Training Report: GUE Cave One
December 2 6, 2002
High Springs, FL
Instructor: Tamara Kendel
My Cave One course with Tamara Kendel of Global Underwater Explorers (GUE) was outstanding. My post here wont cover everything, just the highlights, so feel free to contact me with specific questions.
Instructor Review: Tamara is extremely experienced, knowledgeable, and friendly. Her teaching style is professional, intelligent, and well rounded. While sticking to a common-sense approach, she never tells you to do something just because. She has excellent reasons and real-world examples to help students understand the message and meaning. Her skill in the water is amazing; sometimes you see her, sometimes you dont, but she is always right there. You can see her resume at http://www.gue.com/info/resumes/tkendel.html. Be aware that she is about to move to southern California to teach GUE Tech and DIR Fundamentals courses, so caving with her in High Springs wont be an option soon.
Course Materials Review: The GUE Cave Manual, Beyond the Daylight Zone: The Fundamentals of Cave Diving is a comprehensive handbook that covers material for both the Cave One and Cave Two courses. I found it to be interesting and well organized, and I like the fact that the information is blended together between courses. This meant that while we were predominantly focused on Cave One topics, we often touched on next steps and were able to relate our entry-level skills with benefits and progress into the next level. You can buy the Manual on-line in a PDF format at http://www.gue.com/classroom/manuals.shtml. I recommend printing it out and putting it in a binder. READ IT IN ADVANCE and jot down questions as you go; this will put you in a great position to get more out of the lectures rather than struggling to keep up with numerous concepts. Put a good deal of blank paper in your binder for taking notes during lectures; I wrote about ten pages of notes front and back throughout the week.
Course Format Review: A maximum of three students may take this course at a time, which was the case in my group. Your instructor has the option of structuring the week as they see fit depending on variables such as dive site availability, weather, student needs, learning progression, etc. But for GUE Cave One (and Cave Two), you run five full days, Monday through Friday. Most days will be a combination of classroom and diving. Classroom sessions are conducted at the Extreme Exposure Adventure Center in High Springs. You will also spend time on equipment configuration and practice reel running on land on the first day. Your water skills test is to swim 300 yards in 12 minutes or less without stopping, and to swim at least 60 feet underwater on a breath hold. And there is a written final exam on the last day of the course; it is comprehensive and takes some time because it is mostly a write in the answer format with only a few multiple-choice questions. At the end of the day on Friday, after the written exam, your instructor will meet with each student privately to brief him/her on what they need to continue to work on, whether or not they have passed and will receive a certification card, etc. See more about the course format, prerequisites and requirements at http://www.gue.com/classroom/overhead.shtml.
Diving Review: The dives are quite fun, although you will have progressively more task loading as the days go by. You will get to see a variety of sites, both low-flow and higher flow caves. Tamara briefed us on each site in detail and talked about what we would do on each dive. Once geared up, we entered the water and did four checks: equipment check, bubble check, s-drill, and gas plan. On each dive, the first half is yours. You run the reel to the mainline, penetrate the cave, and enjoy the dive. You must show excellent awareness of the main line, your buddies, and the cave environment. Once the dive is turned, it belongs to Tamara. She will indicate certain problems to one or more of the team on the way out. Sometimes, she tells you in advance that a specific problem will happen. Other times (as you gain experience), she will initiate challenges without warning and in multiples. It is critical that you maintain neutral buoyancy, proper trim, and proper propulsion while handling different scenarios, otherwise, you add to your challenges by lowering the vis, etc.
Logistics Info: I stayed at the High Springs Country Inn http://www.highsprings.com/cinns/. It was clean and the rates were good. Dining options are a bit thin in High Springs, but The Great Outdoors Café is super (and just a few steps from Extreme Exposure). Also, across from the High Springs Inn is Floyds Diner, a surprisingly unique dining experience. Floyds is not the typical greasy spoon; they have all sorts of home cooked meals, even food to satisfy the health-conscious, and their service is outstanding. Meal prices at The Great Outdoors and Floyds are very reasonable. There is a Subway sandwich shop near the hotel. If you absolutely must have chain restaurant food, Gainesville is only a half hour away. Take a cooler with you each day to the dive sites with extra fluids and snacks.
Overall Review: I had a great time taking this course, and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to pursue cave diving. While some worry that cave diving is an expensive segment of the sport to get into, I can definitely say it is worth it. And GUEs approach is outstanding. Everything about it was professional, challenging, and fun. Once I gain some experience and continue to develop my skills, Ill be back for Cave Two.
December 2 6, 2002
High Springs, FL
Instructor: Tamara Kendel
My Cave One course with Tamara Kendel of Global Underwater Explorers (GUE) was outstanding. My post here wont cover everything, just the highlights, so feel free to contact me with specific questions.
Instructor Review: Tamara is extremely experienced, knowledgeable, and friendly. Her teaching style is professional, intelligent, and well rounded. While sticking to a common-sense approach, she never tells you to do something just because. She has excellent reasons and real-world examples to help students understand the message and meaning. Her skill in the water is amazing; sometimes you see her, sometimes you dont, but she is always right there. You can see her resume at http://www.gue.com/info/resumes/tkendel.html. Be aware that she is about to move to southern California to teach GUE Tech and DIR Fundamentals courses, so caving with her in High Springs wont be an option soon.
Course Materials Review: The GUE Cave Manual, Beyond the Daylight Zone: The Fundamentals of Cave Diving is a comprehensive handbook that covers material for both the Cave One and Cave Two courses. I found it to be interesting and well organized, and I like the fact that the information is blended together between courses. This meant that while we were predominantly focused on Cave One topics, we often touched on next steps and were able to relate our entry-level skills with benefits and progress into the next level. You can buy the Manual on-line in a PDF format at http://www.gue.com/classroom/manuals.shtml. I recommend printing it out and putting it in a binder. READ IT IN ADVANCE and jot down questions as you go; this will put you in a great position to get more out of the lectures rather than struggling to keep up with numerous concepts. Put a good deal of blank paper in your binder for taking notes during lectures; I wrote about ten pages of notes front and back throughout the week.
Course Format Review: A maximum of three students may take this course at a time, which was the case in my group. Your instructor has the option of structuring the week as they see fit depending on variables such as dive site availability, weather, student needs, learning progression, etc. But for GUE Cave One (and Cave Two), you run five full days, Monday through Friday. Most days will be a combination of classroom and diving. Classroom sessions are conducted at the Extreme Exposure Adventure Center in High Springs. You will also spend time on equipment configuration and practice reel running on land on the first day. Your water skills test is to swim 300 yards in 12 minutes or less without stopping, and to swim at least 60 feet underwater on a breath hold. And there is a written final exam on the last day of the course; it is comprehensive and takes some time because it is mostly a write in the answer format with only a few multiple-choice questions. At the end of the day on Friday, after the written exam, your instructor will meet with each student privately to brief him/her on what they need to continue to work on, whether or not they have passed and will receive a certification card, etc. See more about the course format, prerequisites and requirements at http://www.gue.com/classroom/overhead.shtml.
Diving Review: The dives are quite fun, although you will have progressively more task loading as the days go by. You will get to see a variety of sites, both low-flow and higher flow caves. Tamara briefed us on each site in detail and talked about what we would do on each dive. Once geared up, we entered the water and did four checks: equipment check, bubble check, s-drill, and gas plan. On each dive, the first half is yours. You run the reel to the mainline, penetrate the cave, and enjoy the dive. You must show excellent awareness of the main line, your buddies, and the cave environment. Once the dive is turned, it belongs to Tamara. She will indicate certain problems to one or more of the team on the way out. Sometimes, she tells you in advance that a specific problem will happen. Other times (as you gain experience), she will initiate challenges without warning and in multiples. It is critical that you maintain neutral buoyancy, proper trim, and proper propulsion while handling different scenarios, otherwise, you add to your challenges by lowering the vis, etc.
Logistics Info: I stayed at the High Springs Country Inn http://www.highsprings.com/cinns/. It was clean and the rates were good. Dining options are a bit thin in High Springs, but The Great Outdoors Café is super (and just a few steps from Extreme Exposure). Also, across from the High Springs Inn is Floyds Diner, a surprisingly unique dining experience. Floyds is not the typical greasy spoon; they have all sorts of home cooked meals, even food to satisfy the health-conscious, and their service is outstanding. Meal prices at The Great Outdoors and Floyds are very reasonable. There is a Subway sandwich shop near the hotel. If you absolutely must have chain restaurant food, Gainesville is only a half hour away. Take a cooler with you each day to the dive sites with extra fluids and snacks.
Overall Review: I had a great time taking this course, and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to pursue cave diving. While some worry that cave diving is an expensive segment of the sport to get into, I can definitely say it is worth it. And GUEs approach is outstanding. Everything about it was professional, challenging, and fun. Once I gain some experience and continue to develop my skills, Ill be back for Cave Two.
