Water Boy76
Contributor
A dive buddy is someone your paired up with in OW training. After that, they are no longer required.
Collapse of the "Buddy System"
- Thread starter CAPTAIN SINBAD
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An "insta-buddy" is not an true buddy unless you're somehow able to go over a dive plan, expectations, contingencies, hand signals, etc.--which is usually not practical. So in most cases, I would say an insta-buddy is simply not a true buddy.
Limited to true buddies, I think the buddy system is alive and well.
Limited to true buddies, I think the buddy system is alive and well.
I am of the belief that self sufficiency and self rescue are needed topics at the OW level, more often than not a "buddy team" is merely a pair that descends and ascends together...and that's not always the case. Of course there are those that have the benefit if having someone dependable that they know well and dive with regularly, but that's an exception rather than a rule. Personally, I'm either diving solo(tying in and pulling the hook most often), or guiding divers(so, basically solo)...however, when I do get a chance to dive with a solid buddy that I know well and knows me, we usually have a great dive.
The buddy system is not collapsing. It's the same as it ever was: largely an illusion under ordinary diving conditions. We are all basically solo divers, and always were.
Exceptions are certain kinds of diving, like cave diving, and one on one close instruction. Another diver can be extremely useful under exceptional circumstances, as an entanglment, or an out of gas situation- if they notice in time, and if they know what to do. In any case a diver should always be prepared to solve their own problems to whatever extent is possible. Diving with the expectation that someone will come to your aid in an emergency is extremely foolhardy.
Exceptions are certain kinds of diving, like cave diving, and one on one close instruction. Another diver can be extremely useful under exceptional circumstances, as an entanglment, or an out of gas situation- if they notice in time, and if they know what to do. In any case a diver should always be prepared to solve their own problems to whatever extent is possible. Diving with the expectation that someone will come to your aid in an emergency is extremely foolhardy.
Diving with the same buddy often helps a lot. When I dive with a "regular" buddy we do very well about staying close and usually out of each others way. When you're right up on another diver it's easy for you to bump each other. I've been the bumper and bumpee. I pay attention to what I'm doing in the water, have good control of myself. It still happens sometimes. I know I get a little embarrassed when I bump someone. It makes me want a little more distance from instabuddies so I don't make them uncomfortable in that same way.
Instabuddies are a fact of life unless you want to really limit your diving to what you can schedule with a handful of people. I do my best to be a good buddy and prepare to save myself as best I can. I've only had a really bad instabuddy once. It sucked chasing the guy down the plateau of a reef.
As best I can can tell the options are
1. Bring a buddy.
2. Instabuddy.
3. Find a boat that will allow solo diving. It's not something I've ever asked about so I don't know how common or uncommon this is.
4. Hire a DM.
Instabuddies are a fact of life unless you want to really limit your diving to what you can schedule with a handful of people. I do my best to be a good buddy and prepare to save myself as best I can. I've only had a really bad instabuddy once. It sucked chasing the guy down the plateau of a reef.
As best I can can tell the options are
1. Bring a buddy.
2. Instabuddy.
3. Find a boat that will allow solo diving. It's not something I've ever asked about so I don't know how common or uncommon this is.
4. Hire a DM.
nolatom
Contributor
I don't agree with Original Poster that the buddy system is broken. My buddies have generally been good, and most are "insta's". I don't find going over a dive plan, common hand/air-remaining signals, expectations, gear configurations, and contingencies, is impractical. It doesn't take long to do and no one should start a buddy dive without having discussed all this. It takes all of what, three minutes? And it causes insta to realize you take the relationship seriously, so he/she does also.
lidja
Registered
Frankly, this is the reason why I took a multi-year hiatus from diving. The whole buddy thing was just too tenuous for my comfort. I'm back now because I met someone who has become a good friend, and we both care enough about each other as friends that we take the buddy responsibilities seriously.
I just don't have much confidence that a random insta-buddy would (or could) ever care enough about me to take buddy responsibilities very seriously. That's not an indictment, it's just a fact of life...
I just don't have much confidence that a random insta-buddy would (or could) ever care enough about me to take buddy responsibilities very seriously. That's not an indictment, it's just a fact of life...
It takes two divers to make a bad buddy pair.
Dr. Lecter
Contributor
Regardless of whether I'm going to 10m or 100m, I bring what I need to complete the dive on my own (in which case I really could not pay less attention to others in the water, as amply demonstrated by my somehow losing a buddy Sunday morning in 250' of water with 100'+ of bottom viz...) OR I stick to my buddy/the team like glue.
Really, that's all there is to it: if you're not prepared to solo, you'd better be really close to another diver on whom you can rely because they're something you potentially need to survive. Generally, I find it easier to come prepared to solo it...sometimes there's just too much bailout to manage, though.
Really, that's all there is to it: if you're not prepared to solo, you'd better be really close to another diver on whom you can rely because they're something you potentially need to survive. Generally, I find it easier to come prepared to solo it...sometimes there's just too much bailout to manage, though.
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