Diver Down question?!?
- Thread starter koozemani
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MountainManCO
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just purchased!
Ange used to write "Lessons For Life" (LFL), which were extremely similar, perhaps just like the stories in Diver Down. Many of his LFL stories can be found on the Scuba Diving Magazine website under Training/ Lessons For Life.
The newer LFL stories (no longer by Ange) are no where near as good. They are usually about a diver making a half dozen obvious mistakes, all presented rather bluntly. Nowadays the unfortunate diver has been too careless/stupid/clueless by paragragh 2 for the reader to be able to identify with him, and by paragraph 3 it's obvious how the story will end. Occasionally the story is something new and less obvious, but evene then the presentation and writing quality is still unremarkable.
Many of Ange's stories (both from the book and LFL) were particularly excellent in how he built the story up in a way that made you identify with the victim, and to feel as though you too could possibly have gotten yourself in this situation. It was particularly interesting how he occasionally exposed a risk, or the true magnitude of a risk, that the reader on his own would not so easily have realized. His constructive conclusions about what we can lesarn from each incidence are particularly interesting and well presented.
The current LFL is just nothing like this. But admittedly Ange would be a pretty hard act to follow.
The newer LFL stories (no longer by Ange) are no where near as good. They are usually about a diver making a half dozen obvious mistakes, all presented rather bluntly. Nowadays the unfortunate diver has been too careless/stupid/clueless by paragragh 2 for the reader to be able to identify with him, and by paragraph 3 it's obvious how the story will end. Occasionally the story is something new and less obvious, but evene then the presentation and writing quality is still unremarkable.
Many of Ange's stories (both from the book and LFL) were particularly excellent in how he built the story up in a way that made you identify with the victim, and to feel as though you too could possibly have gotten yourself in this situation. It was particularly interesting how he occasionally exposed a risk, or the true magnitude of a risk, that the reader on his own would not so easily have realized. His constructive conclusions about what we can lesarn from each incidence are particularly interesting and well presented.
The current LFL is just nothing like this. But admittedly Ange would be a pretty hard act to follow.
Hey Guys I just found this thread and I really appreciate all of the comments. More importantly I hope that the book is making a difference in the overall safety of our sport. To answer a few of the questions - I wrote "Lessons for Life" in SCUBA Diving Magazine from 2001 through early 2009. I established the article and tried to make it an entertaining read without detracting/distorting from the factual basis of the accidents discussed. When SDM was purchased by PADI's publisher in 2009 I opted not to renew my contract due to significant creative differences with where the column should go. We did publish the column under a different name "Diver Down" (Seaduction ® - Diver Down) on our groups web page consistently for a while but the readership has not been there so it has become more sporadic as other projects have consumed my time time. I would love to continue the column but we need a forum that gets readers - it is a lot of work and a fair amount of expense to develop an analysis for a few reader's a month. This is not about cash but putting the articles out where they will get the exposure to make a difference. If any of you have a suggestion on where that might be I would love to hear from you. Please PM me.
Thank you all again for your kind words.
Safe Diving,
Thank you all again for your kind words.
Safe Diving,
OP
koozemani
Contributor
Why not right here? I'm sure a forum could be created seperately from the A&I forum simply for such articles. If not a seperately forum, then maybe a regular article or blog page.
Griffo
Contributor
Hey Mike,
I think the A&I forum on Scubaboard is one of the most read here! I'd love to see your articles as a part of that, I think your readership would be quite significant.
BTW - loved your book, read it twice. And it may be a case of "same mistake" but i'm sure a couple of your stories read very very similar to some accident reports i've read on here.
I think the A&I forum on Scubaboard is one of the most read here! I'd love to see your articles as a part of that, I think your readership would be quite significant.
BTW - loved your book, read it twice. And it may be a case of "same mistake" but i'm sure a couple of your stories read very very similar to some accident reports i've read on here.
I just finished reading "Diver Down" a couple of weeks ago. In reading this thread, I've seen several folks voice the opinion this book should be recommended reading for prospective divers, or diving students at the start of their certification training. While I agree this book could be a valuable resource for any diver, I would respectfully disagree with its introduction at the very beginning of their diving experience.
Prospective divers or divers just beginning their first cert class have not yet received the necessary tools - knowledge - to properly interpret the stories in this book. To such newbies, the stories would be little more than "scare stories" which might have them checking real estate prices in Tucson or Denver - anywhere far from a large body of water.
I think the best time for exposure to this book would be at the immediate conclusion of a basic (or even an advanced) cert class. At such a time, a diver would be able to properly interpret these stories not as Faces of Diving Death, but as situations which could have been avoided by practical application of the training s/he has just received.
Prospective divers or divers just beginning their first cert class have not yet received the necessary tools - knowledge - to properly interpret the stories in this book. To such newbies, the stories would be little more than "scare stories" which might have them checking real estate prices in Tucson or Denver - anywhere far from a large body of water.
I think the best time for exposure to this book would be at the immediate conclusion of a basic (or even an advanced) cert class. At such a time, a diver would be able to properly interpret these stories not as Faces of Diving Death, but as situations which could have been avoided by practical application of the training s/he has just received.
OP
koozemani
Contributor
Hah, I live in Tucson. I will cocede that new divers might be served by reading this after their ow Certs. However, I think that waiting until AOW is to late. How many A&I incidents and stories in the book were new OW divers who may never peruse an AOW cert.
OP
koozemani
Contributor
I like your way of thinking. How about reading the book after OW and adding accident analysis as part of the AOW course
---------- Post Merged at 02:50 AM ---------- Previous Post was at 02:49 AM ----------
Which would make a good thread of its own. I'll start that one in the morning.
---------- Post Merged at 02:50 AM ---------- Previous Post was at 02:49 AM ----------
Which would make a good thread of its own. I'll start that one in the morning.
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