Instructor for SDI Solo Diver

[BAMA6977]

Any recommendations for GOOD instructor for the course. On the web site just says click to find SDI dive shop. Not looking for easy course just good instructor. Florida or Alabama. Thanks

 

[Kevrumbo]

Rob McGann, up in Florida Cave country:Dive With Rob (aka Florida Cave Diving)

 

[Nemrod]

Might check with Jupiter Dive Center.

N

 

[NCBusguy]

If you come up to the upstate of SC, Bill Routh of Lake Jocassee Dive Shop teaches SDI/TDI courses including Solo. Bill is the best Technical Dive Instructor that I know of!

 

[Crass3000]

Personally I would just buy the manual for the course, read it through, and become comfortable with everything in the book. There really isn't A LOT to the course but what there is you should know well. Once you are comfortable with everything you can just get then find your instructor. It's another course where the instructor can make or break the course depending on if they make you do everything but most of the things you need to be able to do are pretty straight forward as far as if you know how to do them or not.

The class will basically make sure you have a redundant air source, have and are always ready to deploy an SMB, and make sure you know how to plan a dive given the gas you have in a conservative way. It will also teach you how to know if you don't have enough gas for what you want to do. Basically the class will teach you to think a little more about diving solo and ensuring you actually plan your dive and dive your plan.

 

[CptTightPants21]

Personally I would just buy the manual for the course, read it through, and become comfortable with everything in the book. There really isn't A LOT to the course but what there is you should know well. Once you are comfortable with everything you can just get then find your instructor. It's another course where the instructor can make or break the course depending on if they make you do everything but most of the things you need to be able to do are pretty straight forward as far as if you know how to do them or not.

The class will basically make sure you have a redundant air source, have and are always ready to deploy an SMB, and make sure you know how to plan a dive given the gas you have in a conservative way. It will also teach you how to know if you don't have enough gas for what you want to do. Basically the class will teach you to think a little more about diving solo and ensuring you actually plan your dive and dive your plan.

This is essentially the very "basic" aka sub-par version of the class. A good version of this class would almost be like an intro to tech class with extra harassment.

It has been discussed before on these boards, but a good solo course where you might actually learn something is something like 3-6 dives, with multiple failure scenarios, valve drills, getting mask kicked off, deploying pony bottle, shooting lift bag in trim within 3-5 ft window, SAC rate calculations, backup gear selections, etc.

I am not saying the basic course is "bad", but with a little searching you can find a tech instructor who gives a solo course that is much more in depth and valuable either as a learning experience or as verification that you are competent enough can fix a lot of issues.

If you just want the card, there are plenty of instructors who are basically pay. do some dives. get card. bye..

 

[Kharon]

... Not looking for easy course just good instructor. ...

Aren't these mutually exclusive?

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Make a drive north and I can recommend an instructor who will go a little farther than the book. I actually have a student for the class coming to meet me at Gilboa in August for the class. Guarantee it'll be more than what's in the book. The instructor should adjust for local conditions and diver ability as well. While you don't want to harass anyone the student should be pushed to new limits. Remembering that if they do decide to dive solo they need to have the right mindset. The book can't see a divers eyes when you bring up certain scenarios and the suggested courses of action that will work in one place may get someone hurt or killed in another.
It's also not a card I sell. It's one that's earned. There's no guarantee I'll issue the card just because you paid for the course. Steve Lewis is my friend, mentor, and Instructor Trainer. I know he teaches it this way and being that he wrote the course I choose to follow his lead on it.
I have turned down one student to even take the class. I felt it was in his best interests. He has all the skills now and is one of my tech students. I just did not feel for various reasons that a solo cert card that would allow him to dive solo in some places was in his best interests. He and his wife agreed after speaking to both of them.

 

[Crass3000]

.
If you just want the card, there are plenty of instructors who are basically pay. do some dives. get card. bye..

Ironically around here I found that it took quite a while for the few places that offer the card to warm up to you and actually dive with you a few times so they know how you dive. With all the requirements met most places around here seem to act like they might offer the class at some later time but in reality they don't want to be the one to give you the card and then have something happen to you. There seems to be quite a bit of responsibility felt by the instructor. They really don't seem to offer the card up as a class very often if at all. Most of the time the classes are given they are behind the scenes and only to people the instructors have dove with it seems.

 

[Steve_C]

The class will basically make sure you have a redundant air source, have and are always ready to deploy an SMB, and make sure you know how to plan a dive given the gas you have in a conservative way. It will also teach you how to know if you don't have enough gas for what you want to do. Basically the class will teach you to think a little more about diving solo and ensuring you actually plan your dive and dive your plan.

And a solo dive should not be a pinnacle dive (ie should be within your experience) and some other things.

I read the book. It was the instructor that made me think.