Feet or Meters?

I'm not sure where to post this, as I am considering doing my PADI Divemaster but can't post on the "going pro" sub--forum. As far as the swimming requirements: I have read that the swim test without fins is 400 yards OR 400 meters. As a 55 year old, the difference could be real! Hey, I'm a dual citizen, but I need to know what is the official
PADI requirement. There is a real difference of 1/13 over time from Yards to Meters. While I'm here, I'll ask: Can you take the Divemaster written tests all in Imperial or all in Metric?

see: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ba...71061-dive-master-swim-test-meters-yards.html

The exam questions typically say things like "15 metres/50 feet".

The instructor manual lists times for 400m and 400yds (different times). Everything there is completely dual unit.

TMHeimer:

I'm not sure where to post this, as I am considering doing my PADI Divemaster but can't post on the "going pro" sub--forum. As far as the swimming requirements: I have read that the swim test without fins is 400 yards OR 400 meters. As a 55 year old, the difference could be real! Hey, I'm a dual citizen, but I need to know what is the official
PADI requirement. There is a real difference of 1/13 over time from Yards to Meters. While I'm here, I'll ask: Can you take the Divemaster written tests all in Imperial or all in Metric?

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It sounds like you're a little concerned about not being able to swim the distance. I'd suggest just going to the pool and practicing swimming that distance a for a few weeks before you take the test. You'll probably discover that it's not as bad as it sounds.

R..

Unless your instructor is a horses rear, you can do both in either units you choose. In my DM class we has a person who was much more confortable in metric so she did hers in metric while the rest of us did them in Imperial. Both are acceptable by PADI.

Actually, what usually matters more is the length of the pool you train in. Your instructor will know how big the pool is and he/she will just tell to you go swim X number of laps. The best approach for preparing, if you ask me is to ask ahead of time how many laps you'll need to swim and go practice for that.

R..

Exactly, if it is a 25 yd pool, the odds are good you'll do it in yards, if it is a 25m pool you'll probably do it in meters.

Hopefully, the 437 yards (another lenght and a half of a 25 yd pool) required in a 400 meter swim would not be 37 yards farther than you can swim.

TMHeimer:

As far as the swimming requirements: I have read that the swim test without fins is 400 yards OR 400 meters. As a 55 year old, the difference could be real! Hey, I'm a dual citizen, but I need to know what is the official PADI requirement. There is a real difference of 1/13 over time from Yards to Meters.

Click to expand...

Actually, while there is a difference of 37 more yards if you do it in meters, the difference is trivial, at least in terms of completing the swim. I did mine when I was >55 without any difficulty. As others have said, it will most probably be done in units consistent with the dimensions of the pool you do it in.

Diver0001:

It sounds like you're a little concerned about not being able to swim the distance. I'd suggest just going to the pool and practicing swimming that distance a for a few weeks before you take the test. You'll probably discover that it's not as bad as it sounds.

Click to expand...

Or, you are concerned about the extra distance (for 400 meters) making the difference in one point on your score. I agree with Diver0001. Practice the swim beforehand, to determine your best pace for completing. Several people in my DM class jumped in and essentially sprinted the first 4 laps, and wore themselves out.

TMHeimer:

While I'm here, I'll ask: Can you take the Divemaster written tests all in Imperial or all in Metric?

Click to expand...

The questions are set up to be 'bilingual', so there the primary differences are the language, not the units of measurement. You may be asked about bouyancy of an object that weighs 'XX kg / YY lbs', or about a dive to 'XX meters / YY feet', or a pressure that is 'X bar / Y psi', or a temperature that is 'XX degrees C/YY degrees F'. Or, the answers are given in both. The questions are set up so that either way you calculate, you (ideally) get the same, multiple-choice, answer.

Either measurement system is acceptable for all PADI training. For DM, no matter if you use SI or English distances, there is a different time scale/point scale. It evens out...

Thanks for all the info. guys.