What To Do About Reckless Divers?

[Shcubasteve]

On a recent trip to the Hole-in-the-Wall in Jupiter I had the pleasure of diving with some really aggressive and reckless divers. For those who dont know, HITW is a deep dive into a short overhead cave around 130-140FSW and subject to swift currents.- beyond recreational limits for sure

I planned 135 for 30 minutes, deco on 70% and was surprised to hear that three others would dive similar profiles... HP100s with no redundancy and flying computers the whole way.!? It should be said these divers are seasoned veterans with 1000s of dives and posses a bit of seniority on the boat- nevertheless, it concerned me a bit when one showed me 500psi with 10 minutes of hang time to go...:depressed:

As 'experienced divers', they obviously knew what they were getting into so i elected to mind my business

What would YOU do?

 

[Wookie]

I'd mind my own business too. Unless they were on my boat.

 

[Paladin]

I would ignore them and continue my dive the way I'd planned, smiling smugly to myself about my obvious superiority.

 

[gcbryan]

I'd mind my own business and wonder why they were showing me how much air they had left.

Apparently they knew what they were doing if they didn't get bent.

I suppose you could walk up to them and say "Reckless diver, what am I going to do about you?" but I think your approach was better.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

What would YOU do?

I'd do my dive and let them worry about theirs ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[tc]

If you're dealing with an inexperienced diver that doesn't know any better then a bit of advice/education would probably be in order. For divers that are as experienced as those you describe here they are knowingly pushing the limits. Trying to overtly correct their behavior will probably just get you labeled as the scuba police.

Another approach might be just asking them what pressure they're willing to go down to on a dive like that, and why. If they think it's an honest question you'll probably get a straight answer and maybe more importantly make them think about what they're doing. On the other hand if they perceive the question as condescending or sarcastic, well, you can imagine the outcome.

 

[Gen San Chris]

Thats the reason why not all divers live to be a ripe old age!

 

[Ana]

So how come you were so close to them, that you could see how much air and deco they had left?

Just curious. Even if other divers follow same (or close to) plan as I do, there is no reason for me to know their details, much less how much air they have, that would mean I'm too close to them.

 

[scubazachary]

im no expert but i have 75 dives, an advanced cert and i dive HP 119's, and ive been qestioned on why im down at 250psi. im 24 and run 10 miles a week, my sac might as well be 0. not trying to brag but if I/those guys know what their talking about, its their life to risk. I can shoot a fish at 500PSI finish it then head up and still reach the boat at 400 with a safty stop.
i gues bottom line is if i mess up i die not you.

 

[sschlesi]

So how come you were so close to them, that you could see how much air and deco they had left?

Just curious. Even if other divers follow same (or close to) plan as I do, there is no reason for me to know their details, much less how much air they have, that would mean I'm too close to them.

When diving the same site at the same time, I would expect at some points to be close enough that another diver could easily come to me and show me their SPG (particularly while ascending/descending a line). I wouldn't turn away from anyone who is obviously trying to communicate with me, and I would offer assistance if it were needed.