Question Practicing Out Of Air ascent: good idea, or bad idea ?

[dmaziuk]

What about holding your breath when your buddy has already run our of air, is breathing from your octopus
and you are clearing out your reg as a completely unforseen circumstance has occurred and it is full of

man-eating sharks. And you have to hide under the rocks and wait for them to live before you can safely surface.

 

[dmaziuk]

... Simply knowing my immediate urge to breath is CO2 driven as opposed to an urgent need for O2 gives considerable confidence to simply slow down a moment, which without training runs entirely contrary to human instincts...

Right, if you want to practice for CESA, practice controlling your urge to breathe. Ascents themselves, between the risk of lung over-expansion injury and the risk of bending your fast tissues: maybe not worth it.

 

[TMHeimer]

Right, if you want to practice for CESA, practice controlling your urge to breathe. Ascents themselves, between the risk of lung over-expansion injury and the risk of bending your fast tissues: maybe not worth it.

An excellent idea. I'm not worried about risks doing a 30 foot CESA. Don't hold breath-- exhale (make Ah... sound if you wish), keep reg in, ascend slowly. Even I can memorize those simple steps....

 

[boulderjohn]

I have seen smokers with great SAC, why? Maybe scarring in their lungs and a high tolerance for CO2.

You seem to assume that they have great SAC rates because of the smoking. It is more likely that they have great SAC rates in spite of the smoking. Their rates would likely be even better if they did not smoke.

 

[dmaziuk]

You seem to assume that they have great SAC rates because of the smoking. It is more likely that they have great SAC rates in spite of the smoking. Their rates would likely be even better if they did not smoke.

Maybe.

Based on my representative sample of one, my lungs' tidal volume hasn't changed after I quit. They've gotten better at O2 exchange -- my breathholding swims got longer/more comfortable, -- but at the levels of exertion I get on an average dive, that doesn't make any difference. So my gas mileage on scuba didn't change appreciably.

Leaving the camera at home, now that does wonders to my SAC.

 

[ScubaWithTurk]

Practicing a CESA is not smart. What is smart is practicing good buddy protocols such as positioning as well as practicing gas sharing ascents.

Many I have seen post here assume that running out of gas means you failed to properly plan for the dive. This is 100% false. You can plan the dive perfectly and do your 35m dive in ST/BM and have a catastrophic failure that causes you to lose your gas. This is where buddy positioning and regular training out air sharing ascents comes in handy.

 

[TMHeimer]

Practicing a CESA is not smart. What is smart is practicing good buddy protocols such as positioning as well as practicing gas sharing ascents.

Many I have seen post here assume that running out of gas means you failed to properly plan for the dive. This is 100% false. You can plan the dive perfectly and do your 35m dive in ST/BM and have a catastrophic failure that causes you to lose your gas. This is where buddy positioning and regular training out air sharing ascents comes in handy.

We've been down that road. Catastrophic failure can happen. Solo diving happens. Buddy separation also happens. Someone figured CESA was important or it wouldn't be taught, though some feel it shouldn't be taught. If it's taught it should be practiced (or at least read about in review), otherwise teaching it is useless.

 

[ScubaWithTurk]

We've been down that road. Catastrophic failure can happen. Solo diving happens. Buddy separation also happens. Someone figured CESA was important or it wouldn't be taught, though some feel it shouldn't be taught. If it's taught it should be practiced (or at least read about in review), otherwise teaching it is useless.

Yes, but the OP asked and I answered. Many things here are rehashed. We tend to go down the same roads over and over on SB. It doesn't make what I said wrong but I do feel it adds to the conversation.

 

[TMHeimer]

Yes, but the OP asked and I answered. Many things here are rehashed. We tend to go down the same roads over and over on SB. It doesn't make what I said wrong but I do feel it adds to the conversation.

True enough. Do you feel CESA should be removed from the OW course?

 

[ScubaWithTurk]

True enough. Do you feel CESA should be removed from the OW course?

I have mixed feelings about this. I used to think it needed to be removed. Now, I am not sure. I have given it a lot of thought and I do feel that if we teach good gas management, proper dive planning and a buddy positioning, it should not be needed.

When I say good buddy positioning, I believe new divers should have to swim 15 meters after an exhale to retrieve gas from a buddy. This shows them that staying closer to your buddy is key in reducing risk.

Having said that, I can see circumstances where a CESA might be needed. Diver A gets caught in a current and pulled away from Diver B. Diver A then has a catastrophic failure. But I also wonder what the likely of this event happening is as it seems to be a perfect storm.

I suppose my answer is that I need to think it through more before I settle on a position.