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True. Mine is on a Deep 6 first stage that is tuned to the XStream IP.

LP50 are great for beach entry (or boat). I like my xdeep stealth tec, deep 6 and XStream. I dive Monterey (though not in a while).

An XStream is great for the under chin reg as it doesn't get in the way of even a different model with a large exhale housing. It makes looking down and around your body, while on either reg, very easy, without the under chin reg bumping against the in-mouth reg. Not a PNW unique issue, but a...

Opps. Skis + poles like 14 lb... (Skis 7 to 8 lb. Bindings 5 lb. Poles 1 lb.) Still, you can look cool, stylish and unencumbered carrying ski gear. Doing that wearing scuba gear, is only for the very few or really short distances.

Post ski: - Put skis in outside rack, get hot chocolate and a burger at cafe at bottom of slope or on the slope. - Carry three pound (?) skis over shoulder, stop at a shop or two in the village on the way, load it in car, drive to hotel/house. Post dive: - Board pitching dive boat with 100+...

Every new diver using a rebreather is unrealistic and unneeded. It complicates training and the maintenance is harder. But for an experienced diver it has benefits with some tradeoffs, if you don't like them, stick with OC.

It seems like you're being deliberately obtuse here. Redundancy, just like its a good idea in OC beyond the simplest dives.

Your study, gear, compressor and shore or boat, no one else is involved or cares, aside from friends, rescue teams and health care. If your friends can't teach you, you likely need to hire someone. But if you die they might be sued, so they formed a team, agreed on common (written...) standards...

CCR refill logistics is simpler (given an O2 capable shop) Five hours of dive time is a lot of OC tanks; even shallow it's three tanks. Vs. one or two small bottles. I'm still OC, but the logistics are an appealing aspect on top of the no bubbles and warmer.

The skiing analogy seems stretched to me. A ski resort has: - Ski patrol covering the slopes - Likely a more advanced med team at the base, connected to roads. - Air at all locations (ETA: I meant breathable gas, not water, but life-flight with ground to land on is a difference as well)...

I'm not trying to aid retention of bad instructors, I'm trying to solve a crisis driving out good instructors.

Traveling student evaluators or undercover students would be outrageously expensive. The near impossibility and enormous cost of creating a video for a not-yet-to-standard student is part of the point. A five minute video would likely take the instructor or DM a total of 8 minutes for a...

John, you're clearly an expert an educational theory. Yet an issue as applied to scuba seems to be the re-calibration you mention. For the SAT, AP, etc, evaluation is done fairly centrally and based on a piece of paper. This mean gold-standard graded reference-essays can be inserted into the...

I often swim out and back along a break wall or kelp edge. - On my side with the down arm extended forward of my head is the most aware posture. - When tired, on my back, though often with hips a bit turned so kicks are closer to side to side not up/down. - Sometimes belly down and rolling to...

Definitely learn to service the second stages. They are rather easy. An old and simple SP 109 or 156 would show you the basics. Most more modern second stages are based on that design, but the 156 still does well against them. The first stages are a good bit more involved.

Where are you going and how big is your luggage? Is it all to one place or are you flying every week? - Tiny village and a backpack: one reg and pray. - Tiny village and a small bag: extra first and second stage, they're not that big... - Tiny village and a few checked bags: two complete sets...

Cavern and Self-Reliant might put you in the boat's "might have their stuff together and get more latitude" category. (And Solo, Tech-40 and Fundies, though those are classes not specialties.) Interestingly, I find Self-Reliant in Padi's specialty lists, but not in their diagram of courses.

I was mourning your loss and glad I got a plate. Then I remembered the date. :)

So if we took a car enthusiist and gave them springs but no dampening, loose steering, flaky throttle, all the weight on the right front, and seat and steering wheel canted 30 degrees toward the center of the car, then they would do just as well on fun winding roads or traffic? We should tell...

To me, moving the lead is the first way to fix a mass vs volume center imbalance. Good resting frog pose (knees at 90) lets you fine tune it, but may not get you there by itself. And why not make the neutral balance point be at that 90 pose, instead of some over tucked or extended pose. (Not...