question about newbies

[k ellis]

Ok when we all first started diving way back when we all had like 20 minutes at 60 feet and many of us had tanks that were almost looked like a coke bottle full of air at 120 feet when we finished the dive LOL. My question is since veteran divers are all too aware of newer divers having a high air consumption rate. How would you handle another veteran offering to take a newer diver to 100 feet and he has less then 10 logged dives? What if when you pointed out the potential hazards and the veteran insist it will be ok and the new diver cant be talked down???

 

[Thalassamania]

It going to depend on the conditions, the plan, and the divers. I could not give you a blanket yea or nay.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

As Thal said. Personally I require a min of 10 dives to start AOW but that is dependent on the students or new divers buoyancy control, trim, and overall skill level. If they are yoyo'ing, have trouble staying horizontal, or are not competent with the basic skills, then no way. Course if they were my student and doing this they would not be in OW at all until we found out where one or both of us screwed up. We'd still be in the pool.

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

Ok when we all first started diving way back when we all had like 20 minutes at 60 feet and many of us had tanks that were almost looked like a coke bottle full of air at 120 feet when we finished the dive LOL. My question is since veteran divers are all too aware of newer divers having a high air consumption rate. How would you handle another veteran offering to take a newer diver to 100 feet and he has less then 10 logged dives? What if when you pointed out the potential hazards and the veteran insist it will be ok and the new diver cant be talked down???

You've just described my 10th dive (way back when). I had a good mentor. It was fine.

Our equipment back then was: Steel 72's, no BC's, no octo's, no computers..... and it was a safe, great dive.

So as Thal mentioned, it really depends on both divers.

Best wishes.

 

[BioLogic]

There's maybe nothing you can effectively do. What I'd try, though, is to ask the veteran diver how much gas he'd calculated it would take to safely bring both veteran and newbie up on one tank while they were stressed....He had calculated that, right??

 

[k ellis]

Im not sure it was just something that came out of the blue. Im not sure I just remember when I did a bounce dive to 100 feet for my AOW I consumed nearly 2500 lbs of air by the time I surfaced. Maybe Im over stressing it but I am just concerned with less then 10 dives someone could have serious implications. Such as for example consuming all of their gas before surfaceing, poor weighting issues that may result in over using the power inflator and eventually a runaway ascent or perhaps the most important things we often neglect when new to the sport such as CLOSELY monitoring the 60 fpm rule and even bypassing the safety stops. The lakes are dark often times at 40 feet let alone 100 feet so visibility is a concern also which could cause panick.

Maybe its nothing but being in my line of work I see alot of needless tragedies and the damage it does to entire families when things that could of easily been avoided were not avoided. Not to mention it hurts everyone because as our sport hopefully grows larger well into the future there will be more divers which means more potential for more mishaps and this can always lead to legal regulations on the sport instead of the simple everyone who rents or charters dives asking for a c card.

 

[k ellis]

You've just described my 10th dive (way back when). I had a good mentor. It was fine.

Our equipment back then was: Steel 72's, no BC's, no octo's, no computers..... and it was a safe, great dive.

So as Thal mentioned, it really depends on both divers.

Best wishes.

I know it can be done and many do it all the time. I am just worried that if I did not speak my mind in advance and something happens then the legal implications of people saying I could have stopped it or I should have spoken up. Getting sued for just being there and as the courts would try to put it "You should have known better"

 

[seaducer]

I don't know, diving in an intensely personal thing. I would just make sure the new diver was aware of what they were about to do, and allow them to make their own informed decision.

I would also hope the veteran diver was aware of the role they may play in getting the new diver safely back to the surface. If so, you kind of have to chalk it up to they are willing to take more potential risk than you might be.

 

[TSandM]

We all have the right to make our own mistakes. By stepping in and talking to them, you have done what you can. The dive may go fine -- my own 14th dive was to 130 feet in Molokini, and there were no problems.

If this is someone local, someone you're likely to see again, you could always print out NW Grateful Diver's article on gas management and just give it to him next time you see him.

 

[Amphiprion]

Back in the day I was at 80' on a wall during my ow dives. Granted this was back in the day when I had a two night a week for 5 weeks ow course. By the time we took the ow course, the instructer knew the divers pretty well.

I suppose it depends on the conditions and the diver.