When is a newbie No longer a newbie.

[munkispank]

Not a good prerequisite ... some people have way more than 300 posts, and have never really SAID anything ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I was just about to say the same thing- quality not quantity- same with diving- I have a buddy who has logged 'hundreds of dives- so many that i don't keep a log book" = yeah right- why the hell is your bouyancy terrible and you suck down a tank in 10 mins. He has 100's of dives- but they must all be 10 mins long!!!

I sitll consider myself a veritable newbie in certain situations- despite dive numbers and padi patches- it depends on the conditions. Diving in conditions I am used to- no worries- get me in the cold dark deep and I dirty my wetsuit like a newborn

 

[texdiveguy]

30 plus years of active diving!!

 

[ShakaZulu]

Not a good prerequisite ... some people have way more than 300 posts, and have never really SAID anything ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

You are right, I should have made it 2000 posts, my bad

 

[Ishie]

Hmmm... mom stopped calling me a wog once I hit twenty dives... Maybe that's the pre-newbie class?

 

[ascubaguy]

Just been reading a thread about who still considers themselves to be newbie.

I am definatly a newbie with 30 dives in 6 months. I have just finished my AOW, have night dive experience a couple of shallow solo dives, (10-12ft) and am keen to do my rescue in another 20 or so dives so that i can learn how to be as good a buddy as possible while still considering myself a newbie.

I dive with a very experienced diver 3000+ dives who is my dive buddy and instructor he tells me that i will NEVER stop learning and I agree.

But Heck people, when i hit 200 dives I'd like to think I have done the basic apprenticeship and would like to move past being called a newbie.

So, maybe for divers that just want to dive and not become instructors/masters etc, a rating sytem could be helpfull?, providing there isnt one already. (If there is this will be am embarssing thread that i posted eh?)

0-200 dives = newbie diver
200-250 = novice diver
250-500 regular diver
500-1,000 senior regular
1,000- 3,000 experienced diver
4,000+ seriously exeprienced diver dude.

or something like this anyway.

Whats your thoughts?

Your a newbie if you act like one. Ive only been diving a year now. Im a new diver not a newbie, it sound's better. I have just over 100 dives but im still a new diver.

 

[DORSETBOY]

As said before it's all relative in learning... instructors, dm's and all other divers never no it all and we can all pick up or improve good habits and skills from eachother.

 

[miketsp]

You're a noobie every time you dive and your previous experience and/or training hasn't prepared you for what you run into.
It basically comes down to comfort level provided you know what you're doing.
Unfortunately there are are many that don't know what they don't know so they think they are are comfortable.

Anyway, let's warm up the discussion a bit.

Can somebody who has only ever dived protected water, caves, lakes & quarries etc be anything other than a noobie no matter how good a diver technically they get to be?

When I look back just over my last 100 open sea dives in a wide variety of sea conditions, visibility, currents etc I just can't see how fresh-water diving would give the same experience & confidence.

 

[ZenDiver]

I fall into the Senior Regular Diver: 500-1000 dives and still learn from "newbies" as much as I can learn from a Seriously Experienced Dive Dude 4000+. Every dive is a learning experience IMO and your job is to find the lesson everytime, sometimes its major, sometimes its minor but its always there to learn from. I think everyone has posted good things about experience verses the number of dives you have. The more you dive the more you see and learn, both good and bad.

 

[ZenDiver]

You're a noobie every time you dive and your previous experience and/or training hasn't prepared you for what you run into.
It basically comes down to comfort level provided you know what you're doing.
Unfortunately there are are many that don't know what they don't know so they think they are are comfortable.

Anyway, let's warm up the discussion a bit.

Can somebody who has only ever dived protected water, caves, lakes & quarries etc be anything other than a noobie no matter how good a diver technically they get to be?

When I look back just over my last 100 open sea dives in a wide variety of sea conditions, visibility, currents etc I just can't see how fresh-water diving would give the same experience & confidence.

I think that the coin goes on both sides. I have a ton of Carribean ocean dives in just about every condition that can be thrown at you. I am fairly confident that I know my limitations in the sea. I have no experience diving in a Qaurry or a swift running river and definately would consider myself a newbie almost to the point of taking a class or guided tour at least of local conditions. I also have never dived in the Kelp, and wouldnt attempt it without guidance. Yet another type of diving I am a newbie at and I have over 700 dives. I have never dived in frigid cold water and never cave dived past cavern limitations for which I am certified. I have never dived under ice and never dived on Tri-mix......I guess you could call me a newbie.....lol

Hmmm....after writing that I realize that I have alot more diving to do....lol

 

[mweitz]

You're no longer a noob when you don't say the exact number of logged dives you have.

I have 48.

Mark