lauren did great, considering this was her first shore based ocean dive :)

10/15/2025

Wanted to share a thoughtful review we received.

169bradfordc
1 contribution

Review from Oct 14, 2025
Trident Divers
Wonderful dive experience!
I had a wonderful experience diving in the La Jolla Ecological Reserve recently with Joel Tracey of Trident Divers. I’ve completed dozens of dives around the world, and Joel is by far the best all-around dive instructor I’ve ever encountered. His knowledge of the area’s history, conditions, and sea life is encyclopedic. His top priority is to ensure the safety of his clients while getting into/under/getting out of the water. He did a superb job of pointing out creatures both big and small during the dive, and did a comprehensive debriefing afterwards to explain what we saw. He’s also a true gem of an individual. If you’re considering diving in the San Diego area, don’t even Tri any other dive instructors, go with Joel and Trident Divers!

10/08/2025

Great morning dive! Remember - if it's been more than six months since your last dive, give us a call and book yourself a scuba refresher. This is NOT the time of year to tread lightly into the ocean.

Diving from the shore in Southern California can be among the most physically demanding recreational dive choices we mak...
04/28/2025

Diving from the shore in Southern California can be among the most physically demanding recreational dive choices we make. Stack the deck in your favor, and incorporate a regular physical training regimen into your tool box of good choices.

As part of my regular physical exercise routine specific to diving (weight training, endurance training and swimming) I focus at least 500 meters of each swim workout on fin work.

A sample swim workout: 1000 m (pull) any stroke; 500 m (kick) with fins and concentrating on knee/ankle flexibility; 800 m split interval ladder (50-100-150-200-150-100-50) building tempo; 200 m sprint - broken set (4x50); 250 recovery - focus on relaxation of stroke and rhythmic exhalation; 250 m (10x25) submerged kick with full breath exhalation

The intended benefits include: improved hydrodynamic form; increased cardio efficiency; increased hip, knee, ankle flexibility; increased kick related muscle efficiency; improved lung function and capacity; increased gas exchange efficiency; increased endurance; improved mental function as relates to in-water function under duress.

Bonus benefit: having some level of “afterburner” available when the unexpected physical demand (rogue set shows up during your surface kick to or from shore) arrives at your door.

Final note - schedule your next physical with a “dive physician” (those specializing in hyperbaric medicine) and discuss recommendations for a regular physical exercise routine that will incorporate the unique demands of scuba diving.

10/13/2024

Ben's first ocean dive - he got La Jolla Cove on a good day. The visibility wasn't great, but the swells were down and there was plenty of activity inside of the preserve.

08/30/2024

Brenda experienced her first dives off the shore of San Diego yesterday morning. Surface conditions were quite nice - less than a foot of swell and relatively mild surge. Temps above the thermocline were 71 and below 15 feet 64. Visibility was a bit hazy and between 8-10 feet. Plenty of animal life to be found however ...not a bad introduction to shore diving in San Diego.

11/16/2023

The plan was to dive the Cove this morning...but in keeping with sound dive plans I arrived well ahead of the scheduled dive to watch the ocean. Initially the site looked pretty nice, relatively clear and lots of activity with several hundred cormorants all racing toward a bait-ball on the outside. It looked at the outset like it was going to be another great dive day...

About 10 minutes into the site assessment the first of several sets arrived. Wrapping around from the WSW 3-4 foot swells with peaks every 13 seconds started pounding the shore...foam streaks started to appear (indicators of a very long lateral rip current) and surging wave at the shore slammed into the cliffs and stairs - imaging a diver trying to exit that site, under those conditions seemed like a pretty poor decision.

Fortunately, when my client arrived we had a chance to both see these conditions in real time and discuss an alternate site to review. We headed a mile east to the Marine Room - where it was flat.

Tide was super high, so entry from the stairs was immediate immersion :) Considering the size of the waves at the Cove my expectation for visibility at this location wasn't high...we were pleasantly surprised.

Thank you Francesca for choosing Trident Divers! It was our pleasure guiding on your first dive in California.

11/10/2023

She hadn't been in the water in over a decade, but made the right choice...she booked a "refresher" course with Trident Divers and we headed out to Catalina. On our boat ride over we refreshed on topics like equipment set up, dive planning, buddy checks, what the dive tables are and how to use them - we even walked through a list of skills we would be reviewing once in the water.

Our first dive focused on the mechanics and physiology of diving - equalizing pressure, breathing and relaxation; breathing through a regulator without a mask present; clearing a flooded mask; retrieving a regulator and clearing; oral and auto inflation of a BCD; removal and replacement of weights on the surface and submerged; and the ever important - neutral buoyancy skill; we even went over some important safety skills - how to recover an unconscious diver in the water.

Our second dive focused on executing a planned dive - staying within the plan and remaining diligent about your breathing gas supply and dive buddy location. Lorri did great!

Now all she needs...to get herself a couple of sound dive buddies...and to get back in the water - at least once a month.

Safe Diving Lorri!

Address

2100 Vallecitos
La Jolla, CA
92037

Telephone

+16194159426

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