bad day on charter

[robint]

this kind of situation scares the crap out of me! I am glad everyone survived and I hope the other diver learned a huge lesson.

the only time I have seen any diver blow through a tank that fast was when my husband was teaching OW class, he had a student who was 65+ yrs old and a 2-pk per day smoker. He literally blew a full tank at 25' depth in less than 20 minutes. After 2 dives like that, my husband told him he would not certify him for scuba. The guy totally understood and hopefully didn't go out to find another instructor. Some people are not meant to dive.

robin

 

[idocsteve]

Some people are not meant to dive.

robin

I don't know that it's a matter of them being "not meant to dive".

More like someone who is in such poor health due to intentionally breathing from burning leaves and paper is so reckless and irresponsible in regard to their own poor health that perhaps a sport that requires at least a bare minimum of physical fitness just might not be a wise choice for them.

The student in question always has the option of taking steps to change their self destructive lifestyle and make positive changes such as *gasp * quitting smoking perhaps?

I bet the guy was considerably overweight too.

 

[NC Wreck Diver]

Absolutely true, but this has nothing to do with Jacket BC vs. Backplate. I sling a pony from the left chest D-ring and left hip D-ring on my backplate, but you could do exactly the same thing with any BC that had the same two D-rings.

True, a lot of entry level BCs have cheap plastic D-rings, no hip attachment point, etc... but slinging is not precluded by the jacket design.

Hey doctormike:

I'm with you. I sling my pony the same, except I hang it off the right of my Knighthawk. Just a personal preference, since I do a lot left handed. Either way, I just offset a pound or so of weight to keep my trim level.

 

[doctormike]

Hey doctormike:

I'm with you. I sling my pony the same, except I hang it off the right of my Knighthawk. Just a personal preference, since I do a lot left handed. Either way, I just offset a pound or so of weight to keep my trim level.

Yup, it's a great way to handle the pony, and I barely notice that it is there, even with a big SLR with dual strobes! I used to use a tank mounted pony, but I found it hard to access, hard to rack the tanks on a boat, and more upsetting to my trim.

 

[DandyDon]

Absolutely true, but this has nothing to do with Jacket BC vs. Backplate. I sling a pony from the left chest D-ring and left hip D-ring on my backplate, but you could do exactly the same thing with any BC that had the same two D-rings.

True, a lot of entry level BCs have cheap plastic D-rings, no hip attachment point, etc... but slinging is not precluded by the jacket design.

I sling mine that way on my BC. Some have plastic D-rings?!

But I don't pass my pony. I escort still. I just don't trust some same-ocean diver to get it back to the boat, then to me. "Sorry I dropped your pony rig dude, but it was a bad time. Give me your address and I'll send you some money if I ever have any." Yeah, along with a check from Nigeria.

 

[charlesml3]

I used to use a tank mounted pony, but I found it hard to access, hard to rack the tanks on a boat, and more upsetting to my trim.

Yea that's all true but I still keep my pony banded to my tank. It sits on my right just behind the bladder. I don't even try to rack it on a boat. It just lays down. The Palau Aggressor's skiff did have a nifty tank holding system on their skiff. Some kind of steel collar welded do a plate. It only went up a few inches but was tight enough to hold the base of the tank.

I put one more pound on my left side than the right so it trims out nicely.

-Charles

 

[mos143]

Hey Everyone .. My name is mark . . I am a PADI Assistant Instructor with 500+ incident free dives ( thank you lord )
Brother .. Sorry to hear your day went south. the great news is no-one got hurt . I am great with my air but I also dive with a hp (100) on all my dives I start my ascent with 1000 for the same reason . that air is for you if you run out . A pony or bailout bottle is the ideal thing ... most divers will panic when that type of incident happens .. hyperventilating all the way through your air and then at 30 feet no air .... one thing I am curious about .. when you were instructed in wreck diving .did anyone mention hanging a bottle outside the entrance for just those type of emergencies ? One of my Instructors was Adamant about that .on all wreck dives we would have air to get back to earth if your not wearing at least a hp100 your not going in !!! sling pony`s are the way to go .. . wrecks can be dangerous we know this, but they are very cool and can be as safe as a bath tub if your prepared .
Play Safe and have a great day .

 

[DandyDon]

Re: hanging a bottle outside the entrance

I think you encourage dependence. What is someone needs it only to find that someoen else took it already. I like carrying my own bailout and diving within limits to avoid needing it.

 

[mos143]

I should have mentioned we don`t solo dive . 4 divers . 2 cans . 2 divers 1 can . those cans are rarely used ..I carry my pony . I`ll share air to the entrance . you have a full alm 80 to get your stupid butt home ( not referring to you, the random you who shows up with the right cert on the right day.)
that pony is for me . and only me, and the me I hope to be, selfish yes .. my wifes wifes hot as **** . my kid makes me smile .. decent job ...cool friends . it is about me ... I`ll have a grand in my can for you to get you to the door ..and everyone makes it home alive

 

[mstudley]

I've gotta call BS on the 800psi from an AL80 in 30 seconds. That's roughly 21.3cf! A full pony (AL19) would have only given them less than another 30 seconds at the given depth? I don't believe that for a second.

I'd believe it if the LP hose failed catastrophically but not someone breathing down the tank. Even if the second stage was free flowing and they were at 100fsw it would take more time than that to drain the tank from 800psi.

Reference material here