DIR wars...Is it the name?

[novadiver]

Just go to northern Florida and look around. It ain't pretty. And yes, I am being serious. You will find some of the worst divers. Divers who have gone through some very quick and incomplete courses. Yes, there are good divers from the other agencies. No one will deny that. The problem is the other agencies do permit (maybe unwillingly) some instructors to put out what most of us would call crap. GUE certification isn't a given when you take the class. You do have to earn their card and must keep working at it to keep it. If you have a good instructor with one of the other agencies that won't settle for anything less than the best, more power to you, you probably just got excellent instruction. The problem is that the other agencies can't guarantee you will get that type of instructor.

I'd like to give you one very simple example (I have many more stories) of something I saw that seems all to typical down there. Two cave divers get in the water. They are arguing the whole time, so it's already off to a bad start. When they discuss gas management. One diver looks down at his SPG and says I have 3300 psi, my turn pressure is 2200 psi. The other states, I have 2400 psi, my turn pressure is 1600 psi. Then they descend. What in heck is that? Each of them just looked at there own SPG and assumed 1/3 was usable. No one determined who had the least amount of gas in order to calculate what the usable 1/3 would be. I can assure you that either these guys had become so complacent, or their instructors failed them miserably. I can assure you they were not GUE trained.

My instruction has been from PADI, TDI and GUE. The latter is far and away the most comprehensive.

Did both of these divers have the same CF size tanks? and do you think one diver would have proceded on when the other diver hit thirds? Or do you think that the diver with 3300 would have turned at 800 psi used?

Most divers down there know what the thirds rule is , and that it's the smaller of the tanks that controlles the dive. They also know about how to calc for differant size tanks. Maybe these divers have dove together so many times that they were a good team.( they were arguing, maybe they were freinds) It took me about one second to do the gas calcs in my head. It must take longer the GUE way, but it still adds up to the same. " the last third is not yours, It's your dive buddies"

 

[dweeb]

Does the term DIR bother people? As we have seen - yes.

No, I think, from the discussion here, the most accurate conclusion would be that some people allow themselves to be bothered by the name.
Such people are too easily bothered.

Is it one of the best marketing/advertising ploys that this industry has seen? Absolutely!!!!!

"It doesn't matter what they say about you, as long as they spell your name right."

 

[dweeb]

This may come as a suprise , but perfect buoancy isn't that hard.

Which begs the question, why is it so rare?

 

[dweeb]

The fact is she has dived for 30+ years, is in a field surrounded by world class marine biologists, respected captains, crews, marine engineers, aquaculture expertes, and professional divers, lives in Ft. Pierce, FL, currently dives, and has never heard of DIR.

But if someone who is surrounded by professional divers on a regular basis has not heard of DIR, then can it be that big? Maybe they don't mention it?

It still isn't a valid conclusion. She is one person. Her experience is not in any way applicable to the generalizations you make.

The plural of anecdote is not data.

 

[dweeb]

Or perhaps he's just saying thanks for helping him resolve an issue that, frankly, is none of your business.

Is it just me, or does your response sound suspiciously like yet another attempt to incite someone?

Not at all. I'm merely interested in knowing what your answer to his accusations was. Since it so effectively took the wind out of his sails, I'd think you'd be eager to share it.

 

[dweeb]

And, back on topic, just like the acronym DIR. Leave the ego out of it, and it won't bother you, right?

Precisely.

 

[dweeb]

Honestly Bob, most of this thread is an attempt to incite someone.

And I'd add that he sounds like he's trying to incite me.
The threats were clearly that.

 

[dweeb]

Now back to our sponsor....
DIR is a discription of an approach to one who is interested in bettering their skills. It does not suggest that one who declares this approach is a better diver than another, just that they are working to improve themselves. Yes it is a great marketing idea that has had an impact on the scuba industry, I wish I thought of it. It's suggestive conatation could make one feel offended or it could make one feel that perhaps with an honest look at themselves they need to improve their skills,

Which, ultimately, is a personal choice. The name can't make that choice for someone.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Not at all. I'm merely interested in knowing what your answer to his accusations was. Since it so effectively took the wind out of his sails, I'd think you'd be eager to share it.

Perhaps it wasn't the answer that mattered ... but the manner in which it was achieved.

I listened to what he had to say.

Rather than consider them "accusations", I took them as concerns.

I tried to see things from his perspective, then explained ... in a respectful way ... how I saw the situation.

As a result, we came to an agreement.

We did it in a way that didn't invalidate, or belittle, each other's viewpoints.

It's something you keep referring to as "PC" ... I prefer to think of it as common courtesy.

Believe it or not, it's an effective way to deal with people.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[dweeb]

My cousin is the smartest person I know, has dived longer than many people here have been alive, and dives professionally. I'll take her advice over just about anyone when it comes to diving, the ocean, marine biology, physics, and just about any other subject surrounding diving including (ohmygod) DIR divers.

So, you'd take her advice on something that you admit she knows nothing about? I think you're making too much of a yardstick out of your cousin, which is not fair to you OR her. She's a fallible human being; if she was a god, that would make you a titan.

You DIR folk better get this chip off you shoulder. I was considering DIRF as it seems like a good program. However based on these types of responses, I am reconsidering.

If you let that influence you that much, then truly, you need to re-evaluate your decision making mechanism. I can find someone from every agency in existence who can easily make you angrier than the DIR people.
Heck, I myself am a PADI member, and I seem to rub a whole lot of people the wrong way. Based on the decision methodology you are implying, that would mean you'd have to forgo all dive training.