About Us
Here at Spartan Scuba & Dive Team we take instruction seriously. We make sure that no matter the diver who trains with our Dive Team, they leave feeling exceptionally confident in the skills that they have acquired. Our Dive Team members ensure that all courses are at the diver’s pace and all skills required are comfortable for the student. While no one in the beginning, including our very own instructional staff, is a complete master of the materials they have just learned, our Dive Team ensures that each student will leave feeling confident in their ability to manage their own gear, their diving, and their safety, as well as excited to continue trying their newly acquired skills, dive afterdive.
At Spartan Scuba & Dive Team we are inclusive to all divers and non-divers alike at all skill levels, ages, and abilities. If someone has a desire to learn then we have a desire to teach. To ensure that everyone stays safe while mingling with our community there will be one hint to picking out your instructional staff from the community: they will be titled Spartan Dive Team. The diver with that title has been personally vetted and approved by me. I have dived with the individual baring that title multiple times and trust that the recommendations or instruction given (to their certification level) is accurate, good for the environment, and above all else safe for everyone involved.
Now, lets meet Spartan Dive Team!
Instructional Staff
Doc
Chief Spartan & Lead Instructor
Our fearless leader! An eight year Marine Corps veteran, Dr. Strand discovered Chinese Medicine as a last resort when recovering from a military related injury. He has since dedicated his life to the practice of medicine; a doctor to many – a healer to all. In recent years he has turned to SCUBA diving as a meditation aid in his quest for ultimate peace. His experiences and travels abroad impact not only his writing style, but his passion for life, medicine, and the way he teaches SCUBA diving.
Spartan SCUBA and Dive Team came to life in 2022 after he struggled to find a training facility that could not only meet his needs and goals as an instructor, but also maintained a high level of professionalism and adherence to the safety rules of diving. Disheartened he decided to seek out training abroad, bring back what he learned, and start his own shop in Gresham, Oregon.
Doc holds high expectations for not just himself, but also the dive leaders he works with and trains, the dive team he is assembling, how we teach our courses, and the gear we carry. He wants the best, and coaxes it out of each one of us who have been lucky to train with him.
Spartan SCUBA is small right now, but big things are coming. According to Doc, SCUBA diving is the things dreams are made of… and he’s just getting started!
SDI Instructor Trainer ~ TDI Instructor Trainer ~ FRTI Instructor Trainer #28747
KC
Vice President & Instructor
Having been there for the creation phase of Spartan Scuba and Dive Team, KC has seen all of the napkins (yes, even the ones that were shredded). Personally trained by Doc to teach scuba diving KC helps with open water guppies to make sure everyone has everything they need (student and Dive Team members included) to have a great time underwater. An assistant instructor by title, KC prefers the moniker of Divemaster, and probably always will!
Scuba Steve
Charter Member & Instructor
Scuba Esteban is Spartan Scuba’s Tropical scuba diving expert. He makes friends everywhere he goes and as an added benefit to his outgoing personality, learns all of the best dive spots abroad. This guy CAN teach anyone here in the PNW but why when he knows where to take people for a wonderful tropical experience? If you can catch him underwater, you’re probably in Cabo, or Cozumel, or somewhere else warm and sunny.
Randell “the Reverend” Feigner
Instructor Candidate & Chief Executive Mustache Engineer
Reverend Randell is the newest member of the Spartan Scuba instructional team and Spartan Dive Team member. Certified for open water by Doc and Scuba Steve in June of 2022, Randy was identified as an immediate leader in the water.
“Dedicated” doesn’t even begin to describe the Reverend’s devotion to learning and applying all that he knows to helping other divers both in and out of the water.
Randy’s gear: DiveRite XT1/XT4 advanced open water reg kit. Favorite dive: Punta Sur – the Devil’s Throat in Cozumel, MX. Local dive experience recommendation: Timothy Lake for a crawdad cookout!
You can also find the Reverend, also known as “Meat”, making sure the family business is living up to the high standards he holds himself to. White’s!
Aidian O’Leyen “Mr. Mellow”
Divemaster & The most chillest of chill.
Mr. Mellow: the name says it all. This guy never gets stressed or upset about anything… EVER. He was born to be in the water. No matter the dive you want to do, he is stoked to do it with you. Down to 100 feet to see some boats, yes please; sitting at 15 feet to take some photos, he’s down to burry his head in some corals and wait for you. Look no further for the best dive buddy. Aidian is the most thoroughly certified Divemaster you’ll find: from open water to decompression procedures – Aidian has your back!
Tim Dominick
Instructor & Dive Safety Officer
Tim joined the Spartan team after crossing over from another agency in February of 2024. Just like Doc, Tim is a Marine Corps veteran. He began his diving career back 2014 during an internship for his undergraduate degree in Biology. Since then he continued his dive education in central Florida and in Florida’s cave country. He worked as a Divemaster/technician at the Florida aquarium, training and taking certified patrons into the exhibit tanks to include shark dives. Tim is a technical diver with over 1000 dives specializing in overhead environments. Tim is a scuba instructor for both PADI and SDI heads up the training and readiness of the Maritime Archaeological Society of Oregon. When he’s not spending time with his wife or SCUBA diving, Tim spends his time as a Multnomah County Deputy Sheriff.
Chris Lucier
Instructor Trainer
Aside from being the second Intructor Trainer at Spartan Scuba, Chris also manages the Northwest region for International Training.
Chris started his recreational diving while living in Africa in 2011. He still daydreams of lazy weekends diving in Zanzibar off the coast of Tanzania. Returning stateside in 2016, he took the plunge into the cold waters of the Pacific Northwest and just kind of stayed there, earning his way up to Instructor Trainer.
Chris, owner and operator of One Dude Diving, LLC, joined Spartan Scuba as one of our official instructors in the summer of 2023. While he operates predominantly out of his remote location in Marysville, WA, he connects with us for training events all over the United States and Mexico to help with instructors and technical diving specialty courses.
Spartan Dive Team Dive Buddies
Steve “Taz” Tasbaltayev
DMC & Photographer Extraordinaire
Since being certified in Mexico his taste has changed for the PNW waters. Taz has been training with Doc to become part of the instructional team. In doing so he has completed his Rescue Diver training and has recently begun his Divemaster course. With a passion for multiple sports Taz is a well rounded individual and a great buddy! Who doesn’t want to get in the waters with an up and coming dive professional?!
David 'the Hoov' Hoover
Hawaiian-borne Divemaster
David has been all over the place and trained with everyone you can think of. Originally certified as an SSI diver with Adrian Pereta, David transitioned to SDI with his sidemount and Divemaster ratings in the Aloha State of Hawaii in 2023.
Always down for a dive, David is quickly becoming a Spartan Regular, diving everywhere from Europe to Hoodsport: if a place has water, you can count on him being in it!
