Building on OW cert

[CLoP]

Start diving right away. I waited a little over a month after my OW and had a "holy sh*t there's no instructor in this dive" moment. I reckon the feeling of uneasiness will get more severe the longer you wait. That dive was with a random online buddy though so maybe that was a contributing factor. There's a pretty active dive shop club (Pacific Wilderness) that meets at Redondo Beach Veteran's Park almost every weekend. Might be a good place to get started since you'll be diving with a group with maybe a few instructors.

 

[CLoP]

Any specific questions I should ask if I go in to feel them out?

I would love to just go diving with one of the instructors to get a sense of their style, but it's hard for me to wrap my head around just asking a stranger to do what they do for a living for my benefit in exchange for lunch. Is this really a common thing in diving? What would be a fair price for what is essentially a private lesson?

Go in and start talking diving and see how they respond. Some shops will try to sell right away. Some will just plain talk to you as a person/diver and build a relationship. Personally those are the shops I like to associate with.

Try going on dive boats too. There will probably be a couple of instructors in board you can talk to. Get a feel for their personality and see how they interact with their students then get their card/info if they seem cool. That's how I met my AOW, deep, and nitrox instructor. I also sometimes see some allow tag-alongs so that's pretty much like diving with them except it's not one on one.

 

[60plus]

My first two dives after OW were to 22m and 32m off a boat (my first boat dives). I was not under instruction but the guide was an instructor and although we had to separate at the start and end of the dives he was effectively my buddy for most of the dive / bottom time. It depends on how comfortable / confident you are under water. If you are nervous or concerned about aspects of your diving I would say stay shallower and practice. If you are happy do AOW or deep diver training ASAP. I did my deep diver training (40m) after the minimum number of logged dives required in 2 days / 4 dives with just me and the instructor in quite challenging diving conditions. I do not regret it at all.

 

[TMHeimer]

Start diving right away. I waited a little over a month after my OW and had a "holy sh*t there's no instructor in this dive" moment. I reckon the feeling of uneasiness will get more severe the longer you wait. That dive was with a random online buddy though so maybe that was a contributing factor. There's a pretty active dive shop club (Pacific Wilderness) that meets at Redondo Beach Veteran's Park almost every weekend. Might be a good place to get started since you'll be diving with a group with maybe a few instructors.

Agree. I think one's general comfort in water would affect people differently if you wait a while between the OW course and your first dive with no instructor. My wait was about 2 months, due to winter weather & logistics. It went OK, other than the tank that slipped.
Reviewing manual/materials when you are unable to dive for a while is worthwhile--at least you can go over stuff mentally.

 

[PullYourselfTogetherMan]

@Esprise Me I got my OW cert in September. I have 13 dives as of right now. I signed up for the April 22nd GUE Fundamentals class and can't wait for it. Maybe you'd be interested in going down the same route?

 

[Esprise Me]

If I were to take one or two of the specialties that count toward AOW (night diver, peak performance bouyancy, etc.) while I'm in Mexico, would those count toward AOW certification with a local dive shop this summer? I might find them worth doing regardless; just wondering.

 

[JackD342]

Regarding PADI AOW, yes. As long as they are PADI Specialties that you take.

 

[60plus]

I wonder to what extent certification is needed or actually a requirement. I do not have a wreck diving cert but have been in wrecks, I know how to use a pony and a line and what precautions to take but I have no cert. I probably could have had a cert if I paid the fee. Next month I intend to do some night diving (Puerto Del Carmen for 10 days). I don't need a cert. The dive outfit only wants to see me dive competently in daylight beforehand. So far I have only done one night dive. In May I hope to do some deep cave diving, 30m plus. Again the dive outfit do not require a cave diving cert, just AOW or equivalent and a 30m plus dive in open water with their instructor beforehand.

 

[Esprise Me]

You might be right, in which case I'd only have to worry about getting credit for, say, a night diver specialty if I wanted to get my AOW cert for the least amount of time/money, not if I just wanted to go on night dives. (Like you I have seen dive trips that require AOW or equivalent). I've seen more than 3 eligible specialties I'd be interested in, so fulfilling that probably won't be an issue.

 

[TMHeimer]

On some of the Certs. I certainly agree. And of course you can learn wreck penetration and maybe even cave diving from someone who is an expert. From all that I've read on SB over the years I personally wouldn't enter a cave without official instructor training and getting the Cert. I have PADI's basic wreck cert. and learned how to use the line, reel, other stuff, etc. Most advise against penetration with only that introductory course. I have not entered a wreck since. Might consider going in 5-10' with my training, if I had incentive to do so.