Captain Tony Bach was certified and began diving in 1973.  A summer job starting in 1975 with the Evanston Lakefront Service afforded him the opportunity to hang around boats and dive, dive, dive. In 1977 he joined the Evanston Police Department as a dispatcher. He also joined the EFD/Lifeguard dive team in 1978, assisting in boat rescues and body recoveries along the shore of Lake Michigan and numerous small inland lakes. In 1979 he attended the Law Enforcement Diving Institute in Marquette, Michigan. After leaving the City of Evanston in 1983 he purchased his first boat a Boston Whaler, which he still has. The next six years had him boating and diving in the Chicago area. He also did survey work for the Underwater Archeological Society of Chicago.
In 1990 Tony tagged along on a charter to the Willie aboard the LEN-DER, needless to say, he was hooked. Most Wednesdays would find him in Milwaukee, diving the numerous intact wrecks, something the shallow waters of the Chicago area did not have. His proficiency in solo diving evolved during this time, as did the visibility, due to the runaway Zebra mussel population. Along the way Tony earned a handful of certifications from PADI, TDI Nitrox, and NACD full cave. In 2005 he was licensed as a USCG Master of "50 Gross Tons Upon The Great Lakes And Inland Waters," along with a commercial assistance towing endorsement.
As before, most Wednesdays will find Tony aboard the LEN-DER, not diving, but taking out the usual crowd and soon to be regulars on yet another diving adventure. Cap'n Tony resides in Palatine, IL (Yes, a flat lander) with his wife Irene. Their dive travels have taken them throughout the Caribbean, Mexico, Grenada, Palau and Chuuk. More exotic dive destinations are on the horizon. |
Captain Jerry Guyer has been an active scuba diver for over 40 years and a PADI Master Scuba instructor for 30 years. He teaches many scuba classes every year and does marine salvage work from his workboat Len-Der. He is a U.S. Coast Guard Captain with a 100 ton Masters license. Running shipwreck diving charters in Lake Superior and Lake Michigan for the past 30 years he has helped thousands of people discover the thrill of shipwreck diving. His real passion is researching and finding lost shipwrecks in Lake Michigan. Using the latest high definition side scanning sonar’s he has located over two dozen shipwrecks in Lake Michigan. He is a retired high school teacher and lives in Milwaukee with his wife Sandy. 