clockradio
Contributor
when i was drinking, i wasn't diving. now i'm a non drinker. their's plenty of time to drink. let's not before diving. not trying to be too preachy. have fun blowing bubbles. geo
Do you Drink and Dive?
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Commander
Guest
I have been diving for 35 years or so and sure, years ago I drank and dove and so did a bunch of other people. We were dive bums, dove just about every weekend in lakes, rivers or anywhere else we could. but then again we did not log dives, rarely looked at dive tables and did other dumb things. The interesting thing is I don't know of anyone that got hurt. So maybe we were just lucky and yep the lakes kinda had a way of cutting your dives short being dark and cold.
Now to the question do I drink and dive now the answer is not much. I would not be afraid to drink a beer and do an easy dive althought it now gives me a headack and I probally wouldn't. Looking at the answers it seems that alot of older divers have forgotten the way diving was in the late 60 and 70s. And yes we did wear our masks on top of our heads, makes it easier to smoke when you are waiting to get up the ladder!
Now to the question do I drink and dive now the answer is not much. I would not be afraid to drink a beer and do an easy dive althought it now gives me a headack and I probally wouldn't. Looking at the answers it seems that alot of older divers have forgotten the way diving was in the late 60 and 70s. And yes we did wear our masks on top of our heads, makes it easier to smoke when you are waiting to get up the ladder!
Nope.mermaid8773:
Rick
First drink of the day = last dive of the day is (should be) the rule anywhere, especially in today’s litigious society.
It’s interesting that this question is on the board, because I had a small encounter last week on my trip with this very issue.
I should state that I have a no tolerance policy for drinking before diving.
The last day of our livaboard, we had a beach picnic. We had several non-divers and others who were finished diving for the trip because they were flying out the next day. The crew provided wine and beer at the picnic for those who were not diving the afternoon dive.
One guy in our group opened up a beer as soon as we got to the picnic. Food was served approximately one hour later and I did not see this guy again until after we ate. After we ate, I personally saw him open another beer. I asked him if he was diving...and he said YES!
At this time, I decided to ask one of the divemasters to clarify their drinking and diving policy...she replied as I would expect...can't dive if you've been drinking. So, I decided to let her know to keep an eye on this person because I had personally seen him open two beers...which meant he could have possibly had more. Our dive was within the next hour by the way.
When the crew approached him, he denied it! It was no secret that I had "narked" on him...but I really didn't care. I am not going to subject myself or anyone else to diving with an impaired diver whether they are my buddy or not.
Just before the briefing, the DM told me that he had denied the drinking and that he had no evidence other than my word that he had been drinking, so he ultimately had to leave the decision up to the diver. I respected that because the DM was in a hard position.
What I did not and do not respect are divers who do this and particularly those who are not truthful about it. The diver in question confronted me and I called him on his lie...and he eventually did admit that he had had two beers...but that he didn't drink BOTH of them in their entirety...whatever! He said he had decided not to dive because I was right. I said, then I won't dive either...if you are doing the right thing, then I will sit the dive out as well (although I hadn't had anything to drink other than water and a soda).
Don't drink and dive people...it's just not smart or fair to others in the water with you!
It’s interesting that this question is on the board, because I had a small encounter last week on my trip with this very issue.
I should state that I have a no tolerance policy for drinking before diving.
The last day of our livaboard, we had a beach picnic. We had several non-divers and others who were finished diving for the trip because they were flying out the next day. The crew provided wine and beer at the picnic for those who were not diving the afternoon dive.
One guy in our group opened up a beer as soon as we got to the picnic. Food was served approximately one hour later and I did not see this guy again until after we ate. After we ate, I personally saw him open another beer. I asked him if he was diving...and he said YES!
At this time, I decided to ask one of the divemasters to clarify their drinking and diving policy...she replied as I would expect...can't dive if you've been drinking. So, I decided to let her know to keep an eye on this person because I had personally seen him open two beers...which meant he could have possibly had more. Our dive was within the next hour by the way.
When the crew approached him, he denied it! It was no secret that I had "narked" on him...but I really didn't care. I am not going to subject myself or anyone else to diving with an impaired diver whether they are my buddy or not.
Just before the briefing, the DM told me that he had denied the drinking and that he had no evidence other than my word that he had been drinking, so he ultimately had to leave the decision up to the diver. I respected that because the DM was in a hard position.
What I did not and do not respect are divers who do this and particularly those who are not truthful about it. The diver in question confronted me and I called him on his lie...and he eventually did admit that he had had two beers...but that he didn't drink BOTH of them in their entirety...whatever! He said he had decided not to dive because I was right. I said, then I won't dive either...if you are doing the right thing, then I will sit the dive out as well (although I hadn't had anything to drink other than water and a soda).
Don't drink and dive people...it's just not smart or fair to others in the water with you!
I read a book about spearfishing on the gulf coast oil rigs in the 60's. The guy who wrote it said they dove in polyester disco clothes because they didn't have wetsuits. They would dive to 150 feet and shoot a gigantic fish and go for a ride until it tired or they ran out of air. Since they were going to get narc'd anyway, they would chug a couple of beers before splashing in.
P.S. It seems like someone died in every chapter...
P.S. It seems like someone died in every chapter...
ghostdiver1957
Contributor
mermaid8773:
Absolutely!!!! Lots of water
Can a beer kill you - NO... Can your stupidity - YES
Glad to hear you haven't drank and dove... if you drink around me a diving accident won't be the problem... I'll take advantage of you - you gorgeous hottie.
Happy Diving!
rockinrobin
Registered
I'm reading this with my Portuguese girlfriend looking over my shoulder, laughing that all these people can never have dived in Portugal after lunch!
I don't drink and she drinks very rarely, but if you aren't impaired then what's the harm?
Can't wait to get slated for this posting!
I don't drink and she drinks very rarely, but if you aren't impaired then what's the harm?
Can't wait to get slated for this posting!
dpbishop
Contributor
From the DAN website FAQs: https://www.daneurope.org/eng/faq1.htm
The individual who has alcohol on board may not feel impaired or even appear impaired to the observer, but that person definitely is impaired. This can persist for extended periods. In addition, alcohol produces dehydration, which is a major contributor to decompression illness. In any form, alcohol has a direct effect on the kidneys, causing an obligatory loss of body fluids. Recent discussions in scuba magazines, chat rooms and scuba forums have concluded that its OK to drink beer between dives during a surface interval. Some divers insist on drinking beer before and after their dives. Does drinking alcoholic beverages and diving pose any danger? The short answer is this: By drinking alcohol before and during diving trips, a diver severely endangers not only himself but his buddy! A study by Perrine, Mundt and Weiner found scuba diving performances significantly degraded at blood alcohol levels of 40 mg / dl (0.04 percent BAC). The study also cites a clear increase in the risk of injury at this level, which can be reached by a 81-kilogram man who ingests two 336-gram beers in one hour on an empty stomach. This study once again points out that one experiences a diminished awareness of cues and reduced inhibitions at relatively low levels of blood alcohol. Their study used well-trained divers who were being paid to do their best; their diving performances were being videotaped. Dr. Glen Egstrom, Ph.D., has stated the problem succinctly: his review of more than 150 studies on the effects of alcohol on performance has resulted in the following observations:
1. Ingestion of even small amounts of alcohol does not improve performance; to the contrary, it degrades performance.
2. While certain variables can speed up or delay the onset of the effects of alcohol, they are minor issues, which do not overcome the decrements to the central and peripheral nervous system.
3. Alcohol can be cleared from the blood at a predictable rate, usually .015 percent BAC per hour. This does not necessarily mean that the diminished performances have been completely eliminated in that time.
4. Alcohol, a depressant drug, slows certain body functions by depressing the entire central nervous system. Effects are noticeable after one drink.
5. The effects are mood elevation, mild euphoria, a sense of well being, slight dizziness and some impairment of judgment, self control, inhibitions and memory.
6. Increases in reaction time and decreases in coordination follow the dose / response curve quite well.
7. Alcohol is involved in roughly 50 percent of all accidents involving persons of drinking age.
8. Persons who have been drinking alcohol consistently underestimate its deleterious effects on performance.
9. Alcohol affects divided attention tasks to a greater degree than those tasks requiring a single focus of concentration. For example, a diver will be affected to a greater degree by a shallow water head-first dive, which required many interrelated decisions necessary to a successful dive than by lifting a heavy weight.
The individual who has alcohol on board may not feel impaired or even appear impaired to the observer, but that person definitely is impaired. This can persist for extended periods. In addition, alcohol produces dehydration, which is a major contributor to decompression illness. In any form, alcohol has a direct effect on the kidneys, causing an obligatory loss of body fluids. Recent discussions in scuba magazines, chat rooms and scuba forums have concluded that its OK to drink beer between dives during a surface interval. Some divers insist on drinking beer before and after their dives. Does drinking alcoholic beverages and diving pose any danger? The short answer is this: By drinking alcohol before and during diving trips, a diver severely endangers not only himself but his buddy! A study by Perrine, Mundt and Weiner found scuba diving performances significantly degraded at blood alcohol levels of 40 mg / dl (0.04 percent BAC). The study also cites a clear increase in the risk of injury at this level, which can be reached by a 81-kilogram man who ingests two 336-gram beers in one hour on an empty stomach. This study once again points out that one experiences a diminished awareness of cues and reduced inhibitions at relatively low levels of blood alcohol. Their study used well-trained divers who were being paid to do their best; their diving performances were being videotaped. Dr. Glen Egstrom, Ph.D., has stated the problem succinctly: his review of more than 150 studies on the effects of alcohol on performance has resulted in the following observations:
1. Ingestion of even small amounts of alcohol does not improve performance; to the contrary, it degrades performance.
2. While certain variables can speed up or delay the onset of the effects of alcohol, they are minor issues, which do not overcome the decrements to the central and peripheral nervous system.
3. Alcohol can be cleared from the blood at a predictable rate, usually .015 percent BAC per hour. This does not necessarily mean that the diminished performances have been completely eliminated in that time.
4. Alcohol, a depressant drug, slows certain body functions by depressing the entire central nervous system. Effects are noticeable after one drink.
5. The effects are mood elevation, mild euphoria, a sense of well being, slight dizziness and some impairment of judgment, self control, inhibitions and memory.
6. Increases in reaction time and decreases in coordination follow the dose / response curve quite well.
7. Alcohol is involved in roughly 50 percent of all accidents involving persons of drinking age.
8. Persons who have been drinking alcohol consistently underestimate its deleterious effects on performance.
9. Alcohol affects divided attention tasks to a greater degree than those tasks requiring a single focus of concentration. For example, a diver will be affected to a greater degree by a shallow water head-first dive, which required many interrelated decisions necessary to a successful dive than by lifting a heavy weight.
mermaid8773:
I always dive sober, for two main reasons - wetsuits don't have pockets, and diving costs enough on it's own without having to also buy alcohol! So outside of a boat or resort with free drinks (which for some reason I never seem to end up at...), it's just not a possibility.
Now, if dive bar staff would accept stones or seashells as payment... ;-)
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