NAUI Openwater, experienced. Now I need advanced?

Back when I started diving, a C card was the universal ticket to dive. I took a NAUI course in college and did my requisite open water dives. Since then I've had a lot of dives all over world. Boat dives, low visibility, deep dives, stong currents, cold water... My NAUI Openwater I card was just fine.

This past March I was in Eilat, Israel. I've been to Eilat before but all of those dives had been fairly shalow. This time I signed up for the Japanese Gardens, a site that probably goes to about 30 meters. The dive center was happy to have me on the boat but advised that I needed to stay above 18 meters.

Frankly, I don't feel like taking another course. I'm an experienced and careful diver. However, is this going to be a more common requirement in the future? Looking at NAUI's website, it does state that ScubaDiver has a 18M maximum depth (during training dives). Advanced ScubaDiver only says that two dives must be made past 6M (20ft). This seems like a gray area. Any comments?

Find a different dive center ... those sort of rules are implemented at the discretion of the business owner.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Yeah, this sucks. I also only have a basic OW card but feel I am experienced and capable at an AOW level. However I have heard of other places that require you to have a AOW card to do the good dives. I can understand their reasoning but you would think they'd be able to look at your log book and see that you are experienced. I figure eventually I'll go get an AOW card, it will be a piece of cake but just an annoyance.

The thing with logs is someone could just make them up. Even though someone with a bunch of various diving is much more advanced than a newbie with a AOW card, some places are going to ask for it to cover themselves or whatever. They don't know you.

One alternative is to find operators that don't care, or will be happy with a logbook, or will be happy once they see you dive. Another is to just bite the bullet and get AOW so it's not an issue anymore. Or maybe take a Deep diver class if that seems like less of a drag than AOW. Or, see if you can get some other card which would pass muster and the class would be more useful to you - maybe you can do PADI Rescue with proof of experience instead of AOW, or something like that? (I think NAUI Rescue can be done before AOW, so I don't know if that card would work for this?)

I received my Advanced OW with less than 20 dives, obviously pretty inexperienced. These AOW cards are not a good barometer for how experienced a diver is. These operators should look at log books but in my experience they rarely do.

RumBum:

Yeah, this sucks. I also only have a basic OW card but feel I am experienced and capable at an AOW level. However I have heard of other places that require you to have a AOW card to do the good dives. I can understand their reasoning but you would think they'd be able to look at your log book and see that you are experienced. I figure eventually I'll go get an AOW card, it will be a piece of cake but just an annoyance.

Click to expand...

I feel like I can frog kick really well, and I'm pretty sure I can follow a line, so I shouldn't need cave training...

Isn't that how most accidents start? Well, it looks save enough to penetrate that wreck, and I'm pretty comfortable with my diving skills, so as long as I can see a way out, I'll be fine.

Well, I went to 60 fsw, but it's only 10 feet deeper to 70...Well, I've gone to 70, might as well make it 80...90 seems safe, and I'm sure I can do well at 100, 110, 120, 130...

Overconfidence is NOT a substitute for training!!!

menemsha43:

I received my Advanced OW with less than 20 dives, obviously pretty inexperienced. These AOW cards are not a good barometer for how experienced a diver is. These operators should look at log books but in my experience they rarely do.

Click to expand...

You're right, they are NOT an accurate indicator of EXPERIENCE, but they do indicate you have had TRAINING. There's a big difference!

Given (1) liability and insurance premium costs, and (2) the sorry performance of many (not all) warm water vacation divers, I suspect you're going to continue to experience limitations on diving opportunities at various dive destinations.

While I understand that taking another course can be considered annoying, I've rarely taken a course where I haven't learned something.

If AOW is too weenie for you, then consider something else. I think every diver should be required to take a Rescue course along with the CPR/First Aid and defibrilator sections. IANTD and TDI both offer advanced courses (with different names) in areas like advanced wreck diving (penetration while running lines), staged decompression (multiple gasses, deco bottles, shooting bags), or even (shudder) slide over to the dark side and try GUE's Rec Triox or Tech 1.

You really have three options:
1. Never go to any destination that might limit your diving;
2. Only dive within the limits of your OW card; or
3. Get an advanced card of some type.

Given the (litigation/cost-driven) realities, I suspect that if you want your vacation diving to be unlimited by convention option 3 might be the least annoying - and hell, you might actually learn something.

I've been a scuba diver for 24 years, still only have my PADI OW, I've really had no need to take anything else. I've never been refused or restricted because of it, but the only international diving I've done is in Cozumel and the Bahamas, very tourist oriented areas.

The certification agencies nowdays are really pushing for people to get more and more certifications, frankly, I think it's a money thing more than an educational thing.

Firebrand:

You're right, they are NOT an accurate indicator of EXPERIENCE, but they do indicate you have had TRAINING. There's a big difference!

Click to expand...

yeah you're right, i'd rather dive with someone with the experience...