How do you plan a dive with a less experienced (nervous) instabuddy?

[AfterDark]

Make them plan the dive. Go over all signals and contingencies and tell them if they deviate from it they are on their own. If there is something in their plan you don't like, say so. Every diver should be able to plan the dive they are going on including dives they are a student on. That's part of the learning process.

If they can't they should not be doing that dive and perhaps you should not be trusting them to do it with you. Let them know up front and in very clear terms that if they do not stick to the plan you agreed upon they are not to expect you to follow them.

There are too many with a sheep mentality that expect others to do everything for them and just follow along. What they do not realize is how dangerous this is for them to do. At least until the SHTF and then they see how leaving their safety to others might be the last thing they ever do.

This was how I learned and became proficient after only a few years of diving. There was a dive club with members that were very experienced sport divers, some had military diving backgrounds others were retired commercial divers (hard hat) and knew how to get a young kid's attention. I planned every dive we did. Every diver had their input. They would purposely throw curve balls into some of criteria of the dives to see if I'd catch it or to verbally poke me when I didn't....for weeks. Those guys were hard but they knew how to teach lessons that stayed with you! Those were among the best diving experiences of my life.

 

[nolatom]

I've enjoyed my intsabuddies almost without exception.

One of my best overall buddies was new to ocean boat diving, he'd done maybe 6 dives since cert out in New Mexico somewhere, and his max depth was around 45'. I probably had around 80 dives at the time, and a fairly new Rescue card.

We got buddied up on a non-novice dive, 18 miles offshore of Pensacola, the "Chevron platforms", which sit in about 135' and top out at around 80'. I don't know why the boat took him on this particular "offshore" trip but too late for that. My initial thought was "uh-oh, is this really going to work?"

I had not dived that site before, but it was nice weather, warm water, no current, vis around 60' so if there ever was a day for a rookie to go to 80-100', this was it. On the long boat ride out, we talked a lot--when and how to signal air, where we would level off, when we would turn the dive, when we'd surface, weights, releases, basic signals, all the "big women really are fun" stuff. I lead, you follow was the basic plan, use a lot of eye contact, and if in doubt we will just ascend. So I admit I didn't let him "plan his dive", nor did I really want him to, though I did ask what his objective was and how did he want to do it. He said since he hadn't done this "big" a dive yet, he would defer to me, as long as he got back to the upline with adequate air. Good enough.

I don't think there are any magic words, it's more about how you say them. Most of all, after we'd done the mutual briefing, "just relax and enjoy the dive, it's meant to be fun" was what I was trying to convey. I was consciously trying to project an air of calmness, and after a while it wasn't an act, he really did seem to become more relaxed and asked practical questions.

And as it turned out, he did just fine throughout. Part of this was probably his temperament, a cool head, attentive, good awareness of surroundings, good communicator. And part of it has to have been his instructor (thanks, dude, good job! I mean it.).

He went just a little past 100', behaved like someone with way more dives than he had, and at dive's end I had only about 300-400 pounds more than he did, so for a rookie he was just excellent (way better than me on my 6th dive). And he was psyched about it afterwards. Second dive was shallower and again he was very good.

Was this just good luck? Good procedure? Both? neither? I don't truly know. I do think he deserves way more credit than me, although I did "take a chance on an unknown kid" in a way.

But I thought then, and now, that a callout of thanks to all you anonymous instructors is in order..

 

[Mike126]

Not having a ton of dives under my belt I would not say that I am really experienced. For that reason I try to dive with more experienced divers to learn from them. I do like it when my buddy and I go over a plan which can be as simple as descend slowly (for me), head to a specific location or compass bearing, plan to return to entry point at X-psi and then a safety stop at 15' for 3 minutes. It never ceases to amaze me to read about buddies that just go off on their own without prior communication.

 

[flots am]

My my question is how do you plan a dive with this kind of instabuddy in such a way that will help ease their nerves. Most of these dives are wreck dives from boats in 60-100fsw.

The first thing you should do is not do deep wreck dives with a nervous diver.

I'll dive with pretty much anybody who isn't actively trying to commit suicide or kill me, but I reserve the right to pick the diver or the dive.

When I get an inexperienced or rusty diver for a buddy, we do easy, shallow dives where screw-ups are much more forgiving.

For deep or more demanding dives, the list of "who I'll dive with" gets progressively shorter.

People are nervous for a reason. They're not prepared for the dive ahead. A well-planned dive that can't be executed properly is still a bad dive and should be avoided. Telling someone that you're going to do a stop @70', send up a SMB and drift for 20 minutes then get picked up by the boat' isn't useful for a diver that can't shoot a surface marker and can't stop and hold an arbitrary depth.

Even on a no-deco dive things like gas management can be very important. If someone runs out of gas @15' it's not a big deal. @ 115' it probably is.

Plan the dives ahead of time so that you don't exceed your or your buddy's capabilities. If you're on a charter where you can't pick either the dive or the buddy, you always have the option to sit out the dive or go solo if you have the card. Just don't voluntarily walk into the wood chipper.

If it looks questionable on the surface, it's not going to get better underwater.

flots.

 

[jwj500]

I have also appreciated a very thorough dive briefing from my buddies when I was new and a bit nervous. Having the details of the dive told to me prior and then being able to follow the order eased my nerves. The communication with the buddy was another way to be relaxed with the upcoming dive.

I now try to do the same with other new divers to help them feel comfortable. One of the most important things to remember is to never push a diver past their personal comfort level.

Communication and planning are good things.

This also makes you have the leadership role and gives the newer diver the ability to learn and from your experience. In addition, it takes the nervousness away from trying to do something they aren't that experienced with. Now, you dive your plan.

 

[LakeCountyDiver]

I will ask if they want to plan the dive, if they do not then I will. I will go over what we will do and emergency procedures. We will make the dive diving the plan. If they wish to not listen then thats on them. I never disclose of my training and cridentails I merely act as a experienced OW diver. Its in my nature to lead and also act as a sheep dog keeping everyone accounted for but I will not play games if they chose not to listen then I will not be a great buddy. If they listen and follow the plan I will always have a close eye on them and will make sure they complete the dive safely. This is not a class or training this is a dive I paid for and I will treat it as such.

 

[Rich Keller]

I always make my first dive with a new buddy shallow regardless of what their experience is or how many cards they have. If they are good in the water then I would be willing to move onto something more challenging. I am also the only one in my group that dives so I am always with an instabuddy, usually a novice and I am fine with that as long as it is shallow. I prefer shallow and longer dives when I get to someplace that has more then the 5'-10' vis I get at home.

 

[AdivingBel]

Unless I see something obvious setting up, I tend to give my insta-buddy the benefit of the doubt (I know, I may die ). I make sure we chat about the dive and I will be sure to reiterate that I dive for fun and if for any reason it quits being fun, don't press on. You won't hurt my feelings if you thumb the dive for any reason and that goes both ways. I like long shallow dives too, but I've done recreational deep wrecks following this policy as well. I tend to be extra observant regarding my own gas and NDLs, but I tend to be that way anyway.

 

[FinnMom]

If we are at sea (means 4-6m vis max, almost always) or an otherwise challenging environment, I really love an opportunity to go as a team of 3: a buddy I know well and the new guy. The new guy knows I am his buddy, he needs to watch only me. The experienced diver and I consider ourselves to have 2 buddies and we keep an eye on both. With my experienced buddy keeping an eye on the new guy at all times, I can more easily dare to look around and lead without fear of the new guy vanishing (which they usually do by going straight up w/o warning).

If the entry is at all intimidating or exhausting, I also make plans to all stop together, face to face holding the down line and wait until we have all caught our breath & calmed down. Then we decide together whether we are going down or back to the boat. It's a little easier to dare jumping into the waves if climbing straight back out again was a clear option from the very beginning.

 

[azmodan50]

If I am at more normal dive site and get an insta-buddy that is fairly new, I give them a lay of the land first. Let them know where things are and how to get there. I let them decide what we see as I have seen it already. Once in the water, I will point them in the right direction if they forgot, but I let them lead the way. This way, if they decide they don't want to continue, I won't be surprised by a lost buddy when I check my gauges.

I try to let them set the pace as much as possible without them getting themselves or me in trouble. After the dive, I discuss the good and what they may want to work on.

I myself prefer to follow because I just enjoy being in the water. If my buddy wants to spend an hour in 10ft of water looking at fish, I'm good with that. If they want to go down to 100ft and dive a wall, I'm game for that too. I've never been disappointed on what I've seen on any of my dives so I would rather my buddy gets to see what they want.