Blackwood
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Just like it's easier to look up if you are vertical, it's easier to look behind you if you are horizontal.
Oh, and you ate joking about the shark thing, right?
Safety stops - depth, duration and trim
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Just like it's easier to look up if you are vertical, it's easier to look behind you if you are horizontal.
Oh, and you ate joking about the shark thing, right?
dumpsterDiver
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I was VERY serious about sharks. When sharks are around is the only time I really want a buddy with me.
As for looking around, I can more easily spin (on my vertical axis) and effectively scan for sharks than a person can while laying flat, face down in the water.
Blackwood
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That's odd. I can't. Prone, I only need move my head and maybe pitch my body a bit. vertical I'd have to rotate at the hips (same as looking up while horizontal).
Eh, maybe it's 6 to one half a dozen to the other.
Eh, maybe it's 6 to one half a dozen to the other.
It is situationally dependent. Coming out of a cave in a spring after a long deco dive, I will come up horizontally and take maybe 5 minutes to come up from 20' as the priority is cleaner off gassing as there are no threats on ascents (well..maybe gators).
Coming up in a fresh water lake, I will go from horizontal to vertical at about 10 ft and then rotate/look around/look up on the way up to avoid boat traffic as they are the primary threat on ascent.
In the ocean, I'll switch from horizontal to vertical at 20' (10' stops make no sense in 5 or 6 ft swells) and then watch the boat to ensure that I don't end up ascending under the props or rudders pitching up and down in 6 ft seas. Again the primary threat above 20' is the boat on the surface. And I agree that you can rotate and maintain better overall situational awareness when vertical and that makes more sense than staying horizontal.
The US Navy specified vertical with the stop depth at chest level, but then they also accommodated helmet divers who had to stay vertical.
It is true that a horizontal position adds more drag, but at the technical level your buoyancy better be spot on anyway, horizontal or vertical.
But...horizontal looks cool and and seems to be the primary issue with many divers who otherwise can't explain why they do it.
Coming up in a fresh water lake, I will go from horizontal to vertical at about 10 ft and then rotate/look around/look up on the way up to avoid boat traffic as they are the primary threat on ascent.
In the ocean, I'll switch from horizontal to vertical at 20' (10' stops make no sense in 5 or 6 ft swells) and then watch the boat to ensure that I don't end up ascending under the props or rudders pitching up and down in 6 ft seas. Again the primary threat above 20' is the boat on the surface. And I agree that you can rotate and maintain better overall situational awareness when vertical and that makes more sense than staying horizontal.
The US Navy specified vertical with the stop depth at chest level, but then they also accommodated helmet divers who had to stay vertical.
It is true that a horizontal position adds more drag, but at the technical level your buoyancy better be spot on anyway, horizontal or vertical.
But...horizontal looks cool and and seems to be the primary issue with many divers who otherwise can't explain why they do it.
captain
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Monkey_Gland
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dumpsterDiver
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Try it some time, it takes almost zero energy to hang vertically in the water and slowly spin or rotate your body using gentle flicks of the fins. You can see much more than ducking down and looking between your legs (like you do when swimming and trying to see if your buddy is right behind you). Hanging horizontally and looking under your legs or over your shoulder gives you a very limited view of the entire water column
When you are clinging on to a hang bar at 15 ft. in a swift surface current, the last thing you are thinking about is should I be vertical or horizontal? Although, during that 3-5 minute safety stop, you probably spend about half your time at each position.
It gets even more interesting when you add a little surge to the mix.
Seriously, just the concept of the importance of a safety stop for a minimum of 3 minutes in conjunction with a slow ascent rate should be the focus with novice divers. If the safety stop is used to practice neutral buoyancy it's a double bonus.
It gets even more interesting when you add a little surge to the mix.
Seriously, just the concept of the importance of a safety stop for a minimum of 3 minutes in conjunction with a slow ascent rate should be the focus with novice divers. If the safety stop is used to practice neutral buoyancy it's a double bonus.
Blackwood
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If you are using kicks to turn, you are using kicks to turn, and can do that regardless of position. I thought you were trying to keep your body facing one way while looking another.
Still, I think this is pretty much a 6=dozen/2 thing. You are in 3D space, and part of the environment is going to be behind your head regardless of how your body is positioned relative to the water column. Thus, there is always going to be some part of the environment you have to move in order to see.
Generally speaking, I don't see much of a need to look behind me during a hang. I need to look at my buddy/ies, who are in front of and looking at me/eachother. When I near the surface, I also need to look up. But that's about it.
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