An Attempt at Understanding DIR
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HenrikBP
Contributor
As part of prep for Fundies I read 4 chapters in "Beginning With the End in Mind - the Fundamentals of Recreational Diving", which is going to be the work book for the GUE Rec 1 course:
Books and Calendars | Global Underwater Explorers
To my untrained eye, the book seemed to address most if not everything that was in the Fundies material and was reviewed in class. I liked the book better than the Fundies material in that the book is much better organized and reviews information in a reasonably logical order. It is however a work in progress (it seems) and could use some editorial review.
"Beginning With the End in Mind" also refers to "Doing It Right: The Fundamentals of Better Diving" as well as an "Encyclopedia" (upcoming release I think) for further reading.
So GUE is increasing and updating the educational material - but I *did* have to pay for "Beginning ...."
(just kidding - really)
Henrik
Books and Calendars | Global Underwater Explorers
To my untrained eye, the book seemed to address most if not everything that was in the Fundies material and was reviewed in class. I liked the book better than the Fundies material in that the book is much better organized and reviews information in a reasonably logical order. It is however a work in progress (it seems) and could use some editorial review.
"Beginning With the End in Mind" also refers to "Doing It Right: The Fundamentals of Better Diving" as well as an "Encyclopedia" (upcoming release I think) for further reading.
So GUE is increasing and updating the educational material - but I *did* have to pay for "Beginning ...."
(just kidding - really)Henrik
I think they did a very nice job with the OW manual. I'll have to go back and review it again, in view of the editing comments. The nice thing about electronic publications is that it is pretty easy to fix mistakes!
OP
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I'm not doubting you, but it is listed on the website as being required reading for the course.
For an organization that stresses attention to details that seems like a pretty big thing to miss. After all, someone interested in the course, or the organization, is going to purchase that e-book from them to study and learn from in relations. If it is no longer being used as the web-site says it is, that's rather more than a simple mistake. Sure $15 isn't going to buy a new drysuit, but no one likes buying something advertised as being essential to proper education only to find that it's irrelevant.
If they are doing that, and the book is no longer relevant, then they should stop saying it's required reading or they should stop charging for it. The notion that someone buying a book is a freeloader is a new concept for me.
HenrikBP
Contributor
Keep in mind that I'm a stickler for perfection - I found the buoyancy section of chapter 2 (p. 2.20) particularly "clunky". But there are language gems scattered throughout
Don't get me wrong. I think it's a really nice first go. But I suspect English might not be the author's first language - and as such it could use a bit of tweaking.
That said, I found it much more enjoyable to read than the somewhat scattered articles in the Fundies material.
Electronic publishing; I used to say that electronic publishing would never take off until you could easily bring it with you to the bathroom
I fully understand that electronic publishing is the economical way to do it, but I'm old fashioned and much prefer printed material. It's easier for me to read and I like making notes in the margin. I *did* print out the OW book, but 500+ pages is a lot, and the look looses a lot when printed in B/W - charts, pictures etc. just don't "translate" well. I checked out cost for getting it printed in color and spiral bound .... around $450 at Kinkos.
But I guess the short of it is, that it's either electronic or nothing.
Henrik
The website isn't great in that respect. Someone stumbling across it and signing up for a class without talking to an instructor is going to get confused and charged for stuff they can't use.
Typically, to take a course, you talk to the instructor first and work out which class you'll take. They'll tell you everything you need to do to sign up on the site, and what materials you need to acquire from there. Neither I nor my classmates were ever told to get the Fundamentals book, and none of us did (I ended up buying one used recently just to have it, but that's well after the class). None of the teaching material or problem sets come from or require the book.
But yeah, taking the book off the required materials list is a fair criticism, and I wondered about whether I needed it at the time as well.
elan
Contributor
Donno about GUE but PADI recommends aligning them after the dive, not before. What shakras do you prefer anyways ? Haineken, Becks, Absolut, Stolichnaya, anything else ?
Rainer
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DIR becomes better understood if we look at the system from where the philosophy can place a dive team at the farthest reaches of the most extreme diving environment and then move backwards to the entry level or recreational diver.
We're going to the most dangerous place on earth. We're going to be miles underneath a solid rock ceiling with only one safe exit left in the wake of our scooter wash. Our average depth will be greater than two or three hundred feet and our tissues will be saturated with inert gas much like commercial divers in diving bells. The dive will take the same amount of time that it would take to drive from New York City to Myrtle Beach. We won't be able to enjoy the luxury of fully loaded automobile. It will be like motorcycling on a cold wet day and we aren't allowed to stop at any rest stops or gas stations along the way. We will be dependent upon one another for our survival and we will have to endure physical and mental stresses to stay sharp and focused that few divers will ever even try imagine.
What do we need to make this dive successful?
1. Team
The diver is the most important component of DIR. Because we will be completely dependent upon one another for survival, we owe it to one another to be at our physical and mental best. At the beach, we want our lifeguards to be superior athletes able to meet whatever the ocean throws at them to save lives of beach-goers and we want them to be mentally alert, prepared and ready for any challenge. I'm asking you, as my lifeguard on this dive, to give me the best of yourself. My mother loves me. I have hopes, dreams, desires, a lover, friends, pets and ambitions that will transcend this day an d this dive. You do, too. We need one another because we're going to be like astronauts down there. We may have a lot of support from the surface and support divers, but we are really on our own during most of the penetration and exit. We know that diet and exercise will help us endure the demands of hours of scootering. A team is only as strong as its weakest link so we both need to be strong. Our bodies will have to off-gas from saturation and I need you right to the end. Health, fitness, intellect, focus and diving experience will help us endure, decompress and maintain our commitment to team integrity and safety. Diving is a sport of vertigo as defined by philosophy of sport and play and we are athletes on game day. Let's do this dive!
Our support divers need one another the same way. The farther and deeper the support teams need to go, the more fit and mentally prepared they, too, need to be to survive. Support divers have been working just as hard and are just as committed to one another and to us. They are going to give the best of themselves to one another and to us to make this day possible.
Our exploration teams (Tech 3/Cave 3) going deeper than 300 feet can be supported by our deep support teams (Tech 2/Cave 2), who, in turn, can be supported by our intermediate teams (Tech 1/Cave 2) who are supported by our shallow teams (Fundies/Tech 1/Cave 1) who are supported by our surface teams (a mixture of exploration divers, tech, cave, fundies, and students doing everything from charging scooter batteries, to tying bolt snaps on lights, to preparing food, to filling bottles to passing stage bottles to support divers and everyone in the water relies on those behind them, so the newest student doing some seemingly mundane task is vital to the project we are doing. Everytone is on the same page and people are working together like a well-oiled machine.
2. Standardization
In order for this well-oiled machine to run, the cogs, gears and widgets must all cooperate. They must interact to get the job done with efficiency. Having the same procedures known from the deepest exploration to the shallowest diver and surface support will allow for better clarity and understanding of what each tool is, where it will be used, and how situations will be managed from getting food and drink to divers to handling an emergency. Even the newest student can look at a deco bottle, know what gas is it it and the depth it will be used and know how to quickly repair a tow cord on a scooter or replace the bolt snap on a back up light for a diver just about to go down who discovered a fray. He can have that light fixed in a minute or be handed a ready one from another team member in a second who can take his back up light once the surface support person finishes burning the end of the nylon line with a lighter for security.
Standard gases keep ppO2's low for the divers and retard narcosis to well below recreational diving depths. Gases are leap-frogged both on the dive teams and in stage bottles. The "summit team" can return home on Tech 3 gases. Tech 3 divers can return home on Tech 2 gases. Tech 2 divers can return home on Tech 1 gases. Tech 1 divers can return home on Fundies gases.
3. Skills
You don't expect a pro football team to come out on the field and look like the pee-wee's do you? This is game day! To be here, to be able to do these dives, we've had to spend years dialing-in diving experience and the skills that will be needed. Over the years, we've turned everything from stage bottle switching to gas sharing into an art form. There will be no fumbling with stage/deco bottles. We know exactly where they will be waiting for us, how to pick them up, switch them on while safeguarding one another, and how to clip them to our D-rings. We know exactly how we will handle a catastrophic loss of gas, and we've thought every procedure through to determine a safe way to do it. We'll do it the same way like we've watched one another countless times. The same procedures filter all the way back to the newest diver in the shallow support team. Did you know that one of the Tech 1 divers couldn't dive due to congestion? We replaced him with a woman from France who doesn't speak English very well, but she's been a support diver for tons of DIR cave dives in Europe. Once underwater it won't matter. The communication and procedures are all the same and her light signals and hand signals will speak the same language. The skills we have today of being able to scooter on rebreathers carrying multiple scooters and bottles started with that first Fundies class when we learned trim, buoyancy and propulsion. Remember all the trouble we had trying to clip and unclip bolt snaps from the long hose and the SPG in trim in a 5 foot window? That seems like just yesterday, it took us about a year to become okay Fundies guys, then another couple to be proficient Tech 1 divers. It was a challenge learning, but fun taking part in projects and supporting all the guys that taught us and we were so lucky to have some of the best divers in the world from which to learn. I hear you are thinking about becoming an instructor? That's awesome! With all your years of experience, your students will be lucky. If we are here today, can you imagine where the students you create may be exploring tomorrow?
4. Equipment
Well, we aren't getting to the back of this cave with junk or poorly routed hoses. Did Bill Main mention something once about how even LP hoses out in the breeze can take off a couple hundred feet of swim due to drag over the course of a long dive like this? This entire dive is going to revolve around the scooters. Not only will they decrease our workload so we don't have to swim, but according to bubble deco theory, by moving less we will reduce our chances of DCS as well. Anyway, the scooters will definitely allow us to explore. We'll need to tow scooters, too, because the batteries will only be used for a part of their burn time for safety. We need a robust gear configuration that is streamlined and efficient. The harness will hold us towed behind the scooter. It must be snug and the tow cord properly adjusted for a streamlined and efficient ride. We want the harness to be snugged to us securely, but we need to be able to remove our rebreathers or tanks if necessary underwater. We don't want any plastic quick releases or and complex adjustments that might loosen as we scooter to the dark side of the moon. A single piece of webbing and a crotch strap are all we need to hold a myriad of bottles and all the gear we require such as lights and cutting tool. We're going to keep the right side free of clutter for effective long hose deployment in case of an out of gas emergency. We can easily wear all stage & deco bottles on the left. The plate bolts the rebreathers or tanks securely. We carry additional items in our pockets and wear our back up lights on the harness where each back up light with a long burn time can be seen by a buddy if it accidentally goes on. We don't want our batteries and bulbs in these super important little monster lights being drained because they are switched on, unnoticed in a pocket. I know exactly what you are carrying, where you are carrying it, why you are carrying it, and I can glance at you and see that everything is properly stowed. Why? Because I've been doing this for years since Fundies. Something doesn't look right in the glance I just made. Dude! You trapped your long hose with your light cord. Geez! Should I replace you with one of those Fundies divers? Or, maybe that Tech 1 French girl? Newbie mistake, bro! Nah, I'll keep you with me. They are all good divers and excellent scuba "lifeguards," but you've got the experience we've worked hard to build all these years.
5. Attitude
Okay, we've planned this out thoroughly. This is a team effort from top to bottom and our dive wouldn't be possible without the dedication and commitment from everyone here. Let's go enjoy the ride and the view and win one for the team!
That's DIR.
We're going to the most dangerous place on earth. We're going to be miles underneath a solid rock ceiling with only one safe exit left in the wake of our scooter wash. Our average depth will be greater than two or three hundred feet and our tissues will be saturated with inert gas much like commercial divers in diving bells. The dive will take the same amount of time that it would take to drive from New York City to Myrtle Beach. We won't be able to enjoy the luxury of fully loaded automobile. It will be like motorcycling on a cold wet day and we aren't allowed to stop at any rest stops or gas stations along the way. We will be dependent upon one another for our survival and we will have to endure physical and mental stresses to stay sharp and focused that few divers will ever even try imagine.
What do we need to make this dive successful?
1. Team
The diver is the most important component of DIR. Because we will be completely dependent upon one another for survival, we owe it to one another to be at our physical and mental best. At the beach, we want our lifeguards to be superior athletes able to meet whatever the ocean throws at them to save lives of beach-goers and we want them to be mentally alert, prepared and ready for any challenge. I'm asking you, as my lifeguard on this dive, to give me the best of yourself. My mother loves me. I have hopes, dreams, desires, a lover, friends, pets and ambitions that will transcend this day an d this dive. You do, too. We need one another because we're going to be like astronauts down there. We may have a lot of support from the surface and support divers, but we are really on our own during most of the penetration and exit. We know that diet and exercise will help us endure the demands of hours of scootering. A team is only as strong as its weakest link so we both need to be strong. Our bodies will have to off-gas from saturation and I need you right to the end. Health, fitness, intellect, focus and diving experience will help us endure, decompress and maintain our commitment to team integrity and safety. Diving is a sport of vertigo as defined by philosophy of sport and play and we are athletes on game day. Let's do this dive!
Our support divers need one another the same way. The farther and deeper the support teams need to go, the more fit and mentally prepared they, too, need to be to survive. Support divers have been working just as hard and are just as committed to one another and to us. They are going to give the best of themselves to one another and to us to make this day possible.
Our exploration teams (Tech 3/Cave 3) going deeper than 300 feet can be supported by our deep support teams (Tech 2/Cave 2), who, in turn, can be supported by our intermediate teams (Tech 1/Cave 2) who are supported by our shallow teams (Fundies/Tech 1/Cave 1) who are supported by our surface teams (a mixture of exploration divers, tech, cave, fundies, and students doing everything from charging scooter batteries, to tying bolt snaps on lights, to preparing food, to filling bottles to passing stage bottles to support divers and everyone in the water relies on those behind them, so the newest student doing some seemingly mundane task is vital to the project we are doing. Everytone is on the same page and people are working together like a well-oiled machine.
2. Standardization
In order for this well-oiled machine to run, the cogs, gears and widgets must all cooperate. They must interact to get the job done with efficiency. Having the same procedures known from the deepest exploration to the shallowest diver and surface support will allow for better clarity and understanding of what each tool is, where it will be used, and how situations will be managed from getting food and drink to divers to handling an emergency. Even the newest student can look at a deco bottle, know what gas is it it and the depth it will be used and know how to quickly repair a tow cord on a scooter or replace the bolt snap on a back up light for a diver just about to go down who discovered a fray. He can have that light fixed in a minute or be handed a ready one from another team member in a second who can take his back up light once the surface support person finishes burning the end of the nylon line with a lighter for security.
Standard gases keep ppO2's low for the divers and retard narcosis to well below recreational diving depths. Gases are leap-frogged both on the dive teams and in stage bottles. The "summit team" can return home on Tech 3 gases. Tech 3 divers can return home on Tech 2 gases. Tech 2 divers can return home on Tech 1 gases. Tech 1 divers can return home on Fundies gases.
3. Skills
You don't expect a pro football team to come out on the field and look like the pee-wee's do you? This is game day! To be here, to be able to do these dives, we've had to spend years dialing-in diving experience and the skills that will be needed. Over the years, we've turned everything from stage bottle switching to gas sharing into an art form. There will be no fumbling with stage/deco bottles. We know exactly where they will be waiting for us, how to pick them up, switch them on while safeguarding one another, and how to clip them to our D-rings. We know exactly how we will handle a catastrophic loss of gas, and we've thought every procedure through to determine a safe way to do it. We'll do it the same way like we've watched one another countless times. The same procedures filter all the way back to the newest diver in the shallow support team. Did you know that one of the Tech 1 divers couldn't dive due to congestion? We replaced him with a woman from France who doesn't speak English very well, but she's been a support diver for tons of DIR cave dives in Europe. Once underwater it won't matter. The communication and procedures are all the same and her light signals and hand signals will speak the same language. The skills we have today of being able to scooter on rebreathers carrying multiple scooters and bottles started with that first Fundies class when we learned trim, buoyancy and propulsion. Remember all the trouble we had trying to clip and unclip bolt snaps from the long hose and the SPG in trim in a 5 foot window? That seems like just yesterday, it took us about a year to become okay Fundies guys, then another couple to be proficient Tech 1 divers. It was a challenge learning, but fun taking part in projects and supporting all the guys that taught us and we were so lucky to have some of the best divers in the world from which to learn. I hear you are thinking about becoming an instructor? That's awesome! With all your years of experience, your students will be lucky. If we are here today, can you imagine where the students you create may be exploring tomorrow?
4. Equipment
Well, we aren't getting to the back of this cave with junk or poorly routed hoses. Did Bill Main mention something once about how even LP hoses out in the breeze can take off a couple hundred feet of swim due to drag over the course of a long dive like this? This entire dive is going to revolve around the scooters. Not only will they decrease our workload so we don't have to swim, but according to bubble deco theory, by moving less we will reduce our chances of DCS as well. Anyway, the scooters will definitely allow us to explore. We'll need to tow scooters, too, because the batteries will only be used for a part of their burn time for safety. We need a robust gear configuration that is streamlined and efficient. The harness will hold us towed behind the scooter. It must be snug and the tow cord properly adjusted for a streamlined and efficient ride. We want the harness to be snugged to us securely, but we need to be able to remove our rebreathers or tanks if necessary underwater. We don't want any plastic quick releases or and complex adjustments that might loosen as we scooter to the dark side of the moon. A single piece of webbing and a crotch strap are all we need to hold a myriad of bottles and all the gear we require such as lights and cutting tool. We're going to keep the right side free of clutter for effective long hose deployment in case of an out of gas emergency. We can easily wear all stage & deco bottles on the left. The plate bolts the rebreathers or tanks securely. We carry additional items in our pockets and wear our back up lights on the harness where each back up light with a long burn time can be seen by a buddy if it accidentally goes on. We don't want our batteries and bulbs in these super important little monster lights being drained because they are switched on, unnoticed in a pocket. I know exactly what you are carrying, where you are carrying it, why you are carrying it, and I can glance at you and see that everything is properly stowed. Why? Because I've been doing this for years since Fundies. Something doesn't look right in the glance I just made. Dude! You trapped your long hose with your light cord. Geez! Should I replace you with one of those Fundies divers? Or, maybe that Tech 1 French girl? Newbie mistake, bro! Nah, I'll keep you with me. They are all good divers and excellent scuba "lifeguards," but you've got the experience we've worked hard to build all these years.
5. Attitude
Okay, we've planned this out thoroughly. This is a team effort from top to bottom and our dive wouldn't be possible without the dedication and commitment from everyone here. Let's go enjoy the ride and the view and win one for the team!
That's DIR.
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