After nearly three years of diving using exclusively rental fins, the first purchase I made using my staff discount at Let’s Go Adventures was a brand new set of Scubapro Seawing Nova fins.
While I must admit that these fins initially caught my eye because of their wide range of colours, I’ve found them to be a great fit for me for several reasons beyond my love of bright orange. Of course, besides aesthetics, the vibrant colour options of these fins do help ensure that I’m easily visible as a Divemaster-in-training.
Design-wise, the Seawing Nova’s come built-in with a bungee strap, which can be a costly add-on to other fins. Bungee straps make gearing up for a dive and taking fins off afterwards as easy as can be. Like many divers, I used to struggle somewhat as I fiddled around with fin straps and buckles, especially if my hands were cold following a dive. Now I’m ready to go in less than 10 seconds.
In terms of kicking, I must warn that these fins are fairly stiff and are not particularly well-suited for snorkelling. This made doing my 800 meter timed snorkel (part of the Divemaster course) a bit challenging, however I love the way these fins feel underwater. Their stiffness makes them ideal for a slow, strong but relaxed kick and a powerful backfin, which is great for manoeuvring underwater while maintaining neutral buoyancy. It’s possible that they will become more flexible over time (and as their owner’s legs get stronger!), but as I’ve only had them a couple weeks it’s too soon for me to tell. What I can say is that they are very comfortable to wear. They have the power and maneuverability of a paddle fin (i.e. Turtles) but are much lighter.
Lastly, I really appreciated that Scubapro included a mesh carrying bag with this set of fins. Plus, the price was right as they are currently on sale at the shop for just $199 (while current stock lasts).