"Rescue Diver" - Your experiences?

[RichWilx]

I have just signed up for my PADI Rescue Diver course. I am looking forward to it immensely and, working through the materials, am excited about learning another vital set of skills.

However....

When I told my instructor that I wanted to do Rescue Diver, he grinned and said "This is one of my favorite courses to teach. We have so much fun with our students as we tend to come up with scenarios that are outside of the box. Masks will come off!"

So, now I'm wondering what on Earth he is planning and whether those of you who did "Rescue Diver" were presented with unusual situations?

To help me prepare, tell me your stories!

 

[rogersab1223]

Out of curiosity - how long have you been diving/how many dives do you have?

I'm very interested in the Rescue Diver course but want to wait until I get some more experience under my belt first...

Andy

 

[Searcaigh]

Should be mandatory for all divers.

When I did mine back in '93, the instructor had two DMs working with him, both over 6' and built like brick sh!thouses. They were frequently my victims for rescue and boy did they try to drown me, knowing every trick in the book, they would turn around when I duckdived to come up behind them etc, thrashing around and doing their best to take me out. Did not make it easy for me at all, I am only 5'7"!

Anyway I came away from that course with a lot of knowledge and confidence. Happy to say that my daughter also did that course last year and she is a better diver for it too.

Enjoy the course

 

[boulderjohn]

Out of curiosity - how long have you been diving/how many dives do you have?

I'm very interested in the Rescue Diver course but want to wait until I get some more experience under my belt first...

Andy

Rescue diver students do not need a whole lot of dive experience. Most of what you do is on the surface. The hardest part is the navigation part of searching for a lost diver. If you did AOW, you already have that skill.

 

[TMHeimer]

I agree that it probably should be mandatory. Two new OW divers can buddy up and dive to 60' in conditions as good or better than their training and most only know the tired diver tow. That's not a panicked diver. Our instructor did things pretty straight forward--no tricks, just get the skills done. I found the course to be surprisingly easy physically at my age. The rescue scenarios were mentally challenging.

 

[Kitty_Kat]

+1 for a useful course!

Your instructor was probably hinting at the fact that he/his DM(s) will be creatively trying to panic in order to prepare you for any scenario that you would actually see in real life. Even though the material is a little more serious (it is rescue!), it ends up being such a fun class!

As a DM/victim for this class, I will try to climb on top of you in a panic if you approach the wrong way or grab your mask if you get too close. As an unconscious victim, you might find my LP inflator disconnected (out of air! can't inflate my wing that way) or find me extremely overweighted. There are a couple of little hints for you . We are trying to prepare you for worst case scenarios, and see how you react to unforeseen situations!

Don't worry too much about it! It really is a lot of fun!

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I have just signed up for my PADI Rescue Diver course. I am looking forward to it immensely and, working through the materials, am excited about learning another vital set of skills.

However....

When I told my instructor that I wanted to do Rescue Diver, he grinned and said "This is one of my favorite courses to teach. We have so much fun with our students as we tend to come up with scenarios that are outside of the box. Masks will come off!"

So, now I'm wondering what on Earth he is planning and whether those of you who did "Rescue Diver" were presented with unusual situations?

To help me prepare, tell me your stories!

I suppose what your instructor is attempting to do is put the "surprise" element that usually exists in a real rescue into the class scenarios. Class is often an artificial environment that focuses on individual skills and doesn't represent a real-world diving incident very well, so if that's what he's talking about then I applaud the effort.

But there's another side to Rescue class that doesn't sometimes get emphasized enough ... and that's how to prevent the need for rescue in the first place. Diving accidents are often the result of allowing recognizeable symptoms to accumulate over a period of time ... what some call the "chain of events" or the "incident pit" that starts out with something small and easily fixable or preventable and builds to an overload that results in a bad outcome. One of the biggest benefits to a well run Rescue class is learning how to recognize when this is occurring ... both in yourself and in other divers ... and taking steps to end the dive before it leads to an accident. In that respect, addressing a chronically leaking mask is often more important than one that comes off completely, because it's a more long-term problem that can lead to stress, changes in breathing pattern, CO2 buildup, and a case of narcosis or hypercapnia that can cause a diver to disengage that most important piece of gear ... your brain.

Rescue scenarios are certainly important ... but I don't look at them as the most important part of a Rescue class. Learning to recognize the incident pit and taking steps to avoid the need for a Rescue are far more valuable lessons that one can get exposed to in a well-taught Rescue class.

And I do believe that Rescue is the one class that every diver should consider taking once they're OW certified ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[darushin]

let's see for self rescue these skills were done in 20ft of water with normal via and zero viz.

Maksed jerked off
Air turned off
Tank bands un latched
Mask swap
Ditchable weights pulled


And that is what I recall, there may have been more. Cave and rescue for me was during same time frame and both of my instructors took great pleasure in finding new ways to make the crap hit the fan


Daru

 

[Scott]

To help me prepare, tell me your stories!

No, that would spoil it for you.
Plan on being tired, dunked a few times, possibly frustrated, dunked a few more times, challenged and a good time.

 

[MaxBottomtime]

I had to make a 300 yard tired diver tow. Our "victim" swam too far out and I was selected to retrieve him first. Every victim on the bottom fought me every step of the way to the surface, even the unconscious ones. For my gear exchange, I had to swap with my buddy Tim underwater. I was wearing shorts and using a single 72. He had just come from a tech dive and had double 120s with a LOT of weight integrated into his harness. I never thought I would make it to the surface.
For the fireman's carry up the ladder, my instructor volunteered to be the victim. He was close to 300 pounds at the time. My back still hurts fifteen years later. During our surf rescue portion, the waves were four feet high. I thought we were making actual rescues.
It was the most difficult class I ever took, but the most useful.