It's no fish tale. After 51 hours, 4 minutes and 28 seconds underwater, "The Grouper" rose from the seas in triumph — back to the land where he belonged.

Allen Sherrod, a determined diver with a dream, reclaimed the world diving record Saturday for the longest time submerged in open saltwater.

The record was a title that Sherrod, known as "The Grouper," originally claimed in 2011 with a 48-hour-and-13-minute dive off Lauderdale-by-the-Sea. When a diver off Malta broke it last year, Sherrod set out to clinch the record once more.

"The only challenge was doing the time," Sherrod said shortly after returning to land. "Just hanging out and not getting excited about getting out too early."

Spectators on the beach cheered as they saw the diver raise his arms toward the sky in victory. His pruned hands were ashen and swollen. He knew precisely what he craved after more than two days on a mostly liquid diet of Gatorade and a rice-meal energy drink.

"I'm ready to eat my grouper tenders, eat some fries and take a nap," said Sherrod, 48.

The two days and nights spent by Sherrod underwater all began about 6:30 a.m. Thursday, when he plunged into the ocean.

Two divers stayed by Sherrod's side at all times to keep watch. They closely observed his rising chest as he slept and even checked for messy handwriting on a magnetic board that could clue them in to any decline in his physical state, said lead safety diver Jose Mijares.

"He had sensory deprivation, sleep deprivation," he said. "He goes through emotional roller coasters."

Sherrod easily entertained himself with the world that surrounded him at about 15 to 18 feet in depth.

He organized "sand dollar races" by digging up sand dollars only to watch them slowly burrow themselves under the sea floor again.

A dozen or so squid also swam around him. "They were doing their little dance back and forth," he said.

The highlight of the dive for Sherrod came Friday, when he renewed his vows with his "beautiful mermaid wife," he said.

The underwater ceremony between Sherrod and his bride, Barbara Wynns, was only natural — she was a former Weeki Wachee mermaid, part of a popular Florida attraction featuring underwater performers in siren suits.

They were flanked by two people, dressed as a merman and mermaid, who swam around the couple as they sealed their vows.

Because of their scuba masks, the couple didn't kiss. They instead brought their faces close together for a tender moment.

About 100 volunteers assisted Sherrod throughout his diving expedition, but a select few in his team proved to be a lifeline for him.

Melody Craven, his massage therapist, dove in the ocean to provide Sherrod a spa-like treatment: Her massages were meant to keep his body temperature from dipping and help keep his joints moving, she said.

Sometimes, he would doze off during the massages and when catnaps came, they were in spurts of 15 to 20 minutes. His support divers remained by his side, so he would not be disoriented when he awoke.

"We wanted him to be able to rest," Craven said. "That's important for mental strength."

Sherrod and the volunteers learned from the challenges that arose in December 2011, during his first record-breaking saltwater dive.

This time, they used new technology that made the dive easier for Sherrod and his crew of about 20 support divers, who monitored him and changed his air tanks round-the-clock.

Instead of a wet suit, he wore a dry suit that prevented water from filtering in. He also wore a heating device underneath the suit to prevent hypothermia. Instead of wearing an air tank on his back, he kept tanks at his sides that more easily clipped on and off.

A raft, jet ski and two boats overhead helped transport what was needed for him at the dive site, including air tanks.

Sherrod used his SCUL, "self-contained underwater loudspeaker," invention to communicate with his support crew.

Another device, a diving mask with cellphone capabilities, also came in handy: Sherrod, while still submerged, was interviewed by a radio station Thursday morning.

While on the air, he invited the public to stop by his nook of the sea, and paddle boarders and free divers took up the offer.

When Sherrod was especially chatty with visitors, his air tanks didn't last as long, Mijares said. Those who stopped by left encouraging notes or posed questions on a magnetic board. And Sherrod, using his SCUL device, would reply.

At night, Sherrod's level of excitement wore off.

And about 4 a.m. Saturday, a problem arose: Water began to leak into his dry suit. The cold settled into his bones and pain spread through his limbs, Mijares said.

At one point, he started to rise toward the surface. But a fellow diver held him down and pulled him toward the seafloor.

He stayed underwater a little beyond 51 hours — which was shorter than the 55 hours he wanted to reach, but still more than enough to set a new record. Sherrod is expected to once again have a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records, once officials verify his dive.

About 10 a.m. Saturday, after Sherrod surfaced, the vessel carrying him zipped toward the eager crowd.

Women dressed as mermaids — who were part of a mermaid convention that coincided with the dive — dotted the shoreline. They flopped their iridescent fins as the waves rolled in and Sherrod grew closer.

At the shoreline, from atop the boat, the diver addressed the crowd. He said he was grateful for everyone's support.

"The team made it all possible," Sherrod said. "Without you all, it wouldn't be possible."

The diver soaked in the attention, gingerly slid off the boat and posed for photos with the women dressed as mermaids.

Sherrod then finally walked onto the beach, where a fire-rescue crew checked his blood pressure — 138 over 90 — and gave him an oxygen mask.

"I'm alive still, I think," he said.

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