Move with all possible expediency after your OW cert towards DIR methods. Ascent from 20’ to surface should be EXTREMELY slow. Horizontal body position isn’t a suggestion, it should be the law. Old-school scubapro jets with spring straps are awesome. Apeks regulators are awesome and are easy to rebuild. Diving doubles is way safer than any spare air. Get a DUI drysuit…diving wet is icky. Make sure your drysuit has a “discharge valve”. Urinating on yourself is icky, too. Check out VPM and RGBM. Buy extra doubles for longer dive trips. Buy stage bottles and deco bottles. Buy larger truck to fit more dive gear. Buy scooter. Get into caves, become cave junkie. End up 11,000 from air in a cave in FL on a double scooter, triple stage dive with a 5 hour run time. See really really cool stuff. Start exploring new caves and laying line. Move away from FL. Sell all your shit after you get married, since wife thinks you are insane and insurance considers underwater cave expoloration a “high risk behavior” or something like that.
Seriously, though…look into DIR methods. Some folks will give you some grief, but it’s simpler, cleaner, safer, and easier. Plus, transitioning to more advanced or technical diving activities will be easier. Diving was like crack to me. I had to give it up to keep from being consumed. Still miss it, though.
Thanks for the advice so far. I did the PADI eLearning so I’ve done the classroom portion of open water. I got a 97% on the final test because I missed one of the advertising questions from the very last chapter. Apparently it is not up for discussion, it is a scientific FACT that divers have more fun. Regardless, it all pretty much seems like common sense. I would think that the never hold your breath thing would be obvious but I guess enough people don’t think about it so they include it?
Anyway, I’ve already got the dive shop to set me up for Peak Performance Bouyancy, Nav, EAN, and Multilevel either as part of the AOW cert, or as fun dives even if I don’t go for my AOW right now.
The idea is that I get this stuff out of the way so that I can do some fun stuff in Costa Rica and Mexico.
Also, is there gonna be a problem with my face armor? Will a mask seal around a beard or do I have to lose the mustache part? I can rock the chops but I’d rather maintain my sexy if at all possible.
I should also mention, I’m in South and Central America through the end of 2013 so if anybody feels the burning desire to hit up Colombia, Costa Rica, or Mexico and can use a place to stay and a dive buddy you’re more than welcome.
Get good training. when an emergency happens you won’t want to wish you gotten better.
Relax, have a knife ( you won’t break fishing line with your hands when you get tangled in it ). Practice not sinking. Like someone said above the pretty stuff is in shallow water.
Don’t ever ever ever lay your fins on the roof of your car or truck while you load up. they won’t be there two hours later.
Things I’ve had happen or seen happen with beginners.
Me - got weight belt kicked off at about 50’ because I swam too close to the guy in front of me and my suit had compressed which let my belt get loose. You go up pretty fast even if they are trying to grab you.
Me- mouthpiece came off of regulator at about 60’. the first breath I just got a little salt water. So I blew that out really hard and took a nice big breath… which felt like sucking on a board because nothing happened… no water and no air… then I grabbed my regulator and realized it wasn’t there. I was not used to diving with an octopus and forgot I had it. I was at end on line so I blasted off with no air trying to get to the person in front of me to use their spare regulator. I had stopped swimming during this while they kept going. I made it in time but it was only then that I realized I had mine right next to my hand. I had trained before the octopus was normal. then got re certified quickly to go on vacation and not having any training with it was simply not in my mind to react with.
Friend - couldn’t wait to “get to 100’”… he got narcosis or something and had to be escorted back up. I was not on that dive.
Classmate - Have seen a guy just start sinking because he couldn’t manually inflate his vest fast enough ( not the push button from tank… just your breath ). so if you found yourself just hanging and unable to swim at least horizontal you can get in trouble.
Many- seen many people almost roast on the surface with wet suit in hot climate waiting for a group to get organized.
Practice with your mask blacked out because that’s a strange sensation when you don’t expect it.
I don’t dive any more and never did much. All that was a long time ago but you can’t over train and when something goes wrong you will be very happy you did. It’s a lot of fun but you can forget what’s going on with your actual safety. When you are under there it’s like life is going in slow motion until something goes wrong and then it’s like it’s in super fast motion and you are still in slow motion… kinda like a dream ( or nightmare depending on whats happening ).
again even as someone who has been a PADI Instructor for over 20 years
PADI = Put Another Dollar In
Naui = Not Another Underwater Instructor
SSI = Salesman Selling Instruction
and the joke list goes on
same as dive shops want to over spend your budget and gadget you out to look like a idiot so dont fall into that trap take it slow on gear
notice most of the dive instructors in these places are pretty minimalist or wear whats really needed and rig the best ways same as wreck guys cave guys etc…
and I wont wear a wreck rig on mellow reefs and vice versa
being into it for a living I can relate to getting into it like Duane said thats why I did it younger when I was single and free and nobody could tell me not to spend that amount of money on things and I could fall back on well its what I do for a living hahahhaha
wrecks were my thing though once you start do dive places like Micronesia you will be hooked and dump all life as you know it
Sometime you can just trim right under your nose, like near the center. You really won’t even notice it but it gives the mask a little line to seal to. Not like a pencil mustache just a little touch up.
ditto this or some guys just push it down and become expert at clearing a tiny bit each breathe out
or put a tiny bit of food grade silicone on the hair
DAN is good. While I don’t work ‘for’ them, I do work in hyperbarics and have to dive with sick people, and often work ‘with’ them. Having DAN insurance and access is nice.
To that end, it is a good idea to get first aid training and thoroughly understand the relationship between physics and medicine/the body.
My civvy cert is NAUI, my mil is, well, mil, but I haven’t really seen much qualitative difference in divers trained by name-your-alfabet-agency.
I was trained at the YMCA and I can’t recall which set of letters it was. We used a Jeppensen text book. That was maybe late 70’s. Many years later I did a refresher for PADI and my wife did the whole course. What we had to do in that YMCA class was waaaay better than the modern classes.
I’ve lost my certification card. Haven’t seen it for years. I was thinking about those little pony bottles for use in getting out of a house/car fire and realized I couldn’t get it refilled. Not sure if they could look that up for me or not. I know what my address was when I got that PADI number.
Once I work out the problem, and am able to breath again we are probably going to have to work out the whole punching me in the face and stealing my shit issue…
We used to call in for cert numbers with PADI NAUI SSI from our boat for folks tht forgot the C card back at the resort
So get ahold of them they usually want as much as they can
Instructors name, location your info of course and can issue you a new card
For travelers I say make a photocopy of your card and keep it in your bcd pocket incase you loose or misplace forget your card
The days of radical training are long gone
Stats have shown all of that did not make diving safer
My first course was about 1980 and was pretty tough compared with when I decided to become a instructor in 1991 and that was just ten years later
Thanks, I think I remember the instructors name, I’ll have to try that.
So do you mean the more robust training back in the 80’s did not make it more safe? Or the new reduced training has made it less safe?
I remember my initial class everyone was pretty well squared away on test day. It was real organized and everyone just performed the tasks… On that recert when others were getting their first cert test… I swear I would have thought some of them had never had a tank on before.
Hahahaahha
Wishful thinking
I agree and wish it could be like this but reality is ask any instructor who works full time on boats how many folks they have to save
And most often its the so called more advanced over confident ones !
I have had some divers try to act like they are some tech guy and burn through a tank in 30 minutes on a shallow dive flopping around kicking up the bottom the whole time hahahaha
I used to love it though when I would get good divers
Also love watching folks setup gear you can tell a lot about a diver from that alone
Kinda like watching a guy at the range trying to pull out the magazine and pressing the bolt catch
I do wish all divers could stand that test sadly most cant even achieve neutral buoyancy
Some cant even kick properly
I do think sadly to many pass folks just to pass them and not worry and say the divemaster will take care of you ! Yikes
A balance of old and new ! I would like to go back to the throw your gear in and put it on in the pool at least !
They say old training was not as safe ?
And newer training was safer ?
And I agree on what you saw !
Lucky I really taught my students well !
Not just enough to pass but enough to be comfortable doing the tasks
Now I take this safety stats with a grain of salt and think either folks are going to be safe divers and learn more on their own or not !
Lucky I think most on this forum would be great divers !
Gear has gotten safer and divemasters and boats are safer and more aware but PADI and NAUI are about making money and getting more folks certified ! Makes you wonder about their angle and stats
Just having integrated BCD devices since about 1980s have made diving safer having positive flotation built in and way more reserve style dive tables have helped
Computers bend more folks cause they can push you to the edge IMHO but are also safer cause you are aware of where you are the whole time
Diving is safe more folks got hurt doing the bike down Haleakala then on our boats on Maui according to some medic guys I knew
So it seems that the DIR stuff is very strict in it’s implementation, and seems like it’s far more suited to dedicated teams that are always able to dive together. Being on the road it’s not a possibility, but I do like some of the structure in terms of the mindset. I will have to investigate further as my skill improves.
I’m also interested in a very minimal setup like posted on the first page. So it’s a wing BCD not a jacket correct? I like the low profile. I have enough mass on my own unfortunately right now so the idea of paring down to a minalist setup appeals to me. Is this something more advanced that I should wait to investigate or something that I can start checking out as soon as I’m comfortable with my abilities as an OW and AOW diver? Should I pursue rescue first so I have a more thorough understanding of what can and does go wrong before stepping into a setup with a lower margin for error?
Also any computer suggestions? For a while I plan on just diving the RDP until I feel ready for the more liberal profile of a computer, and certainly once I quit sucking air faster than my bottom time allows. However, since I would like to do Nitrox I’d like to eventually get a good computer that will do both. A couple co-workers have Suunto Vypers and have been pushing me to that. They think I should get on a computer right away, but I’m not so keen. You don’t go from a 10/22 to a .338 Lapua, I feel like this might be a similar set of circumstances.
Would getting one of those HEED type bottles be a good idea once I get the basics down and the basic gear purchased? Not so minimal but more air has to always be better no? Although it seems like it would be far easier to bend yourself than buddy breathing with someone else helping keep you calm.
You guys are a wealth of info, I really appreciate it. Now tomorrow I get to find out with German efficiency (instructor is an ex-pay living in Taganga) how this all works outside the theoretical.
I am going to be a heretic here…A dive computer is a great piece of gear, and I suppose every diver should have one. My recommendation is to learn with tables, then get a computer. You will have a better sense of the physics and learning the tables will make your confidence grow. Then, get a computer. Like a lot of this stuff this is my opinion…there’s nothing wrong with getting one right off the bat.
It’s actually awing(air bladder), backplate (Steel, aluminum, or fabric), and a harness. If you are not using a wing with an integrated STA (Single Tank Adapter) you will need one of those too. Some people use them regardless as they also act as more weight allowing you to carry less lead.
One nice thing about backplates is that a steel plate averages between 5-7lbs. This is weight you can take off your belt (or out of your pouches).
For travel you can change to an aluminum plate (average 2-2.5lbs.) or a fabric plate which weighs in the ounces; great for a carry-on.
Don’t go crazy on a harness. Most of the higher end “tech” harnesses are a waste of money unless you have pack you gear in through 3 miles of jungle to get to the Cenote. Although SCUBA webbing is rough and hard, when you are under water it doesn’t need to be tight. Your wing will almost float the weight off your body just enough to not even notice the harness. Just stick with a standard Hogarthian Harness that you weave yourself. You will also learn how to adjust it to your specific body.
That link to Cave Adventures is one of my fav websites for purchase. They are great for getting advice from and shipping is usually pretty fast. They will also do package deals on the phone and usually beat everyone’s prices.
IMHO the jacket style BCD’s suck because they are more buoyant, increase drag, cost more, take up too much luggage space, and take forever to dry.
