Lessons Learned this weekend

[dumpsterDiver]

Lesson learned don't get tangled in lines, don't get beat up by weights moving around etc... Do you really expect people to have to explain this stuff to you? Diving under boats, in currents with waves in the ocean can be dangerous and unpredictable. You will alwys have to use common sense and situational awareness. What more can we say about it?

If there is a lesson, it is how easy it is to screw up, how easy it is to get separated, how important it is to be self sufficient and probably most of all, don't push too hard into new or more challenging situations.

 

[Jaydubya]

As a rule of thumb, to avoid entanglement always swim above lines when possible and never under them. If you must swim under a line, grasp it with one hand and hold it clear of your equipment while you pass under it.

FTR, I stay *very* clear of the line weights. I worry a lot more about taking a mushroom weight shot to the head than getting tangled though.

I usually go hand over hand so as to get down more quickly and expend less energy even if a free descent is possible. Even when not in contact I stay within reach of the anchor line until I can clearly drop onto the wreck.

Meeting up at the surface is not something we usually do in NC once we learn better but it can take some time to develop the confidence to meet at the hang line. I imagine this is doubly true when your child is one of your dive buddies.

 

[gsk3]

I've not done more than a few Jersey dives (very similar conditions to NC, generally also with a "Carolina rig"), but haven't had any complaints from anyone while not physically holding on to the line. We stayed within arm-reach of it, however, in case sudden currents came up. Congratulations on safely handling what is for most beginners a very challenging dive, and for thinking about and improving your technique in the future as a result.

Joeforbroke - Not sure I understand the comment about pulling to get down quicker. At the beginning of a dive, you should have at least the weight of your gas to sink you. From your profile, it looks like that should be at least 15lbs. I sink pretty darn fast when I'm that negative, and I'm not sure I'd want to go any faster, given that I try to stay reasonably balanced even on fast descents.

 

[Jaydubya]

Joeforbroke - Not sure I understand the comment about pulling to get down quicker. At the beginning of a dive, you should have at least the weight of your gas to sink you. From your profile, it looks like that should be at least 15lbs. I sink pretty darn fast when I'm that negative, and I'm not sure I'd want to go any faster, given that I try to stay reasonably balanced even on fast descents.

That would be true if the direction I wanted to go is down but often there is quite a bit of scope in the anchor line. Sometimes the wreck is further forward than it is deep. The weight of my tanks send me down, while my hands carry me forward.

 

[tddfleming]

Dumpter:

I simply posted for new people such as myself to learn from this one thing. As I followed the drive brief to the letter!!!! "Hand over hand to the bottom, don't let go." Also being last in a line of people, when they stopped I needed to also stop, where ever I was on the line. The option of doing a neg entry was NOT an option as Joeforbroke has stated on this boat. For either day or either dive boat. I suspect that since it was inshore and all of us where somewhat new, plus there was no real reason to do it unless one wanted to show off. Granted I made a mistake, however, I don't expect anything from you, and a more of a screw up would have been panic, bolting to the surface, not figuring out what had happened or fixing it. It anything, I think I showed how to fix things at depth, not panicing, self reliance and also learning something from my mistake.

I just hope that when I grow up, I can be just as competent as you as a diver.

 

[gsk3]

That would be true if the direction I wanted to go is down but often there is quite a bit of scope in the anchor line. Sometimes the wreck is further forward than it is deep. The weight of my tanks send me down, while my hands carry me forward.

Ah, that makes sense. Thanks.

 

[CHUCK WEBER]

From your story, perhaps the dive boat/DM should have picked an alternate site.

Such conditions can be overwhelming for new divers. You mentioned daughters, are they newly certified too?

Weights on an anchor line? That's an accident waiting to happen in rough seas. Why did they need to have weights on the line? Was there a strong current? If so why did they still div ehte site with new divers?

Anyway, congratulations for surviving the dive, I'd find a more prudent dive boat operation.

 

[lv2dive]

From your story, perhaps the dive boat/DM should have picked an alternate site.

Such conditions can be overwhelming for new divers. You mentioned daughters, are they newly certified too?

Weights on an anchor line? That's an accident waiting to happen in rough seas. Why did they need to have weights on the line? Was there a strong current? If so why did they still div ehte site with new divers?

Anyway, congratulations for surviving the dive, I'd find a more prudent dive boat operation.

NC has strong currents and the standard Carolina rig has weights or coffee cans (with concrete or such) holding down the line under the boat. With as many dives as you have, I'm surprised you are speaking to the prudence of a dive operation without understanding of local dive customs.

 

[lv2dive]

In NC, the dive boat captains *really* want the divers to use the line to pull down to the wrecks, because the currents can really ratchet up quickly and it would be very easy to get blown off the wreck. Memorial Day weekend we had several dives with a very mild current and one of our group descended off the line several times and it made our Captain pretty antsy! The preference is definitely to do ascents/hangs on the line as well, and I'm pretty sure that there was a sharper eye on my buddy and me as we weren't always following that :cool2:

 

[lulubelle]

From your story, perhaps the dive boat/DM should have picked an alternate site.

Such conditions can be overwhelming for new divers. You mentioned daughters, are they newly certified too?

Weights on an anchor line? That's an accident waiting to happen in rough seas. Why did they need to have weights on the line? Was there a strong current? If so why did they still div ehte site with new divers?

Anyway, congratulations for surviving the dive, I'd find a more prudent dive boat operation.

What Kate said.

Here is a picture of the rig we use here for your reference. I'm sure you will agree that it would not be possible to use this rig without these weights. And we all keep a close eye on them so that we don't get bonked on the head when the weights move.

Since when is a dive op responsible for a diver's choices? As in all other dive situations, it is the responsibility of the diver to determine their readiness to dive in a new environment and to learn what they need to learn to do so safely. NC diving is not for everyone, and on snarky days, it can be very challenging for any of us. All of us who dive here have had some lessons learned. The dive site that the OP chose was an appropriate choice, it was an inshore wreck which is used for OW and AOW classes and sits in about 60 feet. The only more conservative dive site would have been back on the beach. I suspect that the bigger challenge was the unfamiliarity with the rig and how to respond to it. But good for her for recognizing what happened, negotiating the situation successfully, and being willing to share her experience with other divers.