This is a long post, but I feel it must be in order to get the point of the question across.
I first got certified almost ten years ago, and I have dived in multiple locations throughout the world. What I most enjoyed about diving back then was the comradeship of this sport. It was more like a brotherhood, or a family. If you had forgotten some gear, or a piece of your gear had broken, another diver was there for you eagerly willing to help, etc....
However, I've witnessed an extreme change in the attitude of the diving community in these past ten years. Now it seems to be more like some kind of mentality based peeing contest with divers. It's almost like your diving with a bunch of overgrown children who most all think their Cousteau's gifted children. The dive Professionals seem to be some of the worst offenders. I've simply been trying to find out what is fueling this behavior. Is it over competitiveness, or vanity, or insecurity, or all of the above? Whatever it is, it's really taken away from the teamwork atmosphere that I used to enjoy so much.
I am in my early thirties, and one of my best dive buddies is in his mid-fifties, and he is former special forces, and has amazingly logged over 7,000 dives in his career. Needless to say he is an excellent diver, and I have learned a great deal from him. He also owns a dive resort that's been in operation for about 15 years, Dive Instr., etc... His credentials are far too numerous to mention here. This is not what makes him unique though. Not only has he been a great friend throughout the years, but a suberb roll model/mentor to me as well. Even with his vast amount of experience, he is one of the most humble divers I've ever met in my life. Of all the things I've learned from him throughout the years, being humble is the single most important thing he has taught me. I am certain that it has truely defined me as a diver.
As a result of what he's taught me, I've come to the conclusion long ago that when I'm forced to seek a dive partner, that humbleness is the first trait I look for now when choosing that buddy, no matter what their experience level is.
My question is this. Have any of you also discovered that the humbler diver is usually a safer diver? And also if faced with the decision "would you rather dive with someone who is very experienced but acts like they're God's gift to the water, or would you rather dive with a newly certified, but humble diver? I know this sounds like a simple question to answer but I see alot of these egotistical, "full of themselves" types being given alot of credibility as Dive "Professionals" by the general diving community out there, and it is really disturbing knowing that some of them are role models for the new generation of divers. Your feedback on this subject is appreciated.
"Splash"
I first got certified almost ten years ago, and I have dived in multiple locations throughout the world. What I most enjoyed about diving back then was the comradeship of this sport. It was more like a brotherhood, or a family. If you had forgotten some gear, or a piece of your gear had broken, another diver was there for you eagerly willing to help, etc....
However, I've witnessed an extreme change in the attitude of the diving community in these past ten years. Now it seems to be more like some kind of mentality based peeing contest with divers. It's almost like your diving with a bunch of overgrown children who most all think their Cousteau's gifted children. The dive Professionals seem to be some of the worst offenders. I've simply been trying to find out what is fueling this behavior. Is it over competitiveness, or vanity, or insecurity, or all of the above? Whatever it is, it's really taken away from the teamwork atmosphere that I used to enjoy so much.
I am in my early thirties, and one of my best dive buddies is in his mid-fifties, and he is former special forces, and has amazingly logged over 7,000 dives in his career. Needless to say he is an excellent diver, and I have learned a great deal from him. He also owns a dive resort that's been in operation for about 15 years, Dive Instr., etc... His credentials are far too numerous to mention here. This is not what makes him unique though. Not only has he been a great friend throughout the years, but a suberb roll model/mentor to me as well. Even with his vast amount of experience, he is one of the most humble divers I've ever met in my life. Of all the things I've learned from him throughout the years, being humble is the single most important thing he has taught me. I am certain that it has truely defined me as a diver.
As a result of what he's taught me, I've come to the conclusion long ago that when I'm forced to seek a dive partner, that humbleness is the first trait I look for now when choosing that buddy, no matter what their experience level is.
My question is this. Have any of you also discovered that the humbler diver is usually a safer diver? And also if faced with the decision "would you rather dive with someone who is very experienced but acts like they're God's gift to the water, or would you rather dive with a newly certified, but humble diver? I know this sounds like a simple question to answer but I see alot of these egotistical, "full of themselves" types being given alot of credibility as Dive "Professionals" by the general diving community out there, and it is really disturbing knowing that some of them are role models for the new generation of divers. Your feedback on this subject is appreciated.
"Splash"