finally I did the poling

[paulthenurse]

Actually two miles is nothing. I've swam a lot more in the pool under less ideal conditions.

That's not a very realistic statement. You may well be able to easily swim two miles in a pool. If you swim at all regularly it should take you an hour or so to do it, assuming you are in a bathing suit. To suggest that you could do the same wearing a wet/dry suit, with weights and a tank or two on your back is silly. You would exhaust yourself before you got 1/4 of the way, I don't care if you are a Navy Seal. And you're not.

To suggest that the conditions in a pool are worse than those you encountered the other day is beyond silly. What do you have to deal with in a lap pool, the kids at the birthday party in the next lane splashing you? No waves, no currents, no wind, the water is in the upper 70's, and you're in a bathing suit.

I'm also wondering how you missed the line? Did you do a free descent from the back of Fran's boat down 90 feet into green water? With the visability you described, you owned a 50-60 foot free fall before you could hope to even see the Poling! You must have realized how lucky you were to land anywhere near the wreck. Did you think your "luck" would hold and you would manage to do a free ascent and end up under the boat? If you were that far off the boat when you surfaced that indicates a pretty substantial current. While it is certainly possible that there wasn't a current when your dive started (How else to explain dropping 90 feet straight down?) it's not realistic to expect that condition to continue. (As it clearly didn't, if you ended up a substantial distance away from the boat.)

I'm not going to get up your butt about diving without a buddy, we're all big boys here and if you are comfortable doing so than that's your choice. But don't mistake Complacency and Narcosis for Competence and Comfort. You might want to consider what you should have done differently. Perhaps instead of taking pictures you might have hunted around to find the rope that was your way home. Or send up a bag and followed that road home. Look around for someone. Or if you didn't want to hook up with another diver or dive team, at least keep a half an eye on them to see which way they went.

Not trying to criticize you or your actions, but rather hoping to have a discussion about how to best avoid accidents or potential accidents. Sounds like you got lucky.

Paul

 

[johnnyseko]

My 2cents....always pay attention to the predive briefing! If you miss it, ask before dive! (I could tell a story about an 80min reef dive that was supposed to be turned at 40min. You should have seen everyone on the boat when we surfaced...they were all scanning the waters....Capt wasn't happy either :11doh: )

Always carry a SMB - especially on boat dives, this is a perfect example why you should.

I still can't believe Stogey hit the wreck doing a free descent after splashing.

 

[RIOceanographer]

Not trying to get on your case here, I just don't want to see anyone get hurt so I have to second what everyone else here is saying, 2 miles in the ocean with currents etc is nothing like 2 miles in a pool. I am glad you got back okay, but you got lucky.

Also, trying to spot something as small as a diver on the surface is not easy, especially if there are any kind of seas. There is no way Fran would have spotted you if you were even close to 2 miles away. You had to be a lot closer than that. To put it in perspective, even in a strong 2 kt current it would take you 51 minutes of drifting to get that far from the boat.

 

[LobstaMan]

I don't know what the exact set-up Fran had for you, but when I dove with him he did it this way....

A line was dropped off the starboard(sp?) side with a metal pipe and some weights afixed to each end. One end of the line was tied to the stern and the other tied off at the bow line. That bow line was tied directly onto the mooring line which, of course, was hooked onto the wreck(in my case the Pinthis). When entering from the stern, you follow the line w/ the pipe to the bow line and then down the mooring line to reach the wreck. When reaching the wreck, it's also a good idea to clip a strobe to the chain so you don't accidentally ascend a ghost line or a different mooring line.

Upon returning, you follow the mooring line to the bow line and then to the pipe line where you do your 15 foot safety stop. The pipe is there for added weight and stability and gives you something to hang on to while waiting. I thought that was a nice idea. Although do watch out for the 10 lbs weights weighing the line down....on a day with decent waves they'll be bouncing around like superballs. You could get knocked off the head.

Pay attention to those pre-dive briefings!

LobstaMan

 

[STOGEY]

Yes he did have the bow and moring line. The next time I do the poling, I plan to have one of the reel lines that you can use as a guide. I'll attatch it to something near the bow line and go from there.

I did learn a lot from this last dive. So maybe someone else may learn something as well.

 

[Soggy]

Yes he did have the bow and moring line. The next time I do the poling, I plan to have one of the reel lines that you can use as a guide. I'll attatch it to something near the bow line and go from there.

I did learn a lot from this last dive. So maybe someone else may learn something as well.

I'm incredibly confused about what happened.

Did you do a free descent down to the Poling & a free ascent? Or, did you just get lost on the bottom? Was this your first boat dive?

 

[Chris Sawallich]

Stogey,

It has been along time since I posted on this board, I just couldn't let this go by, not to get on your case, but your story really threw me, and when you made the comment about using a reel to ascend on made me very scared for you. You were extremely lucky on this dive, the North Atlantic is not something to fool with with, especially trying to complete free ascents or descents, without proper training, or a boat that is not expecting to follow a diver on drifting deco, the anchor/mooring lines are there for a reason, especially on this wreck as it is a fairly simple dive if done properly. If you haven't already please seek out a wreck specialty course or something of that nature. And as always the boat captain deserves your 100% attention while conducting the briefing.

 

[STOGEY]

I'm incredibly confused about what happened.

Did you do a free descent down to the Poling & a free ascent? Or, did you just get lost on the bottom? Was this your first boat dive?

I did a free descent. As an answer to the reply below. I once saw a techy diver use a small line and reel. This was just a simple guide that he used. I like the idea and I plan to implement it. He didn't use it for his ascents just as a guide.

You don't need a wreck specialty course to dive the Poling.

By the way Fran has picked up many a diver before me. In fact he picked up a techy diver the week before. So I don't know what the problem is here. Yes next time I do the Poling I'll definetely go down the bow line and I'll have that line with me.

 

[Rick L]

You dont need a wreck real to dive the outside of the poling!
You just have to remember what line you went down and go up the same line!!
But because you feel what happened to you is not a problem you might need more training!
Divers have died on the poling.
Just because somebody calls themselves a techdiver dosn't mean they are or the conditions are the same!!!
Rick L

 

[Soggy]

I did a free descent.

Sorry, but what were you thinking? Have you ever dived in the ocean before? From a boat?

You don't need a wreck specialty course to dive the Poling.

I think a wreck diving or boat diving specialty might be a good idea for you. You are clearly lacking some very basic understanding about how to safely dive from a boat. At the very least, I would forgo the solo diving until you have some experience and have a feel for the dangers and techniques involved.

By the way Fran has picked up many a diver before me. In fact he picked up a techy diver the week before. So I don't know what the problem is here. Yes next time I do the Poling I'll definetely go down the bow line and I'll have that line with me.

That doesn't make it better. You (and they) were in a very precarious situation and were very lucky. It scares me that you don't understand how bad this really is. I don't say this to harp on you, only in the hopes that you will take a look inside and realize that you have some serious learning to do. The fact that you were solo on this dive worries me even more.