Have you ever done anything on a dive that you KNEW you weren't supposed to?

[Sabanist]

Idk, I went on a guided cavern dive as an ow diver. Idk if that is cool or not. The shop didn't have a problem with it and advertised it. So I guess not

 

[ccx2]

Seems like every dive ive done with any shop in Mexico has not been a buddy dive but a group dive as ive gone to the dive without a buddy and wasnt assigned a buddy just told to follow the DM.
So mine would be diving solo without the Card or training.
Seems to be the way its done at most dive ops, so its either do it that way or dont dive.
I dont like it and i dont think it helps me learn to be a better diver by having someone to discuss the dive with before and after. These dives have all been 45ft max but still would like to have a designated buddy.
I have sinned often Scubaboard, please forgive me.
TS&M,the thought process for me was that everyone else does this even if they come to the dive with a buddy, I just try to stay close to the group and make them all my buddy in case we need one another or air.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

Not sure if this is against the rules or not?

My brother and I were about the same size, but he would use his air faster. So we got in the habit of switching scuba units at 80 or 90 feet about halfway through the dive.

I figured it was good practice, (at the time).

 

[ianr33]

I thought about it more and in addition to the diving deeper than I am certified for I've also dove solo and I'm not certified for that either.

I don't consider things such as solo to be breaking any rules.
If it is I'm guilty of breaking 3 rules on one dive. No solo cert. No drysuit cert. No sidemount cert.

 

[TSandM]

I really appreciate people listing the things they've done that they weren't supposed to do. But what I would really like to hear is how you convinced yourself that it was okay . . . if other divers are to learn anything from what we have done, they have to recognize the syndrome of "I know I'm not supposed to, but . . . "

 

[Griffo]

Does doing a 130ft dive, on air, inside a shipwreck, the day after I was OW certified count in this list? My rationale was
a) there were dozens of people doing that dive every day and have been doing so for years
b) I had a dive master with literally thousands of dives on that wreck leading just myself and buddy
c) it was in the tropics. Everything is easier in the tropics
d) It was the SS President Coolidge. Who knew when i'd next get the chance.

 

[bpotkin]

Going deeper than cert...I know I....but just this 1 time.

 

[tomfcrist]

Well lets all be honest here, we have all at one point or another dove beyond the scope of our training. It doesnt matter if it is as simple as diving deeper than your experience level should allow, or if you decide to do a wreck/cave penetration. Either way you are putting your life in your own hands.

That being said, all of these "Specialty" certs that people feel that Must be done before doing a certain dive.........Do you honestly think that the pioneers of that specialty had any prior training? Heck no they didnt, they said to themselves, " i bet there's some cool stuff in that (add specialty here)'. And then others followed thier path. Unfortunately Darwin always show up and kills the idiot that doesnt respect the environment that they are in and ends up with a toe tag...........thus leading to the 'Specialty" certification course. I promise you this......If nobody had ever died in a wreck, cave, or diving deep, there would be no "Specialty" certification for them.

So in short, Yes I have done thing that I'm not "Supposed to do", however I am a safety concious person, and dont stick myself in hairy situations while doing so.

 

[ktkt]

I have been diving on my buddy's computer before. This happened on the first trip I took after my certification, to an exotic spot where I was very excited about diving. It didn't sink in until dive briefings that the planned dives would not be kosher table dives, and my rental equipment didn't include a computer. So, I stayed very close to my DMT buddy, but usually a few feet above and never below. I knew my buoyancy and buddy awareness were both pretty good, so I felt half-comfortable rationalizing my training away here. However, I knew I had to be hyper-vigilant about my depth, which made my dives a little less enjoyable. They were still awesome, and I can't say I regret the choice I made once on the boat, but if I had a redo, I'd arrange to rent my own computer for that trip. (When I went home, the computer was part of my first round of equipment-buying, besides the mask/fins/booties/gloves I'd already bought for initial training.)

 

[ferris213]

Very early on we did a dive with a company in Croatia. Looking back I realise how bad it was, we rented all our gear and the regs had an SPG, that's it, there were no depth gauges for customers. My wife finished her dive on the DM's octo because she was well below the 'back on board' pressure, and he didn't want to cut the dive short for the others.

We allowed it to happen out of a misplaced trust in dive professionals. The thought that 'We can trust this guy, he's a dive master" Our training was not great, but we had been given enough to know what was happening was not right, we just let it slide because when the shop owner says it's fine, how can someone with two or three post cert dives argue?

I remember clearly their laid back attitude. At the time I thought it was due to a quiet confidence. Now I think it was probably due to apathy.