Newbie needs some wise words

[shyeept]

hi! im new to diving and id like to get some advise from the gods and goddesses of diving.

1. i have a clear view of what i want to do with diving. i want to do wreck diving. penetration and all.

2. i want to go all the way into technical wreck diving.

3. who do i go to to get to where i want to be? PADI or IANTD? or do you suggest other organizations?

4. i have spoken to some dive instructors and they have very different thoughts on how i should go about getting to where i want to be. any thoughts on these?

option A:
~open water
~advance open water
~rescue diver
~nitrox
~deep
~wreck

option B:
~open water
~enriched air
~advance nitrox
~technical wreck

5. should i invest on equipment that's for tech divers already?

thanks!

 

[edwardjohnson]

Make sure you check where you want to go. Some places accept PADI whereas others don't. In UK its more BSAC as I know it for example. Option B seems more into what you're trying to become so I'd vote for that. You don't have to invest for equipment so soon, there might be new ones by the time you get to tech

 

[diversteve]

Might contact Andy Davis - he's doing that in your country. View Profile: DevonDiver - ScubaBoard - Scuba Diving Forum - Diving Social Network

 

[victorzamora]

Andy Davis is EXACTLY who I'd talk to, long before buying any gear. But yes, if that is your end goal, then skip all of the "recreational" gear and skip straight to technical-style gear purchases. A good instructor that knows what you have as a long-term goal will be able to work with you from the first step and get you to the end MUCH quicker than a bunch of decent instructors.

As far as OW, AOW, Rescue, Nitrox, Deep, Wreck. I don't think most of that time, effort, and money is worth it to you. PADI vs IANTD isn't the concern, it's the fact that Option A is all "rec" diving and Option B is all "Tec" diving. A good, technical-level instructor will help expedite that process and get you where you need to be quicker and with less wasted money than any other option.

 

[Diver0001]

hi! im new to diving and id like to get some advise from the gods and goddesses of diving.

I'm neither, just a diver, but I'll offer my advice anyway

1. i have a clear view of what i want to do with diving. i want to do wreck diving. penetration and all.


2. i want to go all the way into technical wreck diving.

Goals are good. If you're sure this is what you want to do then you can really focus your training.

3. who do i go to to get to where i want to be? PADI or IANTD? or do you suggest other organizations?

Finding a good instructor is important. Agency is not. That said, there are some differences in approach that could be relevant to your choice. For now, however, I would recommend getting familiar with technical gear and working a lot on buoyancy control and basic skills.

As a first next-step you might consider DIR-F. People who know me are picking up their jaws off the desk to hear me giving that advice but given your goals I think it's not too early for you to redefine the bar for where you should be right now.

And then go dive. Make 300 dives before taking any technical training, even if the entry requirements are lower..... because "diving is fun" stops REALLY fast when you're inside sometihng, over your no-deco times and something unexpected happens. That's not when you want to be working on fine-tuning basic skills. That's got to come first.

R..

 

[charlier]

It's so nice to see such good advice on SB. R. is on the mark, find a good instructor and get lots of experience (300+dives) before your technical training and consider GUE-F at some point.

 

[TSandM]

Where are you in the Philippines? If you are near Sabang Bay, go talk to the folks at Tech Asia. They run a really good operation and have some good connections.

If you want to do technical wreck diving, you'll need technical gear . . . if you don't have gear already, then make your purchases with an eye toward what will serve you in the long term. Gear that works for technical or cave diving also works quite well for open water, so you don't give up anything, but you save yourself some money and hassle if you don't have to replace as much.

Virtually all the skills you need to do technical wreck diving can be developed in open water in recreational depths. Perfecting stability in the water, precise positioning, good team skills, gas planning, and situational awareness, can all be done in a single tank in recreational depths. This is the huge selling point for GUE-F (Fundies). You are taught, and get to polish, all of those skills in shallow water, and under the keen eye of someone with some very good training in how to instruct. Whether you decide to follow the GUE training sequence from that point onward or not, the solid baseline skills will serve you well, wherever you go.

 

[victorzamora]

This brings up a really good point, actually. My recommendation of Andy Davis was based on sidemount. If you're considering a backmount route, GUE is the route I'd recommend whole-heartedly. Look around this forum for the sidemount vs backmount debate, and start gathering your own opinions.

One more thing to mention is I recommend you try both before choosing one way or the other, and then go that way and don't look back.

 

[Imla]

Personally....

I'd go

PADI/BSAC/CMAS/GUE (Any organisation that provides Open water class)
Then I'd do the equivalent of PADI Advanced.
GUE- Fundamentals (Rec pass if you don't have a lot of experience)
Upgrade to Techpass if you didn't get it the first time
Tech 1
Cave 1
Tech 2
DPV

And so on...

 

[djtimmy77]

I am not a GUE diver, and am unlikely to ever go that route (not interested in any level of cave/wreck penetration), but it sounds like the OP would benefit greatly from taking the GUE route. I think the excellent training GUE offers combined with the team focus will help keep the OP from pushing too far past their skills, but at the same time acquire the proper skills to hit the goals they are after.