I know that PADI says this is a liability issue (and if you do have the reflex to breathe you don't get anything,) BUT ITA it delevops confidence - something I'm working on and didn't realize it was an issue until recently. I wish I would have practiced this more.... before it came to be a bad habit.WaterDawg:I do like for the OOA diver to tutake the reg out of his/her mouth that way they really are OOA! It delevops confidence and hurrys the donor a bit.
EDIT - PADI standards require you turn off the air like everyone has said... strange your instructor didn't. Which agency did you do it with? Never mind it doesn't really matter - you and your buddy go for a dive, or go back into a pool for awhile, practice all your skills and give turning off your air a go... do it again and again. Make a game of war - rip off each others masks, rip the regs out, turn off the air if you can... just play safe!