Disheartened Diver Needing Advice!

[AnyaPetrova]

Hello all!

Firstly, another HUGE thank you to everyone for all their help! This is such a wonderful, friendly community! I'm really hoping you guys can come through again, and offer some much needed advice...

I'm half way through my open water class, and have no problem with the quizzes, skills, dives etc. What I can't seem to get right is the EQUIPMENT. I had to hurriedly purchase my gear (I found out 20 minutes before class that my LDS does NOT rent...), and nothing seems to have gone quite right, lol.

Masks: By the end of my first class, my Deep See Vantage was cutting into the space above my lip so badly I looked like I'd had botched surgery! Three patient staff stuck every mask under the sun on my face, but everything seems to hang down too far below the nose, digging into my upper lip area (children's masks don't, but are generally too small).

Fins: My Scuba Pro Twin Speed fins felt wonderfully powerful on day one, but when I got home, I noticed a funny red mark on each foot. This morning, those marks were full blown bruises (I'm Scots / Irish, so I bruise if you look at me too hard), and made swimming painful. I'd been wearing boots, and nothing felt too tight, so I'm at an utter loss.

The result? I spent my four hours in the water today 1) purging a loose mask every 2 minutes 2) swapping said mask for a painful pinch 3) whimpering to myself every time I started to flutter kick!

Scuba diving isn't quite so much fun when it hurts, and I left the pool today not wanting to get back in!

Does anyone know of a short-under-the-nose, made-for-a-narrow-face mask, or have a fin suggestion for a not-overly-strong 22 year old girl?

Thanks so much...I know I'll love it when I can get the darned gear right!!

 

[Wookie]

Wow. It seems that softer is better for you. The LDS should have a pair of twin jets for you to try instead of the twin speeds. The foot pocket of the twin jets is the softest I've seen. Same for the mask. Any new mask with a soft skirt shouldn't leave either a mark or cause pain. Does the silicone feel soft to you when you touch it? Maybe you got an older mask that has been in the shop too long. Or, you could try growing a big hairy moustache like I have. The mask won't bother near as much. You'll still have to clear it every 2 minutes, though.

 

[TSandM]

For me, the biggest thing in fins is that they fit tightly enough, but not too tight. If they are loose, they wiggle and bruise my feet. If they are too tight, my feet cramp. The ideal fit is comfortable (no feeling of pinching) but the fins are absolutely stable on my feet.

I can't really help you with the mask. I went through a bunch of them before I found one that didn't leak. It's a Deep Sea mask, but I have no idea if my face is anything like yours.

 

[richerso]

Wow! I am at a loss. I gotta believe that your LDS has some competent personnel around trying to fit you into this gear. It would be tough for any of us on SB/TSD to diagnose/rectify remotely.

If all of your LDS personnel simply and utterly fail to correct this situation, then my advice would be the following (sorry. this is the best I can come up with):

Suffer through this class to get your certification and then we will all worry about correcting the equipment issues later. I know this isn't a great answer; but it seems to be the best answer my DIMWIT brain can come up with at such a late hour.

Off hand, I don't explicitly know of any brand of mask (or fins) that fits small faces better. I am sure there is a brand out there that does it. I am just not aware of the brand name. Ladies, help me out here. I have a huge guy face.

 

[YellowfinKunkfish]

I had similar mask problems! You might try the Mares Liquidskin. It's made with a really soft skirt, and molds to your face. I LOOOOOVE mine. Scuba Toys sells them. They are a little pricey as far as masks go, but worth every penny.

Rhonda

 

[robertarak]

Atomic masks a great frameless mask. Last year they came out with that mask in what the call a "medium" size. It is designed for a smaller face. I have seen a number women have great success with this mask. Give it a try!

 

[Klantz]

It has already been suggested, but a mares liquid skin or they also make a mid skirt which has a smaller skirt around it. As far as fins, the twin jets are some of the softest easiest fins to use, see if you can get a pair of those or see if they will let you use a neoprene sock with a full foot fin. Just a few suggestions... sorry the gear isn't working the way you want.

 

[Crazyduck]

Unfortunately the reality is the staff is trying to prepare you to go diving. They have a specified amount of time for classroom, pool and then time at the lake.
The results is that you spend as much time as they can cram into getting you prepared. This is done by what we call muscle memory; by doing the same task over and over.
So you are going to be in the pool for hours learning with other people so they can take you to the lake and go diving. The down side of modular training. What you do in a week took a year in the 1960’s.

Here’s the oxymoron when you start diving your dives will be probably half an hour each and you clear your mask maybe once per dive. So the irritation that you feel now is a combination of your skin complaining and having to do the skills multiple times in the same session. I know the questions is- but why?
There is a very good reason for this; it’s called life support. This is the only sport were you as a civilian you are taught a skill that will keep you alive in a alien environment in which you cannot see or breathe in naturally. The real reason you learn to clear your mask- in case someone kicks it off or the mask strap breaks and it comes off. Most of us have had it happen at some point; start teaching and it happens even more . So they are preparing you to learn and operate in this hostile environment. They are also teaching you to think critically; so when ‘dog muck hits the rotating isolating fan’ you can act in a safe manner.

Back to the uncomfortable fit.
If your skin is irritated nothing is going to feel good or decent. Like before it’s really because you are adding an element to your normal lifestyle.
Try to loosen your mask first and make sure the strap is higher on the back of your head. I am guessing you have that mask so tight that its digging into your face.
Remember at any point you exhale and it will remove any slight amount of water. Relax…. Breathe deep and enjoy.

Fins- bet dollars to doughnuts that they are too tight and you are kicking too hard. When you kick you are applying force to either your ankle (my weak spot), the top or bottom of your foot.
Slow it down, you are moving the fin through the water and that is applying pressure to your skin. When you kick you are also pushing the fins off and the strap is holding it in place.
With diving you will moving at a slow pace, so keep it slow and that will result in better breathing and using less energy. (slow it down)
So put on your bootie- it should not be tight. Then slide it into the fin pocket, and pull up the fin strap. The fin strap should be a just tight enough to hold it in place no… tighter. If its tight then it drives the foot pocket into your bootie causing the bruising and if it’s too loose then it chaffs from the pocket pulling away and then sliding back on. It takes time to find a happy medium.
The next issue is learning to kick, split fins are usually very forgiving but you have to kick like to literature says and no bicycle kick.

Believe it or not being in the upright position (head up) is the worst underwater. You tend to kick to fix your buoyancy problems (all new divers do this.) Once you have been diving and get into the horizontal position then this stops. Matter of learning the ropes.

There are pro’s and con’s to all dive gear, matter of finding what you like and what are your expectations.
Good luck and feel free to ask questions.

Later, Andrew

 

[chrispete]

I agree with TSandM, it's most likely that the fins are too big for you. Too tight would tend to cause blisters and cramps, too big will result in the top of the fin pocket knocking against your foot/ankle every time you kick. Here a way to check:

Sit down, put a bootie and fin on, snug up the strap (don't crank down on it, just enough to keep your foot from slipping out) and then quickly move your foot around. Up, down, side to side. It should feel like an extension of your leg/foot with no jarring feel to it. If you find that there's a small impact at the start and end of each movement then the fin is too large for you.

I'll also throw in a vote for trying a Mares Mid/LiquidSkin mask (I think they make a Mid that is LiquidSkin as well now) as these masks have a very short skirt under the nose and will help fix your troubles in that area.

Hope you can get your troubles resolved, diving's supposed to be fun and there's no reason to suffer with ill-fitting equipment. It's a problem that can be fixed, and rather easily at that.

 

[TSandM]

Just another thing I thought of . . . You can't do ANYTHING about fins that are too small, but if fins are a little too big, you can deal with that by changing your footgear. For example, my Large Jets are too big for the wetsuit booties I have, and bruise and chafe my feet. But instead, I use Converse High Top tennis shoes in them, and they fit perfectly -- stable and comfortable. So that might be an option for you.