Do I need a Dive Master as a new OW certified?

[2toDive]

Very good question you are asking. When I dove in the Florida Keys in 2008 I decided not to pay the extra expense for a dive master. Me and my wife had approximately 90 dive each with most of these being in the Caribbean Ocean. All of the dives were fairly shallow that we did (20-30 ft) and any diver would assume that these are easy.
The problem is that there is a lot more going on in the ocean than an inland quarry. There might be waves, current and surge that you have to contend with. The underwater topography can sometimes be confusing. Your dive boat ties up to a mooring buoy and in the water you go. You get you bearing and start you dive. You go from this reef feature to the next and so on. You will see so many fish and other creatures that you visually get overwhelmed. Before you know it the location of you entry is soon forgotten. Trying to find a dive boat when you are under water is not as easy as people might think.
I was able to get us back to the boat most of the time, but there was one dive with sharks and eagle rays that we were chasing around that soon I had lost my bearings. We had to surface to find the boat and had quite a swim on the surface against the current. Little incidents like these are how the dive fatalities you read about in DAN Magazine begin.
If its you first time in the ocean, I would take a dive master. If you don't want to pay the extra cost, go to a dive destination (almost everywhere in the world except the USA) where a DM is included with your dives. Good Luck and Enjoy Diving!!!

Just got back from Roatan and heading to Okinawa! It's great being retired!!!

 

[namerg]

Wow, thank you. Enjoy your retirement @2toDive

 

[uboettger]

namerg: For your first dive in the ocean there is another problem that you probably don't see as an OW diver right now: If you don't get a DM or instructor but an "instant buddy" how is your buddy system going to work at all? How will you be able to help and assist your buddy? Why would you expect from someone else who is not getting paid for it to actively help you through your first ocean dive with nothing in return when it comes to safety within the buddy team? Please do yourself a favor and use the help of a professional for your first ocean dives.

 

[namerg]

Thank you all. A Dive Master and the SMB to start. Thank you, thank you.

 

[RJP]

PS - don't assume the boat will assign you a buddy. A great many will not.

 

[uboettger]

Down at the Red Sea divers are often required to have 20 or 30 dives to be able to dive in a buddy team without the - otherwise mandatory - dive guide who usually is at least a DM.

 

[RJP]

How will you be able to help and assist your buddy? Why would you expect from someone else who is not getting paid for it to actively help you through your first ocean dive with nothing in return when it comes to safety within the buddy team? Please do yourself a favor and use the help of a professional for your first ocean dives.

Why do you assume a certified diver would be helpless and unable to assist a buddy? Since when does a buddy get "nothing in return" and expect to be paid to be a good, attentive buddy? Whether their buddy is a new diver or an experienced diver should be immaterial.

 

[Belzelbub]

Since you are asking, I'd recommend going with the DM on your first ocean dive. You seem to be a bit apprehensive about this dive, and given your previous experiences, going with a DM will be good for from a psychological perspective. This will help to put you at ease, which will likely translate into an enjoyable experience. You don't want your first ocean dive to be a stressful one, which could sour you on the idea of ocean dives.

FWIW, I've never dove with a DM after certification, but then I did not dive at all between my first and second OW certs. I just was not comfortable after the first class, which is probably because that first class did not meet any standards, at least by today's standards. There were no pool sessions, and only two checkout dives. I missed one of those dives, and still got my cert. So after that, I was just not comfortable diving.

The second OW cert left me much more comfortable as it was a University course with a lot more diving. We did 5 or 6 ocean dives, and about 4 hours of pool session each week.

So my OW certs were atypical on both sides of the spectrum, and since my first real checkout dives were in the ocean, I was more comfortable with ocean dives at the end of my second cert than you are. So, I say go for the DM and enjoy your dive.

 

[TMHeimer]

RJP is right in that I have dived solo without having been assigned a buddy (once, I think--so, I broke the rules..). I may disagree with his post that ""why a certified... diver/buddy helpless to assist..?" My first "buddy" was an experienced diver (husband of an Instructor), who left me to catch lobsters (you can legally do that other than in Maritime Canada, and we were on the FL panhandle)
at 78 fsw--on my FIRST boat dive.
.

 

[NAM001]

Nameg,

Your question cant be answered because no-one knows what your OW means. You are the product of the instructor that trained you. If he did a bare minimum job then you are a bare min OW and probably should have a DM with you For a few dives. oN the other hand some instructors will have trained you to a AOW leveland beyond and issued the OW card cause that is the course you paid for. I have seen many new OWs that can dive circles around so called seasoned AOWs, its all instructor quality that says what you are capable of. I suspect that if you are unsure then definitely get a DM for at least one dive outing (in a new environment) and ask for feedback on your skills. If he answers you honestly then you will know. Each dive is a learning opportunity and none of us are done learning yet. So I suggest you plan the dive, discuss it with your dm, modify as needed, and go do it.

Hello,
I am planing to visit south Florida on mid April. It will be my first time scuba diving into the ocean. I found and operator according to Google reviews I called them but they do not offer a dive master unless you want it and pay. Obviously, I will have a buddy or they will assign it to me.

Question: Do I need to dive with the dive master as a newbie or my buddy will be enough ?

Thanks for your help,