RE Log - Spring 2020

SPRING 2020 Ransom Everglades LOG 9 Kenny Broad, The Cave Diver After college, Broad and Malone attended the University of Miami together, each earning a master’s degree in marine science. But their main focus was finding ways to bring in cash by doing what they loved: being on the water. As certified divers and boat captains – Broad also had Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) and specialized dive training – they made good money as freelancers, landing gigs on movie sets that needed underwater stunts or staging. Those temp jobs expanded to government and university research trips, and Broad’s diving soon advanced to cave diving after he met the National Geographic Society underwater photographer and producer Wes Skiles. For Broad, cave diving changed everything. The feeling that enveloped him as he floated through deep, largely unexplored underwater realms was like nothing he had experienced. The discoveries in the depths below astounded him. He has described cave diving as “the best job ever.” “It’s this whole experience of calmness,” he said. “This magic carpet ride through the underworld.” Yet the uncharted underworld carried risks. “It’s one of the least understood parts of our planet because it’s one of the least explored, largely because of the physical and mental challenges,” he said. “And the heavy downside of this career is losing a lot of very close friends.” Skiles was one of them. He died during a dive in 2010 – not long after teaming up with Broad for breakthrough exploration of the Blue Holes of the Bahamas that landed on the cover of National Geographic magazine. A decade before, Broad, who had just been selected to the U.S. Cave Diving Team, traveled to Oaxaca, Mexico, to explore the Huautla cave system, considered the Mount Everest of cave-diving because of its depth and associated dangers. The leader of the trip, Bill Stone, envisioned the effort as a chance to chart new territory in the sprawling cave, and also to learn skills and test out new technologies that could be adapted to Mars exploration. Broad was thrilled to have been chosen for this prestigious quest. When he arrived, he paired up with a Brit named Ian Rolland. He and Rolland, both in their late 20s, became fast friends, and quickly descended farther into the cave than the rest of the team. When they reached the limit of previous exploration, the neck of the cave that had stymied previous explorers nearly 5,000 feet underground, they pressed on. Photo by Jill Heinerth/Nova