solo dive for a noob

[jennasnyder1980]

erparamedic My uncle was a Coast Guard diver for like 5 years in Korea and some other places. Neither of my parents dive my dads never had an intrest in it since one of his employees neices died when she passed out underwater on a group dive. By the time they found her she had drown. Ive always been intersted in dangerous things in which my mothers coworkers at the hospital think she stupid for letting me do, like have Dirtbikes and other go fast toys. I have not planned my dives because they will not happen for 10 months. Ive seen and been threw alot for a 17 year old kid with a couple friends dieing but thats about the worst thats ever happened to me if thats what you mean by real world experiance.

Hmmmm. You're mother's coworkers think she's stupid for letting you do dangerous things.
I suggest that you read "Diver Down" specifically the chapter about a diver's large ego and overconfidence. I must admit I only have 20 some odd dives under my belt, but wouldn't even think about diving solo. You list all of the capabilities of your mother but if she can't find you to help you, what good is that?
I am sure you have been through a lot for your age, but in terms of scuba diving, you really haven't.
So, you will probably go and do it anyway. Best of luck and I hope you don't become a statistic or a storyline in "Diver Down 2"

Jen

 

[CBulla]

Don't forget to read some of Sheck Exley's books... I'm a little partial to Caverns Measureless to Man. Some excellent read about the early exploration under rocks and the self reliance that was needed -

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0939748207/103-9592285-0647035?v=glance&n=283155

 

[BiggDawg]

After I get my cert and go diving with the local dive club would it be safe for a new diver to go solo diving? I wouldnt be going that deep probably close to 30 feet give or take a couple feet so I could make it up the the surface for air if I need it. Reason being I have a cottage and will not always have a dive buddy close.

For what it's worth:

I ALWAYS ASSUME I'M DIVING SOLO, but I have never dived without a buddy. Don't plan to, and I've been diving for quite a while now.
You can never be sure your buddy is close enough, or competent enough, to help out.
BUT,
While diving is a safe enough activity when you dive within your skills and training, it can be very dangerous when you don't, or when something goes wrong.

I had a friend who was newly certified, diving with a buddy who was newly certified. They assumed that because they were with a buddy, everything was OK.

Buddy swam away, and my friend was, unfortunately involuntarily diving solo. After that, the story is unclear. Apparently, he panicked, and did what divers (especially "newly certified") divers do when they panic: They found his body on the bottom, weight belt still attached, with over 1000 psi in the tank.
Even his buddy wasn't there to find him.

For me, it's just not smart to avoid diving with as much redundant life support as possible, even though (knock, knock) I have never needed it. A buddy is redundant life support. Is it worth it to dive without a redundant air supply strapped to the next guy's back? (for that matter, when you dive with a buddy, there's an even chance the shark will eat him instead of you... )

You asked if "it's safe." In a word: NO.
Is it wise for a noob? In a word: NO.

 

[rev440]

BiggDawg I am trying to work on the issue of me not being frightned on a solo dive of course I will be nervous but I am not looking to get killed. I will do a number of dives of a swim platform just short 10 minute dives and so on till I get use to it. Im not looking to get killed or hurt but just being able to spend more time in the water.

 

[BiggDawg]

BiggDawg I am trying to work on the issue of me not being frightned on a solo dive of course I will be nervous but I am not looking to get killed. I will do a number of dives of a swim platform just short 10 minute dives and so on till I get use to it. Im not looking to get killed or hurt but just being able to spend more time in the water.

I understand your dilemma.

Do what you gotta' do. I won't criticize you, and as was said by some one else, we don't have the "Scuba Police" (fortunately, yet...) to stop you.

Many people dive solo, and don't get hurt. Many dive with buddies, and do.

Funny thing, though, no one ever looked "to get killed or hurt," they wanted "just being able to spend more time in the water." Yet, divers still get hurt, or killed, much too often.

 

[cascbagrl]

Is there a dive shop near by that you could tag along with instead of going by yourself? I would never think of going solo, if my husband and I are diving and one of us needs to go up we always attach ourselves to someone else. If you are planning this you should consider taking more courses first and have more time in the water.

 

[badmrchris]

Hmm, I was in the same boat as you, summer of 2002, 21 yrs old, just out of OW class and all my friends were broke and couldn’t afford it. So I dove by myself.

When Lobster season came around I worked swing shift. So I’d rent my equipment before I went to work, get off at 11:00 PM, be in the water by midnight and get a dive or two in.

One night I went in for my second dive at about 1:30 AM on a bright clear night. Conditions were great, at least for Laguna Beach. 2’ surge, 2’ waves and viz to the end of my light beam. I was in to my waist trying to get my fins on when I lost my balance and turned my back to the oncoming waves.

Wave came, smacked me in the middle of my back and pitched my head back, slamming it HARD against the first stage. My head was spinning, I lost my breath and I nearly blacked out. After floundering around in the surf for a few moments I crawled back on the beach. Luckily I only lost a fin that night.

What would have happened if I had blacked out? If I would have been in 8’ of water instead of 3-4;? If I had been 30’ under water and surge would have pushed my head into the reef covered in urchins instead of my tank? No need to lambaste me. Although my head was foggy I realized then and there what I was doing was incredibly stupid. I had just enough knowledge to get me in trouble and was green enough not to realize it. My tank was way too high and it was taking me way to long to get my fins on, two things that experience would have taken care of immediately.

So I stopped diving solo. Gave it a few years, got about 60+ dives under my belt tried it again. Your skill level just out of OW class compared to a few years and a few dozen dives will rise exponentially. Like diving with a buddy though, experience will only mitigate risk not eleminate it.

My advice? Don’t do it. I know a pond in Ohio is a lot different than a beach in SoCal but the principle is the same. But, you’re gonna do what you’re gonna do regardless of what anyone tells you, so if you insist on it at least buy a spare air. A noob diving solo may be dumb, but a noob diving solo a reg and octo off the same airtank should qualify you for the Special Olympics.

ps-what cascbagrl says is absolutely true. Try an advanced OW course, it'll get you in the water and possibly a few more dive buddies. Aside from friends that I have infected with the diving bug (5 and counting), the rest of my buddies have come from classes.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I know a pond in Ohio is a lot different than a beach in SoCal but the principle is the same.

Ponds have their own hazards ... not least of which is the tendency of divers not to take them seriously enough. A former dive buddy lost her husband in a pond ... he drowned in 25 feet of water ... alone.

But, you’re gonna do what you’re gonna do regardless of what anyone tells you, so if you insist on it at least buy a spare air.

A new diver can suck a 3 cf Spare Air dry at 30 feet in less than a minute. Will that be long enough in an entanglement to deploy the Spare Air, ditch your rig, and make an emergency ascent? I doubt it.

If someone's gonna solo they should consider at a minimum a 13-cf pony bottle ... and that's for shallow diving. And once they get the gear, get some practice using it and get in the habit of checking its function before beginning the dive. We lost a young man here three years back who was diving solo, ran out of air, and died when it turned out that his pony bottle reg wasn't deployable.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[captain]

Rev440, I am not going to tell you to solo dive and I am not going to tell you to not solo dive but I was in a similar situation but it was in a different time and circumstances. I started diving in the 1950's when there was no such thing as certification and no training available, I learned by reading books. There also were very few divers so I had no one to dive with and all of my first dives were solo. Most times I had someone either on shore or in the boat while I dived. I feel that those early years of diving solo made me very comfortable in the water. I started out with shallow short dives and as I became more comfortable I did longer and deeper dives. This was also in a time before much of the equiptment available now was invented. I had no BC no SPG, just mask, fins, knife, tank and regulator. Whatever you decide to do start slow and easy and read all you find pretaining to solo diving.

 

[Packhorse]

When you talk about solo diving and rescue teams, you need to realise that the only thing they are rescuing is a dead body.