What to Consider as a New Student to Diving?

[giefu]

I have to recommend a private or semi-private class for those of us who are a little more hesitant. I don't think I would have ever made it through a big, fast pace class. I saw people get through their training in three days and thought, no way!!

I thought that I had to be the worse student ever, which was shocking to me because things usually come easy. I couldn't take my mask off without choking, I panicked and spit out my regulator, I went turtle and had to be pulled of the bottom of the pool, things like that. Now that I have been diving for a while, I learned that I wasn't so bad, but I think if I had been in a big class I would have bailed and given up out of shear embarrassment. Luckily I had a patient instructor who not only did things like shove regulators back in my mouth and turn me upright, but gave me the encouragement I need to get back in the water.

 

[resortdiver]

Pool time seems to be the most critical issue. I feel new scuba students especially difficult learners would benefit greatly by doing the swimming skills and skin diving skills upfront.
The explore and play time during each session gives students time to relax and feel secure with the new knowledge and the underwater world. The last session should include a good half hour of play time at the end. PADI has it right by high lighting the "fun and skills practice" on every confined water slate. Resorts and Centers need to alot more time for the fun aspects of scuba diving education. Focusing only on the skills leads to a higher rate of drop outs.

 

[perdidochas]

Unless your taking NAUI dive classes and the instructor is teaching you to trouble shoot and problem solve...

Regulators... we don't need no stinking regulators...
Here... suck on this tank through your teeth!


Yep, back when I got my NAUI Basic, our Instructor put a tank at the bottom of the pool and we all had to dive down and breath off of it. Never did understand out why, but that was one of his requirements. almtree: Bob

That was optional in my NAUI Openwater class. I did it anyway

 

[perdidochas]

Regulators... we don't need no stinking regulators...
Here... suck on this tank through your teeth!


Yep, back when I got my NAUI Basic, our Instructor put a tank at the bottom of the pool and we all had to dive down and breath off of it. Never did understand out why, but that was one of his requirements. almtree: Bob

That is so stupid sounds like the old military way of teaching along with harassment. If he had a student mouth the valve and crank the wheel it might not been so cool.

Neither was being in a pool with the lights turned out and having a taped over mask and being told don't surface work things out on the bottom. Then swimming in a circle with my partner there goes my left fin, there goes buddies fins, his air is turned off my air turned off then (believe it) my first stage was was loosened, along with my weight belt drooped. I turned his air on and we started buddy breathing as I retrieved my weights. Now clearing my mask and he his, he started putting my first stage back on puts it on backwards cranks the wheel and big time bubbles. Aha mistake he turned it around and turns it on again now the O rind was gone from the backward portion. As all this is going on we were buddy breathing he was behind me and we wasn't so together sharing air. All at once he wasn't sharing anymore. I was thinking what's up with that? While almost drowning! I started making alot of noise and was turning around which was hard because he was holding on to me. When I was about half way around he stuck a hose in my hand it was a hose alright but an inflater hose! I bailed ... I was swimming to the surface with 1 fin on dragging him he still had my 2nd in his mouth. Once at the surface the Instructor and his DM was crying from laughter.

While I agree on the breathing from a bare tank issue, I think the basic harassment drill is a good one (although loosening the regulator is a little extreme). I also think that your instructor and DM should have stepped in when they saw that he wasn't sharing air with you.

Well I guess that was great perpetration. But in 30 years of diving I never have lost a fin, my air turned off, mask pulled off my face, my regulator loosen to the point that it disconnected from the tank valve. Plus neither has anyone diving with me. But I'm still waiting!!!

Well, I have lost a fin, and had a mask pulled off my face-both are situations that can happen. The air turned off was a simulation of out of air (when I did the harassment as a student, when your air was turned off, you buddy breathed for the rest of the exercise). Anyway, the main purpose of the harassment drills was to instill confidence. If you could still safely scuba with one tank in a buddy team/without mask and only one fin, you should be able to do a lot. I know I felt more confident after completing that drill.

 

[perdidochas]

Pool time seems to be the most critical issue. I feel new scuba students especially difficult learners would benefit greatly by doing the swimming skills and skin diving skills upfront.
The explore and play time during each session gives students time to relax and feel secure with the new knowledge and the underwater world. The last session should include a good half hour of play time at the end. PADI has it right by high lighting the "fun and skills practice" on every confined water slate. Resorts and Centers need to alot more time for the fun aspects of scuba diving education. Focusing only on the skills leads to a higher rate of drop outs.

The problem is that courses with only a few pool sessions don't really afford enough time to relax and play. When I took my NAUI Openwater class in 1982, we had half a dozen pool sessions. We spent one pool session snorkeling and just getting comfortable with fins, BC and mask/snorkel.

 

[LSHUNTER]

I Dont Know Who Took The Time And Wrote All This Down ,but I Wish You Were My Teacher,this Was A Really Big Help,thanks So Very Much!!!!!!lshunter

 

[LSHUNTER]

If You Have Any Tips Ill Take Them!!!!thanks To All~~~~

 

[goldenbear01]

Regulators... we don't need no stinking regulators...
Here... suck on this tank through your teeth!

Yep, back when I got my NAUI Basic, our Instructor put a tank at the bottom of the pool and we all had to dive down and breath off of it. Never did understand out why, but that was one of his requirements. almtree: Bob

[/QUOTE]

just curious, is this still possible w/modern tanks? i mean, isn't the pressure of the air being released from the tank pretty high? i thought that the purpose of the first stage and the reg was to reduce the pressure of the air to a level where the diver could breathe it w/o damaging his lungs, etc.?

 

[sharkchaser]

i want to be a dive instructor. do i have to go to a commercial dive school? also i talked to the director at a commercial school and he tried to discourage me from attending said commercial diving is not for woman. is this true?

 

[perdidochas]

[deleted, since I've already replied to the post in question)