Am I evil?

[SWAMPY459]

OK, so Saturday I went to an event sponsered by my LDS. My boyfriend and I usually dive together but he had to work. I did three dives saturday and here's what transpired...

First dive, a friend (he's an instructor) dove with me. Good dive.

Second dive, the friend had to leave. A newly certified college aged kid asked if he could dive with me. I said ok... turned out this kid had NO clue how to dive. I have no clue how he got a c card or if he did. His arms were flailing, his fins were working the bottom like a roto tiller, and after the dive he even asked me "did you put some air into your bc while you were under water?" ... I had to explain that you add air as you go deeper. He had no clue what neutral buoyancy was.

I'm a fairly new diver, I got certified about six months ago and have about 40 dives. I'm AOW, I guess I've been lucky that my roommate is well on his way to divemaster, and has taught me good trim and some good diving habits.

Anyway, after the second dive we stopped for lunch and the kid asked me a bunch of other questions that made me wonder if he'd even taken a class...

Third dive I suited up, he asked if he could dive with me again, I said ok, meet me down at the water.

I waited there about 20 minutes and he didn't show up. I figured he went off to the other spring with some of the other divers.

I'm sitting there wondering where this jack-rabbit went off to.... I look at my pony bottle and think, hmmm I have a redundant supply if something happens... the thought crossed my mind, and even though I know it was naughty... I just quietly slipped into the water for my first solo dive.

Now let me say that given the choice I'd much rather dive with my boyfriend than solo, but that particular solo dive was awesome.

I went to the bottom and took out a 150ft finger spool. I practiced running a line, and practiced following it with my eyes closed twice, then rolled it back up. (I'm taking cavern next month and I thought it would be worthy to practice some skills in advance)

I had an awesome dive and the fact that I was alone never bothered me a bit.

On the way out I saw the kid with the padi silting and arm flailing specialty entering the water with another diver and was so grateful it was not me he was with.

I'm supposed to feel guilty about this... I broke the rules... I did something wrong.. but I don't regret it. at all. I loved that dive. I want to do it again. I don't feel bad for doing it, I feel bad for not feeling bad about it...


Am I pure evil?

 

[cb5150]

If you are...then I are, LOL.

I did take a class though and got a fancy card proclaiming me "Self-Reliant." Since then, Wilson (my pony bottle) has become one of my best dive buddies.

Just wait, I'm sure someone is gonna flame you. You shoulda posted that you solo dived (dove?) in a cave....with split fins.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I don't think you're evil ... I do think that if you're going to enjoy solo diving you should get some education on how to be prepared for dealing with issues by yourself. That doesn't necessarily have to be a class, but there's a bit more to it than just the pony bottle.

This might be a good start ... NWGratefulDiver.com

Solo diving's wonderful in a lot of ways, but as with any other type of diving it helps to have really thought through what problems you might encounter, and how you'd deal with them, before getting in the water by yourself ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[SWAMPY459]

You shoulda posted that you solo dived (dove?) in a cave....with split fins.

Nah, didn't want to push my luck. Just went in the cavern to the sign and back a couple of times. Did it with my eyes closed tight to simulate a silt out.

---------- Post added April 1st, 2013 at 03:06 PM ----------

I don't think you're evil ... I do think that if you're going to enjoy solo diving you should get some education on how to be prepared for dealing with issues by yourself. That doesn't necessarily have to be a class, but there's a bit more to it than just the pony bottle.

This might be a good start ... NWGratefulDiver.com

Solo diving's wonderful in a lot of ways, but as with any other type of diving it helps to have really thought through what problems you might encounter, and how you'd deal with them, before getting in the water by yourself ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Can you elaborate on what I should prepare for other than equipment failure / out of air?

by the way, I think I read an article by you the other day. "Uh oh I'm in deco" or something close to that title. It was very good. Thanks for posting that online. (If that was you)

 

[redacted]

Seems to me that you were probably safer on the 3rd dive than on the 2nd.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Can you elaborate on what I should prepare for other than equipment failure / out of air?

by the way, I think I read an article by you the other day. "Uh oh I'm in deco" or something close to that title. It was very good. Thanks for posting that online. (If that was you)

Thanks ... yes, that article is also on my website, as are a few others you might enjoy.

Preparations for solo diving include making sure you're mentally prepared to deal with problems calmly ... because you're all you've got to get yourself back to the surface safely.

What would you do if you suddenly got caught in a current that's trying to pull you away from the site? How would you deal with an entanglement ... particularly one that requires you to remove your rig in order to free yourself? Are your weights distributed in such a way that removing your rig won't try to separate your positively buoyant body from your negatively buoyant rig? Solo is a great time to NOT use a weight-integrated BCD for specifically that reason. Or, if you do, to be very practiced at removing and replacing it while keeping your body positioned underneath it.

Solo diving's a good time to reduce your tolerance for risk ... or things going wrong ... because those can have a tendency to cascade on a bad day, and you have fewer resources for dealing with it. Knowing when to call a dive ... or even just shorten the profile ... is a key skill for keeping yourself out of trouble.

Probably the most important skill for the solo diver is awareness ... having developed the knack for looking around, making sure you're comfortable with your surroundings and the circumstances of the dive, and making good decisions based on how you feel and how the dive is going. Don't rely on your pony bottle to get you out of trouble ... it's there purely for emergencies, and it won't always be able to help you anyway. Rely instead on your awareness and judgement to keep you from putting yourself into a situation where you'll need to use it. Think about "what if's" ahead of time, and develop a plan for dealing with them before you get in the water. That way you're being proactive rather than reactive, and if you should have to deal with a problem you'll know what to do and have what you need to handle it ... because you planned for it ahead of time.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[kotik]

No flames, but... I have to say that from your previous posts, I have been working from the unconscious assumption that you were a guy. Not that having a boyfriend precludes that, and not that it's any of my business, but I have to say I am curious now if you care to tell us your gender.

 

[SWAMPY459]

No flames, but... I have to say that from your previous posts, I have been working from the unconscious assumption that you were a guy. Not that having a boyfriend precludes that, and not that it's any of my business, but I have to say I am curious now if you care to tell us your gender.

Yes I'm a guy, and so is my boyfriend

 

[kotik]

Ok. Now back to your thread--

 

[CT-Rich]

Yes I'm a guy, and so is my boyfriend

ROTFLAMO!!!! Geeze, and you were worried about damnation for doing a solo dive?