How to be a better diver ?

[Searcaigh]

As others have mentioned above, make friends with other divers, perhaps join a dive club if one exists in your area, try and find a regular buddy, preferably one with more experience than you, someone you can learn from.

Look at what other divers do, and mentally critique them, are they doing what you were taught or doing something different.

Don't be shy to ask questions.

I'm sure by now you've realized that there are some people you don't want to dive with.

And remember what Scottie said to Captain Kirk once, "Ye cannae break the laws of physics"

 

[Nasser]

Overweighting and poor trim and streamlining of equipment is something I see with inexperienced divers that can become a bad habit if not addressed. It can make a big difference when you've got all that dialed in and you'll find you move more freely in the water and have better air consumption by eliminating drag and the need to over inflate your BC.

I also highly recommend taking the Rescue Diver course. It's an excellent way to build your situational awareness with yourself and with what's around you, develop a stronger ability to deal with mishaps, and to spot potential hazards before things spiral out of control. It's a great course and will test your physical and mental stamina. The more you know... the more you know what can go wrong... and this will help keep your overconfidence in check.

 

[drainaps]

All of the above and +1 for the Rescue Course. It really made me aware of how sh@t can hit the fan and what to do about it. I'm sending both my kids (16&18) to take the course in 3 weeks.

Now I'm starting Tec and the whole safety and redundancy approach to it also makes you aware of how fragile you're down there. Having a good instructor indeed helps, and I have a good instructor.

 

[Divingblueberry]

Thank you all for your comments. Your input will certainly help me focusing on aspects I wouldn't have thought of.

I was planning to take the intro to tech course in a month or so, but never consider taking the Rescue Course. That may be a good option. Maybe it is more relevant to do Rescue before ITT... ?

Thanks again

 

[Esprise Me]

You've got more dives than I do; I clicked on this thread for the advice others are giving. But I will echo chillyincanada's suggestion of the book Diver Down and also point out that you can read many more columns like those in the book here: Lessons For Life

ETA: DAN's website also has some useful cautionary tales: Divers Alert Network, Diving Incidents

 

[yle]

Thank you all for your comments. Your input will certainly help me focusing on aspects I wouldn't have thought of.

I was planning to take the intro to tech course in a month or so, but never consider taking the Rescue Course. That may be a good option. Maybe it is more relevant to do Rescue before ITT... ?

Thanks again

The Rescue course is definitely worthwhile. It will change your perspective on diving, and give you a broader foundation on which to build your diving experience. Advice in favor of taking the Rescue course is about as close to unanimous as anything you'll find in diving.

Oh, and it's a lot of fun too. I recommend doing it with a class of 5 to 8 students, as there is a lot of interaction in the scenarios.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Rescue is the first class I want my students to take after Open Water. Or at a minimum my rescue skills workshop that is basically the rescue class with a lot of emphasis on prevention and responding as a team rather than as an individual.
Rescue should be done before AOW and depending on the Intro to Tech class you are taking, certainly before it. My ITT class is 6 dives and includes classroom and pool sessions. Rescue helps to identify those portions of ITT that you may want to pay special attention to before you even get in the water. For many people ITT is the first time they'll experience doubles, carrying a stage, sidemount, etc. Rescue will help to identify those areas where the additional gear may require you to adjust your expectations and do a self-evaluation.
Are you ready for the additional weight of doubles, the extra task loading, the extra gear? Do you really trust your buddies and your ability to assist each other?
Rescue skills used to be in every OW class. They got dropped in order to increase output and profits by some agencies. Other agencies and instructors still include them in the open water class.

 

[Esprise Me]

I take it you're not with PADI? I thought they required at least part of AOW before Rescue.

 

[The Chairman]

Biggest mistake? Forgetting this is all supposed to be fun.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I take it you're not with PADI? I thought they required at least part of AOW before Rescue.

No. Not PADI. SDI/TDI and they have a dive requirement or Advanced Adventure portion before rescue. Which is why I offer non cert workshops. I see no good justification for preventing a diver from getting more information and training to be safe and assist others.