What We Do
In thinking about what we actually do, I would have to sum it up by saying that we educate people so they can make the best decisions for themselves. We educate people on how to dive, what equipment is best for them, what diving and snorkeling opportunities await them, how to care for their gear and much more. Everyone is different and everyone has different objectives. Some divers will never dive outside of Wisconsin and some will only dive in warm destinations. We listen to what you say, share our experience and expertise with you, and give you the knowledge to make informed decisions for yourself.
Why we do what we do…
Our customers make our job special. We have certified nearly 5,000 divers through our facility. In doing that, we get the opportunity to know our customers and understand what their needs are. Whether you are diving locally, traveling with us to exotic locations, or traveling on your own, we are available to offer advice on gear, destinations, and our favorite dive and snorkel sites.
We encourage you to visit us or call us with your questions. We have been around a long time and love to share our experiences with you.
Our Focus
I could tell you that our primary focus is to show you a good time and have you experience the best adventure ever, but I would be lying. Our primary focus is safety. Your safety and our safety are paramount. Yes, we want you to have a good time and experience things you never have before, but not in a way that would jeopardize your safety. For this reason, we will abide by all of the PADI standards and will strive to teach you all of the best practices in diving.
In keeping with these safety concepts, we do the following:
-
Maintain our PADI Five Star Facility rating
-
Have a core of highly trained instructors with diverse talents and specialties
-
Purchase state-of-the-art equipment in our rental department
-
Maintain a full service repair department and constantly update ourselves on proper maintenance of the equipment we sell
-
Stand behind all of the equipment that we sell
-
Only deal with manufactures that hold the same standards as we hold
How Klein Scuba began…
Klein Scuba was founded by Phil Klein. Phil’s interest in diving began in the mid 70’s and was sparked by his older brother, who was already a diver. Phil loved diving and in order to get more involved, he decided to help the only local instructor with his classes. That continued for five years until that instructor decided to move to Florida. At that time, there were no other scuba instructors within several counties. So, Phil went to PADI College in San Diego and achieved his instructor certification.
Once Phil began his teaching career, he opened his first store in a shared a building with Fire Defense Supplies on Third Avenue in Wausau. Original plans for this location were to have a place to house the compressor and other equipment. This small store shortly phased into a full-service dive facility. Klein Scuba was in that location for five years, then moved on to a different location on Campus Drive in Wausau where Kwik Trip is now located. On January 1, 1993, a brand-new facility was opened at our current location.
Investing in the future…
Most divers regret not learning to dive earlier in life. We hear this repeatedly. We have decided to do what we can to expose our youth to diving. To that end, we have done the following:
- Partnered with camps to provide scuba lessons, Discover Scuba events or Try Scuba sessions
- We teach scuba courses to the Boy Scouts, adult leaders, and Venture Crew at Camp Tesomas, Rhinelander, WI each summer
- We have Discover Scuba Events at Camp Nicolet girls camp in Eagle River, WI
- Offer Discover Scuba or Try Scuba sessions to local schools, organizations, churches, clubs, and businesses
- Sponsor Venture Crew 439, which has chosen Scuba as one of their focus activities
- Conduct Open Water courses through the local YMCA’s
- Conduct Open Water courses through University of Wisconsin Marathon County (UWMC)
- Conduct Scuba classes at various city’s Parks and Recreation departments
Advocates for the Scuba diving industry…
Diving is a sport that everyone enjoys, but sometimes diving is a job. While the majority of our business is from recreational divers, we think of ourselves as advocates for the dive industry as a whole and support our local commercial and safety divers. To that end, we:
- Helped start various city rescue dive teams get underway. In addition to training, we assist them in acquiring gear for their teams at very reasonable prices.
- Assisted four other dive stores in their planning stages prior to opening up new dive facilities