Got my OW, and AOW, what's next ?

[ScubaSteve1962]

I would vote for some simple unguided dives. I have PADI AOW and about 80 dives but for one reason or another there has always been a guide/DM present. So last weekend my buddy and I went and did 2 shore dives by ourselves. They were fairly easy and shallow, with simple navigation, but having no guide made a huge difference. We had to plan, stick to the plan or communicate a change of plan while underwater, deal with little problems - and everything felt harder than usual.

But we had a great time and probably learned more in those 2 dives than in about a dozen guided dives.

80 dives under your belt, and more than a dozen guided dives is less than 80 guided. But both are more than 0 dives after getting certified. When you went out on your own you had the confidence and ability to be able to do it because of those 80 guided dives.

 

[Storker]

When you went out on your own you had the confidence and ability to be able to do it because of those 80 guided dives.

IMNSHO, he ought to have been able to do it while his OW cert was still warm. If you need eighty frikkin' post-cert dives to be able to plan and execute a simple dive, you haven't received proper training.


And I'm not criticizing chris_the_brit. It's his training I have a problem with

 

[hedgehog47]

thanks for the responses !

 

[Diver0001]

Without even reading any of the other answers I can predict what you're going to be told:

- go diving
- take a con-ed course
- take a technical specialty
- PADI sucks
- You suck
- anyone with less than 1000 dives sucks
- I am great
- Everyone I know is great
and
- everything you've done up to now was a mistake

R..

 

[AdivingBel]

Without even reading any of the other answers I can predict what you're going to be told:

- go diving
- take a con-ed course
- take a technical specialty
- PADI sucks
- You suck
- anyone with less than 1000 dives sucks
- I am great
- Everyone I know is great
and
- everything you've done up to now was a mistake

R..

You forgot...you're gonna die....

 

[ScubaSteve1962]

IMNSHO, he ought to have been able to do it while his OW cert was still warm. If you need eighty frikkin' post-cert dives to be able to plan and execute a simple dive, you haven't received proper training.


And I'm not criticizing chris_the_brit. It's his training I have a problem with

Would you expect someone who did their OW AOW in a quarry to go out and execute a dive in the ocean. There are somethings you don't really have an understanding of until you really have to do it.

 

[Basking Ridge Diver]

Would you expect someone who did their OW AOW in a quarry to go out and execute a dive in the ocean. There are somethings you don't really have an understanding of until you really have to do it.

I would expect anyone that has an OW Certification to be able to do a benign shore (ocean) dive with a buddy. Perhaps they will be tentative but they should have the skills and knowledge of being able to do an ocean dive - yes. If they meet fast moving currents or heavy surge - I would expect they should call the dive and try again another day. There is nothing magical about diving in the ocean. The key may be to find local divers to ask for a beginner area so they can test it out... I took someone for their first night and ocean dive on the same dive - you would have never known it. That said - someone that enjoys the water and has a certification should be able to execute a dive in the ocean with guidance once. After that - what is holding you back?

An AOW diver - absolutely hands down - again if they are tentative they need to ask for help - but you need to start somewhere...

I enjoy a fresh water dive because it is easy and the clean up is a breeze but it does not compare to diving in the ocean - in my opinion.

 

[ScubaSteve1962]

I would expect anyone that has an OW Certification to be able to do a benign shore (ocean) dive with a buddy. Perhaps they will be tentative but they should have the skills and knowledge of being able to do an ocean dive - yes. If they meet fast moving currents or heavy surge - I would expect they should call the dive and try again another day. There is nothing magical about diving in the ocean. The key may be to find local divers to ask for a beginner area so they can test it out... I took someone for their first night and ocean dive on the same dive - you would have never known it. That said - someone that enjoys the water and has a certification should be able to execute a dive in the ocean with guidance once. After that - what is holding you back?

An AOW diver - absolutely hands down - again if they are tentative they need to ask for help - but you need to start somewhere...

I enjoy a fresh water dive because it is easy and the clean up is a breeze but it does not compare to diving in the ocean - in my opinion.

The magic word there is benign, and hopefully they would be able to make that decision, but how many times have we read about divers that ignored the obvious because they've drove a long way and refused to call the dive, have underestimated the surge or current. 2 OW should be able to go out and plan and execute a dive in like conditions that they were trained in. My first dives were done in the ocean in surges, and strong current, great to poor visibility. so when I got to dive in benign conditions, I was in heaven. My first fresh water was in a cold dark quarry (man talk about a rude awakening) All we were trying to point out is that there is nothing wrong with starting of with guides (a little help), not that they should be dependent on that help.

 

[Storker]

Would you expect someone who did their OW AOW in a quarry to go out and execute a dive in the ocean.

Yes. OW and AOW both, if their training has been what it should be. "OWD" stands for "Open water diver", and a person who holds an OW or AOW isn't able to plan and execute a simple dive under benign conditions, then that person hasn't received the training s/he has paid for.

There are somethings you don't really have an understanding of until you really have to do it.

Sure. I've never dived a quarry, so I really don't have an understanding of it. However, my OW checkout dives were under conditions so benign that I have a hard time imagining it being any easier in a quarry. So, I started diving (non-guided) in conditions that are similar to or better than the conditions I was trained in and progressed slowly from there. There isn't something magical about "the ocean" that makes it inherently more difficult than a large outdoor pool (AKA a "quarry"), but there's of course a distinct possibility to encounter more difficult conditions like surge and/or current. I've called a number of dives even before splashing, especially in the start of my diving career, because I've deemed the conditions above my qualifications, that's just a part of the game.

IMNSHO, a diver who is issued an Open Water cert, should be able to plan and execute a dive without being pampered and sheltered by a guide. Yes, for unfamiliar conditions a guide, or a mentor, or a more experienced dive buddy, is a very good thing, but the OW cert holder should be able to evaluate whether his skills are sufficient for the prevailing conditions, and to plan and execute a dive within his/her limits. As an added bonus, being able to plan and execute a dive oneself, often gives you the insight and self-confidence to evaluate the risks of and hopefully abstain from a dive like this. Instead, those divers trusted the guide. With disastrous consequences.

 

[Tippytoes12]

I would suggest that you go on lots of fun dived and bask in the knowledge that you have learned in all your courses. My hubby ( a far more careful diver than I am) revised the OW manual few times after we got certified. Nobody remembers everything they learned on a course. We had about 30 dives before we even did our AOW, this suited us and we really enjoyed the course.

Well done on getting through them all though.