Here is a personal email I wrote before going on here . It was addressed to David, who is the buddy diving with the CCR rebreather, that Im trying to help here, and Luke, who is the buddy that just moved down from VA to FL. This was wrote mainly for David, as Luke and myself have agreed on allot of it over dinner, in trying to help David. This was just wrote at 8 Pm, then after not being able to sleep all night, at
4 am I came onto scuba board looking for more help. Here is the email :
Fellow's, after reading our discussion's and concern's , I have to be honest here, for my own safety.
A few month's ago., I decided to get into rebreather's, to get into deeper diving , etc . Over the past year, my judgment has been OK, to say the least.
Had I known it was going to lead me down the road that I have been down, and diving with the friend's that I " planned " to dive with at depth's beyond rec limit's, I can only say at this point , it was a learning experience , and put it behind me. I have to be honest here, for everyone here, including myself. After talking with David, and him not even sure if he bent his computer, blowing the chart's , etc, it made me realize it's a place where I don't want to be. We all make mistake's, but I must say, I feel David is rushing his ability's and taking way to many chance's.
I do not agree in allot of the decision's made, but have went along with it. After all rule # when diving CCR is to have a MIN of two sensor's , but most have three. I have waited over 6 month's, but it hasn't happened. I had a SCR which doesn't even require it, and was going to put two in and I did. I spent $1,500 just so I can monitor my loop mix. I bought into filling our own tank's, now were talking about Heliox, adding another gas, and what will you be using ? A Nitrox computer set at 32% still? I don't know, as my trust has been lost at this point.
We talk about wreck diving, but does anyone here other then myself have any REAL wreck practical? Going inside and going down three floor's, loosing light 300' back?
We talk about doing decompression diving, but yet last week, we didn't even know the basic's to go drift diving off my boat!! There are many thing's were learning day by day, but the difference is, I don't want something to cost me my life, because that person should have known, or was depending on me to teach them, and I failed to. Or better yet, my life is depending on that person, something happened beyond my control, but that person doesn't have the experience to help me, let alone help himself, because we went to far, to fast. simply put, I have over 500 dive's , which isn't much, but David only having around 50-75. That is where we are different, everyday he is still learing the basic's, where im much beyond that. There is a TON of practical yet to learn, and I can say , as I am very saddened to write this, is hopefully I will have a buddy for LONG term by writing this, rather then SHORT term because someone or something failed, and it cost someone's life.
I will be happy to dive with David, on OC, within rec limit's for right now. If you want to dive CCR, then the rule's of CCR must be applied. If you chose to go that route, and want to dive with me, then I will require something to monitor your " Loop " and adjust your profile, with a min of TWO sensor's. There are many other thing's also, but that being the first.
I can also say, I will not be going past rec limit's with a converted unit. I don't want to be a " Guinea Pig " and hope it work's. Yes people do it, it's there choice, there not diving with me
Many people dive different way's around the world, but one thing I have learned when diving, is you can have all the theory in the world, but without the practical , your only as good as your last dive. Many people are self taught, after all instructor's tried cave diving, with all the open water practical experience they have, and died in cave's, because they didn't get the training that was involved for that specialty. I spent the money to get the training for the type of diving I preferred to do. I know my limit's, and don't want to go past them. The sport is not worth dying for. I had buddies I would only cave dive with, and I had buddies I would do reef diving with, etc, but I wouldn't go into a cave with a buddy that didn't have the training just to dive with him. That's were I find myself today, making allot of bad choice's, and just going with the flow.
There are many other thing's I want to discuss, maybe one day , we can all have dinner to discuss it. Luke most doesn't apply, because we only dove once, but
you and myself tend to agree on allot here, and have discussed it before many times.
David, I hope you don't take this personally, as we have allot of great time's , going down to the Key's for the past two year's, and all the diving that we have done. Your a great friend, and by me holding this in, and lying allot, just to agree to keep diving together, will only keep making thing's worse for myself . I cannot continue to dive with someone I have lost ALLOT of trust with. Only thing I can say at this point, is if something did happen, as of today, at least I could say to myself, I have tried. But continuing to live in a lie, and if something did happen, I would feel terrible.
I would love to keep diving with everyone here, and have fun while doing it, and stay safe. I may pick the dive's I go on with everyone, and some I may let pass me by, but Im going to go with my inner feeling's , and start some where, and I guess it's here first.
There is ALLOT to talk about, thing's I agree with, disagree with, where I want to go from here, and what this will do for all of us. But at least from here on out, I'll feel better, hopefully will get some more diving in, and most of all, being safe. I must say, I'm so disappointed, at this point, that if I dive 30' reef's for the next year I wouldn't care.
I look back, last year David did his first dive to 80'. Now a year later your diving off a Jet-Ski, solo diving, with a CCR unit, congrat's to yourself, that's your decision, and hopefully it all work's out for you. As least from here on out, everyone knows where I stand, and it may be just 60' reef';'s you may find me on diving with everyone, or at this point, I may give it a break for a while, and join a dive club, and meet some people that have the same experience as I do, and dive the dive's with the same experience that I have. Only time will tell, but now tonight, I can finally get some sleep
Hopefully this is not taken in the wrong way. Hopefully it will just make us a stronger dive team, and when diving with each other, we know how everyone feel's, can trust each other, and we can all have fun, and stay writhen each person's limit's, it would be appreciated here, thanks !!!