Diving with a Buddy?

Hostage · Sep 12, 2011

Do any of you have any tips on the best way to stay in contact with your buddy? For the most part I have been following someone and I generally stay close enough that every so often we might bump into each other. i.e one person turns, etc. Is this normal?

The other day I was on a "easy" dive with a buddy and I was leading. We were going to count the size of the wreck via kicks. We started on the bow (the boat was at a ~30* list). When we started I was on the left over going over the deck and he was to my right and when we started out we were next to each other and as the boat widen the boat came inbetween us (I was over the deck in the middle and he was below the port side some where.) About half way down the wreck I noticed he wasn't with me. I looked around couldn't see him. I thought I might have left him at the bow, I ascending a bit and couldn't see him. A minute or two later we met up. He went down all the way to the stern and realized I wasn't there. It did make me worry a bit. So I have quesions:

1) In situations where you are doing something i.e. counting via kicks, is it a better idea to have one person measure and the other person just follows and keeps an eye out for other things? Instead of having both of you count?

2) Is it really bad that we seperated? Does it happen often? We did follow our plan.

DivemasterDennis · Sep 12, 2011

First, I'm glad you are in the buddy habit. Often on dives tasks are divided between buddies. When mapping a site or getting a distance for a course, one good way to do it is have one buddy count kicks and the other maintain buoyancy. When doing a task like that, I think it's perfectly acceptable to stay in actual physical contact, as in one buddy holding on to the tank valve or other aspect of the other. That is particularly true in low viz circumstances.
As far as maintaining contact generally, it's a matter of planning, habit and execution. My regular dive buddy is my wife Debbie, and she and I like to stay within fingertip distance. We have developed a habit where she is almost always to my left and about 1 foot above me. If I need to look for her, I look left, and she is there. Each half of a buddy team has to learn not to chase after things, to look around regularly to make sure you know where you buddy is, and to communicate when changing depth or direction. I take photos and video and if I ( or Debbie) see something, we first get the attention of the other and then move. Too many times buddy teams get separated by reason of one person "chasing" something, which itself is futile. Just as with buoyancy and air consumption, buddy proximity comes with practice and experience, and good planning. Our buddy proximity is not something that preoccupies us- it has become a habit. That took time, patience, being on the same page and having comparable diving skills. If you have a regular buddy, I am sure you will arrive there soon.
DivemasterDennis scuba snobs.com

MXGratefulDiver · Sep 12, 2011

Hostage:
Do any of you have any tips on the best way to stay in contact with your buddy? For the most part I have been following someone and I generally stay close enough that every so often we might bump into each other. i.e one person turns, etc. Is this normal?

The other day I was on a "easy" dive with a buddy and I was leading. We were going to count the size of the wreck via kicks. We started on the bow (the boat was at a ~30* list). When we started I was on the left over going over the deck and he was to my right and when we started out we were next to each other and as the boat widen the boat came inbetween us (I was over the deck in the middle and he was below the port side some where.) About half way down the wreck I noticed he wasn't with me. I looked around couldn't see him. I thought I might have left him at the bow, I ascending a bit and couldn't see him. A minute or two later we met up. He went down all the way to the stern and realized I wasn't there. It did make me worry a bit. So I have quesions:

1) In situations where you are doing something i.e. counting via kicks, is it a better idea to have one person measure and the other person just follows and keeps an eye out for other things? Instead of having both of you count?

2) Is it really bad that we seperated? Does it happen often? We did follow our plan.

First off, let's give some thought to why people lose their dive buddy ... simplest answer is that they are not maintaining visual contact with each other. So why does this happen? Well, usually it's because new divers are taught to "lead-follow" ... on other words, one person is in the lead and the other person is following behind. This is a great way to lose each other, because you are putting the entire responsibility for maintaining team contact on the follower (unless you have a rear-view mirror attached to your dive mask). The problem with swimming this way is that the person in front has to continually turn around to see their buddy. And that's a pain, and very disrupting to sight-seeing ... and therefore most "leaders" don't do it. This is exacerbated by the fact that when we put on a diving mask we reduce our field of vision dramatically ... effectively eliminating our peripheral vision and requiring us to turn out head from side to side to see what's out there. So rather than going to all this effort, the lead diver tends to make an assumption that their buddy is following along. But what if your buddy has to stop for some reason ... say, to fix a leaking mask or because they saw something interesting and stopped a moment to look. You keep kicking, and before too many kicks you're beyond any reasonable distance where you can assist each other ... or possibly even see each other. You end up with a buddy separation that can easily become a lost-buddy situation.

A better way to maintain contact with each other is to swim side-by-side. Only in specialized situations ... such as diving on a wall where side-by-side isn't practical ... would this not be a better way to dive. Being side-by-side allows both buddies to look at each other. Being a buddy means communicating with each other during the dive. You can't do that with a buddy you can't see. So learn to swim where your buddy can see you ... and where you can at the same time see your buddy.

In your case, you swam in such a way that a boat hull came between you. I would recommend avoiding this situation in most cases, because if your buddy suddenly experienced a problem (like entanglement, which can happen easily on a wreck if there is fishing activity in the area), they will not be able to signal you. However, if objects do come between you momentarily, one way to track your buddy's position is to look up slightly and see where their bubbles are ... bubbles are highly reflective, and sometimes more easily visible than the diver himself.

How far apart you are should be determined by visibility. If visibility allows, a good way to measure the correct distance is for you and your buddy to spread your arms toward each other as you're swimming side-by-side. You should be able to just touch each other's fingertips. This keeps you close enough to be available if your buddy needs assistance, but far enough apart so you won't be kicking each other when you change direction. It also makes keeping each other in ready visual contact easier.

On my website you'll find an article on buddy diving that I wrote specifically to help newer divers avoid buddy separations ... you may find it helpful ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Jim Lapenta · Sep 12, 2011

Buddy skills are learned. It should begin in the OW class by having students in buddy pairs from day one and continue throughout the entire class. My rule is it should take no more than a 1/4 turn of the head from side to side to know where your buddy is. And the distance should be no more than a good kick in excellent vis for new divers to reach your buddy. The worse the vis or the more the task loading the closer you should be. Measuring a distance (in this case a wreck) with kick cycles is a basic exercise in UW navigation. At the beginning levels this should be done as a team with each tema member taking responsibility for a different task. If you are counting kicks your buddy should be RIGHT next to you noting features, tracking time or depth, or both and allowing you to concentrate on the task. Counting UW can get tedious and along with all the other things you need to manage like buoyancy and your air supply it is easy to lose count once you get up into higher numbers. In the beginning buddy skills are used in every aspect of the dive but you have to have the basics and know what those skills are to really develop them. You also need to have a buddy that is on the same page.

For more on buddy skills PM me about getting a copy of my book. There is an entire chapter devoted to it.

danvolker · Sep 12, 2011

Hostage:
Do any of you have any tips on the best way to stay in contact with your buddy? For the most part I have been following someone and I generally stay close enough that every so often we might bump into each other. i.e one person turns, etc. Is this normal?

The other day I was on a "easy" dive with a buddy and I was leading. We were going to count the size of the wreck via kicks. We started on the bow (the boat was at a ~30* list). When we started I was on the left over going over the deck and he was to my right and when we started out we were next to each other and as the boat widen the boat came inbetween us (I was over the deck in the middle and he was below the port side some where.) About half way down the wreck I noticed he wasn't with me. I looked around couldn't see him. I thought I might have left him at the bow, I ascending a bit and couldn't see him. A minute or two later we met up. He went down all the way to the stern and realized I wasn't there. It did make me worry a bit. So I have quesions:

1) In situations where you are doing something i.e. counting via kicks, is it a better idea to have one person measure and the other person just follows and keeps an eye out for other things? Instead of having both of you count?

2) Is it really bad that we seperated? Does it happen often? We did follow our plan.

don't do follow the leader style...the front person does not know how the person behind is doing, and would be oblivious if a problem occurred suddenly. Dive side by side, instead...a few feet apart..
to make buddy contact even better, in addition to trying for eye contact with buddy every 15 seconds or so, for an instant, each should have a light they can shine past the gaze of the buddy, whenever they want contact....DIR divers use cannister lights for this, the battery in a cannister on your right waiste belt, the lighthead on a cord that runs over to your left hand, the light sits on top of your hand, so the fingers are free to do anything with--hands free.
If one wants to deviate from course they are on, buddy contact always occurs first, then awareness/agreement, then the new direction.
Every few minutes, each of you should be checking each other's air..After you are expierienced divers, and well experienced diving with each other--you will have a good idea of the other's air consumption rate versus your own, usually, and then you might check just every 500 psi or your own consumption, on where they are...

farsidefan1 · Sep 13, 2011

My wife is my usual dive buddy. We are both fairly experienced divers that dive only in warm tropical waters. Nontheless I think we are always within 10 feet or less of each other. Side by side except on walls is always the pattern. On walls we are one above the other with the one on top slightly ahead. That way the lower diver just has to slightly tip head up to see buddy and above can easily look down. Another important factor is to have a distinct noise you can make which your buddy will recognize as you. Only make this when an urgent situation occurs or you will annoy the heck out of everyone else (assuming you are part of a group dive, otherwise no worries). This could be a banging pattern, bell, rattle, just something unusual that you will both recognize as being your buddy. Even though vis is nearly always relatively good the "within 10 feet" rule we live by is about how far I want to have to travel to get air if needed. An added note, I'm usually the upper wall diver just because she is a bit more efficent with her air than me. My sac rate runs between .45 to .55 which is ok for a guy but, girls, whatdya do? We haven't downloaded her computer to figure sac rate but if your buddy is an experienced female she will nearly always be more efficient than you. The slight difference in depth helps mitigate this to a degree. good luck and safe diving.

Cadillac Diveguy · Sep 13, 2011

The main reason I became an instructor was to create dive buddies! You've been given a lot of great advise up to this point. Just continue to practice on improving your buddy skills, and it will only improve your safety, and the social aspects of the dive when you're through.

Diver0001 · Sep 13, 2011

Hostage:
1) In situations where you are doing something i.e. counting via kicks, is it a better idea to have one person measure and the other person just follows and keeps an eye out for other things? Instead of having both of you count?

You touch on a good point here. Delegating tasks to certain members of the team can help free up some attention for keeping contact. The basics need to be in place, but this idea is a good one.

For example, an exercise I do on a fairly regular basis with my dive buddy is to make a deep dive and then make a free swimming ascent with 2 min stops at 18/15/12/9/6 metres while at the same time making our way toward the exit point. There is no "master plan" involved in the type of ascent we're making, it's just an exercise in working together in conditions where the only thing we can see is each other and the only input we have about our dive comes from instruments.

In our conditions as soon as you leave the bottom you have no more visual reference so this is all done "in the blue" (which in our case is "in the green") One of us navigates in the direction we want to go and the other controls stops and depth. We've become quite handy at this and I've even started using a variation of this exercise as part of my navigation training particularly to show students how much it can help to delegate different tasks to different team members.

(On a side-note, counting kicks isn't a particularly accurate way of measuring a wreck. Laying a line would be.)

2) Is it really bad that we seperated? Does it happen often? We did follow our plan.

It can happen. The point is you're curious about how to improve. That's good.

The next step is to work on some basics.

- Don't "follow the leader". The diver in front has no way of knowing if the buddy behind stops or turns (or has a problem). Swim side by side

- Communicate to each other whenever you want to change depth, direction or tempo. If you don't have lights then use touch to get your buddy's attention before making the change. Work together on some hand signals so you're both on the same page

- At first try to pick a side and stay on that same side of your buddy. Stay a bit more than an arm's length away so you're close enough to help each other quickly and far enough apart that you're not constantly bumping into one another.

- If the tempo is too high it can be a killer for staying together. Consider your tempo and adjust (maybe slow down) so staying together is easier.

Good luck
R..

p1p · Sep 14, 2011

Diving, is like any other sport which requires 2 people in a symbiotic relationship.

When I Mountain climbed, there was a leader, and a follower. Diving is that simple. When you dive, there's a dive leader, and a follower. Those roles can be switched on the fly, but only when both folks are on the same page.

This is what how I learned it in BUDS as well. Make a plan, set a dive leader, and never leave the side of your dive buddy/leader.

Its a simple rule, and I wont dive with anyone that wont follow it.

danvolker · Sep 14, 2011

Jeff Pack:
Diving, is like any other sport which requires 2 people in a symbiotic relationship.

When I Mountain climbed, there was a leader, and a follower. Diving is that simple. When you dive, there's a dive leader, and a follower. Those roles can be switched on the fly, but only when both folks are on the same page.

This is what how I learned it in BUDS as well. Make a plan, set a dive leader, and never leave the side of your dive buddy/leader.

Its a simple rule, and I wont dive with anyone that wont follow it.

UNFORTUNATELY, in diving you can't do it this way safely....A dive "leader", if in front of a dive "follower", will not know if the diver following has a problem, so this is a negligent way to dive as a buddy team.
If you want to be the leader in the dive, but be exactly side by side--but just one person is determining whether you stop, go left or right, or whatever, as long as the aide by side is maintained, then this kind of "leader" based diving is fine....Typically in diving though, it is the follow the leader with one in front of the other, and this is negligent behavior.

Diving with a Buddy?

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