How long is it since you dived?

[Lobstah Slayah]

I dived 2 1/2 weeks ago with American Dream II in Fort Lauderdale, FL with some great fellow SBers: (Chip (ONESPEED), Terri (TasDiver), Doug (VideoDude), Carmen (crd_kats), Dave (Wormil), Tim (Netmage), and Kim (Down4Fun)

I did the same then went out on Scubatyme last Sunday.

 

[RonFrank]

It's been three days since I was in the water. I dive about every 6 weeks, more in the summer, less in the winter. I average maybe 75 dives a year if that.

I'd dive more if I lives somewhere that it was easier to dive often, and less expensive.

If you have been out of the water for 2 years, I think a refresher is not a bad idea. Another option is to make the first few dives very easy. Easy = shallow, little current, good vis, warm.

 

[amascuba]

I dove last weekend with RonFrank. He's a blast to dive with! Always hand him your SMB and spool unrigged and bring a video camera.

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

...Is diving like riding a bike or should you lose your OW status or have to do a refresher course after say 2 years?

I think that after a 2 year layoff that we should be required to actually ride a bike. If this can be completed without crashing, running over pedestrians, or other mishap, then your OW certificate should be renewed for the next 2 years

Seriously, probably a good idea for a refresher after a long layoff. Not sure I'd want to see it be mandatory however.

I returned to diving after about a 15 year gap. I felt (and was) very rusty. It took a few dives to back into the "groove", and there was new equipment to learn (BC, never owned one before!), NDL's and ascent rates had changed.

It would have been best for me to have done a refresher, but I did have a fair amount of previous dive experience so it did come back quickly.

Best Wishes.

Ohh, my last dive was about 4 weeks ago, weather and work have kept me out of the water :depressed:

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Last time in open water was under the ice on feb 1st. Been in the pool most every weekend teaching though since. Going to Jamaica April 1st - 4th then back to the lake for drysuit stuff on the 9th. Will most likely be in every other weekend after May 1st or more.

 

[DivingPrincessE]

I did the same

Were you on that dive? American Dream II, Morning, Feb 28? I must not have met you b/c I don't have your name in my log book. Sorry about that :depressed:

 

[emttim]

You're right, it isn't like health care at all so I do not think your analogy is relevant. Also the possible loss of life can apply to pretty much any activity I do day to day so again, I don't see it as particularly relevant to scuba diving. Scuba diving is a safe activity.

That's your failure then if you don't see the point I was trying to make...doesn't make any difference to me. So if anything can involve possible loss of life, are we to thumb our nose at regulation just because everything's like that? What else shall we place blanket statements over? Sounds like you simply want to ignore the fact that scuba diving is not a safe activity and can be hazardous. Sure, it's nice to think that nothing bad will ever happen, but usually that train of thought is present when those things do happen.

I am not sure why you think that someone with 1000+ logged dives thinks they know everything. That is not my experience with anybody I personally know who has 1000+ dives. I think most people to have managed to do 1000 dives are pretty aware of the things that can go wrong. This is not the case in divers with few dives. I find the people with the worst attitudes are generally those with less than 100 dives but enough to have a basic grasp of buoyancy and so on, as then they start thinking they are top stuff and 'experienced', when really they have no idea what they have not learned yet.

Funny, I get that vibe everytime I read this forum (hence why I don't that often anymore unless I'm bored). Things usually aren't noticed if one ignores them. I can easily say that someone who has less than two hundred dives, less than three hundred, etc. are equally guilty of thinking they're "top stuff" and therefore do not need to pay attention to the rules. If anything, the more experience someone has, the more prone they are to thinking that they "know enough".

I suppose I should caution that I don't care if anyone agrees with me or not. It's not my life that is in danger if I'm stuck with a dive buddy who has 1000+ dives or 100-200 dives or 500 dives or whatever and thinks he/she knows everything when they don't. I dive with the same person every time, and fortunately, unlike a lot of experienced divers out there she doesn't think she knows everything. However, that doesn't stop me from putting my two cents in on refreshers...take it for what it's worth. Mandatory refreshers is not the answer, but I think there's enough divers out there who think they know more than other divers to help boost the death statistics for our sport. Some of these deaths probably could have been prevented if refreshers were used more often.

 

[Sas]

That's your failure then if you don't see the point I was trying to make...doesn't make any difference to me.

Actually, generally it is the communicater's fault when they fail to put forward their point in a way that is understood. But I digress from the topic at hand:

So if anything can involve possible loss of life, are we to thumb our nose at regulation just because everything's like that?

I thumb my nose at regulation designed to protect people from themselves. Regulation to protect people from others is a different story.

What else shall we place blanket statements over? Sounds like you simply want to ignore the fact that scuba diving is not a safe activity and can be hazardous. Sure, it's nice to think that nothing bad will ever happen, but usually that train of thought is present when those things do happen.

Out of the many sports I have tried, scuba diving would have to be one of the safest in terms of my chances of being badly injured. It is not completely removed from danger of course, but few things are.

Please quote me where I said nothing bad would ever happen diving? I am confused why you mentioned that, given I cannot find where I said that in my posts.

Funny, I get that vibe everytime I read this forum (hence why I don't that often anymore unless I'm bored). Things usually aren't noticed if one ignores them. I can easily say that someone who has less than two hundred dives, less than three hundred, etc. are equally guilty of thinking they're "top stuff" and therefore do not need to pay attention to the rules. If anything, the more experience someone has, the more prone they are to thinking that they "know enough".

I do not use scuba diving forums to form opinions about divers in general. I use my own personal experience with the many divers I know personally so I cannot say I have experienced what you have but things differ between places of course.

 

[drbill]

Three days and my gills are drying out!

 

[b1gcountry]

Sunday was my last dive, but as Bob says, I'll be wet in about two hours! I try to get out twice a week.

I hate it when I hear people from Seattle complain about the diving. I'd kill to live somewhere I could just go diving after work twice a week. There's only one place within an hour, and even I would get bored going there twice a week.

Tom