Hello all. With about 30 dives to my name, I'm not as 'qualified' to vent on some issues as compared to others, but after this weekend, I just HAD to mention a couple of things to the 'community'.
Each Sunday, my dive partner and I hit a popular, local lake to escape the world and expand our diving skills a little. We work very well together and are VERY serious about safety and courtesy issues. I can't begin to describe how nice it is to dive with a partner you 'click' well with.
Each weekend, there are anywhere from 15 to 40 students doing OW. Add to that a small number of rec divers like ourselves, taking a Sunday to simply dive.
This weekend, I had to deal with two behavour "issues" on an uncomfortably repeated basis (every weekend and several times on this occasion) - enough to motivate this post.
Instructors: Don't take this as me telling you how to do your job, but from those of us not in your class and trying to enjoy a weekend without injury, could you PLEASE give a "courtesy brief" to your students on things like a) PLEASE don't linger 5 inches from the entry point between every OW dive, and b) it is very rude and sometimes unsafe to smoke ten feet upwind from divers in surface interval/ on entry.
The entry is rather dangerous at this lake. It is jagged granite rock with patches of slippery algae all the way down. I had to repeatedly (politely) ask students to "make a hole". I wasn't trying to be rude, but trying to remind them that it is dangerous to do that here. I have 50 lbs+ of equipment, fins in-hand, and am trying to navigate to the water without killing myself on the algae covered entry.
I'm sorry, instructors, but given the choice between a) landing face first in jagged granite under 6 inches of water and b) landing on one of your students hanging out next to the step off - your student is going to lose. Inertia will be given to the student.
Second... There were two divers who surfaced every ten minutes to smoke like chimneys. They had a little bit of an attitude to boot, so we didn't see a constructive way to say something. We simply tried to stay clear of the smoke, but it was difficult because they were ten feet away and upwind. That was the LAST time I intend to taste tobacco reminants at 40 feet.
Again, PLEASE, make an attempt to think about your surroundings and what affect your behavour has on others and most important, their safety. This experience annoyed both my partner and I enough to talk about it afterwards at the cars. I will attempt to politely talk to the head instructor this week.
Again, I'm sorry to be a newby stepping all over the garden of experience, but I just had to comment about it - and maybe see what others thought(?)
James
Each Sunday, my dive partner and I hit a popular, local lake to escape the world and expand our diving skills a little. We work very well together and are VERY serious about safety and courtesy issues. I can't begin to describe how nice it is to dive with a partner you 'click' well with.
Each weekend, there are anywhere from 15 to 40 students doing OW. Add to that a small number of rec divers like ourselves, taking a Sunday to simply dive.
This weekend, I had to deal with two behavour "issues" on an uncomfortably repeated basis (every weekend and several times on this occasion) - enough to motivate this post.
Instructors: Don't take this as me telling you how to do your job, but from those of us not in your class and trying to enjoy a weekend without injury, could you PLEASE give a "courtesy brief" to your students on things like a) PLEASE don't linger 5 inches from the entry point between every OW dive, and b) it is very rude and sometimes unsafe to smoke ten feet upwind from divers in surface interval/ on entry.
The entry is rather dangerous at this lake. It is jagged granite rock with patches of slippery algae all the way down. I had to repeatedly (politely) ask students to "make a hole". I wasn't trying to be rude, but trying to remind them that it is dangerous to do that here. I have 50 lbs+ of equipment, fins in-hand, and am trying to navigate to the water without killing myself on the algae covered entry.
I'm sorry, instructors, but given the choice between a) landing face first in jagged granite under 6 inches of water and b) landing on one of your students hanging out next to the step off - your student is going to lose. Inertia will be given to the student.
Second... There were two divers who surfaced every ten minutes to smoke like chimneys. They had a little bit of an attitude to boot, so we didn't see a constructive way to say something. We simply tried to stay clear of the smoke, but it was difficult because they were ten feet away and upwind. That was the LAST time I intend to taste tobacco reminants at 40 feet.
Again, PLEASE, make an attempt to think about your surroundings and what affect your behavour has on others and most important, their safety. This experience annoyed both my partner and I enough to talk about it afterwards at the cars. I will attempt to politely talk to the head instructor this week.
Again, I'm sorry to be a newby stepping all over the garden of experience, but I just had to comment about it - and maybe see what others thought(?)
James