Gender v. Water Temp.

[Blox]

I've heard all kinds of anecdotes about this and I've made some anecdotal observations of my own but let's see what the polls say

I'm in agreement with Diver0001 in that the way that you have set this poll up is probably not going to tell you what you were interested in. I think, however, the best way to go about this would have been to make a poll for self-proclaimed cold water divers and one for WWWs and separate by man/woman. This would have showed you whether the ratio of female divers among the cold water warriors is higher or lower than among the WWWs. That's what you wanted to know, isn't it?

I'm definitely a WWW but I don't see the boats around here being flooded with female divers.
Maybe I'm just on the wrong boats though

 

[Dive-aholic]

Rob
I'd get really interested in this phenomena if you swapped computers and came up with the same result. Have you tried it?

Alison

Actually, I thought about that right after posting. We're going to swap computers next time we dive.

 

[mrobinson]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/viewpoint/vp_binks/20050812.html

Love this - proving it's a matter of the "right" perspective!

 

[Wayward Son]

I can't answer the poll. I dive year round, the temps are both above & below 70F.

 

[HowardE]

Maybe you should ask people what temp and what thickness suit they wear?

Like when my wife and I dove last spring in Largo, we were wearing 7mm wetsuit. The water was 74 degrees... The DM on the boat was making fun of us, as he put on his 3mm wetsuit... However, he probably weighed about 260 LBS, whereas I weigh 170.

 

[GBIT]

I am A New England diveer so i am luckyto see 54 degrees in the ocean

 

[drbill]

Yes but we tend to have more body fat so we ought to stay warmer longer right?

But you have to have a mechanism to generate the heat (muscle mass) in order to retain it (fat = insulation). This is probably the main reason I dive warm- good muscle mass overlain with a layer of insulation that I wish wasn't 25mm!

As a scientist, I don't see enough data present in the questions and responses in this poll to really make many meaningful analyses.

Anecdotally, almost all the female divers I know prefer warmer waters (heck, so do I) and have more trouble maintaining body heat given the same wetsuit thickness, etc. Gross generalization and strictly from my personal experience. When I dive with a buddy it is almost always a female. When I dive solo, my pony doesn't seem to care!

 

[HowardE]

I agree with Dr Bill... There really is nothing scientific about the Poll...

And Gidds - My wife is ALWAYS cold (it's a wonder why we live in Colorado 2/3 of the year). ALWAYS COLD.... sometimes her hands are so cold that when she touches me it BURNS FROM COLD. I think maybe it has to do with circulation rather than body fat? I can't say for sure... I'm not a doctor, just someone who likes to inject their 2¢ wheather or not I am correct about it.

But really who knows alltogether on exposure suits and temp and sex... We dive in FL with a guy who goes DRY when the water goes below 80. I think it's all about how warm you want to BE. Wouldn't your air consumption be better (slower) when your're warm?

 

[Firebrand]

I had to say above 70 degrees because most of my dives have been conducted in FL, but the water temps were just above 70. However, the colder temps don't throw me off and I have been in MUCH colder water.

 

[lisa_j]

I'm just trying to figure outwhere all the other lady divers are up here where it's cold.

Hi Gidds -
From the Cape and I love diving here. This is my first year doing it, but the water has been between 45 and 68 in my experiences. My boyfriend and I are using 5mm suits, sometimes with a skin, and it's been great for us. Only once did we have to cut a dive short cause it was just TOO cold, but other than that, we're keepin it real in New England!! You get over that initial cold-water shock pretty fast!

-Lisa