Diver drop out

[fgray1]

I got certified a little over a year ago. I do things intense when I decide to do them.
Here a list of my equiptment.
8 tanks (3 steel, 5 al.)
5 BCD's (1 Sea quest pro QD, 2 Zeagle Escapes, 1 Zeagle ranger,1 Aqua tec)
5 reg setups complete with cosoles.
7 sets of fins ( 1 jet, 3 split fins, 2 Flat normal, 1 snorkel)
5 wet suits ( 4 - 3mm 1-7mm
2 hoods
5 knives
1 camera
1 canister HID light
1 light cannon HID
3 small backup lights
2 H valves
1 Y valve
4 pair of boots
1 dive flag with float
4 line reels
1 box full of save a dive stuff.
1 ocean kayak (NO paddle yet)
50 lbs of weights
I think I'm forgetting something.
Any way I can't afford not to dive.
Guess I could open a dive shop.

If you dive with me and forget something I usualy can cover it.
Just remembered 7 dive masks
FRED

 

[IndigoBlue]

fgray1 once bubbled...
I got certified a little over a year ago. I do things intense when I decide to do them.
Here a list of my equiptment.
8 tanks (3 steel, 5 al.)
5 BCD's (1 Sea quest pro QD, 2 Zeagle Escapes, 1 Zeagle ranger,1 Aqua tec)
5 reg setups complete with cosoles.
7 sets of fins ( 1 jet, 3 split fins, 2 Flat normal, 1 snorkel)
5 wet suits ( 4 - 3mm 1-7mm
2 hoods
5 knives
1 camera
1 canister HID light
1 light cannon HID
3 small backup lights
2 H valves
1 Y valve
4 pair of boots
1 dive flag with float
4 line reels
1 box full of save a dive stuff.
1 ocean kayak (NO paddle yet)
50 lbs of weights
I think I'm forgetting something.
Any way I can't afford not to dive.
Guess I could open a dive shop.

If you dive with me and forget something I usualy can cover it.
Just remembered 7 dive masks
FRED

I made a bad initial choice on a B/C, then donated it to a local university and bought a better one.

I made a bad initial choice on a 2nd stage and traded it back to the store for a better one.

I made a bad initial choice on 2 tanks, but sold them on Ebay and bought better ones.

Other than that, I have been lucky on first choices of gear. By first shopping around at various stores, I have been able to see what is better and what is worse. Impulse buying at a single shop is what I do not recommend.

 

[ScoobyPat]

I also think that the social component of diving is one of the most appealing factors for me. Diving to me is more that just to don your gear, get in and dive around for an hour, pack in and then go home. If I had everything served for me and 'just go diving', I'd probably be bored after a while myself, because, face it, driving for 2 hours to have an hour of downtime will get boring after a while without socializing.

I enjoy meeting my buddies and friends early in the morning at the quarry, have some coffee and snack, wake up and enjoy the scenery, plan the dive and just have fun. When I get back home I feel comfortably tired, recall the great images that I have seen that day underwater, the interesting discussions I have had, the people I have met and just feel relaxed.

Diving is a highly social sport, probably because you trust your buddy with your life in emergencies. I don't know any other sport that requires that. That's why I am so surprised about the lack of local scuba groups/clubs (at least in my area).

 

[fgray1]

I don't get rid of nothing and I can't pass up a deal. I figure if I don't use it I'll let someone else. As long as you take care of it.
I didn't tell about the stuff I sold or gave away.
Fred

 

[IndigoBlue]

fgray1 once bubbled...
I don't get rid of nothing and I can't pass up a deal. I figure if I don't use it I'll let someone else. As long as you take care of it.
I didn't tell about the stuff I sold or gave away.
Fred

If you loan out gear, you could have a liability issue. It is probably not a big issue, but it is one more thing to worry about.

I do not loan gear and I do not borrow it. Food for thought.

 

[Kaos]

IndigoBlue once bubbled...
I made a bad initial choice on a B/C, then donated it to a local university and bought a better one.

I made a bad initial choice on a 2nd stage and traded it back to the store for a better one.

I made a bad initial choice on 2 tanks, but sold them on Ebay and bought better ones.

Other than that, I have been lucky on first choices of gear. By first shopping around at various stores, I have been able to see what is better and what is worse. Impulse buying at a single shop is what I do not recommend.

This is an area I think all IDS' (at least in my area) could improve on. Although it hasn't kept me from going diving, some bad advice from salespeople have led me to buy the wrong equipment. When most of what you buy costs a significant amount of money (at least, for most people), the stress of every sale being final certainly has scared some people away from continuing on.

Very few would buy a car without test-driving it first, yet when it comes to buying dive gear, we must make our choice based on what we read on the internet and what others tell us and hope it was a wise one. Some are lucky enough to have friends that own the brand or style of gear that interests them and are willing to let them "test-dive" it, but generally that isn't the case with most new divers.

Wouldn't end all problems, but it could encourage a few to stick with it if the financial risk wasn't as stressful.

 

[grouchyturtle]

FLArmyBrat
I agree completely, own everything, even tanks, season pass for quarry, most other sites except for boats are free

RiverRat
I'm not sure if first year hurts the most, I'm about 1 1/2 years in, my credit cards are hating me, and I still can't see the light at the end of the tunnel. Still plan on getting a computer, camera housing, AOW soon, Nitrox, and I can keep going.

Plus if you like me by nature, as a lot of divers are, you just looooooooooove the toys, just got a new mask and fins, nothing wrong with the old ones, just really like em, so I had to buy them!

 

[ScoobyPat]

CBulla once bubbled...
Actually, ScoobyPat, one of the more interesting facts I heard on NPR one morning (which is not always credible) is that 90% of Americans live withing 200 miles of a major body of water. Referenced were the Atlantic, Pacific, Gulf of Mexico and Carribean.

Interesting. But I think still 200m is too far for most people (that'd be a four-hour drive). Also, there are probably just a handful of states, where you can dive all-year-round with comfortable surface temps above 50F.

I'd also say that only a small percentage of recreational divers stop diving when the air temps drops below 50F. Our local quarry was okay-packed three weeks ago, when we still had about 70F, but this weekend I just saw maybe two to three dozen divers.

Personally I don't care. Give me a propane heater, a small canopy and some hot soup and I'll be fine all-year-round.

 

[fgray1]

If the gulf or ocean gets to cold we have the springs.
Life is good.
Fred

 

[hantzu701]

I thought that it was funny that there wasn't a local dive club where I am. But as I get more involved in diving, I can understand why that's the case.

Do you really want to babysit a newbie during a dive? I can understand that if you're going for your DM, this would be part of the learning process. But, I'm not sure if I want to buddy up with someone who could put my life at risk. Yes, the social aspects are terrific, but a great friend may not be a great buddy.

Buddies are not easily interchangable - such as in a pickup basketball game. The last time I went diving, my buddy's SO was there. He commented that my buddy and I looked almost like a married couple as we went through our pre-dive routine.

There are things that we did that we do automatically - without thinking. For example, I often give her integrated weights a good yank. This isn't necessary since you can see if the weights are clipped in, but it was part of our pre-dive routine in our OW cert.

Having said this, I've found it has been pretty tough to find people to dive with. More so recently as the weather has turned cold and the local quarries have begun closing. Haigh, one of the more popular quarries near Chicago, shuts down at the end of this month!