For over two decades, I’ve been diving rebreathers, ever since the original KISS classic CCR was created by Gordon Smith.

Through decades of travel, dive exploration, and underwater filming, the heavy scuba gear often provoked my desire for a more streamlined, lighter rebreather—one that would be easier to transport, required minimal maintenance, and had fewer parts. The weight of tanks and bulky equipment was a constant reminder of a wish for a better way.

More than a year ago, Keith Ambrose (an ADM CCR diver\explorer) and I planned our third ADM expedition to Lake Atitlán, Guatemala, to search for and retrieve ancient Mayan artifacts. My close friend and CCR designer, Mike Young, and a few other mutual dive buddies joined the ADM project.

Arriving in Guatemala, my wife Jennifer and I hauled in my regular load: two exceedingly large, heavy checked equipment boxes, a very heavy camera box, and a seriously overweight backpack that, by some miracle, escaped the airline’s scale. While waiting at the airport for Mike Young and his wife Sheri’s arrival from Arkansas. Jennifer and I spotted Mike casually exiting with just a lightweight backpack and a small roller bag. Worried, I asked Mike, “Did the airline lose your rebreather box?” My face mirrored the sheer terror of the potential repercussions. Mike smiled pleasantly and said, “I have something new, I think you’re going to want to see”.

Reaching base camp, Mike unzipped his roller bag, and produced a compact, black, circular device: his diving gear, complete with a loop, counter-lungs and a couple short regulator hoses. “Is that it?” I said.

Initially, I was skeptical about the compact rebreather Mike engineered, but our week-long dive trip provided ample opportunity to observe its capabilities against the already established big boy units that I was a custom to.

Each day of diving began with the collective efforts of everyone, carrying all their equipment, including cylinders, rebreathers, dry suits, cameras and lights, down the hill from base camp, onto an old, shaky, wooden dock and into a small, panga style, boat. We would motor across the lake to pre-selected locations, beach the boat, and unload all the equipment onto the shore, kit up, swim to the deep drop off, and begin our search for lost relics. Return to shore, break down our equipment, repack the boat and return to base camp and, yes, unload and carry our gear back up the hill. Does any of this sound familiar to anyone?

By day three, I remained focused on Mike’s effortless use of his small black box, while my slow ass struggled, sweating under the weight of my gear, deliberately packing it back into the boat and then again carrying it up hill, Mike sat relaxed, ordered his lunch and was checking emails and I believe he was smirking each time I passed by with gear.

As the project ended and my back ached, I became fully convinced and impressed by Mike’s new lightweight mCCR unit, not only was it extremely streamlined and lightweight, but underwater where it matters most, Mike’s little black box, was sleek and silent, and effortlessly mimicked the precise dives of the larger, lumbering units. I am delighted that rebreather technology has indeed progressed to become more efficient and has found “a better way”.

Jokingly, I said to Mike, “Keith boastfully calls his Inspiration Rebreather, The Cadillac, because it has every bell and whistle ever known to man.” What are you going to call your little black box? Mike smiled and answered, “The GO, because you can GO any damn place you want to go”. I’d have to agree, with such a streamline design, it is possible to go almost anywhere you want to go!

Since our ADM exploration dive in Atitlán, Mike Young has collaborated with Woody Alpren and Gus Gonzalez, owners of Dive Talk, for manufacturing, distribution and diver training programs on the new mCCR GO rebreather unit.