Deep Diving on Air

[NAM001]

Though you statement will assurably push some buttons I think you are right on. I can account of many times on vacation tired and coming onto an accident (bar closing hour) thtat the wife wife would Say "I know we are only an hour or so from home but do you suppose we could get a room and finish going home in the moening?"

Saddly,,, With out the Accident she never would have asked. Darwin has its purpose, when all else fails.

I have just read some of this thread and I just don't get what people are arguing about. Yes you can dive deep using a single tank on air, is it safe (you will have to use reasonable judgement here)no it's not..... I would have to say every individual has to weigh the risks of an activity themselves and live with the consequences of that decision. The real problem with society today is we protect people from themselves, We are the only species of animal that actually protects the week and or stupid. We need to let Darwins theory's do there work and not mess with nature. Just my $.02, I just had to deal with a stupid engineer today at work that knew more about cars than I did(or so he thought).

 

[cascas]

Is diving deep on air smart ?... seeing this movie might influence your answer...

An Elena Konstantinou film "Sacred Truth" aka "Blue Hole" on Vimeo

 

[VooDooGasMan]

Well that was what elena is pushing for and this is a copy of another youtube that has been out for a long time of divers dieing there.

 

[sdiver68]

I've been reading a lot on this topic, both the research and accounts from the pioneers of wreck and cave diving. It seems that while depth is being treated as a primary consideration, water temps and the variables which make up the challenge of the dive are just as important if not more so. A 200 ft bounce dive in warm clear easy diving with a very competent buddy simply is not the same as the same depth for longer duration or with cold, visibility, physical, or support challenges.

 

[VooDooGasMan]

Another link deleted, not surprised.

sdiver 68, it just depends if you do a dozen or more deep bounce dive a month and stay in practice, your claim was warm and clear easy diving. All diving is easy when you master it, cold water bounce dives are simple, even on a single tank if that is what your thinking in warm.

To get there is where danger comes in, Feb 19 2012 an instructor failed at a AOW class at alki beach here in seattle a cold water diving destination to teach proper deep diving and sadly that diver Died. What is worse yet the tank had 700 psi in it. That instructor had no Idea what he was doing or aware of his student, plus a first drysuit dive for the student.

To actually teach deep diving you should first know how your self, which is the problem that gets divers in danger. Also to stay alive at this point never trust your instructor is gonna be by far the best way. Go online and learn all there is to it, hire an instructor who will actually teach in class room, not the self teach, answer ? and go for a dive.

Most rec scuba classes the smart instructor takes you to just past required depth for deep dive. The hot shot Instructor will go for gusto and well you have a significant chance of being another statistic in a Deep diving depth.

There are many Deep Divers here in WA waters that are capable and I see them solo most of the time, these divers are self taught and will do there own profile and safe dives. sometimes you push your self and could run into trouble, but that is sole'y up to them.

I know a guy who dives Deception Pass more than anyone else it the state in vintage gear with a wetsuit. when you dive a dive site over 250 dives every year you know that dive site and how it works with current and tides. Deep diving is the same way you should dive it regularly so to be in tune always.

From my experience warm water diving is only a little less harder to dive from less weight and thermal protection .

 

[sdiver68]

From my experience warm water diving is only a little less harder to dive from less weight and thermal protection .

Cold water, physical effort and fatigue, anxiety possibly related to sensory limitations are all known or highly suspected risk factors for increased nitrogen narcosis. Increased narcosis in my mind means more of a chance for things to go wrong.

I am aware that many of the old school air divers worked up to deeper depths through training.

 

[DevonDiver]

To interpret/condense what VDGM said: Dive deeper progressively, stay within your comfort zones and don't assume that past experience carries into current capability if you aren't doing deep diving regularly enough to maintain familiarity with the conditions.

As a principle: 'Capability Fade' happens when you don't do participate in a particular activity for a length of time. What you did once, you can't do again, without progressively re-constructing your familiarity. That applies to much more than just deep diving.

It's common sense... no desperate need to cite examples of why this approach is prudent

 

[dumpsterDiver]

To interpret/condense what VDGM said: Dive deeper progressively, stay within your comfort zones and don't assume that past experience carries into current capability if you aren't doing deep diving regularly enough to maintain familiarity with the conditions.

As a principle: 'Capability Fade' happens when you don't do participate in a particular activity for a length of time. What you did once, you can't do again, without progressively re-constructing your familiarity. That applies to much more than just deep diving.

It's common sense... no desperate need to cite examples of why this approach is prudent

Maybe that is so, but many people feel that acclimitization to narcosis does occur and that it does fade pretty quickly if you don't dive deep pretty often....So diving skills get rusty from not diving, but I think that it is more pronounced with deep diving (on air).

 

[Ben_ca]

To interpret/condense what VDGM said: Dive deeper progressively, stay within your comfort zones and don't assume that past experience carries into current capability if you aren't doing deep diving regularly enough to maintain familiarity with the conditions.

As a principle: 'Capability Fade' happens when you don't do participate in a particular activity for a length of time. What you did once, you can't do again, without progressively re-constructing your familiarity. That applies to much more than just deep diving.

It's common sense... no desperate need to cite examples of why this approach is prudent

You actually understand what he says?

 

[DevonDiver]

Maybe that is so, but many people feel that acclimitization to narcosis does occur and that it does fade pretty quickly if you don't dive deep pretty often....So diving skills get rusty from not diving, but I think that it is more pronounced with deep diving (on air).

I've never agreed with the concept of 'acclimatization' to narcosis. I think that skills get ingrained - and ingrained stuff is less effected by narcosis. If something isn't ingrained, then it requires problem solving. Problem solving is effected by narcosis.

Diving beyond a reasonable narcosis threshold will always leave the diver at risk from unforeseen contingencies - if such contingencies fall beyond the ingrain response patterns they possess. As the diver gains more experience, those response patterns expand, but still won't cater for every eventuality.

It's the skills that decline. Acclimatization is a fairy tale.