manni-yunk
Contributor
I admit that I have done dives that are outside of my official "training". I have had a lot of VERY good mentoring from very seasoned and experienced technical divers. Ive have read everything there is to read - and I eased into the type of diving that we do in NJ. Some of these guys are or were instructors -and in exchange for getting to dive one of the few NJ private boats that dives, they would help me and a few others out. So - I wasnt really risking to much - I was just not taking more classes.
I started to go deeper and deeper and as I approached 160 ft dives more often, I decided its time to take a few steps back and get more training - and start to get ready to add Helium into the mix, which means Trimix/triox classes.
I spoke to several instructors. My original NAUI shop was great for training (basic and advanced - customed to NE wreck diving), but they are really only set up for advanced and master classes - nothing technical. I asked around, made some calls, asked friends who did their training. I found a lot of guys who paid for a class, took a test, did a quarry dive and an experience dive - then had the cert. Seriously - I didnt need that. I mix my own tanks and dont need the cert to get on a boat - quite frankly, I dont care about the cert....its the training that I wanted. So a bunch of instructors were ruled out immediately. That left a list of very good and qualified local people.
I was taking this seriously.
After a phone conversation with Trace Malinowski - and a few conversations with people that were trained by him - I made my choice.
I was initially concerned that I didnt want someone to try to "turn me into" a GUE or DIR diver. Trace was direct and up front that it wasnt his job to convert me into anything - but that there was a lot of sound dive practices and techniques and that it was up to me if I want to utilize them, as long as I met the minimum standards for the class, he would be ok with what I wanted.
I think my comment was - "fine, as long as I dont have to get rid of my "quick release" clips on my Transplate harness!!!!" LOL.
So I signed up for "coaching" - followed by a few classes.
Being a NE diver (and please dont take offense if some of you NE guys dont fall into this category) - I know that my trim, buoyancy and propulsion are not ideal. Basically - we hit the water heavy - then crawl on the bottom (its not that bad, but you get my point).
I though that a full day of Trace's coaching sessions would help determine if I could even get to the minimum PSAI standards yet.
The Coaching day was great. Sure, I learned that I had things to work on - but who doesnt. It went very well and we focused on trim, buoyancy, propulsion and the entire thing was video recorded - then we reviewed it in detail.
The next day we started training. One of Trace's gifts is in his instruction. He knows standards - he knows that he is going to push you - and - he keeps pushing and keeps throwing every angle at you. Valve failures, OOA, running a reel (cave or wreck style), penetration, gas switches, propulsion, team concepts......then everything at once from any and every angle as he thinks your ready for it. I would not have thought that following a reel line back after tying off, BLIND, through penetrations with a valve failure thrown in for good measure....was in my wheelhouse - but actually - it was fun. Did I look good .......heck no - but I did it and learned a lot. And once again - the whole thing was video taped and reviewed in great detail. Everything from silting out the area, trim angle, stop depth monitoring during gas switches, etc - was covered in great detail.
Overall - I would say that I made a great choice and by the time we are finished - next season - I will be a MUCH more competent and confident diver - and thanks to Trace, I might even look a little better as I dive - I might even have good horizontal trim....maybe.
If you want to challenge yourself - no matter how certified you think you are - Trace is the man. Not everyone is a natural at giving honest direct feedback about both the good and the bad. Not everyone knows how to push the limits. And BTW, one thing I noticed in the videos is that no matter what he had me do - and no matter where I was, if it was a new challenge, he was right there close enough to make sure the situation was under control.
I think the idea of "COACHING" is a great concept to diving. He makes it specific to what you need. Not everything needs a certification or a class. The Coaching day was a great add-on.
Anyone looking for any level of training, from basic - through Cave and beyond......should consider Trace. I anted to find someone to really push me to be better - and he has done exactly that.
I have instructed (Brazilian Jiu-jitsu), and seen a lot of instructors in a lot of sports. For technical training - I can tell you that I cant imagine anyone as thorough as Trace.
I started to go deeper and deeper and as I approached 160 ft dives more often, I decided its time to take a few steps back and get more training - and start to get ready to add Helium into the mix, which means Trimix/triox classes.
I spoke to several instructors. My original NAUI shop was great for training (basic and advanced - customed to NE wreck diving), but they are really only set up for advanced and master classes - nothing technical. I asked around, made some calls, asked friends who did their training. I found a lot of guys who paid for a class, took a test, did a quarry dive and an experience dive - then had the cert. Seriously - I didnt need that. I mix my own tanks and dont need the cert to get on a boat - quite frankly, I dont care about the cert....its the training that I wanted. So a bunch of instructors were ruled out immediately. That left a list of very good and qualified local people.
I was taking this seriously.
After a phone conversation with Trace Malinowski - and a few conversations with people that were trained by him - I made my choice.
I was initially concerned that I didnt want someone to try to "turn me into" a GUE or DIR diver. Trace was direct and up front that it wasnt his job to convert me into anything - but that there was a lot of sound dive practices and techniques and that it was up to me if I want to utilize them, as long as I met the minimum standards for the class, he would be ok with what I wanted.
I think my comment was - "fine, as long as I dont have to get rid of my "quick release" clips on my Transplate harness!!!!" LOL.
So I signed up for "coaching" - followed by a few classes.
Being a NE diver (and please dont take offense if some of you NE guys dont fall into this category) - I know that my trim, buoyancy and propulsion are not ideal. Basically - we hit the water heavy - then crawl on the bottom (its not that bad, but you get my point).
I though that a full day of Trace's coaching sessions would help determine if I could even get to the minimum PSAI standards yet.
The Coaching day was great. Sure, I learned that I had things to work on - but who doesnt. It went very well and we focused on trim, buoyancy, propulsion and the entire thing was video recorded - then we reviewed it in detail.
The next day we started training. One of Trace's gifts is in his instruction. He knows standards - he knows that he is going to push you - and - he keeps pushing and keeps throwing every angle at you. Valve failures, OOA, running a reel (cave or wreck style), penetration, gas switches, propulsion, team concepts......then everything at once from any and every angle as he thinks your ready for it. I would not have thought that following a reel line back after tying off, BLIND, through penetrations with a valve failure thrown in for good measure....was in my wheelhouse - but actually - it was fun. Did I look good .......heck no - but I did it and learned a lot. And once again - the whole thing was video taped and reviewed in great detail. Everything from silting out the area, trim angle, stop depth monitoring during gas switches, etc - was covered in great detail.
Overall - I would say that I made a great choice and by the time we are finished - next season - I will be a MUCH more competent and confident diver - and thanks to Trace, I might even look a little better as I dive - I might even have good horizontal trim....maybe.
If you want to challenge yourself - no matter how certified you think you are - Trace is the man. Not everyone is a natural at giving honest direct feedback about both the good and the bad. Not everyone knows how to push the limits. And BTW, one thing I noticed in the videos is that no matter what he had me do - and no matter where I was, if it was a new challenge, he was right there close enough to make sure the situation was under control.
I think the idea of "COACHING" is a great concept to diving. He makes it specific to what you need. Not everything needs a certification or a class. The Coaching day was a great add-on.
Anyone looking for any level of training, from basic - through Cave and beyond......should consider Trace. I anted to find someone to really push me to be better - and he has done exactly that.
I have instructed (Brazilian Jiu-jitsu), and seen a lot of instructors in a lot of sports. For technical training - I can tell you that I cant imagine anyone as thorough as Trace.
