Dive Buddies

[kjunheart]

This past Saturday I did three dives in Florida. Two were reef dives in Deerfield Beach with Walter and one was a night/drift dive in West Palm Beach with Walter, Mac Giver & KBeck. I, of course, enjoyed all three. But something Walter had said to me earlier in the day stuck in my brain. So I thought I’d share it with you and how it affected me.

He said that I should do two things to keep diving interesting. One, change your dives. Don’t always dive the same place or do the same type of dive. Second, dive with different people. It wasn’t until after the night dive did what he said (about diving with different people) really hit me.

Our Saturday night dive was my 29th dive. (29th on the 29th Woo Hoo!)! I would say that on 80% of my dives Mac Gyver has been my dive buddy. Although he is a newbie as well, he is a natural when it comes to diving. He was the person who helped me become more comfortable and safer in the water. He helped me get a bit squared away as far as my equipment & other general diving stuff that my OW course did not teach me. When diving with him, I like being his shadow. He is the adventurous one (going under rocks, chasing sharks , etc.) and I get the most incredible sense of peace just being under water and being his support/buddy. Part of the fun is watching him explore. As his buddy, he knows that he won’t have to look for me. That all he has to do is look to his right and I will be there which I guess is a comforting feeling as well.

The first time I dove with Walter I felt a bit intimidated because of his experience and my lack of experience diving. But, diving with him, I found a new confidence in myself. I actually felt comfortable being a bit adventurous. I even got right in there with him while we were lobster hunting which was something I was a bit apprehensive about before. Having him as a buddy made me feel exhilarated and made it all the more fun. But something I also realized is just because I am so new doesn’t mean that I don’t also offer something to him as a dive buddy. I think he enjoyed watching me as I explored and saw things for the first time. I have seen seasoned divers take for granted or have forgotten what it is like to see (for the first time) a massive ray sitting in the sand or watching a giant sea turtle sleeping under a ledge. By diving with someone as new as I am, he gets to experience all of the excitement and thrill again but through my eyes.

I have spoken to divers and read some of the posts here on the board about dive buddies. For the most part, I always thought it was just about safety. But I see now how much more a dive buddy can contribute to a dive. By diving with different people, you allow yourself to experience different things and learn a different way – something you can take back & share with your other dive buddies. Where I was apprehensive about diving with other people, I now look forward to the opportunity! I know every dive is a learning experience but this was a cool revelation for me.

So questions I have for anyone who wants to answer: What does your dive buddy bring to your dive? And how does he or she enhance your dives?

Thanks to my dive buddies & to you for reading my post!

Sandy

 

[WreckWriter]

Nice post Sandy. Its good to see that you're having so much fun. I think maybe as we gain experience and start to specialize our diving we tend to lose some of the pure fun. Sure, we continue to enjoy ourselves but the "fun" is replaced by other things, thrills for me, maybe other things for other people. Posts like yours bring back some of the way I felt when it was all new to me, when reefs and fish and such were still exciting.

I'm not surprized that diving with Walter is comfortable for you. He tries to act rough sometimes but I think he's a real nice guy at heart

WW

 

[Former FLL Now MSP Diver]

WreckWriter once bubbled...
Posts like yours bring back some of the way I felt when it was all new to me, when reefs and fish and such were still exciting.

Oh no - don't tell me that the excitement ever stops!

Marc

 

[WreckWriter]

FLL Diver once bubbled...
Oh no - don't tell me that the excitement ever stops!

Marc

No, but for me it changed. Personally I'm only interested in wrecks these days, I'd just as soon stay on shore as do a reef dive. It wasn't always that way though.

WW

 

[ckharlan66]

are what alot of this sport is about. I have met many people from this area (mainly but not exclusively through this board) and I enjoy diving with all of them. I am relatively new too and I enjoy diving with those that are more experienced than me as well as those that are newer than myself. I take something from each dive with each of them.

I also consider many on this board that I have not dove with to be my dive buddies because they have shared so much information and fun times with me that have aided in my diving. Even though I have never got wet with them they are my dive buddies too and add a lot to my dives as well as my SI's.

 

[pcscuba]

This is a pretty good thread. I don't think that diving with a buddy is just about safety. Don't get me wrong, diving with a buddy is safer but it can also be some what of a bonding experience. I just got back from the Keys last week where I went diving with my Father-in-law. It was nice to be able to experience things that neither one of us had ever experienced and we did this together. Those dives are something we will always remember. It also made me feel alot more comfortable with my skills and his skills. Anyway, just my 2 cents

 

[MechDiver]

Although most of the people who know me make me dive solo :upset: , if I find a stranger to dive with, its generally more fun to have someone along. After dive times are also more enjoyable to talk over how the dive went, etc.

With tech dives, a partner is a necessity.

MD

 

[Walter]

"He tries to act rough"

That's never my intention. I am aware that at times I'm clueless as to how my posts come across.

"Oh no - don't tell me that the excitement ever stops!"

It will unless you're careful not to let it. When you've seen tens or hundreds of thousands of Barracuda, it's kinda tough to get excited about a Barracuda. OTOH, when your buddy has never seen a Barracuda and you can see the mixture of fear and excitement in his face, it's quite easy to get a contact high from the experience.

"I'd just as soon stay on shore as do a reef dive."

I went through a period like that about 15 years ago. Diving with beginners helped me put it behind me. To this day, tell me we're going diving and I'll ask if we're diving a wreck. When you tell me it's a shallow reef, I feel a let down. Once I'm actually on the reef, if I watch my attitude, I have a grand time.

Sandy is still new enough to get excited about all the cool stuff she sees on every dive. Had I been alone, I would have barely noticed the pair of rays in the sand. Both of these rays were large, one very large, but I've seen bigger. Having Sandy there made it an event! The night dive Krista reported was an opportunity to experience that high from three buddies at once.

 

[Spectre]

That's a _really_ interesting question, and one that I never really thought about. After I think a little I can't come up with much substantial that I've gotten from different buddies, aside of friendship and all that.

After more thoughts, I think of the times when I've gotten things out of a buddy, and I realized it was when they were leading the dive, and I saw their procedures and their techniques.

The thing is I'm generally the leader. It's just worked out that way. I was the leader in the final dive of my OW class. I was the leader on 34 of my first 40 dives; and only 2 of the six was with someone that I will ever dive with again.

So I suspect the benefit of multiple dive partners is far greater for the followers than the leaders...

Hmm... I'm gonna have to chew on this one for a while more....

 

[WreckWriter]

Walter once bubbled...
"He tries to act rough"

That's never my intention. I am aware that at times I'm clueless as to how my posts come across.

I was just playing with you Walter.

WW