c-card validity and diving addiction!

[1_T_Submariner]

Thanks for posting this, I am in about the same situation. Went to 110' in cold clear water this fall. I was far more comfortable at depth in clear water than at 30' with 10' ft vis. Close attention to time, air supply and depth. I too am going to take the AOW class this fall.

P.S. I don't have a reduced vis. C-card.

 

[Diveral]

I don't believe we even had depth restrictions when I got certified. I hit 98' on my second open water checkout dive. Heck we even learned the decompression tables in my OW class. Started diving when I was 16 and still love it 25 years later. We are going to the outer banks this summer and I am just as excited about this trip as I was the last time I went there 18 years ago.

Don't dive beyond the limits you feel you can handle. Try new things one at a time and if you get in over your head don't panic and think your way out and learn from the experience. I almost got esophageal regulitis the first time I saw an orca swim over me when I was diving in Puget Sound. Same thing happened when I saw my first tiger shark.

Hey Rick those deep quarries get cold :new_puppy in the winter, come on to Diveland Park with us and we'll show you. I dove Puget Sound, BC, and Alaska wet. I was so hot getting to the water I always looked forward to the first dive just to cool off. Now the second dive was a different matter.

AL

 

[DiverBuoy]

In my OW class, the instructor's were very happy with us by the second day. We flew through all of the tasks very quickly and adeptly. It was a good group of students, except for one guy who couldn't do the mask clear. He was failed the first day and was told he'd have to take the class again. Once he was gone, everyone was pretty comfortable and we were on our last dive the second day. Which is kind of a play dive. We hit a wreck where the deck was at 60' and the sand was 80', with instructions to stay at 60'. Then the instructor took a heading off the bow and, we swam for what seemed like 7 or 8 minutes at 60' (the bottom 20' below us) and finally came up on a beautiful wreck. Again, 80' in the sand. Three of us looked at each and knew exactly what to do. We lost the instructor at the aft of the wreck and headed for the prop in 80'. We were probably there for a minute tops. I went back to 60' first and the instructor came around the corner and caught the other two. Thought I was home free till on the surface, when I realized that my rented depth gauge had a red tattle-tale marked at 80'.

The three of us got the finger wag, and then we all laughed about it.
Jason

The lure of the deep ... it never ceases to amaze me the stories of the syrens call to the young at heart, "Come, it's not a dark and scary mysterious and dangerous place. Come enjoy yourself, your eyes are bound to be opened, come learn of the secret shameful place, everyone is denying you, the place no one wants to you see, it's better down here, COME!"

 

[Brandon]

Our LDS has a lot of instructors / divemasters in their shop. I used to get so frustrated by them telling me what I should and shouldn't do... until I realized that I didn't have to listen to them.

(the drysuit / bc buoyancy argument was a particularly fun one as I recall...)

What are PADI Police going to do if you don't follow their rules... take away your birthday?

Forgot to add... I'm so damn addicted it's not even funny. My wife wants to learn when we move somewhere warmer, and I can't wait... she'll finally understand!

-Brandon.

 

[DiverBuoy]

... PADI Police ...
-Brandon.

Eh, heh, he said PADI Police, heh.

 

[Manta Aria]

One of the differences between BOW and AOW divers going deep is in AOW you are given cursory education(academic exposure) on the deep dive scenario. When we dove our deep dive we had 3 dive masters hovering around us, watching us like hawks.
When you went deep ( by accident or design), you didn't mention any supervision of any sort ( dive buddy doesn't count, no " Trust me" dives). Please be safe CoW.

From what I've seen the addiction GGRRROOOOOWWWSSSSS!!!! BWUUUHAHAHAHAH!!!

 

[ghostdiver1957]

Ok. I only have my OW cert, but terrible, rule breaking me hit 77ft on one of my most recent dives, and 69ft on the dive following it. (dives number 13 and 14). Yea yea, i know, bad. i broke the rules. if it makes it any better, i was diving with a much more experienced diver. but truth be told, i am totally comfortable at that depth. most of my dives prior have been 40-60ft, and i have been working on just getting comfortable before taking AOW (which i am actually registered to take in february...already looking through my manual).

Someone takes OW, does no dives, and goes right into AOW. By dive number 9, they have already hit 100ft (for the deep dive) and are now certifed to dive to 100ft, with no dives not involving an instructor.

i am not criticizing here, i promise.

but i'm just wondering. it cant really be *that* bad that i have gone deeper than my alleged 60ft limit, can it? i am totally comfortable down there. i dont even think about my breathing and how weird it is to breathe underwater, because, well, it's just not weird to breathe underwater anymore. it has become an unconscious action for me already. buoyancy control is improving a lot. i can now hold safety stops at the end of a dive. i can descend without hitting the bottom now. i've been dropping weight. so basically, im becoming very comfortable under the water and totally relax as soon as i begin to descend. poof! stress goes away. still have TONS of work to do however, and always will. i am by no means a good diver. definitely still new, and it is an obvious fact.

but i guess it just kinda makes me question the validity of the c-cards. i mean, i dive in a dry suit, and dont have the drysuit c-card. i have dove deeper than my 60ft limit without the c-card and felt totally comfortable. definitely cautious, but comfortable nonetheless. and im still alive and doing just fine.

now the other thing i wanted to ask...does diving addiction EVER go away? i mean seriously. i get the jitters if i dont get at least one dive a week in. i get even worse if i go 2 weeks without a dive. it's like withdrawl or something. "must. go. diving." has quickly become my new mantra. so, to all the experienced divers out there...does the excitement ever fade, or will i just have to suffer withdrawl from diving for the rest of my life if i miss a week???

ok now i really want to go diving.

If you're Open Water Certified... your limit is 130 feet. The 60 foot nonsense they teach you is just so they can sell you advanced classes... Everything you learned in class will let you dive to 130 feet. Do you understand the tables? Do you understand the computer (if you bought one?) If the answers to these questions are yes... go dive and don't worry about going over 60... just don't go beyond 130 without some specialized training... Heck, what am I saying... I've been to 150... and I'm here to tell you about it... Diving is about learning as you go... and classes are not where you'll learn most things. You'll learn them from other divers and by going diving... Stop throwing money away in classes and start getting wet!

 

[Hawaii Scuba Divers]

OK 1st the Diver is yes responsible for thier Actions and there is NO LAW that states you must be certified to Dive..We in the Dive buisness just will not rent you gear fill your tanks or let you Dive with US untill you recieve TRAINING...
TRAINING is SAFETY so GET IT....
Aloha Mark..

 

[Brandon]

If you're Open Water Certified... your limit is 130 feet. The 60 foot nonsense they teach you is just so they can sell you advanced classes... Everything you learned in class will let you dive to 130 feet. Do you understand the tables? Do you understand the computer (if you bought one?) If the answers to these questions are yes... go dive and don't worry about going over 60... just don't go beyond 130 without some specialized training... Heck, what am I saying... I've been to 150... and I'm here to tell you about it... Diving is about learning as you go... and classes are not where you'll learn most things. You'll learn them from other divers and by going diving... Stop throwing money away in classes and start getting wet!

Yep, stop wasting money on classes!

It's been debated on the board before... but most agreed that Open Water, Advanced Open Water, Nitrox and Rescue were about as many classes as you'd ever need for recreational diving.

The rest is fluff. Didn't I once hear that the PADI CEO receives $1 for each c-card issued? No wonder there's so many classes...

New PADI Specialities coming Spring 2006!

PADI Wetsuit Diver
PADI Underwater Basketweaving
PADI West Coast Diver
PADI East Coast Diver
PADI Tropical Diver
PADI Gulf Coast Diver
PADI Shore Diver
PADI Pool Diver
PADI Snorkeling Equipment Speciality
Peak Performance Finning

and Much, Much more!​

-Brandon.

 

[Sideband]

We hit a wreck where the deck was at 60' and the sand was 80', with instructions to stay at 60'. .... We lost the instructor at the aft of the wreck and headed for the prop in 80'. ....The three of us got the finger wag, and then we all laughed about it.
Jason

I know an instructor or two that would have failed you for the class. Those were specific instructions and you didn't dive the plan. If it would have been me that you ditched I'd have you out of the water and looking for someone else to supervise any future dives because I wouldn't dive with you any more. May sound hardassed but until you are diving on your own you are the legal responsibility of me and the instructor. You can be dumb on your time but not mine.

Joe