Got My DM - But I Don't Want to Dive "This Way"...

[kdove]

I can't believe I ate the whole thing.reggers:

 

[bfw]

I remember the first time I saw someone diving without a weight belt, and it kind of blew my mind. It did change my thinking, and I was rather proud of myself the first time I managed a belt free dive.

Same for me. Of course, it took a few months of eating like a Tibetan monk and miles of running.

 

[bfw]

No, I can just remember how new everything was taking my OW cert myself. Its not about people being morons,

Oh, so it's just about TREATING them like they were morons?

its about explaining one thing to the entire class, teaching them the same thing, having them learn the same gear configurations so that you dont have to learn 4 different ways to donate/receive a spare air source on your very first dive..

And yet, people learn to drive on roads full of everything from Vespas to semis. I wonder where they're hiding all the bodies.

 

[bfw]

That's exactly my point... it ain't about you and what you want.

And I never said it was. I was responding to the admonition to figure out whether I really want to do this dive class thing, which I clearly quoted in front of my response. Do try to keep up.

It's about what's appropriate for BOW students.

And it's not appropriate to make them think weights are always needed, a point of view that leads to the idea that more weight is better.

They need a weightbelt so they can ditch it in emergencies.

Why? And don't just quote some manual, address the physics of the question.
While you're doing that, explain what benefit ditchable weight affords a diver who's stone negative in a wetsuit, with an AL80 at 500psi on his back. Then stop and figure out that maybe everyone isn't a human cork like you might be, and what the implications of that are for your one-size-fits-all weight policy.

they and their instructors have a right and obligation to control the training environment.

Never said they didn't. I made it clear several pages ago that the instructor is the boss, and if you don't like your employer's policies, the solution is to find another job. You REALLY need to pay better attention.

That said, the smart student will run from an instructor who makes them overweight themselves just for the sake of uniformity. And YES, 2 lb., let alone 4, can be overweighting for some people.

I don't normally wear a weightbelt either, but if I can put on 4lbs to help out by not confusing the students and causing them to question the validity of their instruction

They SHOULD question the validity of instruction that insists on overweighting divers for the sake of conformity.

 

[vladimir]

Just an observation...I stopped reading this thread after about page 8 or 9, then started again on page 29 (after a couple of weeks).

And the message (and people's viewpoints) never changed.

I was having the same thought recently after dropping in on the creationism vs. evolution thread. What a waste of time, I thought, nobody in this thread is listening to the opposing viewpoint. (And we all know that on ScubaBoard, the BP/W debate is as strongly felt as creationism vs evolution.) But in a public forum a logical argument (few and far between, I know) may sway some of the people who are reading with an open mind, but not posting. I, for example, now use a DSS BP/W, and I no longer believe that the earth was created 6,000 years ago.

 

[bfw]

Well, this is just me talking, but if they are properly weighted, and properly instructed in how to figure weights and do a bouyancy check when configurations change, they won't need ditchable weight.

BINGO!!!!!!!

Everyone, staff and students, should wear the RIGHT amount of weight, and that may well be zero.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

In the potholes. At least here in PA. We're famous for em. Hell some of em are big enough to dive in. But only in proper gear of course. I'm thinking of teaching a pothole specialty wearing potluck gear:14:. So if you have your converted fire extinguishers on a piece of plywood with old army web belts from popular science look me up. You can join the guys with doubles and Spare Airs:11:. They'll be teamed up with the poodle jacket crowd with long hoses. Nobody will be confused either. AT least at first. Once we start dodging semi's on deco and soccer mom's in SUV's:blinking: getting in and out it might get a little hairy. BTW me and my DM's will not be using regs. We'll just breath off of the tanks and your regs. I think I'll make this a prereq for my OW class!

 

[Tigerman]

Oh, so it's just about TREATING them like they were morons?



And yet, people learn to drive on roads full of everything from Vespas to semis. I wonder where they're hiding all the bodies.

So when educating people, If they cant go straight to university math without any basic math first, theire morons?
Are you allowed to drive a semi on a regular car license?

 

[MeiLing]

While it is nice to dive with a little weight on a weight belt as possible it is not always feasible. There was a time when I was extremely thin (16% body fat) and I still needed a weight belt with 8 lbs. Remember, I'm a woman. If we start hitting the single digits, we're on the verge of death. I was pretty damn skinny with no chest (size 2) and and very, very cut! If I dropped anymore weight, I'd start bobbing like a cork halfway thru the dive.

Also, I think one's bone structure also factors into the equation.

Good buoyancy and perfect weighting is certainly something to strive, but expecting that it is going to happen in an OW class, IMHO, is expecting a little much.

 

[DeepSeaExplorer]

BINGO!!!!!!!

Everyone, staff and students, should wear the RIGHT amount of weight, and that may well be zero.

As a DM that's been on a boat in the Keys where these newly certified divers show up immediately after certification, I can state that the NEED ditchable weight. They need it so the DM can swim over, ditch their weight, and get them buoyant before they panic.

An experienced diver, that's a different story... Please try to keep your thought consistent, bfw.