rustman once bubbled...
I have been lurking around here for a little while now, trying to learn as much as possible.
Most of my questions have been answered by a simple search, but one question I can't find any answer to is:
If you lose your reg on a long hose, how do you go about recovering it?
Do you use your secondary and then start reeling it in?
It seems that the standard lean and sweep method as well as grabbing the hose at the first stage would not work very well.
Tom.
Well, first of all, it's damn near impossible to lose the second stage. Since it passes behind your neck, the majority of the hose is still draped across your chest and shoulder. If you do lose it, chances are it will be right next to your head, so you just grab it and go.. or grab the hose on your chest and follow it to the second stage.
If you do manage to get all 7 feet trailing behind you, the sweep definitely works just fine, as does reaching behind and grabbing the hose where it meets the first stage. Just grab the end of the hose, and run it under your arm as you follow the hose. You really shouldn't need to go to the backup, but if you were hit by a shark or something and needed a quick breath, the backup should be about an inch and a half from your chin. Grab it, breathe it, and simply drop it when you get your primary back.
Note that in the event you had your primary ripped away from you and trailing behind you when you were at the end of a breath and needed a quick breath, you get air much more quickly with the long hose. In a standard setup, grabbing the octo and removing it from the octo holder is about as slow as just retrieving the primary. With the long hose setup, you have air instantly right below your chin. And you don't have to restow the backup when you're done with it.. just let it drop from your lips. Your buddy should have his primary extended to you by this time
Edit: Oh yeah, ben made a fine point I didn't even remember. If it's trailing behind you in the water, you just turn around and your second stage is suddenly in front of you. I've never managed to be in that situation, but it'll work just fine