beester
Contributor
If you look at the cave diving accidents that do occur, most if not all of them could have been avoided by following normal (non overhead obstruction) diving practice, such as watching air consumption, good navigation and not stirring up silt.
Hey 60 plus,
What is good air consumption and reserve planning in context of cave/overhead diving? What are the techniques you use to not stirr up silt in confined spaces? What are the navigational techniques you can use while diving overhead/confined spaces (wreck penetration, caves)? Can you please elaborate on this?
I've read some of your posts on this board. You seem to know a lot, for someone who claims to be just a vacation diver with less than 100 dives under his belt. You give your opinion on drysuit diving while never have dived a drysuit, you share your experience on decompression diving while never have done any real deco diving, you seem to know a lot about cave diving accidents, and how to mitigate the risks involved... and finally in a very funny twist you share your opinion on internet divers vs real divers... which is in this context very funny. So please share...
The reason I react so harsh is because I was you (well a much younger version of you)... about 12 years ago. I started diving in 1990 (when I was 14) but did less than 100 dives before I stopped. Then i started again in 2005, and realized, that I was a natural. I progressed from your equivalent of ocean diver to dive leader and advanced diver in 18 months, doing 150 dives in that time. I bought equipment, went on some holidays, and was taken under the arm of the most experienced diver (instructor) of my local CMAS club. I started wreck diving in the north sea and was very gun ho, doing progressively more and more penetration, taking portholes, catching lobsters... and all that. I experimented with solo diving, I bought a double set and used it without any training, I knew the risks (or thought I knew them) and I was becoming a rising star in my local club... the president of our club even asked if I didn't want to become an instructor after 2 years of restarting diving! I talked the talk... participated on a lot of forums, giving advice to new divers on a broad range of topics! ... yes I was something!
Then on a nasty summer day, I found myself inside a wreck, getting caught in monofilament (netting), at the worst time without any real gas reserve, and I realized at that time, that all that gun ho talking with a beer after a dive about "dying happy while doing the thing you love" is all ********! I didn't want to die! But I almost did. That put my feet firmly back on terra firma and I almost stopped diving because of it. (I even posted this on this board at the time trapped in net trying to ascend )
But it also slammed some modesty in me, and it started my still continuing voyage for more understanding. Slowly but steadily I gained more experience, changed equipment, changed some buddies, took more courses, realized some instructors were just big fish in little ponds and I needed experts to teach me, took more courses and dived dived dived. In the meanwhile I've met some world class divers, and I was lucky enough to have dived with some of them on projects.
Most of the time I encounter someone like you it's or a instructor from a small local dive club (big fish in a small pond) or a student (typically young and male,with a lot of confidence and in water skill), but it 's the first time I've encountered an older guy with, probably, a lot of life experience.
I realize that you probably feel a bit defensive, you just posted about a sea cavern dive, and we all let loose on you. Maybe you are right, and the cave/cavern isn't really that dangerous... but I'm quite sure looking at your posts, that you are overestimating your skill and ability to evaluate risk, and I just hope that the angry tiger that always lurks underwater will never bite you in the ass!
Cheers
PS: **** that's a long post... must be a slow day at work ;-)