Brand new OW diver - PADI or GUE to progress?

[taimen]

I've thought for a long time that people become technical divers when they get bored after hundreds of reef bimbles, but after getting in contact with local GUE divers and meeting others on boat trips, now I think many decide for the black art right after OWD and this is a fast growing segment.

Well, it is nice if you have a reef nearby. If your closest reef is thousands of miles away and local diving is mostly technical or something I would call borderline technical (demanding compared to a tropical reef bimble) it is a reasonable approach to start learning technical skills early on.
There is something strange with GUE. Instructors and courses are good without exception.
But for some reason they leave a trace of divers who keep bragging how much better divers they are compared to everybody else. And they do this right after passing fundies with a low dive count. Not all, but some. I don't see this pattern with any other agency.

The sad part is when my GUE buddies miss dives because they can't dive the plan that the rest of the team has decided to use - like gases that are not Standard Gases, or GF 40/80 or whatever.

This is so true. And I also see T1 and even T2 trained GUE divers who haven't done any tech dives during this season so far because they have not been able to fix a dive with acceptable buddies, plan and conditions. GUE actually emphasizes that you must actively dive on your level to keep your certification.

 

[AJ]

This is so true. And I also see T1 and even T2 trained GUE divers who haven't done any tech dives during this season so far because they have not been able to fix a dive with acceptable buddies, plan and conditions. GUE actually emphasizes that you must actively dive on your level to keep your certification.

This sounds weird to me. But hey, maybe I'am not a real GUE diver

I adapt to the teams needs and wishes, every team. I dive with PADI, SSI, IANTD and probably some other agencies and do not care the least as long as we dive safe. I even dive solo and sidemount (not certified btw ) once in a while. However, when I'am diving with GUE buddies I stick to the GUE standards. Only those dives I call "GUE dives", but I take my GUE skills and rig with me every time because they make me feel comfortably. Those other dives are just "dives" and their are as much fun as the GUE dives I do.

GUE offers me a kind of training that suits me. To me it's not a religion, just an other way of diving.

 

[taimen]

GUE offers me a kind of training that suits me. To me it's not a religion, just an other way of diving.

I 100% agree with you. But there is a bunch of people who do not want to dive (tech) with other than GUE buddies. And that is somewhat sad if the local community is not strong enough and people end up skipping too many dives to actually dive on their training level.

 

[AJ]

That is sad. GUE tought me to be aware at all times and situations and to be able to do all kind of stuff while diving. Diving has become a second nature to me, just like driving a car. That's what I like about GUE. It makes you a very competent diver if you see it as a mean to an end, not as a goal by itself. Imho one do not grasp the goal of GUE training if one claims one can dive with other GUE divers in a GUE fashion.

I would encourage everyone to take Fundies. It makes you a better diver because it challenges every diver, no matter how experienced, to become a better diver. I you don't want to proceed with GUE, that's fine. We can still dive together, we will find a way that suits all of us and still is safe.

 

[leadduck]

There is something strange with GUE. Instructors and courses are good without exception.
But for some reason they leave a trace of divers who keep bragging how much better divers they are compared to everybody else. And they do this right after passing fundies with a low dive count. Not all, but some. I don't see this pattern with any other agency.

My (few) GUE buddies are still humble. I guess some insecure persons are prone to collective narcissism and join GUE because they are desperate to brag about being a member of an elite, and that's what you see then in the internet, but most GUE divers I know in real life don't see it this way, have IANTD/TDI/... buddies that they consider peers or superior by experience level and actual dives done.

 

[Dogbowl]

I was told by a higher level GUE diver that they have to dive at their level to maintain skills/satisfy dive requirements but they have a hard time doing so because there just aren’t that many GUE divers at that level locally.

 

[stuartv]

There are what you describe as "GUE buddies" and then there are people with GUE tech training whom I'd bet would be more flexible in the right circumstances. They're out there.

Oh, I know. I have a GUE-trained buddy, too. She is awesome! I was just commenting on my GUE buddies who I think really qualify as GUE "divers", not just GUE trained.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I was told by a higher level GUE diver that they have to dive at their level to maintain skills/satisfy dive requirements but they have a hard time doing so because there just aren’t that many GUE divers at that level locally.

I suppose one's budget for diving, especially advanced tech diving, needs to include not just the training but also travel.

If I recall, GUE requires 25 dives over a 3-year period at one's highest level of certification to maintain the cert. I realize tech dives are somewhat bigger undertakings than reef bimbles, but still, 25 dives over three years is about the minimum ANY diver should be doing to keep their skills up.

 

[stuartv]

I suppose one's budget for diving, especially advanced tech diving, needs to include not just the training but also travel.

If I recall, GUE requires 25 dives over a 3-year period at one's highest level of certification to maintain the cert. I realize tech dives are somewhat bigger undertakings than reef bimbles, but still, 25 dives over three years is about the minimum ANY diver should be doing to keep their skills up.

If you're certified for hypoxic trimix (GUE Tech 2?, TDI Adv Trimix, etc.), I think managing 8 dives per year - at that level - could be challenging. Especially if you are an ocean diver, not a cave diver. The guys I personally know around here that do those >200 foot dives get blown out half the time (or more) and it seems like they probably mostly don't get in more than 2 - 4 dives a year that are that deep. And that's part of the point, isn't it? "at your highest level of certification" So, doing a bunch of dives in the <200' range doesn't really fill that bill, does it?

 

[Lorenzoid]

If you're certified for hypoxic trimix (GUE Tech 2?, TDI Adv Trimix, etc.), I think managing 8 dives per year - at that level - could be challenging. Especially if you are an ocean diver, not a cave diver. The guys I personally know around here that do those >200 foot dives get blown out half the time (or more) and it seems like they probably mostly don't get in more than 2 - 4 dives a year that are that deep. And that's part of the point, isn't it? "at your highest level of certification" So, doing a bunch of dives in the <200' range doesn't really fill that bill, does it?

As I admitted, "I realize tech dives are somewhat bigger undertakings." Nevertheless, if one can't manage 25 dives over three years at their highest level of certification, did they bite off more than they can chew with that last cert? It seems to me that one should pursue the next cert level because they feel their current level is holding them back--keeping them from doing the kinds of dives they want to do (and have the time and money to do, not to mention the dive environment conducive to doing them).

Let me preface my thoughts by admitting I have no actual experience with maintaining a tech-level GUE cert, so take these thoughts for what they're worth. But my thinking is that if one has difficulty doing, say, 8 Tech 2-level dives a year, then maybe Tech 2 doesn't truly fit that diver's life? The goal, I presume, is to discourage dabbling in dives that push one's current limits. Maybe diving hypoxic trimix in the Atlantic just a few times a year is not the safest idea? If you're a Florida diver doing caves, or a European going to Croatia, maybe Tech 2 makes more sense for your situation?