Donning

[CALI68]

Precisely. Personally my issue is getting out of the suit rather than getting in the suit. If my hands don't get wet or sweaty, I can get into the suit just fine without anything. It's when my hands are wet and I'm trying to get out of the suit that I need something.

And talc just doesn't do much good when trying to get out of a damp suit. Not to mention it's messy and eventually gets into your valves and such.

And it's a great conversation piece, intimidator [when combined with a nod, a psycho grin, and gestures with a scout light], and the entertainment potential is only limited by your creativity.

I'm rolling! "gestures with a scout light" Hillarious!

 

[JDostal]

I'm going to try messing w/ people w/ KY on my next boat trip

Like others I have a very set routine when I get ready.

I have an F-150, so when doing shore dives I have an awesome platform to put my rig onto. It's just the right height for me for a painless entry. Anyway..here goes my routine.

Carry deco bottle(s) to water (or set near me on boat). Hook up battery in canister light. Attach bp/w - whether to doubles or singles. Screw in secondary reg. Screw in primary reg. Attach bc inflator hose. Clip SPG onto left chest d-ring. Route my drysuit hose, secondary reg and primary reg to my right hand side. Clip my primary/long hose off.

Attach canister light. Put belt buckle up against canister. Put goodman handle on light head, clip next to primary reg. Attach safety reel to d-ring (left side).

Take out mask, apply anti-fog goop. Place reg dust covers, light head coozy, keys and the case for my dive watch into mask case.

Place fins and mask next to rig. Go get drysuit bag, put hood and drygloves on the fin pile. Take out the drysuit, put my compass on one arm and my divewatch w/ z-knife on the other. Go get insulation bag, set wool gloves on fin pile. Get into insulation. Get into drysuit. Put hood on. Put mask on head. Put wool gloves on, put drygloves on. Slip into rig. Hook up crotch strap, tighten the belt. Attach drysuit hose. Route secondary reg. Route primary reg. Adjust/detangle as necessary.

If diving from a boat, put on fins, and hook up deco bottle if using.

If diving from shore, grab fins and head down to water. Put on fins. Hook up deco bottle if using.

Hit the water. Unclip light head, get it onto hand. Do equipment matching w/ buddy. Do S-drills. Review plan. Turn on light head. Dive my a$$ off.

 

[CALI68]

Great thread.

 

[Viscya]

I must admit, it has taken me a year of diving BP and doubles to get the routine down. Its very close to some of those described here. It does not matter so much what your routine is, as long as you have it down. I was constantly forgetting something until I got into a routine.

My fear is that I will loose it if I'm have a break in the diving schedule. I'd like to have a good checklist, but where would you keep it? We could do the PADI thing and come up with an acronym.

My question to all of you is, how do you keep your routine? After a summer of diving my patute (sp) off, I have got a good routine worked out. Now how do you keep it?

 

[matt t.]

I must admit, it has taken me a year of diving BP and doubles to get the routine down. Its very close to some of those described here. It does not matter so much what your routine is, as long as you have it down. I was constantly forgetting something until I got into a routine.

My fear is that I will loose it if I'm have a break in the diving schedule. I'd like to have a good checklist, but where would you keep it? We could do the PADI thing and come up with an acronym.

My question to all of you is, how do you keep your routine? After a summer of diving my patute (sp) off, I have got a good routine worked out. Now how do you keep it?

Laminate a checklist and keep it with your "wetnotes" or tables. That way you'll always have a copy to refer to.
It sounds like everyone pretty much sets up their gear on the boat. I usually set my rig up at home so I know it's complete before I get to the site/boat. I hate having that feeling (half way there) that I forgot something.

 

[Spectre]

My question to all of you is, how do you keep your routine? After a summer of diving my patute (sp) off, I have got a good routine worked out. Now how do you keep it?

Run through it on scubaboard in a post so you can refer back to it later?

*shrug* I don't even realize I do it the same way every time... it's just the routine. I'm not really sure how something can be forgotten as it's everything that needs to be done before a dive.

 

[Viscya]

<snip>
It sounds like everyone pretty much sets up their gear on the boat. I usually set my rig up at home so I know it's complete before I get to the site/boat. I hate having that feeling (half way there) that I forgot something.

I often set mine up at home also. Makes the dive kit that much smaller. You know it's all there. You can give it a good inspection, and still have time to fix small problems. No salt spray while you are rigging. Lots of good reasons to do that.