How is the Rescue Diver Cert?

Hostage · Nov 30, 2011

I got my OW and AOW last spring/summer. Next spring I am planning on doing a lot of diving and I am thinking it might not be such a bad idea to have a little more training in case something goes wrong. How was this class, etc? I think the AOW class I took, helped me a lot on many levels. I just got back from diving in Belize and I was impressed how much I retained and easy it was to pick up where I left off.

DivemasterDennis · Nov 30, 2011

I think the rescue class is valuable for everyone who takes it, at some level. It is a prerequisite to moving on toward any professional rating. I think that a diver's prior experience level is a factor in how much they get from the class. You may want to consider getting some more dives in your log book before taking the class, but there is nothing wrong with taking it now. I have had some students who enroll who have done no diving other than the certification classes they have taken, and I have had divers with over 100 logged dives take the class. You have been out doing "real" diving, and whether that was 4 dives or 14 dives, it's a good thing. So go ahead with the class, and be an active diver!
DivemasterDennis

Elysia · Nov 30, 2011

It came in handy for me, if only in a small way. I took it soon after beginning diving, and several months later, a friend (who has a history of being not a very good diver, I have to say...) panicked at about 120 ft. on a dive. She signaled that she was going to ascend, and I instinctively held her down and made eye contact, because that is what we were trained to do in the course. Who's to say she would have made an uncontrolled ascent? I'm not sure, but better safe than sorry. Panicked divers are likely to forget to vent their BCD's. Anyways, at that point I was glad for the training because practicing those situations gives you confidence for handling them when they come up in real life.

dantfarley · Nov 30, 2011

DMDennis is right on, valueable class but I think it is a class most divers should take after they have logged more than just a handful of dives. Work on putting a few specialties under your belt first.
I think its great you are seeking to further your training just dive more, when the time comes you will know

Hostage · Nov 30, 2011

I have only have 17 logged dives so far. I plan on doing some more dives before I take the class. Though I might take Basic First Aid and CPR this winter.

Jaydubya · Nov 30, 2011

Get some dives in but don't wait too long; it should be part of your basic scuba training (and in the old days it would have been). The PADI rescue course, at least as it's taught by my LDS, seems to be set up for a typical open water diver with about 25-50 dives.

nimoh · Nov 30, 2011

I think the rescue class is a great class, but like most classes you get out of it what you put into it. You can cruise through the class and just get things done or you can challenge yourself by treating all of the open water exercises as real life situations (from personal experience, I think this also makes the class more fun). I would also recommend that you ask your instructor to make things challenging, such as for the search and recovery, don't let them hide a bright orange lift bag for you to find, but rather search for a small black weight bag. Furthermore, rather than recovering the weight bag (which is obviously very easy to tie a lift bag to), why not recover a log or an oddly shaped rock where you would not only have to consider how to tie the lift bag, but also weight estimation, and center of gravity.

I think the difference in the end is a rescue diver vs. a confident rescue diver.

RonFrank · Dec 1, 2011

Rescue is a great class. Just make sure you have basic diving skills down so you are not messing around with buoyancy when you suppose to be rescuing someone or doing a drill. Most of the water work is at the surface. I think it should be a 50 dive minimum but I believe PADI says 25 and I do not think that is enforced. Sometimes the 'put another dollar in' rings true.

Thiad · Dec 1, 2011

As with anything, you'll get out of it what you put in to it. I found it extremely rewarding yet also physically demanding. It really wasn't about diving as much as about everything that can really go wrong when diving (and as RonFrank said, there's not much bottom work but a lot of surface work in the pool and open water). And having your basic skills refined is critical - absolutely. IMO, even if someone decides they don't want to do anything else in diving (certification wise), they should do this course along with the first aid and CPR. I hadn't been diving but a few weeks before I saw my first rescue that thankfully, turned out very well all due to a well trained rescue diver. Kind of drove the point home for me as to the importance of the course.

TSandM · Dec 1, 2011

Rescue was the best mainstream class I took. You don't need terribly polished diving skills to take it; a lot of the class is about PREVENTING accidents and developing a proactive mindset. I would highly recommend it. If it's well taught, it's invaluable, but even if it's only a mediocre class, it still introduces a lot of good ideas.

How is the Rescue Diver Cert?

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Hostage

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