The Dive
 

Right now The Dive is heading towards The Weirs and passing between Governors and Eagle Islands

Congratulations Captain Ahab. You have spotted the great white whale of the lake! Or should we say white elephant


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I've seen it sitting in Sanders Bay for the last couple of days.

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It is like spotting a white elephant.

It’s not “white” any longer !

Signs of Summer
 

I can't wait to get out on the Dive again this year. We ALWAYS have a great time when we go. Jamie and Betsy understand that the restaurant / bar business is all about hospitality and making connections with their patrons. They do an amazing job of making you feel like they appreciate your business. They genuinely make you feel welcome and go the extra mile to make your experience a memorable one. Bravo Jamie and Betsy!! Mrs Breeze and myself
will be on the Dive as soon as we can.

The Breeze
aka Paulie ;O)

You all must have a designated driver or a captain. :)

If I were marine patrol, I would just anchor in front of it.

Pretty sure that would constitute harassment.... No different than the cops parking in front of any other legal drinking establishment. The MP has plenty of other things on their to do list...

Woodsy

I would rather have the drunks harassed then have a kayaker killed. ;)

Of course you would trample the rights of a legal business and its patrons.... No surprise there!

Woodsy

So, you are OK with people dying as long as drunks can have fun.

This is really a non issue as the Dive doesn’t really leave the pier at the weirs any longer. Or at least it didn’t last year.


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Personally, I have an issue with constitutional rights being trampled in the name of safety! To quote Ben Franklin - ""Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."

The Dive is no different than any other LEGAL drinking establishment that is boater accessible. That you would be OK with harassment of a legal business that to date has done nothing wrong speaks volumes to your character!


Woodsy

Numbnuts, read what I wrote before jumping down my throat.

I never said Dive has done anything wrong or illegal. All I am saying is that, drunk or drugged people should not operate cars or vehicles.
If you get drunk at Dive and hit me by accident, guess who is getting sued? Yes, Dive will get sued as well as you.

Before you start running around on the streets with your gun and a flag screaming FREEDOM, read the facts.
If you get drunk at a bar and kill someone, that bar would be considered the enabler. You are such a moron.

You can't fix stupid.

I read what you wrote.... its not my fault you advocate to trample the rights of a legal business and customers under the guise of "safety"! Perhaps a return to prohibition would better suit you?

You are so wicked smaht... you resorted to name calling! Shocked I am!

You are the one who advocated for the MP to harass a legal business and its patrons...

"If I were marine patrol, I would just anchor in front of it."

"I would rather have the drunks harassed then have a kayaker killed."

Those statements speak volumes to your character.... you paint the Dive and its customers with a pretty wide brush, with absolutely no proof whatsoever of wrongdoing by either. Pretty bold assumption coming from a wicked smaht person such as yourself!

Woodsy

Can anybody explain why the Dive since day one has drawn such ire?

If it was a land based would anybody be talking about it?
The fact it's at the Weirs now, to me only helps a tired and outdated location. It reminds me of O.O.B., Hampton beach etc. I do not know the owners at all never spoken to them...but they are trying something new and different with their money.
As for Ben Franklin, he wanted the turkey as the national bird not the bald eagle which to me goes hand in hand... a subject that is a turkey.

I have no issues with that place.
Do not like it, but that means nothing. Good Luck to them.
I think it maybe a great business idea.

Unfortunately younger generation associates boating w/ partying and drinking.
Dive, being on the water, is enabling that.
Drinking and partying is fine as long as you have a designated captain.
I myself enjoy drinking at a sandbar (Margate) as long as I am not the designated captain.

All I am saying is that DO NOT DRINK, SMOKE and operate a boat.

The Dive gets a bad rap
 

Motorhead has some valid points about DWI / BWI. Speaking for myself, I have never gotten drunk on the Dive. We had drinks, food, laughs, listened to some great music, watched the fireworks and met some amazing people. Too many people immediately assume that any water borne establishment is going to over serve their patrons. My own experience on the Dive is there is a lot of food being served along with the adult beverages. They have very well trained waitstaff who genuinely care about their customer's well being and don't over serve. Open your minds and try the place before you condemn something. If you hate it ...don't go back, but you should try it at least once so you can form an educated opinion. They run a great operation and face some very entrenched and established opposition, because they are a formidable threat to the status quo in the Weirs. We love the Dive because it's one of the few places that treat us like they are happy to have us and want us back!

The Breeze
aka Paulie ;0)

I believe you're mistaken. Cops can park in front of a legal drinking establishment. They almost never do because they understand impact on business, but it doesn't constitute (legal definition) harassment. So no rights are being trampled on by the suggestion.

Perfectly stated!

Nothing I can add.

I think it is mostly of interest (and dislike) because its godawful butt ugly.

If it were a sleek modern or classic clean design I feel certain more people would embrace it. My example would be the MT Washington, people still love it.

I really dont think it has anything to do with land based or being on the water, its about appearance.

I also understand that some of the the novelty and marketing of the Dive is that it looks like one, but I truly believe it would be far more accepted if it were less eyesore and more visually appealing to the masses. Every time I pass by it I kinda cringe, but once I'm past it, I dont give it a second thought. I just really dont care about it one way or another, but I do know if it were a tad nicer looking I might be a customer. Maybe,,, Just being honest.

As for the Eagle vs. the Turkey, I personally dont care for appearance of either, not attractive birds to me. But then the really stunning birds and not native to North America. I would have picked another animal as our national icon, maybe a bear or horse or Wolf or anything but a Turkey or an Eagle, but thats a whole different debate ;-)

Do they really,,,

I would argue intoxicated boaters are at the top of the concern list way above most other infractions. AND its too often a contributor to serious boat crashes.

Other than rescues, I really cant think of anything I would rather have the MP doing than monitoring for and attempting to stop intoxicated boat operators.

And to the the Marine Patrol I say thank you for your efforts to keep the lake safe from captains who have had too much to drink. I can only imagine what the MP Officers must put up with when the stop and question boat owners with big egos and bad attitudes. It must be a nightmare to deal with them,,, Too often we only stop these captain boneheads after someone is injured or dead.

I'd like to think the majority of boaters stopped by MP are polite and realize they are just doing their job, keeping the lake safe for everyone. Maybe that's wishful thinking, I don't know any MP staff personally so not sure.

I don't think the Dive needs to be, or should be, targeted by MP. There are more than enough places, sandbars and town docks, where people have just as much opportunity to drink before boating, I don't see a need to prioritize that one business over others.

No disagreement that the Dive should not be singled out from anywhere else where we are likely to find intoxicated operators.

Maybe my message was not well worded, but my intent was that watching for intoxicated operators (wherever you might likely find them) is of top concern to my in the duties of the Marine Patrol. Intoxicated operators is far more concerning to me than than most other infractions. Not to ignore other violations, but for me most other matters are a distant second.

And this just my opinion, likely there are many others.

Perhaps the Dive should rent out the "ugly" side walls as Billboards.
Maybe Huggins Hospital or the new LRGH can slap a "smart sign" on the side and advertise the waiting time for their ER? (Ever driven down I-293 in Manchester?)!

Heck I think every Marina on the lake may want to advertise so maybe go 100% digital and let the brightly lit sign keep flashing each advertiser (Again think I-293 in Manchester near the intersection of I-93!

My point exactly, most wont like that just as much and it would be even more of a turn off than their current exteriors. That said all those places could sure use a refresh on the outside to make them more presentable.

On the flip side, once a place of business looks good, they usually do more business, then they charge more and for restaurants that usually means longer wait times,,,

So for those who enjoy the Dive as it is, you should hope nothing changes.

ATB

Oh, and dont mistake my comments to be a knock against the Dive, I have never been in it and have no basis to say anything about it except it looks butt ugly to me.

But then I could say similar about the Winnipesaukee Pier restaurant, but I still enjoy stopping by and having a snack and enjoying the view from the deck.

Regardless of where you eat, always remember to tip your wait-staff very well, its tough work for low pay. It wont kill you to drop a few extra dollars, but it might make a big difference to them.

Looks like The Dive is now having issues with Gilford.

From The Dive FB page yesterday:

"Sadly, we will not be open this weekend due to a power hungry town admin who spread lies to hurt our business and reputation."

First Marilyn Manson now The Dive. What is happening in Gilford. What has changed?


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Was it Alton Bay that had a problem with The Dive planning to use their docks for pickup the year before last?

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So, What "rumors" did the town spread? And is the money just to launch it seeing that it is/was at Fays?
Just curious? I have no problem with them but just never understood why the engineer that built it would power it with the engines it did and the place that they put it. Not efficient at all!!

You didn't hear this from me, butttt I heard that The Dive and The Winni Belle hooked up and he ghosted her and now she's all, like, "oh, no, you DIDN'T" and careening about town tellin' everybody The Dive be her Baby Daddy.

I've not confirmed this, but it's what's makin' the rounds at all the docks and marinas...

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Yup, this sounds about right.


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I don't know the scoop here, but it is funny how some businesses turn on a hypocritical dime. They go from "we're good citizens" to accusing others of slandering them unfairly as they slander the ones they are upset with, but don't provide real details so a person can judge for themselves.

The issues and people are different, but The Dive seems to be using ESA's PR firm.

FS,

Yes, the Dive and Epic seem to have similar responses when confronted with legitimate issues. With the Dive, their issues first began with their ignorant assumption that they could just tie up at a public dock as part of their business model; then issues with their first Landlord at the Weirs, Eastcoast; then more issues with their second Landlord at the Weirs, the City of Laconia. Always the fault of someone else apparently. See, for example, this post by the Dive in the FB thread regarding their current issues:

"Thank you all! We have ALWAYS taken the high road but at this point - we are fighting back - as the high road isn't helping us. We have 90% support vs 10% haters - but they are the ones causing all the issues!! Not to mention FAKE News media and crooked politics. We are a family business just trying to bring something fun to the lake and our boating friends. We need our 9000+ followers to help us in ANY way you can think of! Our platform is one-of-a-kind and we have so many great ideas for this summer. If you take our 9000 followers and their networks - there's strength in numbers! We need to oust some of these small town players who think they own the STATE run lake! We're tired of battling against it alone - so please - we will take ANY support you have. Thank you again and we hope to see you all very soon"

Oh no, another unhappy soul playing "the fake news media" card.

Goodbye, credibility ...

Ok, so I get it that their approach is maybe not the best. But I also think they may be beyond the point of frustration by now. After a very difficult year last year for any small business, to be heading into the busy season and have roadblock after roadblock thrown your way has to be frustrating. I don't know the details so I don't have any opinion to express one way or the other in terms of who is right and who is wrong, but I can guess that small town politics are making it hard to operate the business.

I guess I look at it this way .... to embark on a business such as theirs on Winni, you are looking at trying to be in compliance with the 7 (is it seven?) bordering towns and the state and find a place to do business that won't restrict your activity to the point of throttling your business. It is hard, to say the least. I'd just like them to have a fair chance to run their business the same way a shoreside restaurant has.

Well it appears that some friends of The Dive are upset for sure (both comments “liked” by The Dive).


“you don’t sound like a concerned citizen you sound like more like a politician how do you know so much about there stuff going on why don’t you get a ****in life and stop harassing great people”

“doesn’t matter guys like that shouldn’t mess with peoples business or try and take money off your plate it’s not right but apparently people gotta open up a fake ass account you know why cause he’s got no balls that’s why”

I guess you can really tell a lot about someone by the company they keep.

I don't care who you are, that is funny right there.....

With that said what is the issue now? The Dive has been a train wreck since the beginning, they seem to have a interpretation of the law that does not jive with with reality....

I think the problem that they are finding is that they thought being on the water would mean that the only regulatory body they would have to deal with was the state. Which probably came from flawed legal advice at the outset of the venture.