Dealing with instabuddys

[eric229]

I have done most of my dives with instabuddies and they are not so bad if you have the right mindset for dealing with them, even the dreaded 3 buddy team. There is another thread in here about bailout systems and the main reason for taking one diving that most people give is the instabuddy system is unreliable in an emergancy. The reality is that if you get seperated from your buddy its YOUR fault. There are other factors like current that can seperate you, but that would also happen with a buddy that was a regular diving partner.

My strategy for diving with a stranger is to think like a DM who is guiding the dive. Try to discuss your goals for the dive and make a basic plan like "I'll follow you" or "I like to go slow and take pictures". Keep track of your navagation and keep track of your air and you buddy's air by doing gauge checks. Checkout their octo setup and visualize how you would get it if you needed it.

If your buddy starts to wander off in the wrong direction, or if they are a "sprinter" and you don't want to go that fast, signal them that there is something interesting to see over by you to get them to come closer and slow down

90% of the instabuddies I've gone diving with were great divers and interesting people that I was glad to have met. The other 10% ... well in my experience they are usually the more experienced divers who are bragging about the 1,000s of dives they have done and not the brand new divers who tend to follow you around like a lost puppy. Have your limits and don't ignore your training just because your buddy does something stupid. If you get a bad buddy ask for a different one when you get back to the boat.

 

[DiveRich]

That's pretty much how I've treated that situation. You can never communicate enough before, and sometimes during the dive. One of the best dives we were ever on was with a 3 man team down at Looe Key.

Bad buddy stories deserve their own forum.

 

[Heffey]

The reality is that if you get seperated from your buddy its YOUR fault. There are other factors like current that can seperate you, but that would also happen with a buddy that was a regular diving partner.

I understand what you are getting at, but saying that if you get separated it is your fault really is not reality.

I have lost two buddies while diving. I the first one was rocket man. He swam off so fast I could not even believe it. I physically could not catch up with him. I lost sight of him and then followed the lost buddy procedures. He never surfaced until the planned dive was over.

Lost buddy two kept surfacing to look around. He would be there, and then he would be gone. I would do the lost buddy procedure then I would find him on the surface or on his way back down. Even when I saw him head up I couldn’t follow because of his ridiculous accent rate.

Your reality is not my reality.

 

[DiveRich]

I understand what you are getting at, but saying that if you get separated it is your fault really is not reality.

Your reality is not my reality.

True that. We had one guy just take off as soon as we descended, ruined OUR dive. But he completed his. Wanted to kill him.

 

[DawgDiver]

I understand what you are getting at, but saying that if you get separated it is your fault really is not reality.

I agree..... if you're just stupid, and insist on going off and doing your own thing, not paying attention to me, it's your fault if we get separated, and I will continue my dive solo, then find a different buddy after that.

 

[fisherdvm]

I feel that, as almost all my dive buddies are insta buddies, I will have to develop a consent form for diving buddies:

I, _____________________, am willing to abide by the following contract:

I will not hold my insta-buddy, fisherdvm, liable for any harm I might incur while diving. If I get injured during the dive, it is not the fault of fisherdvm. It is my own fault, as I am responsible for myself underwater, and on the water.

I will abide by the rules for being a good buddy. I will remain within 15 ft of fisherdvm at all time. If I chose to wander more than 15 ft away from fisher, I am no longer his buddy, and he is no longer mine. At that point, fisher can chose to find another buddy, stay close to the divemaster, or stay close to the group. I am on my own, as a solo diver.

Signed,

Instabuddy....

 

[fisherdvm]

I have developed a rule of thumb:

If an instabuddy is a photographer, you both have to agree that you are diving solo. I am not going to babysit a photographer.

 

[eric229]

I understand what you are getting at, but saying that if you get separated it is your fault really is not reality.

I have lost two buddies while diving. I the first one was rocket man. He swam off so fast I could not even believe it. I physically could not catch up with him. I lost sight of him and then followed the lost buddy procedures. He never surfaced until the planned dive was over.

Lost buddy two kept surfacing to look around. He would be there, and then he would be gone. I would do the lost buddy procedure then I would find him on the surface or on his way back down. Even when I saw him head up I couldn’t follow because of his ridiculous accent rate.

Your reality is not my reality.

Hehe I should know better than to make an absolute statement like that. I can definately see how that could happen. I've had a few try to get away from me but I'm pretty fast underwater myself . What is it that makes some people takeoff like a torpedo? Where are they going anyway?

 

[Charlie99]

My comments from 2003 on dealing with instabuddies. My opinions and methods are still pretty much the same.

 

[fisherdvm]

Nice post, Charlie99, I remember reading it back then.