Give up my primary regulator???

[KenGordon]

Most recreational instructors are still teaching primary in the mouth, with AAS clipped off on your chest. Personally, I would like to see novices taught primary donate at the beginning though; it works well, and in the event of them being paired up with a buddy with extra cylinders and regs, they know which one to take.

"they know which one to take."

Are you suggesting teaching a novice to TAKE a primary?

"in the event of them being paired up with a buddy with extra cylinders and regs"

When would this happen with a novice?

 

[Storker]

Personally, I would like to see novices taught primary donate at the beginning though; it works well, and in the event of them being paired up with a buddy with extra cylinders and regs, they know which one to take.

IME donating from a hog loop doesn't go very well with wearing a snorkel.

And no, I'm not trying to start another snorkel thread. Some folks like to wear a snorkel on their mask strap, others don't. That's not the issue, the point is that a new(er) diver considering a hog looped LH/BO setup should be aware of the issue to make an informed decision.

 

[AJ]

Imo new divers should be trained in a consistent manner. It really does not matter if they are trained with snorkel+Octopus or DIR style, as long as their setup and skills are consistent and comply to the system used.

I have been trained DIR style from the beginning, meaning: no snorkel, donating long hosed primary with secondary under my chin, no use of hands for positioning, all skills in horizontal floating position, no touch of bottom anytime, no droppable weight, no fin pivoting and W/BP from the start. I even never did the buddha or diving with snorkel on.

No problem until I would have to adjust to the other system. That could pose a problem. The whole point is: use what you want and train with what you use. Don't mess with your system because that will get you in trouble easy.

 

[bowlofpetunias]

When I bought my occy the guy at the shop was surprised because I insisted it had to be identical to my primary other than a bit of yellow on it. I figure if we are in an emergency situation both of us will want the best breathing equipment possible. I don't much care if they take my primary or occy. My Occy is bungied in such a way that I can get it into my mouth and breath it without needing my hands. I can then adjust how light it breathes.

I have a longer hose on my primary because I suspect that if I ever have to share air... it will not be one of my regular buddies. I am fortunate in the buddies I dive with but the flailing arms and fins of siltfish can come virtually out of nowhere. We do a lot of shore dives at places where classes are taught and siltfish abound. They have not done a gear check with me so I am prepared for them to go for the bubbling Reg in my mouth. It doesn't matter which reg they take I know exactly where my next breath is coming from!

Trying to insist a panicking diver take my occy when he is focused on getting my primary seems like a risky business likely to get us both hurt.

 

[RainPilot]

siltfish abound

Siltfish, brilliant. I am totally stealing that.

 

[doctormike]

Don't mess with your system because that will get you in trouble easy.

Isn't that the whole point of this and most of the threads on ScubaBoard? "Messing with your system", otherwise known as learning and changing?

 

[chrisch]

...
Trying to insist a panicking diver take my occy when he is focused on getting my primary seems like a risky business likely to get us both hurt.

Agreed. Our responsibility to our buddy is to get gas to them quickly. If that person does what you expect and what they were trained to do then great. If not you need to adapt quickly. In an ideal world they will patiently await the correct regulator that you donate to them. Life is not always ideal.

 

[AJ]

Isn't that the whole point of this and most of the threads on ScubaBoard? "Messing with your system", otherwise known as learning and changing?

Ah, yes. But when changing is followed by learning and later on understanding the (dis)advantages of choices made, there's nothing wrong with that. Learning means imo: challenging your convictions, but on good grounds. Not by assumptions without a solid ground, that can get dangerous.

In this case combining different systems without grasping the basics of these systems can get you in trouble.

 

[doctormike]

Ah, yes. But when changing is followed by learning and later on understanding the (dis)advantages of choices made, there's nothing wrong with that. Learning means imo: challenging your convictions, but on good grounds. Not by assumptions without a solid ground, that can get dangerous.

In this case combining different systems without grasping the basics of these systems can get you in trouble.

OK, didn't get any of that from your post that I responded to. You just said "Don't mess with your system because that will get you in trouble easy". But yes, I agree, you shouldn't just randomly change things without thinking, learning, understanding, etc...

 

[Bob DBF]

Personally, I would like to see novices taught primary donate at the beginning though...

Around here it is done a lot due to the popularity of Air2 devices and their clones.

Once a diver has some experience, switching regs on their own kit, or others, should be easy. Changing an ingrained procedure may take a while, but switching to a different reg than expected should only be slower, an inconvenience not impossible.

The issue would be with new and/or inexperienced divers with different training that do not discuss OOA procedure before diving together and actually have an incident. Unfortunately, I don't see OW classes being lengthened to address this.


Bob