Navy Week Tampa 2010 - Sailors visit, share submarine life stories

Tampa, Florida -- Here in Tampa Bay, we're used to having pirates invade. But this week, the good guys are coming ashore. It's the Navy Week Tampa Bay 2010.

Navy Week Tampa Bay 2010 arrives with admiral on 10 Connects' The Morning Show

When your typical day's spent locked inside an underwater tube just one football field long, a trip to sunny Tampa Bay is mighty nice.

And when this area is your hometown, the sunshine feels even warmer. "I plan to retire here -- a very good place to retire. I think this is a great city to live in," said Command Master Chief Randy Huckaba.

As the "COB" (pronounced like corn cobb), Huckaba is the Chief of the Boat, and one of the top leaders aboard the Navy submarine USS Florida. The boat's based just across the state line in southeast Georgia.

And -- despite what you've seen in movies -- it's surprisingly bright and easygoing inside.

"There is a spot on the ship [where] I can almost swing a golf club. You can actually run on it, physically. We have all kinds of cardio -- workout gear -- some that rival some of the nicest gyms in the area," Huckaba said.

"So, it's quite large. I really don't see anybody having any problems with claustrophobia or being cramped."

The Florida has two complete crews of about 160 men each. They take turns on the sub.

Right now, the Blue crew is somewhere out at sea on the Florida.

That means, for a three month stretch, Captain Tom Calabrese's Gold crew is here on land.

They'll spend this Navy Week as guests of honor in Tampa Bay.

"Quite simply, we go to these cities and we tell Navy stories. What we do, why we do it. And try to communicate and say, 'Hey, there's a lot of fantastic opportunities for young men and women in the United States Navy," Calabrese said.

Already, as part of Navy Week, bands have performed in parks, divers have showed off their stuff, and submarine chefs have become corporate chefs.

Navy Week Tampa Bay 2010 schedule of events

Navy Week is part recruiting tour, part patriotic rally, and part vacation for hard-working sailors like the crew of the Sunshine State's favorite submarine, USS Florida.

"We get a chance to show off some of the things we can do, and hopefully it gives everybody the sense of, 'Hey, these guys are out here protecting us, and they're doing a great job,'" Huckaba said.

Tampa Bay's Navy Week runs through Saturday. It's the first of 20 Navy Week events planned for cities across the U.S. this year.